History of Adventure Education

The first written documentation of a legitimate adventure dates back all the way to 2500 BC. The adventure traveled from Egypt in search of gold, incense and dwarfs to a magical place named Punt. In these very early adventures, the main goal was to acquire wealth, and to re-tell their stories in intimidating ways to their rival explorers.

For the Greeks, Romans, and even certain classes during the Middle Ages, hunting, horseback riding, and backcountry travel were integral elements of training youth to become virtuous members of society and to prepare them for life. As time went on, the focus of adventure shifted from that of gathering wealth to charting new territories and then to gathering scientific information.

In 1821 the Round Hill School, located in America, integrated camping and outdoor living skills as part of a school curriculum. The development of programs such as Outward Bound, National Outdoor Leadership School, and Wilderness Education Assoc., helped form and, along with many others, continue to help form the face of Adventure Education today. Throughout the extensive history of Adventure Education, a significant common thread can be found: A desire to prepare people both physically, cognitively & affectively for challenges that might lie ahead.

This common thread can easily be found in the Beech Cliff Adventure Education programs. By blending challenge, learning, growth, fun, custom program design and professional facilitators that strive for an environment of physical and emotional safety, an experience is created that will be more likely to allow participants to bring away lessons from their experiences and apply them to. . . life.