TO Take a NOLS Alumni Trip

By Rich Brame NOLS Instructor

G’night,

Molly. I love you.”

“I love you too, dad.”

That’s what we heard in a quiet, darkened bunkroom, somewhere above timberline in the Italian Dolomites. We’d just snuggled into our sleeping sacks, under heavy comforters, after a great, multi-course dinner and a long day hiking on steep trails.

What could be better than sharing in that daughter/father exchange on a NOLS mountain adventure?

NOLS offers trips and global backcountry adventures for all kinds of grads, their guests, and their families. Our excursions vary in length (usually 7-16 days), physical difficulty, and format, and all are designed for adult learners and calendars.

Some trips climb high peaks: from Gannett at the top of Wyoming, to Washington’s Mt. Rainier, to Argentina’s Aconcagua, or Kilimanjaro in Africa, our challenging mountain adventures review basic backcountry living and travel skills and then add pertinent technical curriculum that helps participants and the team succeed. In the tradition of NOLS expeditions, these trips are tough and committing.

Not everyone wants to carry a large backpack, so we also offer water-based trips that let watercraft carry the gear. From sailing, to canoeing, to whitewater rafting and sea kayaking, water adventures explore remote wildlands and challenge our groups to learn and work together while honing skills. Many of our water trips travel to hardto-reach locations like Croatia, the Greek coast, or the Bahamas.

We also offer rock-climbing in basecamp settings, so days are spent learning climbing and rope systems rather than travel techniques. Rock climbing trips are suitable for novices, or experts as our experienced instructors share and build progressive vertical skills. Often, our rock climbing trips head to the sunny Southwest’s warm granite that gives participants a break from gray winter days in the north.

We know that grads like to share a NOLS experience with friends and family members—including parents, or younger children. Some of our trips cater specifically to families by tapping llamas, horses, or rafts to carry the heavy stuff. These trips let the team explore iconic wilderness areas like Wyoming’s Wind River Mountains, or Utah’s river canyons while participating in a true expedition experience.

NOLS alumni trips include a growing international menu of hut-to-hut, innto-inn, or small hotel-to-hotel options. These hiking trips can provide challenging walking segments and end the day at comfortable indoor lodging where meals are provided. This format keeps packs light and often immerses in local culture in places like Ireland, Slovenia, Portugal, Scotland, Bhutan, Thailand, Nepal, Chile, Iceland, and Italy.

The benefits of a NOLS alumni trip are many—reconnecting with NOLS in a small group, exploring new or iconic landscapes, learning new skills or taking on real challenges, traveling with senior NOLS instructors, leaving complicated travel logistics to the pros, and knowing that your fellow adventurers share a common NOLS connection—and that’s why lots of alumni trip participants return again and again.

Consider a NOLS alumni trip as an affordable way to reconnect with NOLS in the outdoors. Bring a friend, or loved one, as a way to build memories while landing a trout in Wyoming, or over a wee dram of obscure Scottish whisky, or when seeking the top of a peak, or like a father/daughter team in Italy’s far north.

See our evolving menu of alumni trip options here. If you’re keen to design your own adventure, we also offer custom trips for groups and families. Contact our alumni trips team with questions or trip ideas.