Overview
Position type: Full time for 10.5 months, salaried, permanent/seasonal
Location: Silver Falls State Park, Oregon: June-September/remote in greater Portland/Salem areas January-May and October-November
Compensation: Salary is $42,000 for a 10.5-month position, or $4,000 per month
Benefits: 15 days paid vacation plus 6 holidays/80% health, dental, vision coverage/annual professional development stipend/business mileage
Program: Opal Creek Expeditions
As the leader of the Opal Creek Expeditions program, your role is integral to the development and implementation of twenty-seven youth and adult backpacking trips across the state of Oregon.
Prior to each season, you’ll work with parents and campers on registration, create/update routes and acquire permits, maintain and develop strong partnerships, coordinate pre-trip logistics with families via email, phone, and virtual orientation sessions, and co-hire and train Guides.
During the summer and fall, you’ll coordinate operations for a Backpacking Expedition program in different corners of Oregon: with routes in the Willamette, Ochoco, Malheur, and Wallowa-Whitman National Forests. You’ll foster participant’s relationships with the natural world and each other, support and mentor Guides, monitor field crews and organize evacuations. Opal Creek’s Expedition program is in a new phase with an opportunity for further development and expansion; you’ll play a major role by envisioning and creating exciting new adventures for our Expeditions community.
Qualifications, Skills, and Experience
A successful candidate will possess these minimum qualifications. We are less interested in the titles you’ve held and more interested in what you’ve actually done and who you are.
● Previous experience coordinating backcountry logistics for youth and/or adult programming
● 2+ years backcountry guiding experience
● 2+ years working with youth
● Strong communication skills, written and verbal
● Strong organizational skills & attention to detail
● Strong navigation & backcountry skills
● Familiarity with Leave No Trace principles
● Previous experience mentoring or supervising adults
● Previous experience with equity, inclusion, and cultural relevance, and integrating into youth programming
● Previous backcountry medical experience
● Able to lead groups on hikes up to 12 miles
● Able to pass a criminal background check
● COVID-19 vaccine (by time of employment)
● Valid driver’s license
About Opal Creek Ancient Forest Center
Our mission is to provide transformative wilderness experiences that grow a community of environmental advocates. All of our work is based around one simple idea: people will protect what they care about, and they will care about what they know. Through our outdoor school and backpacking expedition programs, we bring youth and adults face-to-face with the outdoor places that make Oregon great—pristine mountain streams, uncut vistas, and old-growth forests.
