Challenge Course Ropes Lead

Our Course

Our course consists of high ropes, low ropes, zip-lines, swings, and top-belay challenge course elements. From 1 ft off the ground to 95 ft (or more) up in the air, this course has a large variety of challenges – physically, mentally, and emotionally. It is a pride of Augusta and a considerable step up from what is offered at most summer camps.

For more photos and information on specific elements, see our activities page.

Requirements of our Ropes Lead

• Holds a Level 2 Challenge Course Practitioner certification or has the ability to obtain one (at least 200 hours of ropes experience, including technical experience and at heights, and the mental and physical fitness to perform multiple retrievals at height). Camp will pay for the training for the right candidate.
  • Note: A qualified ropes lead will often have hours and a range of experience far above the 200-hour required minimum for the level 2 certification.
• Comfort and ability to climb (via tree staples) 95+ feet numerous times as needed throughout the day, and confidence in performing routine inspections and basic maintenance at that height.
• Experience with and a proven track record of…
  • Safety and risk management
  • Professional communication with youth and adults
  • Assessing and addressing course management needs, including research, ordering, and communication with vendors

Overarching Responsibilities of Ropes Lead

• Learning our Local Operating Procedures – You will need to efficiently develop an intimate and detailed understanding of the course itself and the local operating procedures of the course as a whole.
• Training our Local Operating Procedures – You – along with other skilled ropes staff – will train our local operating procedures to our interested staff in a way that is professional, thorough, and accessible/encouraging to others – even those without much previous ropes experience. You will manage and assess their skills and sign off on their ability to facilitate clinics.
• Management of People – You are a leader of the course ethos, experience, and culture. It is your enthusiasm, clarity, attention to detail, and ‘Augustan Core’ that will be the model of the course, and you will be tasked with passing that on to others and holding them accountable to that standard.
• Management of Course – Some of the common tasks of course management include:
  • Daily setup, breakdown, and inspection of all elements (with other trained staff)
  • Logging those inspections as consistent with the camp process
  • Accurately keeping records of the training and skills ‘sign offs’ of staff and coordinating with the puppet master about staff scheduling
  • Course equipment maintenance (from element hardware replacement to cleaning gear to retiring/purchasing/inventorying new equipment)
  • A full-course midsummer inspection, in which every piece of gear on the course is inspected and logged
  • Reviewing staff facilitation of clinics to be safe and in line with all of our philosophies and providing the feedback and further training needed
  • Responding to ropes-related incident reports and risk reports in a clear and professional way
  • Periodic training reviews of things like rescue procedures
  • Leading any meetings or disseminating information related to course policies and updates
• Response and Rescues – We always have a skilled level 2 ropes professional ready to respond to any assistance needed. Whether it be checking a piece of gear before a clinic, bringing water, helping assist a camper or staff with skills, or performing a rescue from 85 feet in the air, our ropes team needs to be ready and able to respond in an intelligent and professional manner.

Our Ropes Season

In a nutshell, the ‘ropes season’ at camp looks like this. We highly prefer our ropes lead to be available for as much of it as possible!

• April – Unpack all the gear for our annual inspections and then manage intelligent inventory and distribution to each element. Receive course-specific and certification training for an in-depth and holistic understanding of our course.
• May – Start out by facilitating ropes activities for numerous family camps that come to camp. Then, when staff training starts, help manage and lead the training for new and returning staff so we have the needed staff skilled to run our summer clinics.
• June – Continue to train, re-train, supervise, and sign off on staff skills, as summer starts and eager campers sign up for all of our clinics.
• July – As training becomes more dialed in and staff become increasingly confident with good habits, plan for a full mid-season inspection of every element at camp.
• August – As we wrap up camp, more training and re-training will be needed for our post-season external staff who come in to help us. Keep facilitating and spending your final time in the trees!
• September – All of our gear gets retrieved, inventoried, packed away, and into hibernation in our ropes shed till next year…

Beyond the Perks and Benefits, why be a Ropes Lead at Augusta?

• Ropes Training – Add hundreds of hours of varied ropes practice to your portfolio, with exposure to a wide variety of elements and equipment and an included certification.
• Leadership Training – Our 3.5 weeks of staff training covers core concepts of being an emotionally intelligent manager and adult. Learn and practice skills of nonviolent communication (NVC), fear facilitation, humanistic psychology practices, facilitation skills, self-expression and clean communication, and behavior management.
• Fun! – A summer is way more than ropes. When’s the last time you took part in a 100-person oatmeal fight, dressed up as a pirate to kidnap campers, drank hot chocolate under the stars for storytelling, played 4-square and old-school games, or partook in a nighttime paintball mission impossible scene? Part of your day is taking part in cabin activities, evening programs, story experiences, playstations, heartwarming campfires, and more. You’ll walk away with memories others won’t believe when you tell them.
• You in Community – Through all these memories and fun, you’ll grow exceptionally close to 65 other staff members just as fun-loving, silly, authentic, and interesting as you. It’s rare that staff don’t leave our 12 weeks of summer with a new best friend if not 10.

Can you imagine the 130 ft pine trees on a starry night? Can you feel the wind in your hair and sun on your face? Are you ready to zip-line through the California forests?