From Mountain Brook to Switzerland’s Mont Blanc

Hannah Straughn has a heart for mentoring young people and for taking them on adventures they will never forget.

A graduate of Mountain Brook High School, Straughn also graduated from Washington and Lee University with a degree in accounting this past May. In 2021, she began her exciting world travels.

Straughn is an outdoor team leader for Apogee Adventures, an organization based in Brunswick, Maine. Apogee offers summer traveling opportunities for teenagers, and they learn invaluable skills on their journeys. 

Part of the organization’s mission statement reads, “we work to educate our students and staff so they might continue stewardship long after their Apogee experience. … We are working to mentor and empower the next generation of environmental stewards.”

At Washington and Lee, Straughn was on staff for the university’s outing club, leading outdoor trips for the community. This experience was valuable preparation for her time with Apogee Adventures. During her first summer working for Apogee, she led a photo trip on the Maine coast and a biking trip from Vermont to Montreal. Straughn said she “was hooked.”

Last year, Straughn led the Alps Explorer Trip and guided young explorers on the Tour de Mont Blanc, a 100-mile trail through France, Italy and Switzerland. Mont Blanc is Western Europe’s highest mountain, renowned for its breathtaking vistas.

This summer, Straughn led the inaugural Iceland mountains and coast trip, and she and her charges kayaked to Mount Kirkjufell, which is now known for being a filming location for the television series “Games of Thrones.” During all of these trips, she has been responsible for students ages 12 to 16, encouraging them out of their comfort zones and inspiring them with a greater appreciation of nature. 

“One of my favorite things as a leader is watching how much the students can grow on the trip,” Straughn said.

Straughn also brought her love of cooking to Apogee Adventures. In Birmingham, she was a culinary apprentice at Blueroot restaurant, assisting an award-winning chef, and she said her culinary talents have been invaluable on her travels and she has enjoyed making the students feel helpful when they cook as a group.

“We are trained to serve simple, tasty and plentiful meals, and I have really been able to hone in on my cooking skills because [cooking] for over 15 people on a camping stoves is no easy feat,” she said. 

Where Straughn’s future plans are concerned, she hopes to return to Mountain Brook soon, but will move to Washington, D.C., in the fall to start a job with Hanover Research, a global research and analytics firm.

“I would encourage kids who are curious about learning more about the outdoors to try out an Apogee trip,” she said. “It teaches responsibility, respect and social skills in a short period of time.”