PRIOR TO COURSE START

• Participants (and parents of students under the age of 18) will read and adhere to the requirements listed on this website. Doing so is for the protection of your investment in the course, as OBCA does not offer refunds due to illness, including COVID-19.
• Participants must be COVID-19 symptom-free at course start, and advise OBCA if they have exhibited any symptoms, tested positive, or been in close contact with someone testing positive or showing symptoms of COVID-19 within 10 days of course start.
• Participants will observe physical distancing and good hygiene for 5 days prior to course start, including:

1. Avoiding crowded indoor and enclosed spaces when possible.
2. Wearing a mask when being in close proximity to people in public spaces is unavoidable, such as travel to course start (N95, KN95, or KF94 recommended).
3. Washing or sanitizing hands frequently, and always after touching surfaces that other people touch (eg. elevator buttons, handrails, door pulls and fuel pump handles).
4. Avoiding contact with people who are sick.

Vaccination & Booster

Outward Bound California (OBCA) strongly suggests all participants be vaccinated against COVID-19 and "up to date" as defined by the CDC prior to course start.

• For High Sierra expeditions that being on or after April 15, 2023, OBCA will no longer require participants to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and will not collect vaccination information.
• If your course takes place during flu season, OBCA strongly recommends you get a flu shot!

Testing

• ALL participants on Open Enrollment & Group expeditions need to submit pre-course test results from a FDA-authorized COVID-19 test. You can get tested at a clinic, doctor’s office, or at home. Some examples of approved at-home tests are: Lucira, Ellume, iHealth and Abbott BinaxNOW (available at CVS, Walgreens, and Walmart). Check with your health insurance to see if you qualify for free tests.
• NAAT/PCR viral tests need to be taken within 72 hours of course start. The Lucira test is in this category.
• Antigen tests need to be taken within 24 hours of course start. Most OTC tests fall into this category, including Ellume, iHealth and Abbot BinaxNOW. If you get this test, DO NOT take the test too early as results will not be accepted.
• Antibody tests are not sufficient.

• Submitting Results: OBCA must receive proof of a negative COVID-19 test prior to course start, or the participant may not be allowed to start the course. The week prior to course, OBCA will send you a link to submit test results to our team. Your submission must include the following information: An image of your test, Date and time of the test, Name of the individual tested, Result of the test.
• Recovery from COVID: You will need to submit a negative test to attend. If you have recently recovered from COVID-19, a NAAT/PCR test may still reflect a positive result even though you are no longer infectious. Antigen tests will have a negative result once you have recovered and are no longer contagious, and are the recommended test to take. It is possible that you could recover in a short period of time but we will follow the CDC recommendations found on their “isolation calculator” and it may take 10 days or more to no longer be contagious. Though very rare, it is not impossible to contract COVID-19 twice in 90 days.

Travel - Open Enrollment Courses

• If a participant uses commercial travel, regardless of vaccination status, they agree to wear a mask and comply as closely as possible with physical distancing and hygiene precautions while in transit to course start. OBCA recommends participants wear a N95, KN95 or KF94 mask to mitigate risk.
• Please reference the CDC's information on Domestic Travel During COVID-19.

Backup Travel Plans

In the case of an early departure due to a positive diagnosis of COVID-19, either at course start or during the course, participants must have a backup departure plan that allows for departure within 48 hours. Backup plans should take into account the CDC guidelines for isolation and domestic travel if you are positive for COVID-19. Open Enrollment participants will be asked to provide backup departure plan information during the application process.

Adult participants (18+) must either:

• Preferred: Plan to depart from the Outward Bound program location by private vehicle, providing name and contact information of pickup person.
• Alternative: Plan to request that Outward Bound provide transportation to a hotel near the airport, provided the participant meets the hotel's age requirements for check-in.

Youth participants (12-17 years old) must plan to depart from the Outward Bound program location by a private vehicle and must provide the name and contact information of a specific pick-up person.

COURSE START

• Participants will be screened upon arrival by program staff. If any signs or symptoms of illness exist, participants will not be allowed to start the course.
• If OBCA has not received the required pre-course information mentioned above, the participant may not be allowed to start the course. OBCA will administer a test at course start. This is a backup precaution, and does not take the place of the pre-course viral testing requirement.
• If a participant tests positive at course start prior to course, at course start, during course, or refuses to take the test, the participant will not be allowed to join the course and will be sent home. Cancellation policies will apply for Open Enrollment participants, and OBCA strongly suggests families research insurance options. More information can be found on the Policies website.

DURING COURSE

• A course can start without physical distancing or mask-wearing requirements depending on current variants and their ability to cause breakthrough cases.
• Enhanced personal hygiene will be practiced on every course.
• Instructors will conduct daily health checks. Anyone experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 will be taken off course to be evaluated and tested. If the participant tests positive, they will need to leave the course immediately. Participants ages 18 and over will follow their backup travel plan, and youth participants must be picked up by a parent/emergency contact within 48 hours of notification.
• Participants will wear approved facial coverings when requested to do so. Please see your packing list for facial covering requirements.

OUR STAFF & INSTRUCTORS

• All OBCA employees instructing or supporting multi-day/overnight expeditions will be cleared to work based on the current CDC, national, state and county guidelines at the time of the expedition. 
• Staff will observe physical distancing and good hygiene for 5 days prior to course start.
• Staff will take pre-course COVID screening tests regardless of their vaccination status.
• Symptom checks will be conducted on a regular basis.