Coed Teen Overnight Wilderness Archery Camps in Northern California

Coed Pre-Teen & Teen Nature and Wilderness Summer Camps at Wilderness Skills Institute in Northern California 2013-2014 Pre-Teen and Teen Nature Camp Schedule
The thwack of the bow string, the hack of the tomahawk hitting the log, the swish of the branches hitting the side of the lean-to shelter. All of these things excite me. At Wilderness skills we do all of these things and more. Whenever I get there the first thing we do is get in sync with nature and then the fun and education starts. With the help of Brian King and his staff we learn how to survive in the forest with nothing. We learn the art of shelter building and how to make one warm and comfortable. We also learn how to make fire with a hand drill and with a bow drill. My favorite activity is the bow making and bow shooting. We get to experience the feel of hunting whenever we want to and get better every time. Brian is trained by the American Olympic archer coach and brings his skills to the students. Every time I go to Wilderness skills camp I learn something new. And every time I go I am ensured a lot of fun! Alex Hoskins-Frame Marin Horizon School in Mill Valley, seventh grade, age 13	Wilderness Skills Weekend Teen and Pre-Teen Camps These camps prepare the student to be self-reliant, safe, and ethical in the back country. All of these camps build on the skills of the previous camps and The April Hunter Ed camp puts it all together in a review and at the end of the weekend the students may take the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Hunter Education exam and earn their hunting license. If the student attends at least 7 of the weekend camps they may attend the May backpacking trek at no cost. September 27 - 29 Hazards of Nature & Friction Fire October 25 - 27 NTS Archery and Backpacking Cooking November 29 - December 1 NTS Archery, Shelter Building, & Friction Fire January 24 -26 NTS Archery, Safe Drinking Water, & Friction Fire February 28 - March 2 NTS Archery, Food, & Friction Fire March 28 -30 NTS Archery, Orienteering, & Friction Fire April 25- 27 Firearms Training and Stealth May 16 - 18 Dept of Fish and Wildlife Hunter Education June 6 - 8 Backpacking Trek
Wilderness Skills Coed Teen and Pre-Teen Overnight Camps Our teen programs are total immersion experiential learning wilderness experiences in archery, primitive camping, naturalist and survival skills, and outdoor recreation, with real rites of passage in an atmosphere of celebration. All of Our Teen and Pre-Teen Camps... The teens disappear into the pristine backwoods, live at the edge of the redwood forest, dive into the creek, tell stories and cook around a camp fire, sleep under the stars... This truly is a total immersion wilderness living experience with the teens and pre-teens applying wild crafting, shelter building, orienteering, animal tracking, back country cooking, shooting sports, rappelling, and so much more.	Schedule Summer Pre-Teen and Teen Archery Wilderness Camps Updated May 10 June 30 – July 6 Falconry, Archery, Wilderness, Primative Skills, and Backpacking Skills July 7 – July 13 Hunt Training Camp including Falconry, Archery, and Fireams July 7 - July 13 Cinematography, Photography, Falconry & Archery July 14 – July 20 Going Deep into Archery, Rifle, Falconry, Wilderness, Primative Skills, and Backpacking Skills. July 21 – July 27 Advance Scout, Archery, Rifle, or Falconry Training July 28 – Aug. 3 Backpacking Trek - Closed Aug - Sept Mentored Hunts
	For updates about our youth wilderness and nature programs join Coyote Tracks, our informative e-newsletter. It contains wild craft projects, wilderness safety, native plants, and animal tracking sections to better connect your family to the nature of the Pacific North Coast.

Survival Skills versus Wilderness Living Skills Survival skills is what you learn to keep yourself alive if you are waiting to be rescued. Wilderness living skills is what you learn to thrive as a long term resident in the wilderness with using only what you find and your skill set. This summer camp starts the camper on his or her journey into how to thrive in the wilderness not just survive. Each summer 15 teens will cook without a stove, boil water without a pot, eat from the land. They will learn to stay warm without a sleeping bag, stay dry without a tent. The teens will spend their day without a schedule, have the sun be their only time piece. Learn to truly use a map and compass, and learn to navigate without the use of a map or compass. Specific areas of practice will include debris shelters, identifying and cooking edible plants, safe drinking water, friction fire, cordage, and clothing all from only what can be found in the forest. The teen will also start to develop a deep connection with the land orienteering with both aids and without aids. They will start that connection with the animals by learning to read their tracks and other signs. Not only will they learn to identify what animal left the sign but also what they were doing when they left that sign. The teens will also learn what effects they have on the other animals of the forest.
Rites of Passage. Each Summer Teens Identify the edge of their skill; the edge of their comfort and celebrate real growth with Rites of Passage. Rappelling off a cliff may be an edge, sleeping out in the open, eating a new food, finding their way home alone, hiking with only the light of the moon, maybe within the comfort of some but a big edge for others. As the teens meet milestones in their skills, accomplishments, or growth along their journey; rites of passage celebrations mark those times. These rites of passage are important in most cultures yet it is being lost today. We see the need and the value of working past a comfort zone and the value of rites of passage. We see the change in our campers and have heard from parents that their kids walk taller when they get home at the end of a session.
Celebration and Self Expression A healthy community is full of music, art, and time to just have fun. Music, story telling, laughter, and celebration is a part of every evening and a way to connect to each other in the community. With our small numbers of campers there is ample time for each teen to be heard and feel complete.
Arts, Crafts, Wild Crafting, Abo-skills, Primitive Crafts As adults, we remember that much of the pleasure of coming to summer camp was making cool stuff in Arts and Crafts and bringing these treasures home. The other less tangible things we brought home was tactile and reasoning skills that became a part of us. Wilderness Skills Camps is no different in offering a crafts component, except for our focus on local materials and traditional skills. Our crafts utilize materials that the nature on our private land provides; the techniques we use are from our colonial times and earlier. Plastics choke our landfills and to a large extent have pushed out the containers and tools of our grandparents’ time. The ballpoint pen has replaced the quill pen, Tupperware has replaced the woven basket and clay pot, ziploc bags have replaced the leather or rawhide pouch, PET bottles have replaced the clay or glass jar, and the 5-gallon plastic bucket the hogshead (small wooden barrel). Each summer teen campers at Wilderness Skills Camps learn how to make many of the original containers, tools, and artifacts of everyday life. In our ancestral past items of everyday life were pieces of art. A spoon, a bowl, a basket, a brush, a comb were items that were things of beauty and kept a lifetime. The teens will have the opportunity to make these items the way they were made for 10,000 years and have something that they would be proud to pass on to their grand kids.


Archery ArcheryOur Archery Camps have a 3 way focus, National Training System Olympic Archery, backpacking skills, and wilderness survival skills. These camps not only teach archery but prepare the teens to go on our extended backpacking trips. National Training System Olympic Archery The National Training System (NTS) Olympic Archery is a Biomechanically Efficient Shooting Technique (BEST). This shooting technique was developed and is continuely being perfected by Coach Kisik Lee the US national archery coach. This method of shooting has brought the US to the top of the sport. Brady Ellison alone has gotten 2 gold medals in the Pan American and 3 in the World Cup Games. This method reduces injuries and makes the archer much more of a consistent shooter, be it in competition, hunting, or fun. Our Archery Coaches Our US Archery level 3 and 4 coaches provide students with an exceptional depth of experience and training from which to draw and continue to work with Coach Lee to provide the best coaching we can. Our archery coaches also teach for both California Department of Fish and Game and the National Bowhunter Educational Foundation. How We Coach Each camp the participants will continue to develop solid archery form. We coach archery as a martial art discipline in a similar manner as judo is taught in a dojo. We first work with the pre-teens and teens to become self-reliant in the back country to have the skills to meet their basic needs including making shelter, fire, safe drinking water, and cooking their own food. This is all in preparation for our extended backpacking and/or hunting camps. The teens connect with our ancestors through recreation through the ancient tools of archery, rabbit stick and atlatl. Archery is taught by our well trained and seasoned instructors. The students learn and practice safe handling, develop their form learn to compete against their own score and develop a sport that they can enjoy for a lifetime.
Tending the Forest versus Leaving No Sign Leaving No Sign is a practice of going into the wilds and not leaving trash or scars on the land or trees. This seems like a noble goal, but the land is no better than when we came. We are also learning from ethnobotany that some plants in the forest can only be propagated with the help people provide. The paths of the first nation people were lined with the plants they ate, the plants that gave medicine, the plants of their everyday life. We are learning that it was not a coincidence that those plants are there. Some plants like soap root propagate more plants only if the bulbs are harvested and the soil is fluffed up. Plants like mule fat, willow, dogbane only produce nice straight clear canes only when coppiced (pruned back to the ground) on regular intervals. The canes that were harvested were used for cordage, basket weaving, fire drills, arrows, or propitiated and planted in areas that was needed. Ladder wood, the dead lower branches on trees are the best wood to make fire from because it is much drier than the wood found on the ground. However,if this wood is not removed wild fire can easily climb its way up the trees to the crown and become a fire storm and kill the trees. If this dead ladder wood is removed in a good way the trees will be healthier and if a fire burns through, it is more likely to remain cool and stay on the ground. These are just some examples of tending the wild that the students will learn. The land we will tend is privately owned.

In Summary In our teen programs become deeply connected to nature some roughing it and pulling them past their comfort zones, of learning and applying wilderness skills and becoming comfortable as a resident in the wilderness. It will be an experience they will remember for a lifetime.

Santa Cruz Mountains Archery / Wilderness Weekend Camps Our Wilderness Skills Weekend Camps are very popular programs. Our Archery Camps have a 3 way focus, National Training System Olympic Archery, backpacking skills, and wilderness survival skills. These camps not only teach archery but prepare the teens to go on our extended backpacking trips. Then the students will start working on developing the skills that are the focus of that weekend and each weekend builds on previous months weekend skills. Each weekend the participants will make a fire from friction, cook their food and enjoy telling stories around the campfire. Drop off : Friday between 4PM and 9 PM or Saturday between 8 AM and 9AM Pick up: Sunday 3 PM Ages 9 to 12 and 13-17 Cost $200 Schedule Weekend Camps and Topics September 27-29 NTS Archery and Backpacking Cooking October 25-27 NTS Archery and Shelter Building November 29- December 1 NTS Archery and Safe Drinking Water January 24-26 NTS Archery and Friction Fire February 28-March 2 NTS Archery and Orienteering March 28-30 NTS Archery and Camouflage & Stealth April 25-27 Hunt Camp - Caliornia Fish & Wildlife Hunter Ed Registration Form Teen Registration Form Pre-Teen - Coming Soon!

Bay Area Week Long Archery and Wilderness Winter, and Spring Camps 2013-2014 These camps start Sunday afternoon at 3 PM and are over at 11 AM the following Saturday, what is in between is an intense full immersion wilderness experience for teens and pre-teens. The following topics will be covered: Space is limited. Drop off Sunday 3pm Pickup Saturday.11am on Payment in full is required to confirm attendance along with this application. December 29– January 4, Winter Break Archery, Bow Hunting & Survival Skills Camp If you are all at interested in attending Buckeye Primitive Gathering, we plan on taking kids to the weeklong gathering and Brian will be teaching there. It is Sunday April Dates to be announced May . Registration Teen Registration Pre-Teen
Teen Summer Wilderness Skills Camps
Recieve 1 Week free if you register for 5 weeks of camp.
Wilderness Skills and Intro to Backpacking Dates: June 30 – July 6 Prerequisites: None Location; Bay Area, CA Ages 10 -12 and Ages 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 This is the first training in a series of week long sessions to prepare the teen and pre-teen to be skilled residents in the wildness. In Wilderness Skills Training the teen and pre-teen develops the basics of survival skills of fire, shelter, water, food, and navigation. This also fulfills one of the prerequisites for our mentored photography, hunt, or rite of passage trips. This is not a backpacking camp but the participants will develop the skills to be self-reliant backpackers, knowing their gear as well as developing their scouting skills.
Introductory Training to Hunting Dates: Times and Dates July 7 – July 13 Prerequisites: none Location; Bay Area, CA Ages 10 - 12 and Ages 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 This is the second training in a series of week long sessions to prepare the teen and pre-teen to be skilled residents in the wildness. In Introduction to Hunting the teen and pre-teen develops the basics of hunting skills, deeply covers the skills and knowledge required to pass California Fish and Game Hunter Education exam. Topics covered include wildlife conservation, how firearms and archery equipment work and safe handling, animal tracking and I.D., orienteering, and more. This also fulfills one of the prerequisites for our mentored photography, hunts or rite of passage trips. This is not a backpacking camp but the participants will continue to develop the skills to be self-reliant backpackers using their backpacking gear. This is an introduction to hunting and a prerequisite to attend one of our mentored hunt trips.
Introduction To Wildlife Photography Dates: Times and Dates July 7 – July 13 Prerequisites: None Location; Bay Area, CA Ages 10 - 12 and Ages 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 This is an introduction to photography and a prerequisite to attend one of our mentor photography camps. This is a 7 day 6 night resident camp preparing the teen and preteen for participating in one of our mentored back country photography trips This is not a backpacking camp but the participants will develop the skills to be self-sufficient backpacker as well as wildlife photographer.
Archery & Rifle Training Dates: Times and Dates July 14 – July 20 Prerequisites: None Location; Bay Area, CA Ages 10 -12 and Ages 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 This is a fun camp focusing on archery and rifle shooting and is a prerequisite to attend one of our mentored photography or hunt camps. This is a 7 day resident training the teens and pre-teens will also continue to develop their skills in being self-reliant in a backpacking situation.
Advanced Scout Training Dates: Times and Dates July 21 – July 27 Prerequisites: None Location; Bay Area, CA Ages 10-12 and 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 This is the final prerequisite to attend one of our mentored photography, hunting, or rite of passage trips. This is a 7 day 6 night backpacking trip. The participants’ goal is to consistently have wildlife get close enough to see their eye lashes, hear their bones creek, have them walk past close enough to touch them, and finally walk away without detection.
Wilderness Skills Intensive Teen Backpacking Trip Summer Camp Times and Dates Date: July 28 – Aug. 2 Prerequisites: This camp is invitation only The successful applicant has completed at least 3 weekend skills camps or a week long teen camp and have director approval Admitted based on skills, maturity, and ability to work as a team member Location: Northern California Ages 10-12 and 13 - 17 Price $1050 Registration:Teen Form Pre-Teen Form or call 831-431-6454 Teens will learn and practice wilderness living, wild crafting, orienteering, animal tracking skills and pushing their comfort zones. Survival skills is what you learn to keep yourself alive if you are waiting to be rescued. Wilderness living skills is what you learn to thrive as a long term resident in the wilderness with using only what you find and your skill set. We teach the camper to thrive in the wilderness not just survive. Specific areas of practice will include debris shelters, identifying and cooking edible plants, safe drinking water, friction fire, cordage made from plants, orienteering, animal tracking, tending the forest, archery, rabbit stick, atlatl, firearms, rappelling and more. There will be ample time for music, ceramics, adventure, swimming, and just being a teen. This is a primitive camp and a week of roughing it and pushing edges, of learning and applying wilderness skills and becoming comfortable as a resident in the wilderness and working as a team. This week is good preparation for the 4 Fires Rendezvous.
Mentored Big Game Hunt (Deer or Pig) Dates: Times and Dates Contact to arrange date Prerequisites: This camp is invitation only The successful applicant has completed at least 3 weekend skills camps or a week long teen camp and have director approval Admitted based on skills, maturity, and ability to work as a team member Location: Northern California Ages 13 - 17 Price varies Registration: call 831-431-6454 Our Mentored Big Game trips are by invitation only trips with Brian and/or Toni these trips vary in length and may or not require backpacking. The participants’ will apply the skills they have mastered in all their Wilderness Skills Institute trainings. There is no guarantee of getting game only that they will apply and test their skills following all CDFG laws and regulations, good sportsmanship ethics, wishes of the land owner and land manager. Wilderness Skills Institute will provide appropriate firearms and ammo. If the teen is successful in harvesting game they will be required to field dress the animal (under our mentoring) and carry out the meat. The family should be prepared to accept the meat, you should have space in freezer or be prepared to rent a meat locker or have made arrangements to donate the meat.