By Michael Sherburne
Quickly take a look outside, wherever you may be, and imagine yourself in the most serene, lush, and beautiful scenery in the middle of the wilderness. You begin to reflect on your life with the sound of water flowing over the rocks, with the chirping birds, and with the a beautiful sunrise overhead. Now imagine yourself experiencing this at any of the Order of the Arrow's high adventure programs.
There are five Order of the Arrow High Adventure programs located throughout the country: OA Trail Crew at Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico; OA Wilderness Voyage and OA Canadian Odyssey at the Northern Tier High Adventure Bases in Ely, Minnesota; OA Ocean Adventure at the Florida Sea Base at Islamorada, Florida; and the OA's newest high adventure program at The Summit, Bechtel Reserve in Mount Hope, West Virginia. Each program starts with a week of service, ranging from trail building to removing invasive species, followed by each crew planning their own expedition for an additional week.
Each program is a unique experience, however, all contain common life lessons. Matt Dihadoorian, a Philmont Order of the Arrow Trail Crew participant, describes the life lesson he learned while working on the Philmont OA Trail Crew. "It made me realize that nothing is impossible, you just have to work your best with your crew in order to accomplish something great," he said. Dihadoorian said OA Trail Crew caused him to reflect on your inner self, to reach in and mentally tell yourself, "I can conquer this hill." Participants come out with the mentality that they can conquer any obstacle in life, no matter how great the challenge.
The Order of the Arrow Wilderness Voyage and Canadian Odyssey programs start with building portage trails in the Boundary Waters between the US and Canada. Walker Green, an Order of the Arrow Wilderness Voyage participant, recalled the immediate satisfaction of working in the pristine north wilderness. "You get to see the results right in front of your eyes during work week," Green said. Not only can participants say they have made a difference, but the quality of the trail work being done is designed to last for generations to come.
The third program, called the Order of the Arrow Ocean Adventure, takes place at Sea Base. This program involves participants creating structures to preserve the beaches of the islands in the Florida Keys, along with removing invasive species threatening the local wildlife. After that, they have a week of fun: snorkeling and boating throughout the Florida Keys, one of the most beautiful areas of the country. Each crew participates in different and unique opportunities at Sea Base.
The OA's newest high adventure program is at The Summit. This program, aimed at younger Arrowmen, will give participants unprecedented access to the hundreds of acres of wilderness surrounding the BSA's newest property. Immediate past Northeast Region Chief Tyler Allen has been tapped to lead the program in its inaugural summer in 2014. Allen will be assisted by immediate past National Chief Matt Brown.
Taking the opportunity to use your next summer to connect with the environment, and to better yourself in the process, will help you as you take on bigger opportunities to cheerfully serve others, while inspiring others to exceed their limits.
Promotional Resources and Videos
Lodges are encouraged to use the promotional resources and videos to let Arrowmen know about these amazing summer programs. These resources are available on the High Adventure site and from YouTube.
OA High Adventure Video (YouTube link)
OA Trail Crew Video (YouTube link)
OA Wilderness Voyage and Canadian Adventure (YouTube link)
OA Ocean Adventure (YouTube link)