2022 Leaders In Training Trip
Our 2022 LIT Trip program will be taking place July 3-9 in the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness. Starting from the Putnam Pond Campground, the group will spend 4 days, 3 nights backpacking in the beautiful Adirondack Forest Preserve, containing an abundance of picturesque lakes and ponds. This area provides the right balance between easy accessibility while also maintaining a true-wilderness feel, and contains a robust network of nearly 70 miles of trails, 14 lean-tos, and 38 primitive campsites, allowing for the Trip Leader, with the input of the group, to create a truly unique, personalized experience suitable to backpackers of all skill levels. If the group is up to the challenge, they may even tackle climbing the 2551 foot Pharaoh Mountain, the highest peak in the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness.
Prior to the trip, participants will participate in a backpacking “crash course” at camp — learning meal planning and food prep, how to operate and field maintain group cooking equipment, how to safely treat water in the backcountry, how to properly fit and pack a backpack, how to set up and make basic field repairs to tents, basic orientation and map reading skills, how to take care of your feet and body while on trail, and Leave No Trace principles. They will continue to build upon these foundations during their wilderness experience, developing leadership and teamwork skills as they play an active role in cooking and cleaning up after meals, treating water, managing group gear, and route planning.
Participants should be physically fit enough to backpack 6-12 miles per day, carrying weights of up to 35 pounds in their pack, and should be comfortable sharing tent and primitive shelter space with other participants. Participants should also have a well-fitting, comfortable, broken-in pair of shoes — trail runners or hiking boots — appropriate for this backcountry experience.