Leslie Prieto went to Utah to work in wilderness therapy. About two weeks after she got there, she sprained her ankle. Rule one of an outdoor career: Prepare for the unexpected.

Prieto has worked as a SCUBA and backpacking guide in Belize and a kayak and canoe trip guide throughout the U.S. Now she works in wilderness therapy with at-risk youth.

"These are kids who have done lying, stealing--socially deviant behaviors. Your job is to process with the kids and to break the chain of bad decision making that got them there in the first place," she says. "You do a lot of processing and have them learn the appreciation of socializing with others."

As a wilderness therapy guide, Prieto was trained in how to deal with campers running away, how to restrain belligerent campers and how to build self-esteem.

Though Prieto works with youth, there are wilderness therapy programs for all sorts of groups from religious camps to the elderly.

And though it might seem like a career field where only experience is needed, Prieto says having a bachelor's degree in outdoor education definitely helped. "It means you jumped through all the hoops," she says.