The Wilderness First Aid training course is recommended as the minimum level of training desired for people traveling further than 1 hour from “definitive care”, that is, when professional emergency services are an hour or more away. The course covers immediate life-threatening injuries, and the most common medical issues one might face on a short-term wilderness trip.

This Hybrid course combines self-paced online learning with in-person skills learning.

Course cost is $185. Register and pay today.

The in-person skills session is on February 8, 2025; 8 AM to 5 PM

• To participate in the in-person skills session, you must successfully pass the quiz/assessment that is based on the online learning.

• The quiz/assessment is provided at the start of the in-person skills session on November 16.

Prerequisites: Current CPR training

The hybrid online learning with quiz/assessment and in-person skills course meets the WFA requirements for BSA group leaders and is designed with leaders of youth adventures in mind.

• Self-paced Online Training provides modules that cover essential wilderness first aid knowledge, such as:

  • Assessment and management of injuries in the wilderness

  • Treatment of common injuries (fractures, burns, wounds, sprains)

  • Handling environmental emergencies (heatstroke, hypothermia, altitude sickness)

• In-person Skills Training provides practice sessions under the guidance of certified instructors.

  • Hands-on practice with splints and bandages.

  • Scenario-based training in wilderness environments, simulating real-life emergencies

  • Team-based problem-solving, practicing patient assessment and evacuation techniques

Participants will receive a link to an online version of the handbook, but not receive a physical field guide handbook as part of the course.  The online course will present you with an option of buying one on your own; ECSI can ship it directly to your home. 

Questions? Email Dale Rae at dale@adventureleader.org.

The course helps build the confidence that the WFA-trained adventurer will do the right thing in a medical urgency or emergency and will not make matters worse. Additionally, the course covers how to improvise to keep a patient stable and comfortable until they can move or be evacuated, and how to observe and record the most vital information needed when the patient is transferred to higher level medical providers. 

The Center for Adventure Leadership Wilderness First Aid courses are further tuned to:

• Focus on the specific concerns of youth leaders

• Have an activity-specific focus, i.e., climbing, rafting, kayaking, cycling

• Prepare the learner to work effectively in a team environment

• Provide follow-on urgency management activities such as scenario days

Since the WFA course is a recommended minimum of adventurer emergency preparedness, our course includes discussions on why and how to obtain additional training. 

Importantly, participants in CAL WFA course join a community of adventurers who continue to support each other in their development as adventure leaders, particularly of youth. While most first aid training is a "one and done" experience, ours is part of a continuum of leadership development.

Please read: CAL Cancellation Policy