Beginning Backpacking Program | Fall 2023 | RSVPs NOW!

Program activities prepare you for & culminate with a KC-area BP trip and are for injury-free people w/ hiking experience - or those injury-free people with a regular fitness routine.

How Do I Get to Go?

1. Read everything.
2. WHEN RSVPs open (May 2023), join the waitlist & then immediately send an email to "kcbackpack@yahoo.com" w/"Fall 2023" + your name in the subject line; we'll send you a Google survey to complete. Then if we're in synch., you'll be moved from the RSVP list to "Going" here on Meetup.
3. We have spots for ≈14 people (14 students + instructors), with approx—half of the 14 intended for outreach placement.

Afterward, you can take it to the next level w/ addt'l KC-area BP trips & options for a wide variety of big-league adventures w/ the Nat'l Sierra Club.

Do you have no Equipment?

We have a program gear lending library w/ sleeping bags & pads, tents, backpacks & stoves for Sierra Club members. Here's how to join the Sierra Club (membership as low as $15).

Recommended Donation

$75, exclusively contactless via PayPal. This pays it forward, helping to finance the gear library, leadership training & trail maintenance. Instructors are uncompensated volunteers. No refunds < 30 cal. days from the 1st activity - a confirmed RSVP takes one of the limited # of participant openings.

Staying in Touch

We will use a Slack site to communicate. It is an intuitive platform & easy to learn the ropes (pun).

Activities

1. 9/23/23 - Class, 9:15 AM to 3:45 PM @ indoors, Anita B. Gorman Discovery Center, 4750 Troost Ave, Kansas City, MO, 64110. Please bring your lunch; we'll work through it.

2. 9/24/23 - Outfitter (TBA)

The class & outfitter trip will help you put together your backpacking kit. If you don't choose to become an SC member & borrow gear from us, the time between the class + outfitter & outdoor activities gives you ample opportunity to get kitted out.

3. 10/06/23 - 10/07/23, 5:00 PM - 8:30 AM, camp @ Woodridge Primitive Park, W side of Clinton LK, Berryton, KS. W/ the exception of confirmed gear lending library kit, you'll want to bring everything you need/be self-sufficient for this, e.g., food, water, gear, etc.

The campout rally point is 38.9266, -95.4354. The leader(s) might bring a dog(s).

4. 10/07/23 - Shakedown hike w/ full backpacking kit 8:30 AM - 11:00 AM, lollipop loop hike of the George Latham trail. The leader(s) might bring a dog(s). Except for the confirmed gear lending library kit, you'll want to get everything you need/be self-sufficient for this, e.g., food, water, gear, etc.

5. 10/27/23- 10/29/23 - BP Trip (place TBA), ≈four hrs. from KC, leave KC approx. noon on 10/27 & finish after noon 10/29. The leader(s) might bring a dog(s). Except for the confirmed gear lending library kit, you'll bring everything you need/be self-sufficient, e.g., food, water, gear, etc.

Syllabus

Links to prior programs (see the pics, etc.)
f 2021
w 2021
s 2022
f 2022
s 2023

@ participants complete a standard participant agreement & medical form in class

Bring a personal 1st aid kit to all activities.

We will use LNT practices.

Regarding COVID-19, a mix of vaccinated & unvaccinated people might be involved, & we ask each person not to participate if you've recently had any symptoms or exposure to an infected individual or have COVID-19. In general, if you're sick, please do not attend.

Face coverings/masks are required by Sierra Club policy on all indoor activities if social distancing isn't possible. So do bring one with you in the event of need, or if you'd like to use one - especially for the classroom day indoors.

The Outing officially begins & ends @ the location designated by Sierra Club, i.e., the trailhead, & does not include carpooling, transportation, or transit to & from the Outing; each participant is personally responsible for all risks associated with this travel. The times shown on Meetup do NOT account for travel to & from the Outing.