APIRION ALPINE ASCENTS                                                 HOME

NOTE: As of January 2007, no trips are currently being planned. However, if you are interested in future trips, please contact us for more information.

Adventure education designed for young adults with the potential to take on meaningful leadership positions in our society.  Individuals who have worked through daunting physical challenges develop a strength of character that is not easily obtained through other means.  Dealing with various privations and learning to exercise judgment about real risks while working with others to achieve mountaineering objectives can foster personal resolve and real maturity.

Trips are either 28 days or a semester long.  The particular location may vary, but each involves a series of alpine ascents of increasing technical challenge.  Equally emphasized are a series of readings from western philosophy.  Reading and seminars on these works are integral to these courses.   Some outdoor/leadership schools provide some ancillary education in biology.  Unfortunately, while the wilderness setting may engender an appreciation of nature, it is not conducive to the actual, participatory study of science.  The primary challenges of survival, achieving mountaineering ascents, and doing so with a group are distinct from the study of natural science, however meritorious such studies may be.  The studies that Apirion Ascents integrate into every trip involve those choices about ethics and governance that are essential to the immediate challenges presented to the group and individual by the mountains themselves.  The situation allows for the reading and discussion that are required for an immersive confrontation with the course material. 

OUR PHILOSOPHY:

            We offer programs that are carefully planned and staffed to avoid the inculcation of political bias.  Our staff and school has a conservative reputation.  This perception arises not from any particular emphasis in our teaching, but rather in response to the reality that the majority of outdoor education programs are staffed by people with left-leaning perspectives who are willing to substitute indoctrination into conformity with their beliefs for  education.   We are committed to helping young adults become adults who are equipped with the tools of personal fortitude, discipline and endurance that, in addition to critical thinking skills, can help them become independent thinkers and leaders in our society.  If we have any particular ideology as an institution, it is an abhorrence of dogmatic indoctrination into any set of beliefs. 

Several outdoor education programs are affiliated with fundamentalist religious organizations and might be considered much more “conservative” than us.  We are not associated with any particular religion and engage in no religiously oriented teaching.  However, we strive to create an environment that will not offend anyone’s religious sensibilities or substantially interfere with their practices.  (Please note that there are limits to our ability to accommodate some practices on these trips.  For example, given the combination of logistical challenges, limited weather windows and safety considerations we cannot accept individuals who feel that climbing or otherwise participating in, or supporting an ascent would dishonor the Sabbath.)

Semester Course Reading / Seminar list:

-Plato: Ion, Gorgias, Republic, Theatetus, Sophist

-Aristotle: Nichomachian Ethics,

-John Stuart Mill: On Liberty

-Hans Georg Gaddamer: essays

-Marcus Aurelius: Meditations

28 Day Course Reading / Seminar list:

-Plato: Theatetus

-Aristotle: portions of Nichomachian Ethics

-Federalist Papers - selections

-Hans Georg Gaddamer: essay

-Marcus Aurelius: Meditations

Our Staff:  We have a small staff and course availability is therefore very limited.  Each staff member is an accomplished climber and well educated.  Each has the capacity for professional work in other fields and serves on our courses because they are committed to helping young adults with real potential to make a difference in our society.   Most of our staff are particularly interested in the application of ideas and philosophy to real world problems through law and policy.

APPLICATION AND QUALIFICATIONS:

            Age: Our courses are designed for people between 18 and 25 years.  We have some flexibility to extend the upper limit, but will not accept those who have not reached their 18the birthday under any circumstances.

Intellectual capacity:  Each applicant must provide proof of having achieved a high score on one of the standardized tests that has a base large enough to provide statistical reliability in comparison to the general population.  Accepted tests include SATs, GREs, IQ tests, MCATS, LSAT, etc..  We will consider other types of tests.  While we might consider something like a high ranking in a competitive organization such as the US Chess Federation, we would like to see some evidence that the applicant’s intellectual capacity includes verbal skills.  Good grades will not serve as a substitute for proof of raw intellectual ability. 

Ability to apply oneself:  This might be demonstrated through having achieved good grades, but we are eager to work with individuals who have a high intellectual capacity but who have not yet found themselves in an engaging academic environment.  While good grades are not a bar to admission, they are definitely not required.  Proof of the capacity to do focused, hard work might require some ingenuity.  Generic reference letters about good character or how the applicant reliably toiled at some job will not be much help.  The successful applicant will have applied themselves to something and will be able to find some way to demonstrate this to us. 

Emotional stability: While we work with young adults and do not have unreasonable expectations about their maturity, we will not accept individuals with severe behavior problems.  We are not a remedial program.  Anyone demonstrating serious behavioral problems endangering either the safety or the learning environment of other students and staff will be ejected without refund. 

Physical fitness: Basic physical fitness is essential.  These are demanding, challenging courses in remote and dangerous locations.  However, not every participant needs to be an athlete in ideal shape.  The average group size is 12 and each of the technical ascents take place in smaller units of 2 to 4, allowing for stronger individuals to attempt more ambitious routes.  Certification from a doctor of the applicant’s suitability for our courses is required.  Medical form.

Waiver of liability:  We won’t ask you to waive your right to sue us if we are negligent.  However, we will require that you understand the unavoidable risks involved and that you both accept these risks and commit to forgoing any future legal action against us as a result of injury death or loss that might result of participation in our programs.  Assumption of risk and waiver of liability form.

COSTS:

These are, comparatively, very expensive courses.  While we (will soon be) a non-profit organization we have to charge more than other non-profits and even many for-profit organizations because our costs are high.  Significantly higher compensation is required to retain the staff we employ.  Additionally, because we want all of our participants time to be spent on their climbing and studies ….  Etc.