About
Ignite Outdoors is a four day outdoor trip filled with adventure, leadership, learning, and outdoor skill development for all experience levels. With training in navigation, wilderness first aid, risk management, group dynamics, leadership, and technical skills, our leaders are well prepared to provide an enjoyable, learning adventure for students. The wilderness environment provides many amazing opportunities to learn about how to cope with new challenges both on and off campus. This experience eases the transition to college life. Please note these offerings are only for incoming students (freshmen and transfers).
Ignite Outdoors cost is paid at the time of registration and includes transportation, most outdoor equipment, meals during the program, and outdoor instruction.
Make sure to select Summer 2023
Ignite Outdoors Summer 2023
We want everyone to get out and experience the outdoors regardless of whether you grew up playing outside or have never been hiking or sleeping in a tent. Ignite trips have you camp in what is usually called “front country” or “developed” campsites. This means you set up a home base camp in a well-maintained state park campground, spend each day adventuring in different locations and then return to the same campsite each night. This kind of camping allows you to explore some of East Tennessee’s most beautiful wilderness and still enjoy the comforts of toilets and hot/cold showers.
Each day students will have the opportunity to try a different outdoor activity. One day we’ll paddle the Hiwassee river, one day will be hiking in Cherokee National Forest, and one day will be spent rock climbing at Starr Mountain.
Each activity is led by UTOP student trip leaders, with UTOP professional staff at basecamp to help keep things moving smoothly.
Ignite Outdoors Session Dates
Tuesday July 18 – Friday July 21
Tuesday July 25 – Friday 28
Tuesday August 1 – Friday 4
FAQs
Day 1.
- 8am:Meet on campus at our outdoor center inside TRECS. Get any gear you need from us and meet the other students on the trip
- 9:30am: Depart for Gee Creek campground in our 12 passenger vans.
- 11am: Arrive a Gee Creek, setup camp. Lunch!
- 12:30pm: Head out for day 1 activity.
- 5pm: head back to camp. Dinner, dishes, fire, debrief the day, and sleep.
Day 2
- 8am: wakeup, breakfast, prepare for day’s activity.
- 10:30am: depart for day’s activity.
- 4pm: back to camp. Dinner, dishes, fire, debrief the day, and sleep.
Day 3
- 8am: wakeup, breakfast, prepare for day’s activity.
- 10:30am: depart for day’s activity.
- 4pm: back to camp. Dinner, dishes, fire, debrief the day, and sleep.
Day 4
- 8am: wakeup, breakfast, breakdown camp.
- 10:30am: depart gee creek , headed back to UT campus.
- 12pm. Arrive back at UT. Return gear, say goodbye’s.
- 1pm. Depart. See you in the fall!
Each session has a maximum of 20 students. If the session is full, we encourage students to add their name to the waitlist. We will contact students in waitlist order if a spot should open up.
$300 per student. The cost includes all camping gear, climbing gear, paddling gear, food, instruction, and transportation to and from campus to the campsite.
We provide all camping gear, climbing gear, paddling gear, food, instruction, and transportation. You just need your own clothes, or if you have your own modern gear, you are welcome to use it after our trip staff inspect it. We will send out a packing list to every participant with your registration confirmation email.
We’ll be sleeping in tents at an established group campground on the banks of the Hiwassee River called Gee Creek Campgrounds. There will be access to bathrooms and showers.
Yes, you should especially if you are looking to challenge yourself physically and mentally in the outdoors. We’ll spend the first part of each day’s activity teaching you what you need to know before we set off, and provide you individual feedback throughout the activity. By the time you finish the trip, you’ll be comfortable in in a boat, on the trail, or on the rock. While we won’t promise you will love everything, we bet you’ll come close.
Yes. You should be able to “swim” 25 yards (1 time across a pool) with any stroke and not touch the pool bottom. When on the river, you will be required to wear a personal flotation device (PFD) so swimming in the river should be easier than swimming across a pool without a PFD jacket.
The area that we will be in is warm during the summer and afternoon showers are common. We will paddle and hike in the rain and often it will provide relief from the summer heat. We will take a break from climbing if rain comes along. We won’t paddle/hike/climb during a storm or high winds. UTOP professional staff will be on-site to enact any emergency procedures if necessary.
We do not offer pickups from airports or housing before or after your session. However, below are a few hotels options depending on where you are coming in from if you plan to come in the night before, and Ubers/Lyfts are readily available from the airport to campus.
- Graduate Knoxville – approx. 1 mile from TRECS (Downtown)
- Hampton Inn and Suites Downtown – approx. 2 miles from TRECS (Downtown)
- Hilton Knoxville – approx. 2 miles from TRECS (Downtown)
- Courtyard Knoxville West/Bearden – approx. 6 miles from TRECS (West of campus)
- Fairfield Inn & Suites Knoxville Northwest – approx. 7 miles from TRECS (North of campus)
- Hampton Inn Knoxville-Airport – approx. 11 miles from TRECS (McGhee Tyson Airport)
Due to the nature of the Ignite Outdoors program and the necessity for early planning and purchasing of supplies, no refunds are available. If a student has a medical or family emergency and wishes to cancel their Ignite session, documentation will need to be submitted to recsports@utk.edu in order for a refund to be considered.