<p>My 15-year-old son may want to do one of these programs this summer. I've checked with NOLS and Outward Bound, and their programs are full. Does anyone have any experience with other programs? Safety is, of course, a major consideration.</p>
<p>Adventures Cross Country --the web address is adventurescrosscountry dot com. My d and the children of several other of our friends have done their trips--all were uniformly thrilled. The trips are physically demanding, challenging and very culturally rewarding.</p>
<p>D did the Costa Rica geographic trip--hiking, surfing, kayaking, camping out--check it out.</p>
<p>Programs through High Mountain Institute -- hminet.org
Absolutely brilliant programs catering to the outdoors with some leadership and philosophy skills thrown in too. Equivilant to NOLS for the younger set.</p>
<p>My daughter went on a trip with Windsor Mountain International:</p>
<p>Student</a> Travel for Teens and Teen Summer Camp and Summer Jobs: Windsor Mountain International</p>
<p>She went on New England Adventure, which is too young for your son, but it was extremely well organized, and not in the least bit "packaged." The two leaders drove a van with all the participants and pulled a trailer behind with the tents and gear. They asked the kids to bring along camp-friendly recipes, and the group did all the shopping and cooking. Their activities, each of which took several days, included canoeing down a river and sea kayaking out to an island park. In each case, they took all their gear with them, put the tents up on the way, etc.</p>
<p>I see there is one in California for older teens.</p>
<p>Overland (based in Williamstown, MA)</p>
<p>Many national parks have fabulous backpacking/adventure trips. Check out their websites. My D did a week-long backpacking trip through Yosemite and a program through the Rocky Mtn. National Park. Both were really, really great experiences.</p>
<p>Look at Camp Manito-wish, a YMCA camp in northern Wisconsin. They have backpacking, canoeing and sea kayaking trips. My son did the backpacking stuff. They have a graduated program. He started with a 2 week trip one summer to Isle Royal NP. The next summer he headed out for 25 days in the Beartooth Mtns. in Wyoming (the subject of his applicaton essay). The culminating trip was the summer after he graduated - 42 days backpacking above the Arctic Circle in Alaska. The program is very well staffed, and excellently run. Here is the website. Go to the left and click on Outpost. </p>
<p>I'm not sure how long your son wants to spend backpacking, but this program is amazing. </p>
<p>Questers</a> (Coed 15-17) | Farm and Wilderness</p>
<p>I did it in 2005--one of the best experiences of my life. </p>
<p>Questers is based out of Farm and Wilderness, a Quaker camp in Vermont. (near Killington) I hiked the entire length (272 miles!) of vermont's long trail. I think they changed the programming around a bit to include canoeing and rock climbing as well.</p>
<p>Know though, that on Overland trips there is no van. period. If you bike, you carry everything including tents and food....same for hiking. So if you happen to get sick or injured...well, after a 10 minute rest you have to keep going. No van to ride in. Even with a 101 degree fever, or a throbbing ankle, etc.</p>
<p>...not to sound like I'm putting down those programs, but I have a friend who did a California coast bike trip and she hurt her ankle minorly, but because she couldn't stop biking it worsened over a few days and eventually she had to leave early.</p>
<p>Thank you all for the fantastic suggestions! I checked earlier today and called HMI (program with dates I wanted is full) and Adventures Cross-Country - they have two programs that might work, and the program sounds wonderful. </p>
<p>I just got home and checked again; will call some of these other programs tomorrow.</p>
<p>The Chewonki Foundation in Wiscasset, Maine offers camp and wilderness programs - chewonki.org is the website.</p>
<p>My kids did Adventure Cross Country as well (Hawaii and Alaska) and we were very happy with them. They also (amongst the 3 of them) did 6 Broadreach trips. My kids did the scuba/sailing/marine bio trips, but they have land-based programs as well. Fabulous programs, well run, very qualified staff.</p>
<p>too bad HMI is full -- for other looking for this type of program, I highly recommend them! My son had a great experience.</p>
<p>HMI does still have some openings for this summer, just not at the right time for us.</p>
<p>I'll look into Chewonki and Broadreach. Thanks!</p>
<p>many residential camps have things that are only briefly based at camp but then entail being elsewhere for two weeks or so.</p>
<p>Where my D works :biking through the San Juan islands, rafting down the deschutes river in Oregon, packing through the Olympic rain forest with llamas ;) & other programs give kids a chance to learn new skills without giving up their whole summer .</p>
<p>Id check out ACA accredited camps in your area to see if they have off site programs</p>