…Camp L.E.A.D. (Learn. Explore. Adventure. Discover.) is a dynamic weeklong summer day camp for 8–11-year-olds, hosted by The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education (NCOAE)….

…Maps cover the floor like carpet. I’m perched on the edge of a couch in the back room of a surf shop, watching the Weather Channel. I jot down timing, Learn how to monitor weather for outdoor adventures using a proven framework to identify risks, build knowledge, and make safer go-or-no decisions every trip….

…There are lots of things that separate the work we do here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education (NCOAE) from others who offer outdoor education, wilderness trips and wilderness medical training for youths and adults. For starters, unlike other many other outdoor adventure education providers, we operate using a core curriculum that…

Working in outdoor education is incredible rewarding and fulfilling! Learn more about what it takes to get started on your courses today!…

…Covered in mud, we return to the sterile walls of the school. Nearby, students and teachers stop and stare at us. We say nothing. We keep moving, exhausted from our time spent in the wilderness, observing, interacting, developing skills to survive, absorbing information and processing the incredible time we had spent as a group. What…

…There is no shortage of wilderness medicine education providers in this country. From organizations that offer education and training for Wilderness First Responder (WFR) and Wilderness First Aid (WFA) certifications to those that offer train-the-trainer programs, a simple online search reveals a ton of options — especially when the search is focused on a specific…

…The outdoor industry uses the term “shoulder season” to indicate times of the year when we’re less busy. With the exception of the snow sport sector of the industry, for many companies and outdoor outfits, that time starts in October and can stretch all the way to May or early June.  The National Center for…

…The novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and social critic James Baldwin said it best when he wrote: “We are responsible for the world in which we find ourselves, if only because we are the only sentient force which can change it.” Those words guide us here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education (NCOAE)….

…Editor’s Note: Below is final part in Stephen Mullaney’s three-part series of essays about encounters with bears in the backcountry. The first essay in the series recants the shock Stephen experienced with one particular bear encounter, while the second essay in this series attempts to find humor in a persistent bear taking up quarters in an…

…Learn about what a typical day could look like on an NCOAE expedition. Start your adventure with us today….

…One thing we don’t do here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education is work within a vacuum. We depend heavily upon many organizations that went before us or that help us realize our mission and full potential. Today, we’d like to shine the light on one of those groups that works behind…

…Little in the wilderness experience quite compares to sitting around a warm campfire after a day on the trail. Crackling embers, shimmering luminescence, and radiant warmth have an almost primal attraction.  When you take advantage of our teen leadership expeditions, adult leadership expeditions, or our high school summer semester, you’ll experience many campfires. Whether you’re…

…One of the most important parts of proper wilderness medicine is the assessment process to determine the extent of your patients injuries….

…If you’re at all interested in a career in outdoor or adventure education and just don’t know where to start, we’re here to tell you that there are whole slew of outdoor education conferences that you can attend – and other things you can do right now – to improve your chance of being hired…

…Here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education (NCOAE), we’re known nationally and around the world for our consistency in producing highly impactful backcountry climbing, backpacking, kayaking and other outdoor adventures of an educational and team-focused nature. Our highly trained and experienced outdoor educators, field guides — along with our wilderness medicine and…

…Editor’s Note: This year, the NCOAE blog is going to cover a variety of topics, written by a variety of our staff members. Topics will include best practices in Adventure Education (both in and out of wilderness settings), land use, history of course areas, flora and fauna, cooking, and why us “dirtbags” may be the…

…“Adventure First, Education Always” is the rallying cry here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education’s (NCOAE). What you’ll find embedded in that statement is our commitment to students that they will return from our courses and trainings mentally, educationally and physically prepared for whatever brought them to us in the first place….

…For this year, Halloween is history, Thanksgiving looms in the near future, and Christmas is still far enough away that it doesn’t feel like Christmastime — unless you’ve visited the decorated and well-lighted malls and outlet stores over the last month or so. Fortunately, when you tire of planning for family visits and turkey dinner…

…A little more than three decades ago, two educators and researchers from Canada partnered with the Association for Experiential Education (AEE) on a groundbreaking book titled Safety Practices in Adventure Programming.  Simon Priest, Ph.D., and Tim Dixon, M.Ed., regarded at the time as among only a handful of leading experts in outdoor adventure education and…

…Thinking about upgrading your outdoor adventure gear for 2024? Check our our improvement guide to help you decide what to keep and what to retire!…