Work for BOAT
BOAT is trying to change how organizations access the outdoors â and we need your help! Weâre looking for guides, instructors, and volunteers for a range of programs.
Interested in joining our efforts to make a more accessible and inclusive outdoors? Check out our mission â and read on:
The Bus for Outdoor Access & Teaching, or âBOAT,â strives to empower impact organizations to get more people outside. We put a full-service outdoor program in the hands of community leaders, addressing barriers to remote outdoor experiences.
By honoring and enabling the vision of others, we leverage the power of building community outside to achieve greater goals.
Current Opportunities

Summer Backpacking Guide
DATES:Â June 7th â August 16th, 2025 (10 weeks), including:
- 1 week of staff training
- 9 weeks of backpacking or basecamping expeditions
Weekly Contracts:Â If you’re not able to commit for the whole summer, we can sometimes offer weekly contracts â please inquire for availability.
REQUIREMENTS:Â Wilderness First Responder preferred. Experience working with youth required. Experience with backcountry navigation, outdoor meal preparation, and basic facilitation preferred. See job description for more information.
PROGRAMS & CLIENTS: While details will vary, most programs in 2025 average 5-6 days. We are proud to partner with programs led and designed by leaders for their own communities, with BOAT as a capacity builder. This makes guiding for BOAT distinct, as the ability to flex to the needs of different programs is critical. We are truly âguidesâ more than we are âleaders.â Strong preference for guides with a background in facilitation, social-emotional learning, cultural competence, and humility.
As an example, 2025 program partners include:
We will be collaborating with Project Kindred, an intentional racially integrated summer camp in Milwaukee, to lead expeditions for their older participants across Wisconsin and Michigan.
Additionally, weâre partnering with the Detroit YMCA to support BOLD & GOLD expeditions, which connect Detroit youth to public lands and foster leadership development.
BOAT Bus will also be involved in multiple programs as part of a partnership agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Forest Service. These programs include the “Urban Connections” initiative as well as a new “Urban Forestry” program aimed at schools and community leaders in the Midwest.
As a general practice, more than 80% of BOAT participants each year come from historically underrepresented groups in the outdoors. While most of our participants are high school-aged, our demographics are diverse and vary depending on the specific partnerships weâre working with.
SCHEDULE: Trips will primarily be backpacking, with occasional base camping trips (i.e. car camping from the bus). Most trips are 5-6 days on, with 24-36 hours off. Because we serve the region, some additional days will involve travel to a new city. Housing is primarily in Milwaukee, WI but campsites or residences (i.e. Airbnb) will be provided when serving other areas. Transportation to and from our HQ is provided, or you can opt to transport yourself.
See details in âLearn Moreâ section below. Many of our arrangements (clients, trip locations, schedule) are seasonal and will be settled throughout the year, but weâre happy to share more of what we know in the interview process!
Lewis & Clark College Precollege Programs Staff
DATES:Â June 8th â July 26th, 2025 (7 weeks), including:
- 1 week of staff training (paid)
- 5 weeks of summer camp
- 1 week break over July 4th
REQUIREMENTS:Â Wilderness First Responder preferred. Experience working with youth required. Experience with basic facilitation preferred. See job description for more information.
PROGRAMS & CLIENTS:Â While the specifics of each camp may vary, most programs typically run for 6 days. For this camp, we will collaborate with various departments across the Lewis & Clark College campus to offer unique programming each week. Professors and staff will oversee the curriculum, but your role will focus on creating a fun, supportive, and safe environment where young people feel engaged and valued.
As a member of the camp team, you will live on the Lewis & Clark campus in dormitories, where you will serve as both a resident advisor and camp staff. When students arenât in class, theyâll be exploring Portland through activities like hiking, swimming, visiting Powellâs Books, and more. Your responsibility is to ensure their safety during these adventures, while also helping them connect with and appreciate the beauty of the Pacific Northwest.
SCHEDULE: The entire season will be based out of residential summer camp at Lewis & Clark College. Most trips are 5-6 days on, with 24-36 hours off. You will also have the week of July 4th off in between camps.Â

Bus Driver
DATES: Ongoing
REQUIREMENTS: Class B Commercial Driverâs License with a Passenger and Airbrakes Endorsements required. BOAT can provide training to the appropriate candidate to receive their license.
DETAILS: Daily rate, per trip. Ample opportunities to drive on weekdays throughout the summer and into the fall. Typical days last from 8am â 4pm, but hours may vary. Itâs easiest â but not required â to live in or near our headquarters in Milwaukee, WI, or our major areas of service: Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, and Minneapolis. That said, programs range more widely, and occasional trips may be available throughout the US. Additionally, for those with the spirit of adventure, we can pay for travel if you want to drive for our longer expeditions.

The Application
BOATâs application process is online â you can find the full application below. You will be asked to provide basic information about yourself and your skills, to provide a resume, and to provide at least three references. You cannot save information midway through, so have your references, their title, e-mail, and phone number in advance.
Note that each job has a series of brief question statements â these can be brief, but you may want to prepare answers in advance. Our Job Application Checklist is the best place to get a sense of the process!
Learn more about working for BOAT
The name is an acronym, but it really is like working on a ship. Our crew is small, the quarters are tight, and everything is on board. We arenât a camp, and we donât have our own students â instead, every program is a partnership, with leaders from the communities and schools we serve directly involved. You may be used to programs that work out of a particular camp or area, or have their own philosophy and model â we find we can serve more programs, in a more thoughtful way, by focusing on their approach. Our challenge is to mirror what they already do in an outdoor setting. Each trip can look a little bit different. That can be refreshing for some, but stressful for others.
There are still things we look for in our team. Weâre proud of trying new things, and we think operational excellence, innovative thinking, and a willingness to change will help us make a more inclusive outdoors. Weâre looking for people who want to join us in finding new ways to use the outdoors to fulfill the missions of our partners. We have really robust operational systems, but we want to learn from you too. A commitment to diversity in outdoor spaces is critical; we are often providing the logistical backbone to support leaders from groups who have historically lacked access to the outdoors.Â
Given the above, we donât believe in âculture fit.â We are looking for âculture adds.â Bring who you are to the work, and we will try to find the right match (both with partner guides, and partner programs!). Review available opportunities and apply in the other tabs.Â
Because our trips range widely â both in location and style â each contract may be unique. We strive for competitive rates and to limit costs to our employees, while also being transparent about our budget and capabilities. At a high level, you can expect the following:
- $150/day base pay with a WFR (+$10/day with lifeguarding)
- Bunk + board covered**
- All program expenses will be paid while working, including travel to and from the trip start and end location, meals, accommodations, and activities (this may not apply during time off, or for travel to BOAT at the beginning / end of the season).
- Access to pro deals and industry discounts
We use a daily rate to help calculate as new trips emerge. Sometimes new trips become available mid-season or end of season. In a typical season, a guide with a WFR will make $940/week before taxes, or >$6,500 in a full seven week season.
** Specifics vary by location. Read on for details.
While in the field, youâll be camping along with participants. Typically guides are in a separate guide tent, and if you prefer to sleep alone in a tent that may be an option. Most trips in the warmer months are tent or tarp-based, but as it gets cooler we may utilize cabins.
While not in the field, there are a few options. Most of the time weâll be in our base in Milwaukee, WI. Guides share a space in the Hawkâs Nest Community, an intentional living community, and an urban homestead in an eclectic walkable neighborhood. Out the front door, youâll have access to the city of Milwaukee, with much of downtown within just a few miles (bikes are provided for those without vehicles). Out the back door, the view over the river valley hides any sense of a city, and weekend activities can include walking miles of trail connected to the property, borrowing a boat to paddle down to Lake Michigan, or enjoying the breeze on the porch. At night, relax in the hot tub or with one of our many fire pits. And one advantage relative to many youth guiding programs â no kids on site! Rooms vary based on availability, and range from private rooms to bunks in shared space. Sometimes, we will simply use a local Airbnb.Â
While in other cities, we typically provide a shared Airbnb for guides. Some opt instead to get their own place or stay with friends. These can vary widely but are typically near the city we are operating in.
Breakfast supplies, lunch, and dinner are provided, though you may opt to eat out instead, or provide your own groceries â there is a kitchen available for your use in this case.
Some days are travel days, as the bus moves from place to place. In those cases, we may be camping out along the way.
In many ways, weâre the same as many other expedition-based programs. You will lead groups of people, typically youth, through beautiful areas. You will teach them outdoor skills and life lessons. Youâll facilitate activities, help prepare delicious camp meals, sleep under the stars, and encourage social and emotional development.
In other ways, we are quite different. Because we want BOAT programs to enhance the existing mission of our programs, there are some unique aspects of our fieldwork:
- More often than not, an adult mentor, teacher, or chaperone from the program is part of our leadership team. We want to help foster and continue long-term relationships of support with our students.
- Program philosophy or style may vary across trips, to better honor our partnerâs efforts. That can mean training between programs on the things that do change.
- Our programs range widely! Rather than a core base of operations we work out of, our base of operation moves.