The call of the wild

“With about two-thirds of our state designated as public land, we’ve got millions of acres to explore, and we’re having a great time doing it,” says Joe Yuska, director of Lewis & Clark’s College Outdoors program. The program recently ranked among the country’s top 10 at colleges and universities of all sizes for the variety of trips available. While whitewater rafting and sea kayaking are the most popular outings, the program offers a taste of the unusual as well, such as clinics in igloo building and Northwest ancient forest ecology.

The program is so popular that 9 out of 10 Lewis & Clark students take at least one College Outdoors trip. For many, the first adventure is a pre-New Student Orientation trip, providing an introduction to the Pacific Northwest, to Lewis & Clark, and to new friends before school even begins. For some, the trips are just a great way to pass a weekend or spring break. For others, they’re a highlight of the college experience.

Kelly Atkins came to Lewis & Clark from Helena, Montana, and couldn’t resist the call of the wild. After a College Outdoors backpacking trip in the Indian Heaven Wilderness of Mount Adams, he says, “I jumped right into working for the program.” Since then, the biology major has helped lead several trips, including a map-and-compass clinic in the Columbia Gorge, a snowshoeing trip on Mount St. Helens, and an igloo-camping clinic on Mount Hood.

Last summer, Kelly’s outdoor experience helped him land a dream internship in Alaska’s Denali National Park, where he spent four unforgettable months as an interpretive ranger, leading educational hikes, giving campfire talks, and harnessing huskies for dog-sled demonstrations. Kelly is now considering a future in environmental education. “College Outdoors has opened doors for me,” he says. “It has introduced me to good people, great places, and exciting work opportunities. That, coupled with my biology classes, has been influential in shaping my direction.”