ORANGE COUNTY COUNCIL

 HIGH ADVENTURE TEAM

COVID-19 MODIFIED DESERT BACKPACKING COURSE

CLASSROOM: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2021…8:00 am-12:00 pm

IRVINE RANCH OUTDOOR EDUCATION CENTER COVID-19 PRECAUTIONS

OVERNIGHTER BACKPACK: OCTOBER 9-10, 2021

BOY SCOUT TRAIL-JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK

Have you always wanted to take your Scouts hiking/backpacking in late winter and early spring but do not know where to go? Exciting possibilities exist in the deserts of California, Arizona, and Utah. Try the Boy Scout Trail or California Riding and Hiking Trail in Joshua Tree National Park, Kelso Dunes in the Mojave National Preserve, 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 over Easter/Spring Break.

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 daytime radiation and nighttime cold, flash floods and sharp organisms like scorpions, cacti and rattlers.

The overnighter (October 9-10) is a 6-mile round trip out of the northern trailhead (Indian Cove) 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 10 students who sign up. Additional sign-ups as cancellations occur.

Additional cost (food and fuel) for the Boy Scout Trail Backpack.

The Covid-19 Pandemic may require the classroom course to be conducted outdoors at the Irvine Ranch OEC.