What is the location for the trip? Our fall backpacking trip is based in the White Mountains National Forest in New Hampshire. Our hiking groups travel a span of area covering the Kinsman Range, Pemigewasset Wilderness Area, the Presidential Range, and the Carter Range. The remoteness of our trip means that we will be exposed to one of the most beautiful areas of New England and it allows us to “unplug” from life back at Brown.

What are our living conditions for our backpacking trip? We will sleep outdoors, set up camp, prepare our own meals (rain or shine), and sleep under tarps as a group. Along with having shorter hiking days or days where we may plan a “day hike” without our packs, most groups experience 1-2 long physically demanding hike days. Each BOLTer and Leader is expected to prepare for the physical nature of the trip and to take good care of themselves while on trail.

What are weather conditions like in the Whites? In late August, the weather in the White Mountains can vary greatly. In the White Mountains National Forest of New Hampshire, we will see cool nights (30’s-40’s) and warm afternoons (70’s-80’s). It is usually 10-20 degrees lower in temperature in the mountains than the weather forecasts reported in town. You should prepare for temperatures that can be as low as 30 degrees at night. You will be asked to pack clothing and gear that will help you live outdoors for the week with prolonged exposure to a range of temperatures and weather conditions. Staying warm and dry helps protect you from hypothermia, which is common in the summer months since people are not prepared for the combination of rain, cool temperatures, and wind. Packing layers of clothing that help you to keep warm or allow you to change if you are wet from rain or river crossings will be a part of your efforts to be prepared for our backpacking trip. Please utilize our gear list and recommendations to help guide your efforts in this regard.

What are the physical demands of the trip? For our backpacking trips, we aim to hike at a pace that allows the full group to stay together and be able to converse. We are not hard-core by any means; however, this is a strenuous trip for many who participate. That said, if you are a trail god that summits peaks in your sleep, you will be asked to challenge yourself by slowing down to focus on enjoying a new group of people and the view.

We hike a distance in the range of 2-11 miles on a given day. You will be carrying a backpack that may weigh up to or exceed 40-50 lbs on trails with uneven terrain such as rocks, boulders, fallen logs, or slippery surfaces and we ascend and descend mountain slopes that can include changes of about 3,0000 feet. Any efforts that you can make for physical conditioning will allow you to enjoy the group and experience more.

BOLT has a long history of working with students to provide accommodations for special dietary needs, hearing impairments, varying ability levels, and chronic illnesses. Route difficulty varies significantly between the Camping Trip, the Accessible Backpacking Trip, and even between Classic BOLT Groups; thus, we are able to accommodate a range of abilities. If you have an accommodation need, please communicate these to the BOLT Director as soon as possible to discuss whether there are feasible accommodations that can be made.

What do we eat? We cook as a group on small backpacking stoves with iso-propane canisters. Everyone has the opportunity to help in the kitchen with preparing meals. Breakfast items include bagels, pancakes, granola, and oatmeal. Hot drinks (hot cocoa and tea) are essential for our mornings and evenings. Lunch consists of items that are easy to munch on during breaks such as peanut butter and jelly, cheese and crackers, fruit, and GORP (each year’s GORP recipe is a surprise, but nuts and dried fruits are common). Dinners have often included bean and veggie burritos, mac and cheese, stir-fried vegetables with lentils and rice, chili, and cornbread, and the ever-infamous brownie scramble. We can cater to a variety of different allergies and dietary restrictions including vegan, dairy-free, peanut-free, and gluten-free. All BOLT groups are vegetarian by default.

Are there showers or bathrooms? There are no showers or bathrooms on BOLT Trips (with the exception of the camping trip, which does have bathrooms). Your leaders will teach you how to poop in the woods in more detail, but generally you’ll find a private area, and dig a hole that you’ll use. We do bring toilet paper on BOLT trips, but all toilet paper will need to be carried out (in small personal trash bags). As for showering, you’re likely to get dirty and smelly on your trip, but so will the rest of your group— your leaders are a great resource if you want to talk about this more.

What do we do for water? We disinfect all wilderness water by boiling it or by treating it with Aquamira Water Treatment Drops (an EPA Registered Water Treatment product).

Can I bring my cell phone? For this backpacking experience, we ask our participants to leave their cell phones at home.

If you do choose to bring a phone, we ask that you keep it off and not use it. This gives us time to form a community within the group, which is central to our goals for this experience. We want to focus on getting to know each other and expanding our network of connections and support on campus. The experience of working together within a wilderness context separate from the clutter of technology is an important piece of the week we have planned.

A leader in each BOLT group will have a cell phone for emergency purposes — either to send or receive a call or text. Cell service can be unreliable in the wilderness region that we will be hiking within due to terrain, atmospheric conditions, and other variables; therefore, we also provide additional resources. As part of our group gear, our leaders also carry a Satellite Phone which receives much more reliable service as well as an emergency button. When activated, the emergency button will send a distress signal to New Hampshire Fish and Game (Search and Rescue).

Leaders are also provided with information regarding AMC radio locations to assist with communication to our basecamp or emergency services.

What if I or someone else gets hurt? We will be traveling through remote locations, which means that medical care may be significantly delayed based on group location, trail conditions, weather, amount of daylight, availability of communication and the nature of the injury and evacuation. For this reason, each BOLT Leader has obtained their national certifications in Wilderness Medicine at a minimal level of CPR and Wilderness Advanced First Aid.

Leaders are also supported by a base camp team consisting of a Brown University staff member with a Wilderness First Responder Certification and a volunteer group of past BOLT leaders or mentors.

If a medical emergency occurs where additional local support is necessary, we can activate a network of resources that includes the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC), Lincoln Police Department, the White Mountains Ranger District staff and New Hampshire Fish & Game’s Specialized Search and Rescue Team.

There are several local hospitals in the area should we need one in the case of an illness or injury.

How can my family reach me for emergency purposes? Families may contact the Office of Student Life at (401) 863-3145 to speak to one of the Deans. For emergencies that occur after offices have closed, families may contact campus police at (401) 863-3322 to request that an Administrator-on-Call be paged at home in order to request their assistance.

The Office of Student Life will be able to contact our base camp team. Our basecamp staff have a few ways available to them to send information into our groups. In addition to limited cell coverage and support of the Rangers and Shelter Coordinators (who use radios), we can send a hike team in to meet up with a group. Our base camp team includes a Brown staff member and a volunteer group of past leaders.

Our base camp is located at a campground in the area. We travel into the town for consistent cell service to allow us to check messages and receive calls each morning from 8 am to 9am and in the early evenings from 5pm to 6pm. Basecamp can often be reached during the day; leaders are encouraged to call or text as needed for consult or to provide updates.

How are the individual BOLT groups decided? The goal of BOLT is to bring together members of the Brown community that have never met before. Every effort is made to keep participants who were friends from previous years or roommates out of the same BOLT groups, so each group starts with a “clean slate” in learning to work together as a team. This effort allows students to expand their community of support on campus.

What about equipment? Group gear is provided for group cooking and shelter. For personal gear, BOLT is able to loan some of the required equipment such as a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, backpack, and rain gear (jackets and pants). If you own a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, backpack, and rain gear, we really need you to bring it! Between what we have to offer on loan and the equipment people own, we are able to outfit everyone.

BOLT is able to provide boots and some warm clothing. However, we also encourage you to think creatively about how to find what you need without spending lots of money. (Here’re a few examples: Nylon running pants are equal to hiking pants; warm wool sweaters are fantastic and are equal to fleece jackets; water bottles can be 1 liter sports drink bottles.) This is a great time to be funky in your outfits — matching items not required. Borrow gear and check out second hand stores such as Savers, Good Will, Salvation Army, etc.

We will have a (free) “gear auction” as a part of our Sunday Pre-Trip meeting to help solve issues of missing gear using the collection of clothing items that have been donated to us over the years – otherwise, BOLTers and leaders make a run to local stores for last minute gear purchases.

Please take some time to look at our Packing List to get a better sense of what gear you will need to have, acquire, or borrow from us.