This program blends a rigorous initial personal discovery program,
mentored leadership and service-learning opportunities, academic options,
and professional evaluation and feedback on performance and growth
with a dynamic spiritual renewal program.
SALT Program Highlights:
1-Academic Services Option (catch up on failed/missed courses),
2-Very low student to staff ratios to surround each teen with support,
3-Spiritual renewal through individual mentoring, and structure,
4-Adventure leadership options and training (see schedule),
5-Short-term enrollment,
6-Mentored leadership training through expedition, adventure skills,
and service project seminars,
7-Exposure to multiple ministry organizations and leaders,
8-Evaluation and feedback on each task by staff and peers,
9-Completion of a work/leadership portfolio,
10-A structured, purposeful Family Meeting to wrap up the experience.
Overview Schedule: (NOTE: Depending on enrollment date, logistics differ)
Beginning JUNE 16 through AUGUST 16
-Arrival at Medford (OR) Airport and Welcome Dinner
-Orientation
-Discovery Challenge (backpacking expedition)
-Debrief and downtime
-Expedition Skills Training 1 (EST-1): Sky Lakes Wilderness Pack-trip
-Debrief and Evaluations
-Service Learning Project 1 (SLP-1)
-Debrief and Evaluations
-Expedition Skills Training 2 (EST-2): Sky Lakes Wilderness Pack-trip
-Debrief and Evaluations
-Adventure Seminars: Rafting and Coastal Sailing Trip
-Reflection Retreat and Concert in the Park (Britt Festival)
-Mentored Leadership Training 1 (MLT-1): Wilderness Trails
-Debrief and Evaluations
-Service Learning Project 2 (SLP-2): Ghormley Meadows
-Capstone Project (MLT-2): Wilderness Trails
-Family Meeting and Final Dinner
These trips are designed and run by Palmer Adventures staff, camps, and outfitters
that we have worked with in the past. We know these areas very well and offer
trips that few others can match, whether in quality or price.
All the while, our students are engaged in academic and spiritual growth!
If your teen is stuck in a rut and you want to do something about it, get them out
experiencing the real world with real people... not just participating, but LEADING!
Course Costs: Enrollment after -Day One- will feature a reduction in tuition.
1. Application fee (non-refundable)- $250.00
2. Enrollment fee- $1750.00 (due after approved application)
3. Gear Allowance- $500.00 (due upon arrival)
4. Two Tuition Options (due upon arrival):
a. Monthly (2)= $4000.00 ($8,000.00 Total)
b. In full= $7,500.00
suited to students who have not
accepted the responsibility that
comes with being a teen.
SALT students are not troubled
teens, but teens that need a
structured environment in
which to excel... to recapture the
gifts that God has given them, to
learn to walk in faith, and to
accept the challenge of modern
Christianity.
A core area of learning is in
gaining perspective outside of
oneself. There is so much to
life. So much more than most
teens seem to grasp.
Palmer Adventures/ SALT
shines a beacon on these issues
and challenges each student to
wake-up and live dynamic,
authentic Christian lives.
Students will hike/backpack various wild areas and wilderness and make an encampment at Wilderness Trails where
students will be challenged to complete several assignments and 'groups'.
MLT-1
Students will complete their first Mentored Leadership Training (MLT-1)camp. Each student will work directly with a
leader and be challenged to begin to step into a leadership role within the day-to-day program of a summer
camping setting. Leadership roles can include: leading games, group cooking, evening worship, special speakers,
program assistance and much more.
SLP-1
Students will travel to Ghormley Meadow camp to begin the Service Learning Project (SLP-1). Here students will
work behind the scenes at a Christian camp and conference center in the foothills around Mt Rainier. Students will
work directly with Palmer Adventures staff (as always) and under direct support of the camp's Program Director!
Projects and perks may include: morning staff prayer meetings, staff devotionals, kitchen cleanup, maintenance
work (simple tasks), water-skiing, swimming, camping in a cabin, worship time, evening meetings with special guests
and speakers, and much more.
EST-1
Students will take part in their first Expedition Skills Training (EST-1) camp. We will trek into the Sky Lakes
Wilderness with pack donkeys. Nights will be spent under the wide open skies and every day will bring us to a great
campsite where we share stories, worship, and encourage students through inspirational teaching and discussions.
An uncommon benefit to utilizing pack donkeys is in the amount and types of food we can pack. Bacon, eggs, and
other old-school camp favorites, once considered a thing of the past, come back to life on these trips! Imagine the
smell of bacon in the crisp, sub-alpine morning and the group waking up by a high mountain lake...
Adventure Seminars:
Students will spend this time (with Palmer Adventures staff, as always) on guided rafting, mountain-biking, and rock
climbing treks. These will vary due to availability, but are all staffed and operated by a Christian outfitter and staff
team. We will revel in Oregon's wild river country and worship in the evenings with antelope and golden eagles as
our companions.
EST-2.
Students will take on the next role of leadership at this Sky Lakes Wilderness expedition. This will allow them to take
their prior learning to the next level.
SLP-2
Students will return to Ghormley Meadow to take on a bigger role, both in the projects that they are assigned to and
within the staff team.
MLT-2
Students will cap off their leadership roles with this second camp leadership assignment. In addition to having
completed the MLT-1, they will also have completed all of the other tasks (except final solo) and now will have a
much firmer grasp on the leadership roles that they can now play. This will be a chance for them to really cap off
the summer!
Final solo and Family Meeting
Students will spend several days preparing for the family meeting and returning home, or in transitioning to their
next placement. Supervised solos will play a large part of this wrap-up.
Assignments and Individual Goals:
Each student is given some basic assignments (ie: life story) and also an individualized set of assignments
throughout the trek. These are included in the student's daily activities.
Group Discussions:
Every day holds another group discussion, and often two. These "groups" are chances for the staff team to pose
questions, topics, challenges, and otherwise spur the students toward further growth.
Devotions:
Staff will lead or supervise a devotional reading everyday.
This Summer Course offers open enrollment and families are encouraged to apply early.
DB Palmer, Executive Director and Founder
Palmer Adventures LLC & Adventure Academy USA
Please note:
This schedule is not definite, and may vary due to availability, group dynamics, and staff discretion. A key focus of Palmer Adventures is group
learning and individual growth. Palmer Adventures is not a treatment or therapeutic program. We offer spiritual renewal through quality
Christian mentoring and individual guidance. Depending on enrollment needs, groups may be co-ed or single sex. Any co-ed group will be led by
co-ed staff and be integrated for programming purposes, while sleeping will be in single-sex groups.
