The ongoing Trails Carolina “investigation” reveals more shocking allegations of the camp

Introduction

Wilderness Therapy Programs call for distracted teenagers, who are in desperate need of guidance. Such camps are usually beneficial unless parents choose Trail Carolina for their kids. That is because Trail Carolina has recently been accused of abuse, both mentally and physically. While unconfirmed, the allegations are too many to simply ignore, coming from participants and parents alike. 

However, it is worth noting that there exist many legitimate camps other than Trail Carolina, with an actual aim for the betterment. Regardless, fearing parents have since limited sending off their kids to therapy programs. Having said that, you may uncover more on Trails Carolina “investigation” here: 

About Trails Carolina 

The Trails Carolina therapy program barely had a good reputation for making disturbed teenagers find a correct path. Meanwhile, the severity hiked up when headlines stating the actuality of evilness by the camp became widespread. The worst issue found was the poor treatment, coming from so-called professionals. As per many allegations, the staff would hurt participants without any reason. Some even went as far as neglecting basic medical care and serving an unfair amount of food. But beyond the intentional staff negativity were the problematic outdoors. That is, many have said Trail Carolina to be located in a place, surrounded by wild animals. It was a wildlife crisis, which the camp failed to curb. 

Trails Carolina “Investigation”

Looking at the severity of the allegations, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) had to finally step in. Soon enough, NCDHHS launched an investigation to find out whether or not the allegations were true. And if true, they also had to simultaneously collect evidence and make sure to punish the camp and bring justice to victims. 

Meanwhile, many ex-participants have publicly accused the camp of poor treatment, saying children were not properly looked after. Even an ex-employee, who identifies as Linda, shared a gruesome story in 2022. In a blog and interview with USA Today, Linda expressed that the staff were the ones abusing teenagers and publicly humiliating them. 

A finding in the investment also opened up to the sanitary issues of the camp. More precisely, there have been many health and safety violations that could potentially impact the student’s health. This means that participants were forced not only to survive the abuse, but dirt, too. 

Coming to the camp, Trail Carolina is not ready to accept any of such allegations. Rather, it disapproves all of them, saying they are functional as per the industry standards. Regardless, many parents have lost their hope in such wilderness programs and won’t possibly send their kids off another time. 

Additionally, ‘Science Steve’, the director of science at the camp responded to Linda’s allegation. The director, who is one of the most important members of the camp, said that Linda’s goal is to hamper Trail Carolina’s reputation. In addition to hinting her allegation as ‘baseless’, the director claimed that Linda is mentally unwell and said she was always treated with respect. 

Who is Linda in Trails Carolina “investigation”? 

Linda’s story was much unheard of and even when she went to report the ill activities of the camp, her words were ignored. Perhaps, Linda is an ex-employee herself, who joined Trail Carolina in 2015, as an experienced professional in the relevant field. That is, she had already been dealing with teenagers for 20 years (at the time of joining). And in these 20 years, Linda said she had experienced nothing of that sort and compared the camp’s horror to a nightmare. Further, the ex-employee went on to say that sexual, physical and emotional abuse in the camp was a norm. Perhaps, she was brave enough to publicize her two-year experience in Trails Carolina.

Wilderness therapy abuse allegations 

Like Linda, there are many instances of mistreatment shared by other ex-employees. One of them said that she was intentionally punched and harmed physically by a colleague. Another volunteer, who retains her anonymity, said that she was compelled to run. But the Trail Carolina twist was that the anonymous survivor was not allowed to stop running, and passed out as such. Likewise, one more volunteer said she had to go hiking, despite being unwell. 

Perhaps, the “Trails Carolina “investigation” is still in place, so whether or not the camp is guilty is formally uncertain. Meanwhile, many new allegations continue to make their way out. For example, the camp was asked as to why it failed to report any of the ongoing violations. Things like medical ignorance were also pointed out, where hurt teenagers would neither be treated nor offered ointment. 

Is the staff the root cause of Trails Carolina horror stories? 

Coming to the employees in particular, many of them have been accused of hurting participants by choice. That is, the root cause of abuse was the caretakers. We can say the same in view of testimonials of participants, according to whom, employees made fun of and threatened them publicly. The worst situations were when participants were made to go to bed late while having to wake up earlier than the rest. And not to mention, some were forced to cut every possible contact with parents as a punishment. 

Multiple wilderness therapy abuse allegations, hint at how unwell the staff policy is regulated. Likewise, concerns had risen about the qualification and training and whether or not the staff-to-patient ratio fits well. With that, questions that directly ask for the criminal background and abuse history of staff members have been put forth. 

To its rescue, Trails Carolina said that they only hire people with enough training and qualifications. More precisely, they look for those who have enough knowledge of suicide prevention and crisis de-escalation. However, a contradicting reality was out as a former employee of the camp came forward, saying the training phase to be minimal. Additionally, the camp failed to give a basic orientation, leaving a new employee on its own. Thus, getting started as a newcomer was somewhat difficult. 

The problematic staff members of Trails Carolina 

It is by far clear that the staff of Trails Carolina mistreat participants and colleagues alike. One ex-employee said that she is a witness, who saw her colleagues intoxicating themselves mid-sessions. It was both alcohol and drugs that many staff were indulging themselves with. And as if intoxication wasn’t enough, many also lived an inappropriate relationship with the teens. According to the employee who exposed these horrific incidents, they went to report it but did not receive enough importance. 

Conclusion

The allegations are yet to be proven true and the Trails Carolina “investigation” carried out by NCDHHS is still in place. While unconfirmed, we still cannot be ignorant towards the disturbing allegations. Moreover, the number of accusations only continues to increase day by day. Perhaps, based in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, Trail Carolina is trying hard to maintain a positive reputation by being in denial (of any accusations). Despite this, participants and staff members alike are on the edge of revealing the reality. Likewise, parents have begun losing their faith in such therapy programs. Regaining the lost trust will need accountability plus better transparency. 

Faqs About Trails Carolina “investigation”

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