GORP: Going Beyond the Trail

By Ashley Thompson

If running on the treadmill or along Milledge Avenue has gotten a little mundane lately, you can take advantage of a program that provides mental and physical enrichment to university students while showing off the great outdoors.

GORP, the Georgia Outdoor Recreational Program, offers a variety of outdoor recreational trips, including backcountry cooking, day hikes, horseback riding, caving and whitewater kayaking. In addition to giving students an opportunity to exercise and explore the outdoors of northeast Georgia, the program hopes to teach life skills.

Jennifer Stewart, associate director for programs and outdoor recreation, came from Georgia State University to the University of Georgia a year ago to become a part of GORP. Since Stewart moved to Athens a year and a half ago, she has doubled the amount of trips offered over the past year.

Before Stewart arrived, 20 trips were offered a year, last year the number increased to 42 trips, and this year there are 52 trips scheduled.

The cost of day trips for students can range from $25 to $100 depending on the intensity of the trip. Clinics are usually $10.

Another advantage of GORP is that the trips, instructional clinics, indoor and outdoor challenge courses are all subsidized by a fee students are already paying.

“One of the reasons it hurts me more people don’t know about GORP is because your student activity fee subsidizes this program”, said Stewart. “And with all the complaining people do about paying the activity fee, look how much you could do to take advantage of that fee.”

An aspect to GORP Stewart wants more people to know about are the longer, 10- day trips offered during semester breaks. This December, GORP is going to Steamboat Springs, Colo. for a ski and snowboard trip and during spring break they plan on going to Florida to explore the Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge.

“Trips give people a chance to travel and explore, but those 10-day trips really give people an opportunity to bond and really learn what its like to live with different people, be a team and rely on each other,” Stewart said.

“That’s what I love about outdoor recreation; it has an opportunity to really have a positive impact on people, and boost their confidence by giving them new skills,” adds Stewart.

Robyn Albirtton, 4th year natural resources recreation and tourism major from Tucker, Ga., said her favorite part of GORP is the people.

“It opens up opportunities to meet new people; people I have classes with now that I met through GORP,” Albritton said.

“Going on these trips teach people a lot about the outdoors and how to enjoy being outside,” she adds.

Another facet to GORP is the low and high challenge courses. Participants begin low, using teamwork and communication skills to achieve specific goals. Individuals wanting to participate in the high challenge course must first complete a low challenge program.

Challenge courses use a combination of ropes, logs and cables to accomplish different activities that test mental and physical strength.

“Even on the low course there is still a lot of perceived risk, and trust is hard for people to give over, and if they want to be an effective, efficient team they have to learn to trust each other,” said Jim Crouch, the outdoor recreation coordinator.

GORP even has an Outdoor Recreation Center, the go-to store for anything participants need to prepare for a wilderness excursion. The store is located in room 144 of the Ramsey Student Center for Physical Activities.

“I think the one thing a lot people don't know about is the ORC store. Even if you don't want to pay to go on a trip, the ORC staff can help you plan your own and provide the equipment you need to go,” said Chase Dudley, manager of the ORC store.

To find out about upcoming trips, including costs and informational meetings, call the Outdoor Recreation Center at (706) 542-GORP.

Edited By Nancy Larksukthom