The Coalition for Christian Outreach (CCO) and Waynesburg Outdoor Experiences are partnering to host a backpacking trip in the Dolly Sods Wilderness Area in West Virginia over fall break. The trip will begin on Friday, Oct. 10, and end in the afternoon on Monday, Oct. 13. 

Becky Juliano, the coordinator of campus ministry at Waynesburg University, is going with the students on this trip. 

“We’re carrying all of our tents and food and clothing and everything we need on our backs, exploring different places,” Juliano said. “It’s this opportunity to be in community together and be unplugged and rest: not necessarily the body, but rest from the normal chaos of busy schedules and life on campus.” 

Students will be travelling with an instructor leader from CCO’s experiential design team, which runs programs at colleges and universities around the country. Juliano commented that the experiential design team led other trips with different colleges during fall, winter and spring breaks. 

With the number of trips they run, the experiential design team has a barn full of equipment for students to use. With this gear, students will only need to bring hiking boots and a raincoat. 

“We call it the equipment room,” Juliano said. “There, we have tents, backpacks, cooking gear, stoves and hiking poles. I just also found out that they have extra raincoats, so if you don’t have a rain jacket, we can provide that too.” 

Juliano explained the itinerary for the trip. The group will leave campus on Friday evening and camp in their cars around Deep Creek, Maryland. They will meet up with their guide outside of the wilderness area and then begin their hike, emerging from the wilderness around midday on Monday. 

Junior Allie Zaktansky is going on the trip and commented on her excitement.

“I’m excited for the opportunity to connect with others while experiencing the beautiful creation of God so completely,” Zaktansky said. “While it may be hard at times, I’m hoping it will be rewarding to be backpacking and unplugging from our phones, in order to better connect as members of God’s marvelous creation.” 

Juliano emphasized the value of the trip.

“It’s a lot more about the adventure and the fun than it is about hiking really far, really fast. It isn’t about doing this to conquer something,” Juliano said. “The point isn’t to conquer but to encounter beauty and community.” 

The last day to sign up for the trip is Monday, Oct. 6.