Summer Camp Wilderness Trip Leader

Wilderness Trip Leader

Position

Co-lead 3-day backpacking adventures with campers ages 8-17 to locations around Vermont while facilitating development in outdoor living skills, nature appreciation, and personal growth.

Trip Leaders are responsible for holding the “big picture” of each program day and ensuring that programs are operated in accordance with program and organizational protocols.

When not on an off-site trip, Trip Leaders will facilitate camp activities as an Activities Counselor and provide staff support as needed.

About us

At Camp W we work daily to achieve a cultural intervention that will bring back into our modern lives a necessary and healthy relationship with the natural world. The diverse and wild ecosystems that span more than 250 acres across our mountain offer the best of convenience and vast natural beauty to explore. At Camp W we are champions of land and village. We are navigators of an epic world that needs to exist. We are a community where we remember the celebration of hearth, family, respect for the land and a timeless human story.

In all that we do, we role model a sense of appreciation, gratitude, and reverence for the abundance that the natural world provides for us. Through this act of thanksgiving we begin to see our direct impacts and the great potential we each have to nurture the health of our environment as well as our human family. Leading from the heart in all of our interactions has illuminated our lives in ways that we model for all youth.

Position Requirements

• High School diploma, GED, or equivalent.
• First Aid/CPR and Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness First Responder, or Wilderness EMT required.
• Pass a CORI background check.
• Attend staff training week.
• Must be able comply with all state, federal and Camp standards.
• Must be able to lift and carry at least 30 lbs. as well as be capable of standing for long periods of time and adjusting from sitting to standing with ease.
• Knowledge and experience leading backcountry backpacking trips.
• Experience working with children preferred.

Risk Management: Successful Trip Leader candidates will be able to demonstrate effective risk-benefit analysis in a remote setting. Decision-making should balance safety, learning, and fun with an emphasis on conservative judgment when evaluating the intersection of environmental and human risk factors.

Interpersonal: Successful Trip Leader candidates will demonstrate clear and concise communication with campers and co-workers. Working with children requires creating safe and inclusive spaces where their identities and experiences are seen and affirmed. We are looking for leaders who can deliver, receive, and integrate feedback. We are also looking for people who are ready to have a lot of fun and infuse camp with a sense of joy for life.

Technical: Successful Trip Leader candidates will demonstrate the required technical skills to feel comfortable in remote settings while caring for participants. Experience planning, preparing, and executing short to extended backpacking, canoeing, or sea kayaking trips is recommended.

Educational and Leadership: Successful Trip Leader candidates will have experience in one of the fields of education, childcare, outdoor recreation, or other child-focused industry. Most importantly, successful candidates are dedicated to lifelong learning and are willing and able to take ownership for their development as an outdoor education professional.

Strong applicants enjoy working with children/teens, are calm in uncertain situations, are able to manage their own time/responsibilities, and are confident in their ability to contend with unique situations and problem solve in a backcountry setting. Trip Leaders must have experience in backcountry hiking/camping.

Trip Leader Skills

• High level of experience being out in the wilderness, and high level of comfort leading others in the wilderness
• Able to lead a variety of trips: backpacking, canoeing, climbing, etc.
• Knowledge and practice of wilderness medicine. (Wilderness First Aid, Wilderness First Responder, or ability to acquire one)
• Extremely organized; can handle the management of multiple areas of trip leading: including people, equipment, and logistics
• Trip Leaders are self-reliant, have good judgement, and will be calm and collected in uncertain situation
• Time management; keep up with the trip itinerary in the wilderness as well as planning appropriate meal times and snacks
• Stamina; Trip Leaders are on 24/7 when they are in the wilderness and are expected to meet the physical demands of each trip
• Community involvement; when not in the backcountry trip, leaders will perform wilderness-related tasks at camp, facilitate main camp activities, and be a positive and active part of the community
• Experience in leading trips in the backcountry, and the ability to use a map and compass

Trip Leader Tasks

• Help execute numerous trips of different types
• Communicate with Program Coordinator
• Complete all pre-trip tasks including: write trip itinerary, pack gear, pack food, pre-trip contact with each participant
• Co-plans with Kitchen Director all meals within Camp W's food philosophy and food budget
• Organize equipment for trips
• Complete all post-trip tasks including: clean, repair, and store all gear, debrief with Program Coordinator and Camp Director
• Practice and educate campers on Leave No Trace principles
• Monitor and guard the emotional, physical, and mental health of each camper
• Evening embers every night for campers
• Engage with the rest of the camp community to offer fun, memorable experiences even beyond the realm of leading trips in the wilderness

Check out our website to gain a better understanding of how our campers spend their summers here with us on Mt. Solitude! www.campw.org

Please apply with your resume, and a brief cover letter describing why you think you’d be an ideal candidate for this position with Camp W.

Start date: June 16th, 2024

End Date: August 12th 2024

Job Types: Full-time, Contract, Temporary

Pay: $1,700.00 per month

Schedule:

• 12 hour shift
• Monday to Friday
• Weekends as needed

License/Certification:

• Wilderness First Responder Certificate (Preferred)
• Wilderness First Aid Certification (Preferred)
• Wilderness EMT Certification (Preferred)

Work Location: In person