Members learn basic mountain skills
in Wilderness Trekking School
by Brenda Porter
Chuck Barnes believes that people take the Denver Group’s Wilderness Trekking School to challenge themselves and "push the envelope" in learning new skills. WTS, as the school is known, welcomes adults from the most basic beginner, who may experience the mountains for the first time, to hikers who want to refresh their skills or advance to the Basic Mountaineering School. "We give them the skills to feel more comfortable in tackling harder hikes with the knowledge that the outdoors has so many opportunities to explore and that they can do so with a greater degree of confidence in themselves," said Barnes, the WTS Director since 1998.
The most important skills WTS teaches depends on the student’s future plans. However, the ability to work and function as a team and learn to be observant of the people hiking with you (whether they are club members, your family, or friends) is essential for everyone who hikes in the mountains. Barnes notes, "WTS teaches important little things such as checking to make sure group members are not laboring and being pushed too quickly and the whole group is together before you move. These are the skills that prevent people from becoming lost or separated from their group--things that get reported in Colorado newspapers each year.
"I believe that Map and Compass skills are very important for anyone who desires to take that next step, travel off-trail, and take advantage of wilderness opportunities. Additionally, people who are content to travel only on trails gain confidence that they know how to prepare for nature's surprises, whether that be a small talus scramble to the ridge, or the need to react to approaching storms and weather changes. Finally, could they survive the night if they couldn't make it back to the car because of darkness or injury?"
The snow travel/ice axe training day is always interesting. "Most people don’t know what to do with this metal pick; they can't believe that playing and sliding around in the snow all day will be fun." Although few WTS students are interested in serious mountaineering, "it's fun to watch their hesitancy turn into sheer joy as the day progresses. Even if they never use an ice axe again, they experience a feeling of accomplishment through overcoming their fears."
Chuck Barnes was a WTS student in the fall of 1995. The next season he volunteered as an assistant instructor and progressed to senior instructor. "I enjoyed meeting people and being given an avenue through which I could pass on my years of hard-learned experience (and associated mistakes) to people new to hiking and the outdoors. Over the years people took time to pass their knowledge to me, and I felt it only right to pass this information on to others."
Members throughout the CMC share the same sentiments. The Fort Collins Group will begin offering the "Mountain Hiking School" in the spring of 2002. This school will be an introductory outdoor skills school based on the Denver Group's Wilderness Trekking School, with Ed Seely as the initial school director. The intent of the school is to give CMC members the skills and knowledge to be able to hike (or ski or snowshoe) safely, confidently, and responsibly in the Colorado mountains. The Mountain Hiking School will be a logical precursor to the Basic Mountaineering School for those who want to go on to more advanced skills.
The school is intended to serve all CMC members. It will be structured to serve a wide range of aerobic ability and interest. Members can benefit whether from they just want to do easy hikes or intend to continue on to BMS.
Seely became involved with the school because he wanted to see that all members--not just the physically elite or fast--have an opportunity to benefit from the CMC's educational programs. Seely leads CMC trips ranging from easy A trips to moderate D trips; he realizes how important a basic set of outdoor skills are for all levels of CMC members.
Seely said he "believes the new Fort Collins Group school should be designed to serve adult learners, to offer a fun and effective learning environment, and to benefit the instructors as well." His experience with Toastmasters Leadership Institute in the 1990's helped him "understand the difference between adult and academic learners and helped him understand how ineffective classic lecture can be." In the new Mountain Hiking School, Seely hopes to see a variety of learning tions used and to see a learning climate that is enjoyable and productive for both students and instructors.
The Boulder Group also has a Hiking School that focuses on safety, preparedness, mountain conditions, equipment, and map and compass work during five lectures and ten hikes.
Other CMC Groups members share basic mountain hiking and trekking skills during scheduled hikes and seminars.