When most people think of university life, rock climbing, backpacking and canoeing aren’t the first activities that come to mind.

But through Brock’s BaseCamp program, incoming students are transitioned into post-secondary education through a series of nature trips in August exploring Ontario wilderness.

The trips, each three to five days long, take new Badgers along the Niagara Escarpment and into Ontario provincial parks and various conservation areas.

The excursions are led by current upper-year Brock students, who share their own experiences and advice to help new students feel more confident and connected to the University going into their first year. All the while participants bond over their outdoor experience.

BaseCamp’s unique model has been adopted as a best practice by other Canadian universities.

Co-founder and Recreation and Leisure Studies Professor Tim O’Connell said students learn about the cultural and natural history of where they are travelling, as well as how to follow the Leave No Trace principles.

“Many BaseCamp participants appreciate learning how to travel lightly through our provincial and national parks,” says O’Connell. “In fact, many of them apply these principles to their everyday lives when they are back on campus or at home.”

Integrating these basic Leave No Trace ideas into outdoor recreation programs has become commonplace as more and more people are active outside. This has led to heightened awareness of the need to educate outdoor recreationists about the magnitude and variety of impacts they create, O’Connell says.

For more information about Brock BaseCamp or to register, visit www.brocku.ca/basecamp.

BaseCamp is one of three transition programs offered by Brock. For more information, on Smart Start or LEAP, visit brocku.ca/start.