Chelsea Schwartz, an 18-year-old from Short Hills, recently completed a summer expedition to Panama with Outward Bound Costa Rica. On the three-week course, she volunteered in Panama in conservation efforts to protect endangered sea turtles, learned to scuba dive, and surfed Costa Rica’s famed waves.

“I am so much more appreciative of everything I have at home,” Chelsea said.

Chelsea traveled to the remote island of Solarte in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago of Panama to complete NAUI Open Water Certification training. Chelsea is now scuba certified and participated in a once-in-a-lifetime night-dive through bioluminescent waters. Following the scuba dive experience, Chelsea and her coursemates sea kayaked to a small island to learn about medicinal plants from indigenous women.

While in Panama, she also completed a multi-day service project in the San Pond Sak wetlands located on the Caribbean coast. Her work of building habitats, cataloging nests and patrolling the beach, helps to protect the endangered leatherback sea turtle population.

Back in Costa Rica, Chelsea explored local ecology at Manuel Antonio National Park, where she had up-close encounters with capuchin monkeys. The students then traveled to the Guanacaste region to learn to surf at Playa Avellanas. When the students weren’t catching waves they were put to the test to earn their American Red Cross First Aid and CPR certifications.

Chelsea described her experience as “crazy, exciting and beautiful,”

“Outward Bound Costa Rica’s programs, like the one Chelsea participated in, create environments that allow for personal and leadership development through challenges, group effort and cross-cultural understanding,” said Jim Rowe, executive director of Outward Bound Costa Rica.