March 3, 2021

Future Trip Leader, Molly Eddings, reflects on her first Moondance trip and why she is leading this summer!   There is something different about the air on the first day of a Moondance trip. Everyone is a little nervous, everyone feels weird without their phone in hand, and everyone is anxious to see what this…

September 14, 2020

The 2021 Trip Leader Application is live! The search for the best people for the best job has begun.   Every September we launch the Trip Leader Application with great anticipation and excitement. We have enrolled over 1,200 students since the end of August. The reality of next summer has already begun to crystallize. Our…

April 8, 2020

Here is a reminder from long time leader, Mimi Middlebrooks, on why she loves to lead for Moondance.   Check out our Instagram for some pictures that take you through Mimi’s Moondance journey!     When I was a junior in high school, I went on a two week backpacking trip in Grand Teton National…

March 24, 2020

Garrett Lucey dives into how he continues to learn and take advantage of each and every day. Even at home!   Every year at Staff Training, we read a composition that I have always found to be descriptive of the Moondance community. This composition is actually a letter, titled the “Bon Vivant Manifesto”, written by…

March 23, 2020

Kit Sommi, a member of our Staffing Team, shares how she stays active without feeling pressure to push it to the limit every day!   As I wake up to a new day, I know I’m also waking up to more cases of the coronavirus around the world, more changes to regulations placed on our…

March 19, 2020

At Moondance we are asking ourselves and our community: How do we live in the moment when you want that moment to change? People around the world are spending most of their time indoors these days and separated from the open spaces we love so much. At Moondance headquarters in Nashville, TN, we have found…

February 21, 2020

“Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity.” – John Muir Between the inspiring leaders, fantastic students, beautiful places, and new cultures, there are many ingredients that go into creating the trip of a lifetime. However, there’s one ingredient…

June 18, 2019

Moondance’s 24th summer has begun! With over 30 trips already underway, we are officially off and running into Summer 2019.   For ten months of the year we are prepping and anticipating the opening days of the summer. As students and leaders disperse all over the world, we are thankful for the time we are…

May 9, 2019

This week’s “Why We Lead” feature comes from second year Moondance leader Mary Ottley. Starting her leading career with Kilimanjaro and heading to the Dolomites this summer, Mary jumped into Moondance head first and can’t wait to come back.   Why me? Why Moondance? Why lead? About a hundred responses to these three questions come…

May 2, 2019

This week of the “Why We Lead” series features fourth year leader James Kelley. He has led our Big Wild, Cataract Canyon, Hawaiian Islands, and Ecuador + Galapagos trips, and reflects on the transformative effects of being a Moondance leader.   I never thought I would be grateful for having a sinus infection, but one…