Nothing is virtual about this camp, it is a hands-on adventure, real-life reset, and a prime opportunity to evaluate outlooks and priorities for the middle-school aged camper.
Ready for a wilderness challenge? Join an incredible local master survivalist on this multi-day adventure where we will explore, experiment, and practice essential survival skills in the great outdoors. You’ll build shelters from forest debris and test them for water resistance and heat retention. Learn the art of land navigation and the importance of using your senses. Practice animal tracking, knife safety, water purification, and food sourcing. Additionally, you’ll explore the forest and put some of those plants to direct use by crafting primitive tools like a bow drill for making fire, as well as cordage from natural fibers.
Get ready for a hands-on experience that will boost your confidence and connect you with nature in a fun and new way.
This camp is not meant for experts. You do NOT need to have a ton of outdoor experience to participate in this camp. Our supportive atmosphere will focus on building the skills you need to feel more confident exploring and playing in your own local environment. It won’t just be full-time skill-building; we’ll make plenty of time to play games and create space for camper-driven activities and explorations in our own forested backyard playground.
Meet Your Expert
Ruth Ann Colby Martin
Ruth Ann earned her BA in Outdoor Experiential Education and MSM studying deep nature and ancestral connection to increase well-being and a sense of belonging. She spent a year living semi-primitively in the woods, building her shelter, foraging, brain-tanning hides for clothing, weaving baskets, and practicing survival and tracking skills before teaching for nearly a decade at the Tracker School mentoring students in the arts of survival, awareness and tracking. Ruth Ann has designed programming and mentored wilderness skill for various venues and ages, for nearly thirty years. She is an outdoor adventurer, mountaineer, marathoner, midwife and faculty at the Midwives College of Utah. She has lived for 25+ years on a homestead, homeschooling and raising three children in the art and science of providing for themselves from the land. Ruth Ann deeply values the process of learning through experiential methods and mentoring, the integration of skills and understanding through experience and reflection, and the building of human relationships through cooperative learning and growth.
Dates and Rates
June 22 – 25, 2025
$700/$600/$500
More information on scholarships, financial aid, and tiered pricing can be found here.
Drop Off and Pick Up
Drop Off: Sunday, June 22, 1 pm at the Spruce Knob Mountain Center
Pick Up: Wednesday, June 25, 3 pm at the Spruce Knob Mountain Center