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Project Success: BWCA 2023

BWCA 2023

Project Success is thrilled to invite Minneapolis Public School 6th -8th grade students to join us for our annual BWCA Canoe Adventure! Once again, we will partner with Wilderness Canoe Base, a camp that will outfit us and provide our wilderness guides. Their generous “camperships” have allowed Project Success to introduce many more students to the Boundary Waters Wilderness than we ever thought possible! Their guides are well trained, experienced and committed to safety.
 
Trip Dates: 

Students can choose to attend one of the following weeks:  

Trip 1: June 16 – 22, 2023 
Trip 2: June 24 – 30, 2023 
Trip 3: July 7-13, 2023 
Trip 4: July 8-14, 2023 

How do I sign up? 
 
Read over all the information in this online application. Here are the components of the online application that you will need to complete and submit by FRIDAY, APRIL 28, 2023 at 5pm:  

  • Camper Registration / Health History Form 

  • Waiver Form / Photographic Release  

  • Payment and/or Scholarship Form 

NOTE: This is a very popular trip and may fill up before the April 28th deadline. 
 
We accept applications until the trip is full and will continue to accept them after the deadline if space is still available or for a waitlist. All students who turn in applications will receive a confirmation call to let them know if they have a spot on the trip or if they are on the waitlist. 
 
It is very important that if you decide to cancel your spot, that you tell us immediately so we can let someone from the waitlist on the trip.  
 
The Cost 
 
The cost of the trip is $600 per student. Need-based scholarships are available for up to $550 of the trip cost. In the past few years, we have received an increasing number of students who are in need of scholarships. We ask that if you do have the funds to cover your trip, that you pay the full amount. However, Project Success wants to ensure that we include all students who really want to go, regardless of cost. If you are not able to pay the full $600, we appreciate the partial contribution you can make toward your trip cost. Your contribution will help us to continue bringing young people to the BWCA each year and to serve an ever-broadening community of students. If you would like to donate a spot for another student, we would greatly appreciate it! 
 
Informational Meeting 
 
There will be informational meetings in May for all parents/guardians and students who have a confirmed spot on the trip. These meetings will be over zoom and it is required that the students and a parent/guardian attend, even if your student has been on one of our trips before. This important meeting will cover COVID precautions that will be followed throughout the trip, as well as all the important logistical details you will need to know. You will receive an email regarding the various dates and times of the meetings. You only need to attend one meeting. 
 
Trip Details & FAQs 
 
Coach buses will transport us to and from the BWCA, which is about 7 ½ hours north of Minneapolis on the Gunflint Trail out of Grand Marais, MN. The bus will leave at 7am from the Project Success office in Minneapolis. A detailed itinerary will be sent to your home closer to the trip date. 
 
When we arrive at Wilderness Canoe Base, we go through various orientations on paddling, portaging, packing, and safety. The next morning, we will slip into our canoes and paddle away for a week of camping in the pristine wilderness. 
 
The day we return to the base camp, we will clean up and travel back to Minneapolis on a coach bus. We should return at about 9:00pm. There will be a cell phone on the bus for students to call home with the estimated arrival time. Students will need to be picked up from the Project Success office. 
 
During the BWCA week, Project Success staff will be in the office to answer questions. 
 
 
Trips and Groups 
 
Only 9 people can travel together in the BWCA at any time. Each trip will be broken into several groups consisting of seven students and two adults. 
 
The two adults with each group are a Project Success staff leader and a wilderness guide provided by Wilderness Canoe Base. 
 
Groups will be randomly chosen and we will not take any personal requests to be with a friend. Part of the magic of a canoe trip is getting to know people who you may not necessarily know beforehand. After years of experiencing these trips, we know how much more successful a trip is when students are not burdened by roles and expectations that friends put on other friends. 
 
Tents: Most groups will be mixed-gender with sleeping tents separated by gender. “All girl” and “all boy” groups are an option and you can choose that option on the registration form. If you have any questions regarding tent/sleeping arrangements, please call Jenny at (612) 874-1277. 
 

What does “ On Trail” mean? 
 
“On trail” is when you have left base camp with your group and are out in a canoe during the day and sleeping in tents at night. We do not return to Wilderness Canoe Base until the last day of the trip. 
 
What do we bring? 
 
A packing list will be provided at the end of your online application, and we will talk about this at the meeting in May. Call Project Success with any questions. We have extras of many things! 
 
What COVID precautions will be taken throughout the trip? How will this trip look different from other years? 
 
Project Success values the health and safety of our students, families, staff, camp staff and broader community. If you have any questions or concerns about the COVID-19 safety precautions for this trip, please reach out to us at jennyb@projectsuccess.org. 
 
All participating students and staff must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 prior to their trip and will be asked to email us a copy of their vaccination card. Please contact Jenny Batten, Outdoor Adventures Program Manager, at jennyb@projectsuccess.org if your student is seeking an exemption. 
 
All participating students and staff must pass a COVID-19 safety check-list the morning of the trip. We will follow a specific process for dropping students off at the bus location which we will explain in detail at the meeting in May. 
 
All students and staff will wear masks all day on the first and last day during travel and at base camp. Masks will not be required once a group goes out on trail except in a few cases which we will explain at the meeting. Due to safety, masks will not be worn in canoes. 
 
All Project Success, Wilderness Canoe Base staff and bus drivers will be vaccinated prior to the trip. 
 
If a student is sick in the days leading up to their trip or has been in close contact with a person known to have COVID-19, we ask that they do not attend the trip. A full refund of your payment will be provided if a student must drop out from the trip prior to boarding the bus due to illness or close contact with a person known to have COVID-19. Any student who is feeling ill the morning of the trip should stay home and not attempt to check in and board the bus. 
 
Students who arrive at Wilderness canoe Base and present signs of illness on that first day at the camp will not be able to stay and a parent/guardian must pick them up from the camp.   
 
It is important that students and parents communicate regularly about health in the days leading up to the trip and stay diligent about COVID-19 precautions so that sending a student home on the first day doesn’t have to happen. 
 
A more detailed COVID-19 safety policy will be discussed at the informational meeting in May.  If you have any questions in the meantime, please feel free to reach out to Jenny Batten, Outdoor Adventures Program Manager, at jennyb@projectsuccess.org. 
 
Wilderness Canoe Base is a Lutheran camp. Will this influence the canoe trip? 
 
There will be no type of religious programming on this trip. We do encourage people to do some deep thinking about themselves and the environment. Discussions are led at the beginning and end of each day. This could be stories and thoughts about the beauty of the wilderness, or a reflection about how the day has gone for each camper. 
 
Please email Project Success with any questions or concerns: jennyb@projectsuccess.org
 
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