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Wharton Leadership Ventures:
Chilean Pumalin Park Trek
A Leadership and Teamwork Experience in
the Chilean Pumalin Park Project
Biannually in March
Next offering of program: March, 2006
The Trek
Trek Organizers and Staff
Trek Itinerary
Trek Cost and Equipment
Other
Wharton Leadership Ventures
The Trek
Set in one of the most
remote parks in South America, this Venture combines elements of trekking,
mountaineering and sea-kayaking. Located in the 10th region of the province of
Palena, Pumalin Park is the world's largest private park. It is a world of snow-capped mountains, cascading
rivers, dramatic glaciers, and mirrored lakes with a huge variety of plant and
animal species
set on approximately 300,000 hectares set aside to be converted into a nature
sanctuary.
This multi-disciplinary
venture is open to Wharton MBA students, and its purpose is to
use the natural environment as a venue for developing leadership and teamwork.
Through a variety of challenging activities
both on mountainous
terrain and on sea, participants build their capacities for self-discipline, decision making,
and team direction.
This trip provides trekkers with an extended opportunity to explore
their core values and test their leadership skills.
The Pumalin Park project emphasizes
the need to work with the surrounding community to
create a shared feeling of responsibility to protect
the wild lands and
biodiversity. Creation of this conservation model
in
1991
–
actively involving the park's neighbors in
eco-tourism and farming
–
was the idea of
North American environmentalists Douglas Tompkin, the former CEO of Esprit, and
his wife Kris, founder and former CEO of Patagonia, Inc.
They and their
companies have helped inspire a generation of outdoor
enthusiasts and built awareness about the environment.
Participants join in a
seminar with the Tompkins focused on connecting sustainable business and
business success with an awareness for the environment, and
visit
some of their eco-farm activities.
Space is available for 30 participants.
Information on Pumalin Park can be found
here.
Trek
Organizers and Staff
 The
trip is organized by Jeff Klein of the Wharton School and Rodrigo Jordan of
Vertical S.A.
Rodrigo Jordan (photo on left)
is the founding director of Vertical S.A., a Chilean organization devoted to
using mountains as classroom for groups from company managers to school
children. He has ascended Mt.
Everest by the difficult east face in 1992, and led a Chilean team in 1996 in a
successful ascent of K2.
He is also the author of Everest: The Challenge of a Dream; K2:
The Ultimate Challenge, and articles in the Wall Street Journal and
elsewhere. His climb of K2 was
featured in 2001 in the National Geographic Television series on the Quest
for K2.
Rodrigo Jordan, Director of Vertical Inc., Santiago, Chile
Aldo Boitano,
Director, Vertical US, North Carolina
Jeff Klein,
Associate Director for the Wharton Leadership Ventures
Chilean Staff:
Mountain instructors, kitchen crew, and
camp managers.
Trek Itinerary
We
depart from Philadelphia on a Friday afternoon and return on a Sunday.
Day 1:
Fly from the U.S. to Puerto Montt, Chile
Day 2: Charter flight from Puerto Montt to Chaiten. City/Port tour,
followed by team-building workshops.
Day 3:
Trek to El Amarillo hot springs. Set up
camp in Valdivia Jungle Forest at the base of the Volcano Michimahudia.
Day 4:
Trek to high camp at the glacier of
Volcano Michimahudia (7,890ft.)
Day 5:
Volcano ascent. View of Renihue Lake.
Day 6:
Back circuit through the Alerce Forest,
and Renihue valley.
Day 7:
Ecotourism seminar with park founders
Douglas and Kris Tompkins, and visit to eco-farms.
Day 8: Kayak into the Leptepu Fjord to the
Porcelana hot springs. Last night wrap up session.
Day 9: Return to the US.
Trek
Cost and Equipment
The
land cost of the trek in 2005 is
$2,200. The land cost covers
instructors, transportation, entrance fees, hotels, food, catamaran, radios,
first-aid equipment, and adventure equipment.
Participants bring their
own sleeping bags, backpacks, and other
personal equipment (a list of personal equipment can be found
here
[Excel file, 765 Kb] and here).
Pumalin is characterized by microclimates, and we must be
prepared to experience four seasons in a single day.
Participants acquire their own air tickets from the
U.S. to Puerto
Montt via Santiago, Chile.
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