Requirements and Training
Patagonian Mountain Skills Course

Skills Required

No experience is necessary for this course as it starts at the beginning, teaching you day-to-day skills of mountain life: moving with a heavy backpack, selecting and securing a campsite, and staying warm and dry in inclement weather. You will take on more responsibility as the course progresses, to develop your own leadership skills.

Training and Qualifications

Students who meet requirements will earn an Outdoor Leader Certification (OLC). The OLC is an award from the Wilderness Education Association, an association of universities and outdoor education programs across the US whose goal is to standardize the training and education that prospective guides will receive. Following the WEA’s 18 point cirruculum, students will, over the course of the expedition, learn what would be necessary to lead a group of peers in the backcountry for a week. Please note, if participants fail to meet WEA standards, they will not be awarded an OLC. It is not a default certification of completion, but something that must be earned.

During your expedition students will acquire a wide range of mountaineering and backcountry skills. Risk management is an underlying aspect of all these skills. Skills received can include:

Campsite Selection, Tent Pitching for any conditions, Map and Compass Use, On and Off Trail Navigation, GPS Use, Rations Planning, Packing, Gourmet Backcountry Cooking, Communications in the field, Natural History of Patagonia, Glaciology, Local Flora and Fauna,Weather and Climate, Roping Up for Glacial Travel, Crevasse Rescue, Knots, Snow and Ice Anchors, Belaying, Snow and Ice Climbing Techniques, Crampon Techniques, Self Arrest, River Evaluation and Crossing, Backcountry Sustainability, Leave No Trace Camping and Travel, Backcountry Weather Evaluation