Patched Overalls

Website Contact the organization

Patched Overalls The Patched Overalls Experience offers students an opportunity to live out the reality of their dream learning experience.

The Patched Overalls Experience (P.O.E.) is about giving students an opportunity to see what it takes to set a goal, make a plan by researching the very real logistics of obtaining that goal, and explore the personal value of what that experience would mean to them. This could be related to a future education or career path, promoting cultural understanding, or challenging oneself to new physical, emotion, or spiritual limits for personal growth. This page is a place for students to come and discuss ideas, make suggestions, ask questions, and look for advice while going through the application process. This is also a place to get general info as well as updates from Tyson or students interested in, going through, or have completed this experience.

Our most recent Patched Overalls student, Camille, is currently on her adventure in Costa Rica!!!!She is doing a Sea Tur...
06/24/2026

Our most recent Patched Overalls student, Camille, is currently on her adventure in Costa Rica!!!!
She is doing a Sea Turtle + Marine Conservation experience with a company called Broadreach (they provided these pictures and it looks like everyone is having a blast).

Here is the latest update from Camille!!

Jungle tour!
Monday, June 22, 2026

So, today was supposed to be white water rafting day, but due to heavy rain this morning we decided to reschedule it for tomorrow. We ate a delicious breakfast and then drove to the Chilamate rainforest. We were greeted by a bunch of adorable dogs that we tragically couldn't pet. The leaders at the lodge offered us some mango juice before we went on a guided hike. The locals here are so nice! After we finished, we headed into the jungle.

We weren't even out of the driveway and we already saw a howler monkey! There were so many exotic animals everywhere. We saw poison dart frogs, parrots, millipedes, iguanas, basilisk lizards, bats, a sloth, a falcon, and many more. The guides were so fast at finding extremely camouflaged critters, and they could instantly identify them. They were also very educational, and taught us a lot about the forest and the creatures we saw. One of my favorite things I learned was how the biodiversity changes the deeper you go into the forest.

After our first hike we went back to the lodge to have our first take break and have our first lesson. We learned about the origin of Costa Rica and the different factors contributing to its formation and biodiversity. It was really interesting! Right before it got dark we went to Lapa Verde to do another guided hike, but in the dark. At the lodge we met Mr. Snake (a biologist specializing in reptiles and amphibians), and he taught us about the reptile species in the area. He gave us some species checklists, and then we started our hike. We had to trudge through lots of mud and got harassed by a swarm of bugs, but it was so worth it! Mr. Snake pointed out so many cool frogs to us. We saw some rain frogs, cane toads, green b***d frogs, hourglass frogs, red eyed lead frogs, bull frogs, a poison dart frog, a chocolate frog, and a very rare salamander. We also saw some reptiles like more basilisks, anoles, and a cope's parrot-snake. We even got to take turns holding it!
Today was so much fun learning about all of the local animals and adventuring with everyone. I'm excited to see what else Costa Rica has in store!

-Camille (Leader of the Day 22nd June 2026)

This might be a bit controversial and/or gross, but it is a fact of life.Everybody poops. 😂 hahahaWe don’t talk about th...
04/24/2026

This might be a bit controversial and/or gross, but it is a fact of life.
Everybody poops. 😂 hahaha

We don’t talk about this enough when it comes to travel…but I have thought about it a lot before every trip:
What are the bathrooms like?

Real talk— in my experience, bathrooms around the world are not the same. Nor is the social etiquette in bathrooms the same around the world.
I’ve gone everywhere from multi-million dollar yachts to holes in the ground…abandoned gas stations to 5-star hotels.

My best travel advice:
Always travel with toilet paper.
and be ready to adapt.

My wildest bathroom experience was during a dog sledding trip in Svalbard, Norway.
We were camping for days outside of Longyearbyen. No bathrooms. No facilities. Just snow, wind, and the local wildlife.

In that part of the world, you’re actually advised to carry a firearm outside city limits…because of polar bears.

We would set up camp inside a circle of the sled dogs (apparently polar bears don’t like the dogs), and when nature calls…you walk outside the circle.

So picture this:
I’m squatting behind a snow drift with cold wind hitting places that wind rarely ever hits. Knowing that when I finish, I will get a very icy blast on my skin because we clean up with hands full of snow and ice, according to our guides.
I didn't have any real choice since my baby wipes had frozen solid in my backpack (I started to sleep with my baby wipes in my sleeping bag to keep them from freezing after that).
And even with all of that …I still must be scanning the horizon for polar bears.
We had seen a polar bear in the wild only a few hours earlier.

In that exact moment, in my most vulnerable position, I had a very clear realization:

I am not at the top of the food chain anymore!!!!!

Travel can be quite humbling.
Sometimes in very deep, meaningful ways.
And sometimes…like this. 😂

What’s the craziest, coolest or most unexpected bathroom experience you’ve had while traveling?

Address

Sainte Genevieve, MO

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Patched Overalls posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Patched Overalls:

Shortcuts

Share

Category