What I Did During Summer Vacation: I Kicked My Drug and Alcohol Habit

The teen years often bring a restless yearning to explore, take risks, and have adventure. That's why there are outdoor programs that cater to those impulses.

Carrying their thirty-pound backpacks, a small group of teens and their instructors may trek ten miles a day in the rugged wilderness of a state like Oregon that is mostly untouched by civilization. By noon, they reach the top of a mountain, and they stop just long enough to take in the grandeur of a vista of sky, rock and wilderness. The vastness and challenge of nature puts their lives at home into perspective.

Their camp guides teach them how to light a fire the Native American way, how to make shelters rainproof and which plants are safe to eat. A month later, when they're home, they're a little taller and a little prouder of their new ability to take care of themselves in the great outdoors. They tell grand stories to anyone who will listen about their adventure of a lifetime.