Registration for the 2023 NCAC-sponsored Philmont Backpacking Treks is now open. As the traditional backpacking expedition at Philmont, these 12-day treks give crews the opportunity to hike for 10 days in the backcountry with a day of arrival/departure on each end of the journey .Once at Philmont, crews participate in High Adventure program activities throughout their trek. Crews choose their own itinerary, covering 50-120 miles in selected portions of the 144,000+ acre Ranch. In addition, NCAC crews depart two days before arriving at the Ranch for tours at high altitude and a white-water rafting trip. The NCAC High Adventure Committee (HAC) manages all trip logistics and conducts four training sessions to prepare you for this High Adventure of your life.

CREW SIZE: A Philmont crew has a minimum of eight and a maximum number of twelve participants with at least two, but no more than four, adults and a majority of youth participants. The number of yout's must be equal to, or more than, the number of adults. There are three crews available on this trip date, each with at least eight, but no more than twelve, crew members each.

NOTE: If all crews do not fill to capacity, NCAC reserves the right to consolidate the crews in order to offer the lowest cost possible. This applies to any crew of less than twelve registrants, including those reserved by one unit (see below).

REGISTRATION: Please follow these instructions to register and make online payments for all crew members. These treks are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Each of the three crews may either be booked entirely by one unit or become a provisional crew of individuals from several units. Here are directions for registering for both of these crew types:

UNITS WITH EIGHT OR MORE PARTICIPANTS: A Registration Contact should be designated for the crew. This person must be 21+ years old and ideally will be the crew adult Lead Advisor. This person will also be responsible for entering crew information on Philmont's online Gateway once this NCAC registration is complete .This role can be transferred to someone else if circumstances change. The Registration Contact should select an open crew slot (i.e., one with no existing registered participants) and sign up as the Registration Contact for that crew. Go thru the registration process to register at least one participant and pay the $700 initial deposit. You may enter the names of other known participants and provide the deposit payment at this time, or have them register themselves (see below). Registering and paying the deposits for a crew of at least eight participants will reserve it for your crew. Please see NOTE above concerning the filling of crews with vacancies to full capacity.

CREW SIGN-UP: Immediately after the Registration Contact has reserved the crew slot, each crew member should visit this web page, click on the selected crew number, complete the registration process and pay the $700 initial deposit. Family members (i.e., one or more youth and adult) may register together. Keep your Registration Number to re-enter the system for future payments.

REGISTERING FEWER THAN EIGHT PARTICIPANTS: If you are an individual or a group of seven or less, you may click Register and sign up for available openings (other than those already reserved with eight or more participants). The number of Youth and Adult openings remaining are shown on the second registration page. The Registration Contact section should be completed by the parent/guardian of the participating Scout(s). Pay the $700 initial deposit per person and keep your Registration Number to re-enter the system for future payments.

TRAVEL: NCAC arranges all travel for NCAC crews by air flight and chartered motor coach. NCAC Crews meet at the designated airport and travel in Scout uniform as a group to and from the Washington, DC Area. There will be no possibility for crews or individuals to travel independently.

PAYMENT: The total estimated cost for each participant is $2,695. This includes the Philmont fee of $1,490 plus airfare, meals & lodging enroute, and one and a half days of tours and activities (white water rafting, hiking at altitude, et al). As mentioned above, the initial deposit is $700 each. The final payment is estimated to be $595 and will be determined by April 15, 2023. See the table below for the payment schedule (recently modified).

Payments may be made with a credit card or an e-check. A 3% surcharge applies to all credit/debit card payments; e-check transactions are free. Late fees may apply to payments received after the published due date deadlines.

TRAINING: NCAC High Adventure Committee provides four training sessions to prepare crews for a successful High Adventure. Adult Advisors and Youth Crew Leaders are expected to attend all sessions; parents are invited to the first training date in November. The dates are:

Direct questions to John Blackwell, HAC Chair, at john.blackwell@goosecreekdistrict.org or Eric Smith, NCAC Director of Camping Services, at eric.smith@scouting.org.