Senior Profile: Lilli Caplan plans to take a two-year course to become a National Park tour guide

Senior Lilli Caplan spent her junior year of high school working towards entering the medical field. Leaving East from second to fifth hour each day for her medical science course at the CAA got her one step closer to her dream — becoming a nurse practitioner.

But after attending a week-long float trip in the Grand Canyon last summer, Caplan knew she couldn’t sit indoors as college professors delivered lecture after lecture for four years. At least, not yet.

Through creating a close relationship with their tour guide Sarah, Caplan learned of the outdoor educational program, Outward Bound, that got her started and Caplan’s interest to become a guide herself was piqued. 

“This is something I can do where I don’t have to go to college,” Caplan said. “School is not my thing, but I knew I wanted to do something instead of just sitting at home. So I decided to do this.”

Caplan will be attending Outward Bound for two years through Colorado Western University, where she’ll go on global wilderness expeditions to learn survival training and build leadership character. Because the program is off-campus, Caplan will be a University student, but won’t be taking classes full-time with the college.

After a month of introduction classes, Caplan will set out to camp with her group of 15 peers in Colorado. As students succeed though courses, they can work up to longer trips in different locations. Caplan’s goal is to reach the highest level — a six month, cell phone-less trip — before finishing the program. 

“You don’t have to know anything about camping when you enroll in Outward Bound courses,” Caplan said. “You can come from anywhere. I don’t have a lot of experience with that stuff, which is why I like the program.”

The target programs within Outward Bound allow students to learn the basics, get certified and use their experience towards their future. For Caplan, this means she can test her interests in the medical field by taking first aid courses and use those skills when she becomes a tour guide.

Ideally, Caplan would become a tour guide in the Grand Canyon or Yosemite for at least four years. However if Caplan enjoys it even more than she anticipates, she’ll stick to it longer and potentially discover similar careers from her tour guide experience.

“I’ve thought about going back to school to become a nurse practitioner after I’m done with Outward Bound,” Caplan said. “But for now, I want to do something that boosts my confidence. I’m thinking about when I eventually come back, getting into school here and seeing where that takes me — but for now I’m just going to take a break and travel.”