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Backpacking School
April 13 @ 9:00 am - April 14 @ 2:00 pm
Free
The Inter-Mountain Alpine Club is conducting its 2024 Backpacking School in the Tri-Cities. The school will be conducted in two all-day sessions – a combination of indoor and outdoor classes designed to teach you what you need to know to get started backpacking on your own.
The purpose of the backpacking school is to prepare students for comfortable and safe multi-day backpacking trips. The classes introduce people with little-to-no outdoors experience to a new and exciting hobby. No prior experience in the outdoors is required.
Topics include: the essentials, clothing, conditioning, packs, tents, sleeping systems, map and topography basics, compass and route planning, navigation strategy, digital navigation using smart phones, cooking and nutrition, hygiene and water purification, using the Internet, GPS, cell phones, stoves, other gear, first aid, safety, pets, children, and rescue techniques.
The first day, on Saturday April 13, 2024 from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, consists of lecture-style presentations taught in the SWL 121 Lecture Hall at Columbia Basin College in Pasco.
The second day, on Sunday April 14, 2024 from 9:00 AM to 2 :00 PM, includes outdoor field demonstrations of equipment and techniques at Leslie Groves Park in Richland.
The school culminates in overnight backpacking trips led by I-MAC trip leaders.
Each topic is taught by a dedicated I-MAC member with years of experience with the purpose of taking the mystery out of what they need to know to successfully complete a weekend backpack.
The school is free and open to the public. Registration is required. To register and reserve your place in the class, please send an email to [email protected] and provide your name, phone number, and email address for class communications and materials. Please indicate your interests and experience with hiking and backpacking.
Before the course, we highly recommend you get the book The Backpacker’s Field Manual, by Rick Curtis, before the school, and read as much as you can. It is NOT available through REI.
