Twin Eagles Wilderness School
eNewsletter - April 2015
Greetings from Twin Eagles Wilderness School! The joy of spring is strong on the landscape, as all of life is growing and changing almost faster than we can keep up with. Robin nests are full of bright blue eggs, baby painted turtles are hatching, wildflowers like trillium, violet, and lady's slipper color the forest floor, and trees like larch, aspen, and cottonwood are leafing out in full force. Morel mushrooms are popping up all over, amidst bracken fern fiddleheads unfurling. What a miracle spring is.
The past month has been a full one here at Twin Eagles, with lots of adults and youth out immersing on the landscape. We completed our Spring Alive! Spring Break Camp, as well as an epic teen weekend walkabout at Moses Lake Sand Dunes. Summer camps are over half way full (some much more), and everyone seems to be outside soaking in the warm sunshine.
Here's what we've got for you in this months newsletter:
- Feature Article: A Perfect Moment
- Wilderness Immersion & Gap Year Programs Update
- Summer Camps 2015
- Volunteer or Work with Twin Eagles this summer!
- Father-Son Wilderness Program
Feature Article: A Perfect Moment
I sat in the uncertain dusk under the broad arms of a cedar tree, a cold leaking through all the careful planning and preparation of the long hours before. I was on my solo, a 24 hour primitive survival challenge in the depths of the North Idaho forest, completely alone except for shorts, t-shirt, a knife, and a few wet stalks of dogbane.
If there was a sun beyond the rainy world of my challenge, it would be just setting. I thought of going back to the instructor's camp, trading failure for comfort and safety, or of taking the plunge into the uncertain night ahead and trusting that Read more on our website here!
Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion & Gap Year Programs Update
April marks the beginning of our spring season at Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion & Gap Year Programs, and what an exciting time it is. The landscape has been renewed, and so have the eyes of the participants.
Imagine spending timeless days on the vast mud flats of Lake Pend Oreille, tracking coyotes, bobcat, otter, mink, muskrat, beaver, raccoon, deer, and moose. Discovering natural mysteries like bird kill sites with feathers, skulls, and bones spread out on the ground, finding ancient arrowheads on the lake bed, all of which weave together one grand story that the landscape has to offer.
Imagine slowing down to the speed of the natural world, harvesting natural clay from the local river banks, then carefully shaping your own bowls, mugs, and other natural pottery earthenware. Then taking a day to fire the clay pots in the same manner as our earth based ancestors did, within an open fire. The scene is ancient, wild, and deeply connecting.
Primitive wilderness survival takes on new meaning for the group when faced with the challenge of making fire with no modern tools whatsoever. Not only is one's knowledge of trees and wood put to the test, but so are the skills of weaving strong natural cordage and producing sharp edges from local stones. All this while living in a group survival shelter, eating wild foods and drinking wild water, right from the land. Through the journey, a connection is made with an inner wildness, a quality that is difficult to put a finger on and even more challenging to describe in words. Its an old feeling, older than words. A feeling of kinship with the earth, with the wild creatures, and with the ancestors. Its a feeling of love and connection.
Bringing that deep feeling of connection back to the modern world is quite a journey unto itself. This is one reason why we train our students in Permaculture. Permaculture is a nature based, regenerative design system that helps us as humans to get our physical needs met while giving back to the earth. From organic gardening to rainwater collection, from multi-purpose chickens to natural building, it is a way of taking this deep love for the earth, and weaving it into our day to day needs. Our campus here at Twin Eagles is a living permaculture demonstration site, full of real world examples of living in balance with the earth. As you can imagine, it is a deeply empowering set of skills for our participants to learn and practice.
These are just a few of the highlights from April at Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion & Gap Year Programs.
Do you yearn to feel like a part of nature rather than an onlooker? Do you feel a responsibility to our Earth? Are you seeking your contribution to the world? Do you want to fully experience nature rather than just learn about it? Do you want to find a community of like minded people? Are you seeking truth, the truth of who you really are?
If you answered yes to even some of these questions, then consider the Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion Program or Gap Year Programs. It is all about taking the essence of nature and weaving it into our modern experience. It is about feeling the kinship that comes only from roaming the wilderness together. It is about diving deep into the underground of human consciousness, and discovering the hidden gems that await. It is about deep mentoring that brings out the very best of who you are.
Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion and Gap Year Programs are transformational journeys that bring back to life the skills and wisdom of our earth based ancestors:
Wilderness Survival & Primitive Skills
Wildlife Tracking
Wild Edible & Medicinal Plants
Permaculture & Regenerative Design
Nature Based Mentoring & Cultural Restoration
Naturalist Training
Bird Language & Native Scout Teachings
Inner Tracking - Know Thyself
These programs are a huge step forward on the path of deeply connecting with nature, community, and consciousness.
Enrollment is currently open for the 2015-2016 year. Interested, or know someone who might be? Learn more about the nine month Twin Eagles Wilderness Immersion Program here, or discover our two to nine month long Gap Year Programs here, and please spread the word about these amazing programs!
Twin Eagles Summer Camps 2015
Wow, we have never seen summer camp registration happen as fast as it is this year! Most of our camps are half way full and some are 3/4'ers full. If you are considering having your kids join us this summer, we encourage you to enroll soon in order to reserve a spot. Once our camps are full, the best we'll be able to offer you is waiting lists. Part of what is supporting registration to happen so quickly is our new, streamlined, online registration system. To be clear, we are anticipating that most if not all of our camps will fill to capacity with waiting lists this year.
***IMPORTANT NOTE!*** New for this year 2015, all of our summer camps have a registration deadline of two weeks prior to the camp start date. That is just one month away for some of our camps, so don't delay, sign up now!
At Twin Eagles, we believe that connecting deeply with nature is critical to whole child development. The experiences we offer bring kids back to a simpler, more connected way of life where their senses are honed to once again hear the call of the wild, revel in the feeling of mud squishing between their toes, delight in the beauty of wildflowers, and listen to the music in mountain streams. Kids develop authentic resiliency through real world challenges and traditional earth based skills as they experience the deep peace of the natural world.
"The first word that comes to mind as I write about my son's experience with Twin Eagles is 'Grateful'. I, as his parent, could not be more grateful for the week he spent exploring the wilderness with you. It was such a joy to send him off each morning knowing he sincerely looked forward to the day, and likewise, to pick him in the afternoon and see the smile and look of complete satisfaction on his face. EVERY DAY was like this! You all gave to him knowledge, skills, and spirit that I, as a person, simply could not provide for him. Thank you!"
- Amy Barberry
This coming summer we are offering eleven full weeks of summer camp in Sandpoint, Spokane, and Priest River. They include:
This summer we are continuing our inspirational theme based day camps here at Twin Eagles! 2015 Day Camp themes include:
- Nature Adventurers Day Camp - New for 2015!! - Mystery and adventure await all those who heed the call of the wild. Have you ever looked out onto a wild landscape, and imagined all the possible natural adventures, just waiting to be experienced?
- Wilderness Survival Day Camp - There is an ancient calling deep in the heart to experience the freedom and adventure of living wild and free, close to nature - to provide for one's own needs directly from the Earth...
- Nature Ninjas Day Camp - Nature ninjas are the eyes and ears of the tribe, protectors of the village. They are masters of stealth, camouflage, and invisibility, traveling unseen and unheard amongst the shadows...
For full information on our summer camps, check out our Twin Eagles Summer Camp web page here.
Volunteer or Work with Twin Eagles this summer!
We are currently looking for volunteer assistant instructors who wish to deepen their experience of authentic nature based mentoring in a powerful culture of deep nature connection. Make a difference in the world by helping to restore hope in today's youth by connecting them deeply to nature, community, and self. Have a blast connecting with other nature based mentors and a whole community with shared values. Accommodations & meals provided at overnight camps. Click here for more info on volunteering at Twin Eagles.
We are also looking to hire staff for the roles of Lead Instructor, Lead Cook, and Assistant Cook. We're offering paid positions based on experience, with accommodations & meals provided for overnight camps. Have a blast working in a powerful deep nature connection mentoring culture, and deepening your mentoring expertise while supporting a common Vision of restoring hope in today's youth. We're known for crafting a culture of authentic depth mentoring. Click here for more info on working with Twin Eagles.
Father-Son Wilderness Program
For fathers and their 6 - 12 year old sons
Friday May 22 - Tuesday May 26, 2015 (Memorial Day Weekend)
Medicine Circle Eco-Retreat - Priest River, Idaho
When was the last time you stripped away all the distractions, and just connected with your son(s) and what is most important in life in the simplest way possible?
When was the last time you slowed down, really slowed down, and just connected with nature, on nature's terms?
Imagine taking five days with your son(s), and connecting deeply with nature and your boy(s) through ancestral wilderness survival skills, all within a small "tribe" of other fathers & sons that are like minded with similar values.
Since the dawn of time, fathers and sons have bonded deeply in and with the wilderness. Ancestral wilderness skills have an innate ability to deepen the Father-Son connection like nothing else. This May, we're running a very special Father-Son Wilderness Program at Twin Eagles. During this program, we'll make fire by friction, build and sleep in natural shelters, learn traditional hunting and gathering techniques, and track wild animals. Primitive wilderness survival isn't a "Man vs. Wild" scenario, it is an opportunity to build a deep relationship with the Earth. As you and your son do so, you'll find that your relationship with your son deepens in powerful ways.
We'll have facilitated, open heart Father-Son relationship deepening time, and of course opportunities to connect with the other fathers and sons present. Just as our earth based ancestors did, we'll utilize traditional earth based spiritual practices to help facilitate the connection, and have surprise elements too. We're looking for fathers and sons who are ready to open their bodies, minds, and hearts to a deeper connection, have epic fun, and take the time to connect with what matters most.
Interested, or know someone who might be? Learn more here.
Thanks for reading, and may you enjoy the blessing of springtime in nature!
Tim Corcoran
co-Director & co-Founder
Twin Eagles Wilderness School
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Header photo courtesy Joseph Rocchio Photography
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