Asa Hunter '09

Spring break in Cancun? Not for 24 Gettysburg College students who will spend 11 days trekking through Colorado’s rugged Sawatch Range.

Each carrying up to 65 pounds of food and gear, the students are gaining leadership skills through the College’s annual Wilderness Institute.

Thanks to a portable solar panel and cellphone service from some mountain peaks, the students are sharing their adventure via a photo blog that will be updated throughout the trip, Feb. 29 to March 9.

The students, along with five professional expedition leaders, will strive for the summit of Mount Shavano, which rises to 14,229 feet above sea level. Beginning about two hours west of Colorado Springs, the group will enter the Colorado Trail just south of the Collegiate Range and trek south on top of nine feet of snow, in winter conditions with 300 pounds of food and 1,150 pounds of gear and equipment on their backs. The group will begin their acclimatization process at 8,400 feet (8,000 feet above Gettysburg’s elevation), then establish a base camp at 10,750 feet for the Shavano attempt.

The students have been preparing since October, not only with training in wilderness skills but in readings and seminars on topics ranging from health and physiology to emotional intelligence. Journals and other exercises are planned during the adventure to underline the leadership lessons.

The students are staff members of the Gettysburg Recreational Adventure Board, which provides a unique service to the Gettysburg College campus community, alumni, and parents. The students receive 400 hours of training and field experience annually to facilitate climbing, sea kayaking, backpacking, and challenge course experiences as part of the College’s extensive outdoor education program.

Posted Feb. 29, 2008 

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