Have you always wanted to take your Scouts backpacking in late winter and early spring but don’t know where to go? Exciting possibilities exist in the deserts of California, Arizona and Utah. Try the Boy Scout Trail or Camelback Trek in Joshua Tree National Park, Kelso Dunes in the Mojave National Preserve, Surprise Canyon or Telescope Peak in Death Valley National Park, to name a few. The slot canyons of northern Arizona and southern Utah beckon adventurous Scouts and Scouters. 

This course will get you thinking and started and builds upon the principles and skills taught in the Basic Backpacking Course which is a prerequisite to this course. Covered in the 4 hours of classroom are seasonal considerations, how to choose your desert trails considering Scouts, what to wear trekking the desert, water availability and management, packing lightly but safely, and hazards specific to the desert such as day time radiation and night time cold, flash floods and sharp things like scorpions, cacti and rattlers.

The overnighter is a 5-mile round trip out of the southern trailhead (Keys West) of the Boy Scout Trail in Joshua Tree National Park.  An easy one to get you started.

Prerequisite: Basic Backpacking Course (taught spring and fall)

Cost: $40.00...roster limited to the first 12 students who sign up. Additional sign-ups as cancellations occur. Additional cost (food and fuel) for the Boy Scout Trail Backpack.