Outings Leader Training drew Sierra Club members across state lines for leadership training
By Tom Tortorich

What does it take to become an outings leader with the Sierra Club?

That’s what the Outings Leadership Training (OLT) courses teach. THB Outings Chair Eileen McManus saw the need to offer an OLT 201 course locally, and entreated THB’s own local backpacking guru, Paul Gross, to teach it.

Paul Gross, a 20+ year backpacking veteran, skillfully conducted the OLT 201 training course in February 2015, drawing in Sierra Club members from across the region and across state lines. The hands-on, full-day class covered a wide range of topics and skill sets necessary for leading a group of Sierra Club hikers on overnight backpacking/camping trips away from vehicles. The class covered topics from leadership styles and group dynamics to hard and soft skills.

What participants learned was applicable not only to leading hikes, but useful on many other life paths as well. Fortune 500 companies pay top dollar for “leadership training courses.” Paul’s course was of that caliber, and offered at no cost to local, dedicated Sierra Club outdoor enthusiasts who had met the prerequisites. The preliminary OLT 101 class is an online course which prepares leaders to conduct short day hikes. Sierra Club outings leaders must also have first-aid training to assist when emergency situations arise outdoors.

About a dozen prospective leaders completed the OLT 201 training course, many of whom will be leading their first “provisional” trips this spring. Through this new crop of leaders, look for your local Sierra Club to offer even more hiking opportunities in the coming months and years. That means more opportunities for members to experience the outdoors under the guidance of trained leaders who can help us feel more comfortable away from civilization & cell phones, and allow us all to learn what it truly means to explore, enjoy, and protect the planet.