Bay Area Wilderness Training is a local non-profit and longstanding Basementeer beneficiary that works to create equitable access to outdoor experiences for youth of color and low income youth. In alignment with their value of social justice, Bay Area Wilderness Training is committed to dismantling racism, sexism, classism, and other forms of oppression that stand in the way of all people fully participating in outdoor activities. They believe that people visiting the outdoors should be represented by the full diversity of races, genders, income levels, and other identities that exist in the San Francisco Bay Area.

To create more equity and increase access to the outdoors for traditionally underrepresented communities, they prioritize services for low income youth and youth of color. They work to ensure that their programs, organizational practices, and partnerships are inclusive and support these ideals and priorities. 

As part of Sports Basement's efforts to improve diversity and equity in the outdoor industry via our Outdoors Together program, our own Sports Basement Outdoors guiding service is sponsoring BAWT's Adventures for Kids (AFK) 2021 Yosemite Half Dome backpacking trips. AFK is BAWT's adventure fundraising platform, and allows anyone (including you!) to enjoy a backpacking or mountaineering trip for free in exchange for your fundraising efforts! All the money you raise goes to support BAWT's efforts towards dismantling the barriers that prevent youth from accessing the outdoors. You can learn more about the AFK program here. 

Sports Basement is so proud to announce that we are one of AFK's premier sponsors this year; we will be covering 100% of the costs for three Yosemite Half Dome 4-day backpacking trips. 2021 dates include: July 1-4, July 23-26, August 12-15. Registration is now officially open and spaces are filling up quickly, so sign up here!

AFK destinations also include summiting Mt. Shasta or Mt. Whitney, or even descending to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. For more information on those destinations click here.

Just to be clear, these trips are meant to raise funds to support BAWT's work with Bay Area youth, but are actually attended by adults like you: adventurous folks that want to give back, are excellent fundraisers, and want to help get the word out about all the wonderful things BAWT does for our community. Again, the trips are 100% free for anyone that signs up - all you have to do is fundraise. The trips include guides, gear, permits, meals, basically everything but transportation to the meeting site.

We hope you will join us on any one of these amazing adventures and help support the expansion of diversity and equity in the outdoor industry.

For more information, you can email Eden Slezin at eslezin@sportsbasement.com. Eden is a long time backpacking guide, a senior General Manager at Sports Basement for over 15 years and now serves on the Board of Advisors for Bay Area Wilderness Training (BAWT).