Summer at Woodstock – Outdoor Living Skills
This is a hands on experiential course suited for students who are intrigued by the outdoors and have a passion for it. It is aimed at providing basic exposure to outdoor living skills while enjoying the rigors of the outdoors.
The participants will be engaged in learning skills like backpack packing, campsite selection, tent pitching, staying warm & dry, cooking & stove use in the wilderness, basic first aid, Leave No Trace principles, leadership and appreciation of nature. They will be taught ‘how to live comfortably in the outdoors’. On the course, instructors closely follow participant’s progress and continually offer feedback. Participants will be evaluated on their performance & the manner in which they handle themselves individually and as team members.
Highlights and Course Description
Imperative to being an outstanding outdoor person is the confidence of being a team leader and this is an additional skill that students pick up. Nature is a great teacher and leveler and this course can be an eye opener and a life changing experience for the young and impressionable minds.
Week 1
Introduction to Outdoor Living Skills
Tent Pitching, Backpack Packing, etc.
LNT Principles and gear plannig for hikes
Hiking with backpacks
Cooking outdoors
Week 2
Basic first aid
Basic ropes and knots
Basic first aid
Overnight hike into the forest
AGE RANGE: 14-18 years
DATES (TWO-WEEKS): June 5 to June 16, 2023
COURSE FEES: INR 180,000 (inclusive of GST) along with Application Fee of INR 5,000 (non-refundable)
Faculty: Vishal Negi
Vishal Negi is a National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) certified Trip Leader and Wilderness First Responder. Deeply passionate about Outdoor Education, he believes that outdoors are the best teacher and concepts like self-exploration, leadership, sustainability and building a healthy relationship with the natural world are best understood in the outdoors. Over the last five years, he has trekked extensively across the Himalaya and has led numerous groups in Kashmir Valley, Ladakh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Himachal and Nepal while working with various trekking companies.
Vishal has been associated with Hanifl Centre, an outreach of Woodstock school for Outdoor Education and Environmental Study since 2019 and currently works as a freelance instructor on their Outdoor Leadership programs. When not backpacking, you can mostly find him pondering his next move over a chessboard.
Alternate Faculty: Vipul Vashistha
Vipul Vashistha is an Outdoor and Environment Educator working in the industry for more than eight years in various profiles, has worked with Outward Bound as a field instructor and holds a diploma in Outdoor education from Germany. Vipul holds a current Wilderness First Responder certification and has been part of various Himalayan Treks and Mountaineering expeditions and has contributed twice for Indian Mountaineering Journal.