A New NOLS Experience – Llamaneering in the Wind River Range

July 19, 2011

Herschel and ShoshoneHerschel and Shoshoni in the Wind River Mountains. Photo: Kary Sommers

“It was amazing!” I kept hearing on Saturday afternoon. The buzz and bustle of happy activity looked like any expedition deissuing gear at NOLS Rocky Mountain, only less grungy. It was the Alumni Llama Trek just back from six days in the Wind River Range.

Last week, 13 NOLS alumni, family and friends arrived in Lander, WY to head back into the Winds or get their first taste of the NOLS experience. Less intensive than a standard NOLS course, this llama supported trip allowed for lighter packs, making it perfect for families.

Participants of all ages made up the mix of families who worked and played hard together. Their route took them 15 miles into the mountains, around and through snowdrifts, and across rivers still swollen with spring runoff. With record snowfall across the West, the conditions were a bit challenging, but they made the most of it. “There was a lot of snow, but it was so beautiful,” alum Jeff Judd shared, “We skied in our boots!”

As key members of this expedition, the llamas got plenty of attention beyond their roll as porter. “We bonded at the very beginning,” Mollie Bond, 15, recalled of her close relationship with her llama, Piedmont. “I had him the whole week, and he wouldn’t listen to anyone else. It was really fun and I got to feed the llamas.”

“Our course wasn’t just a regular llama packing course,” veteran instructor Scott Christy joked with 12 year old Herschel Meadow, “It was llamaneering– technical river crossings, snow travel, the alpine environment– that’s what llamaneering is all about.”

Herschel and the other young participants caught the NOLS bug, and hope to go an Adventure Course in a few years. “I learned how to fly fish and caught eight Brook Trout,” he explained excitedly, “I definitely want to do a NOLS course now!”

If touring around with llamas strikes your fancy, mark your calendars for the NOLS Alumni Llama Trek on July 29 – Aug. 3, 2012!

(blog post by Larkin Flora, NOLS Alumni Department Intern)

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Written By

Rich Brame

Rich Brame came to NOLS in the 80's as a Fall Semester in the Rockies student and worked his first NOLS course at Wind Cave National Park in 1984. Since then, he's worked varied NOLS trips and courses on five continents—with a few more on the way. Rich does some frontcountry shenanigans for NOLS, too. He's headed up NOLS' public policy, research, LNT, Yukon programs and most recently in the Alumni Relations Department.