Outward Bound Wilderness: One More Incident To Add To The List…
June 25, 2008
Outward Bound, the non-profit organization famous for leading kids into the wilderness and teaching survival skills, had to backtrack a bit and get rescued themselves this week. A group of nine kids and two instructors became lost in the Southern Sierra, an area where the Outward Bound students were looking to go climbing for a couple of days. Luckily, they were all rescued and are now safe.
First, I am going to give you the article, then I am going to make a few comments. You can find the article by clicking Outward Bound.
If you read this article, you will discover a couple of mistakes. First off, the group of teens being lead by their Outward Bound instructors, became sidetracked and got onto a different trail. When they failed to meet up with another instructor at a designated time and place, the third instructor called the Outward Bound home office looking for help–REDFLAG #1
Upon noticing that the group was lost, the instructors trying to lead the teens back to safety, decided it was best if the members kept on the move.–REDFLAG #2
The Outward Bound home office decided that it was in the best interest of their company if they sent out three instructors to locate the group.–REDFLAG #3
Anyone else see a problem with this? Being an outdoor skills and survival camp, you would think that the instructors should know what they are doing. One of the first rules of survival–if you ever find yourself lost, is DO NOT MOVE! If you are up moving around, rescuers have an extremely hard time of catching up and finding you.
Second thing–since when is it the company’s responsibility to carry on search and rescue efforts without authorities being involved? If this is a survival school or camp, wouldn’t you think that the best interest of the company would be to insure the best possible outcome for the kids that are with them? They called the authorities and kids’ parents two days after the teens’ group was lost.
Outside Magazine ran an article a few months back about some questionable practices in regards to these wilderness survival schools. This isn’t the first time they have been in the media . National Geographic: Adventure put in a whole feature in regards to the death of an Outwards Bound teen. In that specific incident, Outward Bound hadn’t checked up on a student to make sure she was properly hydrated in the 104° temperatures that the teens were being forced to endure.
The following quote comes from the National Geographic: Adventure article entitled “Special Report: A Death at Outward Bound” :
Elisa was the first Outward Bound student to die in almost a decade and the 24th fatality in the nonprofit’s 46-year history in the U.S. (most of those deaths occurred prior to 1980). The organization’s response was a near-total silence about the specifics of the case, but a small group of insiders broke form and spoke out, warning that Outward Bound’s safety standards had fallen disturbingly low. When I contacted Elisa’s mother, Elisa Woods, a few days after her daughter was found, she was outraged. “They told me my daughter was going to be well supervised . . . and she obviously wasn’t,” she said. “They killed my baby.” The organization allowed no such notion: The wilderness killed Elisa Santry.
USA Today has another interesting article about another disturbing Outward Bound incident. This one actually happened at another camp at the same time that Elisa’s incident took place.
With each new incident, these outdoor adventure schools and camps are drawing more interest towards being regulated with new standards. This may explain why Outward Bound was reluctant to notify officials when their group first got lost. Luckily, this incident had a pretty good ending and all the kids and instructors were found before any serious consequences.
I do know that I have had a couple of Outward Bound alumni and former instructors stop by this site over the past couple of years. What I would like to do is hear your opinions and offer up a voice to my reader’s thoughts. Should these Outdoor Adventure companies be regulated, AND how safe would you feel allowing your child to participate with one of these adventure schools. Do the benefits outweigh the risks?
I do have to mention that Outward Bound had a stellar record until just a few years ago. Almost 50 years in the business of doing what they do–the only problem is when something does go wrong. When that happens, it is a huge deal and usually results in dire circumstances. This bit of information is coming from the Outwards Bound website and deals with their record for safety:
Since 1962, over 650,000 individuals have participated in our wilderness courses in mountains, deserts, rivers, and oceans. Despite this great volume and variety of activities Outward Bound maintains an excellent safety record.
It is kind of odd to hear of their excellent safety record after reading that in their 46 year history there have been upwards of 24 deaths. I want to hear your thoughts. Comment Below. Should Outward Bound 1) look a little more closely at their instructors and 2) be investigated for not calling on the authorities sooner to help in finding this lost group.
I understand that this is a wilderness training school and also that it is also meant to be an exercise in pushing the limits. These are kids, though. Kids at that age do not even know their own limits. How are they going to be able to tell if something is wrong with their own bodies? I understand that today’s incident had nothing to do with dehydration, but more with a lack of proper knowledge and guidance in the area–something that an adventure/survival school should know quite a bit about. Perhaps I am the only one that will say this and point out the faults today, but this story is just not right. Not the way it happened and definitely not the way it was handled. Your thoughts?
From The Adventurist Vault:
Written by Jason A. Hendricks · Filed Under Outward Bound |
I think there should be some sort of standards. When you book a trip with an organization like Outward Bound, you’re assuming that they have skills that you don’t. You’re trusting that the organization will use the knowledge and skills they have to protect you and to train you for survival.
Why should anyone go out in the woods? Wouldn’t it be much safer to stay all comfy and safe on your couch and watch a television show about the wilderness? Programs like Outward Bound are something everyone in our society today NEEDS. These schools empower kids and adults to realize they can do things they never thought they could do. I think it would be absolutely disgusting that your website, of all places, would be so critical of such a vital organization for bringing outdoor adventures to the lives of people who otherwise would never experience them. And, by the way, Outward Bound and NOLS and experiential organizations have INSTRUCTORS, not “guides”. They follow safety policies and manage risk IN A RISKFUL SETTING while empowering them to be capable of living and traveling in the backcountry. As an alumni and parent of an alumni, I can’t imagine what my, or my daughter’s, life would be like without this sort of an experience. I’m glad I went to OB, and am disgusted by the state of our society that this article even exists. If you want to keep your kids in a bubble and not let them live vividly, don’t send them to these programs. But these programs should not change, because they are absolutely necessary in the lazy and pathetic world we now live.
Disgusted-
First off, I never denounced having the kids out in the wilderness. What I have done is merely suggest some questions to think about–
I was very clear in stating that I felt this single incident was handled in the wrong fashion by Outward Bound. When it comes to kids and the lives of those kids, the authorities should have been contacted before two days later, after they had become lost.
I also questioned the INSTRUCTORS’ policy of keeping the group moving when 90% of those that have been trained in wilderness survival know to try to stay put and wait for help.
If that is part of Outward Bound’s policy, to keep the group moving and not notify the authorities and parents when these issues arise, then they need to rethink their policy in this regard.
On top of all of that, there is no place at all on the Outward Bound website exclaiming that certain issues have arisen in the past, and that death could be a real threat. Are the parent’s aware of some of the past issues? Some may be, but most are probably not.
I am not the first person to question Outward Bound in regards to policy or safety issues that have arisen over the years. I have given some good examples in my article. Many of these examples follow the same type of stories and articles that I present. Have you written them letters?
I do feel that it is in the best interest of everyone that these matters are discussed in a civilized manner and that an open dialog is established to address these situations. There are many gullible people out there who will jump into something without knowing the risks involved–all to often when they find out, it is to late.
I have presented my thoughts in a way to not negate what they are doing, but to bring up legitimate questions that they fail to address with the public. When all you see is good, sometimes the bad can blindside you.
As a member of the adventure community and a writer in the field, I feel it is our duty to represent the risks involved, as well as educate those who are unaware. Obviously, being a former alumni, you know the risks, as well as your daughter, but there are many out there that don’t.
I appreciate your comments on this issue, and if you will take note, I never once mentioned that I felt regulation was the way to go. I think they should reexamine their policy when it comes to these incidents, learn from them, but also make sure that the public knows of the inherent risk associated with these classes.
I am updating my article to reflect ‘instructors’ rather than ‘guides’. Thanks for pointing that out.
Jason A. Hendricks
The Adventurist
Jason,
I can see that you have bought into the media hype about this story and have not thought it through after reading a number of accounts in the media. The “lost” group simply missed a rendezvous point with an instructor who went to scout a peak ascent route. It would be more correct to say that he lost them as they had the bulk of food and supplies (although he likely was carrying enough to get by for a few days). The group obviously realized that they had missed the rendezvous point and figured that the instructor would either catch up with them or head out to the Sierra base camp. They likely continued with course activities and went towards a possible communication site when they realized that the missed instructor would not be showing up. It’s likely that they were calling in to report him missing.
This is a big nothing of a story. Everyone had maps and supplies and (from the news reports I read) it looks like the course was not due to end until this weekend. Unfortunately, protocol required the lone instructor to call in search and rescue personnel since he had lost contact with the group. That cranked this whole thing up and gave the media something tintillating to report.
Now for your other misunderstandings. Of the 24 deaths at OB, about 9 or 10 were due to program activities (climbing, kayaking, backpacking over difficult terrain, etc.). The rest were due to things like heart attacks, auto accidents, lightning strikes and a few strange self-inflicted causes (I remember one teen on a rafting course inhaled well-marked and highly toxic barge cement trying to get high and died instantly).
Insofar as the death in Utah last year (from heat stroke, not dehydration), the big mistake that was made was the instructors not realizing that the group of teens (who had been traveling in the Utah wilderness for 2 weeks already and had become pretty self-sufficient) had splintered and were not staying together as instructed again and again as they walked down a dirt road in the high heat. And we’re talking a well demarcated dirt road. Elisa, the girl who died, had been left to walk with another girl who was not well liked as the rest of the group (all boys) decided to hike ahead. When that other girl insisted on sitting down to wait in the shade for a trailing instructor who was a mile or so behind them (helping another student with an injured ankle get to a truck), Elisa decided to hike and try to catch the boys maybe a mile ahead. Unfortunately, even though she had been one of the strongest backpackers in the group, she could not gauge how overheated she had become and began losing her bearings within the next fifteen minutes. She walked off of the dirt road and up a side canyon before she collapsed and probably died within the next 10 to 30 minutes from heat stroke. Tragically, the instructor who picked up the lagging girl passed the spot where Elisa turned off the road maybe ten minutes later (a pretty tiny window). By the time a search got under way, it was already too late.
While there is no sufficient rationale to justify a death that could have been avoided with a different decision (not letting the group walk down the road in high heat without an instructor present), it’s hard to say whether even the best instructor could have gauged that situation correctly. In fact, as the story in Natl. Geo Adventure details, the Utah program director who has lived and taught in the desert canyon environment for years actually passed the group on his way up the road to help get the injured student to the truck. He talked to all of them and reiterated that they should stay cool and hydrated. He did not notice that any of them seemed overheated nor did he see any evidence that they would be splitting apart within the next half hour. He probably also realized that, by that point in the course, the group had likely experienced a number of occasions where they had broken up into smaller groups along whatever trail they were backpacking — the faster students always move ahead and the slower ones catch up, and a trailing instructor is assigned to pick up stragglers and encourage them along. This was a difficult call and maybe a perfect (heat) storm situation. I don’t think it reflects poorly on OB, nor does the recent “lost” group.
Be well and travel far.
Alright, first off, nice comment. Secondly, in regards to this incident, the lone instructor did not call in search and rescue. He called the OB home office. OB decided to wait two days before calling in search and rescue and the kids’ parents. Either way, OB had either an instructor who became lost, or a group of kids and decided to wait, rather than react.
You mentioned Elisa dying in a 10-30 minute time frame from being separated from her group. You would think OB would have reacted a bit differently with the aforementioned instructor or group knowing that someone had died previously and in a very short amount of time. Even with someone well trained in survival techniques, accidents can and do happen very quickly.
In Elisa’s case, and that of a few others, the problems have started when the group gets split. First off, why is there not enough supervision to keep this from happening and second, why is there only one means of communication within the whole group. One phone with one instructor seems pretty lax. If they know groups get split from time to time, it would seem like all the instructors would at least have a phone, or a two -way walkie to be able to establish contact with the other instructors.
Your comment is filled with a lot of ‘probabilities’ about these situations, which, anyone could suggest what may, or may not have happened–but obviously the whole story is hard to get at as OB keeps these things pretty tight lipped. Rightfully so, they have a business to protect and run.
I also feel that OB does offer something that these kids could not get anywhere else, personal leadership and team work skills, as well as a great introduction to the outdoors. I think they should look at these incidents, and maybe they are, and try to improve upon these situations. They expect the kids to learn from being pushed to the limits, likewise, OB needs to work towards ensuring that those limits can be attained in as safe a manner as possible, and when something does arise, that they treat it as any other emergency rather than hoping that the skills they have instilled will pull them through.
Being a former member of the OB staff, perhaps you could expand on the instructor to student ratio. As far as I know, there were three instructors with this group. I am guessing one was out front, one in the back (as pick-up) and one somewhere else. When these kids get split–and you mentioned at times a mile or more–how are you going to know what is going on with the other group. What is the communication protocol if an emergency does occur? Are you instructed to call OB first, before emergency personnel?
Once again, thanks for the comment. I do appreciate everyone’s thoughts. Like I mentioned previously, I don’t know what the answer is-but did want to offer it up for discussion and hear other’s thoughts. Thank-you for participating.
Cheers-
Jason A. Hendricks
We all learn more from our mistakes than successes. So the
details have to be pried out of OB no matter how bad it makes
the 3 OB Instructors look (career ending? maybe-maybe not)
Outward Bound needs to post a map showing the different routes taken by the single instructor and the 9students+2instructors.
i.e. dotted lines on a Goggle Earth view for Sunday through Wed of the incident. Include times/dates and campsites.
I suspect it will be very enlightening.
After all Outward Bound is about teaching. Lots of us are
ready for a lesson.
Wow. You guys act like travel in the wilderness should be the same as walking in mid-town Manhattan. OB operated for 40+ years without any phones or radios in the backcountry and maintained a stellar safety record. The character of an OB course is to travel outside the infantilizing comforts of the city/suburb/exurb. Decisions were always made with knowledge that help was often days away. That made students and instructors have greater caution. With phones, the possibility is there that students and staff will think “we can always be rescued in a few hours.” In fact, the board debated for a few years before deciding that lawsuits would force it to have sat phones on courses if anyone got hurt.
Lost patrols are as common as dirt. Longer OB courses have students break into finals patrols and travel without instructors. That’s what OB is about — growing up and taking responsibility. OB teaches students the skills and lets them progressively take over the course. They teach them what to do in an emergency and when they are lost. When it’s just students and they miss a rendezvous point, OB sends out staff to look for them. After a couple of days, if they aren’t found, search and rescue are called in. In the present case, since they were with instructors and had plenty of supplies, I imagine that no one was worried. However, with the recent history in Utah and lawyers hovering, I’m sure that the admin staff felt compelled to call in search and rescue. Ten years ago, it never would have happened unless they didn’t show for a few more days.
One more time, let me reiterate (and now I can say this with authority because I spoke to current admin): NO ONE WAS LOST IN CA. They missed a rendezvous on trails in the wilderness. They each knew where they were and felt completely safe. No parents are upset after learning the truth of what occurred
In terms of students to staff ratio, it’s generally 10:2. The third staff might have been a course director who met up with the group for a technical ascent.
And with regard to protecting its business, remember OB is a nonprofit and nobody is making beans off of these courses. The nature of the organization is to get students to move outside of their comfort zone, assume responsibilities greater than they can under the influence of parents, teachers, etc. (even for their own safety) and learn to work and respect one another as a team struggling to accomplish difficult tasks in a natural environment. Safety is a huge priority but just like when teens drive cars, there are risks that are present and may not always be overcome. Sometimes when I consider all the ways that students can screw up and hurt themselves, I’m pretty impressed at how consistently they rise to the occasion. That’s what’s thrilling about OB. If all you’re concerned with is taking away all the risks by having instructors nanny the students every minute, OB might as well close its doors. And our nation’s youth will be the less for it.
Have a great day!
My 21 year old son got back in May from 81 days on Outward Bound. I never once worried for his safety. He came back in amazing physical condition, focused, happy, proud of himself, with great thoughts about his future and how he wants to achieve his goals.
Outward Bound is not for everyone and the assumption of risk of testing oneself in the wilderness must be accepted. But Outward Bound is the gold standard with hundreds of thousands of success stories, and astonishingly few incidents in their decades-long history.
In life there will always be risks. The kinds of risks that instructors and participants take on Outward Bound are calculated and given all of the potential for any problems one might have in the wilderness, their control over the risks is remarkable.
I would not want to see any more control or accountability leveed against Outward Bound because of this isolated incident. They do an amazing and absolutely responsible job. And kids like my son want and need to push themselves to the limits that Outward Bound offers. If that means there are episodes like the one that recently occurred, then that’s fine - because the upside benefits are huge as weighed against the potential for risk involved.
Hello. This is mainly a question for the former Outward Bound staff member.
Do you know if the age, level of experience, and training of Outward Bound instructors has remained consistent over the years?
Also, do you know if Outward Bound withdrew from the Association of Experiential Education in the past few years? I understand that the AEE publishes a basic manual of accreditation standards for the adventure programs of its members.
In the case of Utah, one of the good things about programs which are regulated by the state is that there is a limit to how much weight youths may carry and limits on the temperatures at which activities may occur. Unfortunately, in 2006, OB wasn’t regulated by the state, because it was a voluntary and recreational program. Elisa Santry was carrying on the order of 50% (including water) of her body weight with temperatures over 100 deg on a midday, seven- or nine-mile hike in the desert.
As a lifelong climber who has been in mountains all over the world, and who has been involved in outdoor education for years, it is interesting to pick up the strong scent of infallibility coming from those who defend Outward Bound.
For a while years ago it was a top flight program. More recently it was taken over by business people who have shifted money away from rigorous training and into marketing. Many of the most dedicated and experienced Outward Bound instructors quit in disgust.
Since that time quite a few, more than ten, of the kids in Outward Bound’s care have been maimed or killed.
While one can sypathize with the underpaid and undertrained young people employed as “instructors” by Outward Bound, many of them have very little experience in the wilderness and have been given inadequate training by Outward Bound. They live in fear of doing something wrong and thus you consistently see the kids calling the office in emergency situations, rather than using their satellite phones to call search and resue, which on more than one occasion could have saved the children in their care.
One cannot open a magazine read by successful people who like the wilderness (Outside, National Geographic etc) without seeing big glossy Outward Bound ads. This is a business that makes money, and lots of it, from taking kids out of the city and into an unfamiliar and harsh environment. The parents who entrust their kids to Outward Bound have a right to expect the very highest standards of training and experience in the people who are “instructing” their kids for a week or two. Considering the very expensive prices paid by these parents one must assume Outward Bound can afford it.
The fact is Outward Bound was once a rigorous and idealistic community of people who had dedicated their lives to the love of the outdoors. Now it is a large multinational business that pays pennies to young and often inexperienced people to lead completely inexperienced children into harms way.
Unfortunatley more kids will probably have to die before these businesses are forced to be rigorous in training their staff.
I know my son’s instructors on Outward Bound had all been with the organization for 10 years or more. They were not kids at all. In fact, he was surprised by their ages, late thirties mainly, and how they had made a career of wilderness trekking and education.
So perhaps you had a personal experience with them that made you disaffected but that should not lead you to errant generalizations about the organization.
Dear Nina:
I am glad you got lucky with Outward Bound. Your single interaction with this company does not make you an expert, however. I know you want to believe you entrusted your child to a first class organization, however that is not true, and I would hate for anyone reading this to get that impression. There are many parents of dead and injured participants who have a much different impression of Outward Bound.
It is possible to venture into the mountains and challenge yourself physically and mentally with a reasonable level of risk. However the poor execution common at Outward Bound today often creates very dangerous situations that would not exist except for the incompetence of the “instructors”, often with irrevocable tragic results.
Most “instructors” at Outward Bound these days are inexperienced well meaning kids. There is a level above them that has older more experienced people but they are spread thin and do not have day to day responsibility for the children in the programs normally.
The people running this company are well paid professional managers who understand that if they want to profit they will have to market. And in finding money for their marketing schemes they have undermined the programs and the staff. Kids are being maimed and killed as a result, and the number of people, like you, who send their children to Outward Bound has increased at the same time.
I am glad your child survived. I know other parents will not be so lucky.
The situation will not change until the management has changed at Outward Bound and I fear it will take more deaths and lawsuits for that to happen.
In the meantime, if you love you kids, keep them away from Outward Bound.