Olympia Mini Mountaineers 2023/2024

Please read this description in its entirety before registering.

Note: Pathfinders membership is $200 in total for the Fall 2022 course. Participants may register here and pay in full, or may contact beckyn@mountaineers.org to set up a payment plan. 

We offer financial assistance! To apply for financial assistance click here.

Our Pathfinders program provides youth ages 6-9 and their parents/guardians with the opportunity to get outside once a month. Pathfinders is designed to expose youth to a variety of outdoor activities and have fun! Participants will have the chance to get together and learn about the great outdoors in a fun and interactive way! Our Fall Program includes:

SEPT: What better way to start the season than with a camping trip! This is a great chance to connect, learn about outdoor cooking and camping, and enjoy the last bit of wonderful summer weather!

OCT: We will spend the day exploring the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, learn about the variety of birds, plants, and animal that live in our local area, and discover what an estuary is and why it's important.

NOV: We will have a chance to connect with local conversation teams to learn about Salmon, their lifecycle, and what happens in our streams during this time of year. This trip will also include a fun stewardship lead by Capital Land Trust.

Pathfinders will be supported by both Mountaineers staff as well as parents who are approved for leading trips.  Parents will play an active role in supporting their children by actively participating on the trips, supervising their youth, and possibly even leading some trips if they feel ready. We will provide opportunities for parents to advance their own outdoor skills as well as learn key skills for leading kids safely in the outdoors. This program will focus on skill-building for both youth and adults, and on building an outdoor community.

Pathfinders is a club and requires a time commitment and program fee of $250 for the Fall Semester. In return, members gain a community of outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy spending time learning skills together. As families grow through our programs, lifelong friendships are built. When graduates of our teen program come home from college, they meet up with other Mountaineers friends to go hiking, backpacking and climbing. This program is just the beginning.

Note: Youth ages 6-9  register as participants, and therefore pay the registration and program fee. Parents should become a Qualified Youth Leader and then register for the Pathfinders program as a  Chaperone (there is no fee for this).