COURSE DESCRIPTION

In a survival scenario, the luxury of settling in a base camp and relishing the wilderness might not always be an option. Often, individuals find themselves on the move, whether seeking self-rescue due to being lost or exploring deeper into the wilderness to seek solace. Our journey involves hiking from our main camp to a specified area across rugged terrain.

This 4-day hiking adventure integrates learning and applying survival skills throughout the journey. This hike demands participants to be reasonably fit for the rugged terrain. However, our pace won’t be swift, as we’ll take our time to relish the landscapes and practice skills.

We kick off sharply at 9:00 am on day one, acquainting everyone with essential equipment, ensuring comfort and readiness. Afterward, we’ll pack up and embark on our hike towards a remote destination across challenging terrain, where we’ll set up camp at day’s end.

Traversing towards our final stop, savoring the scenery and honing our skills along the way. We will transport you back to our starting at the end of day 4. Expect a journey featuring numerous water crossings and rugged landscapes. While we encourage minimal gear, participants are welcome to bring along whatever equipment they prefer.

Once more, we emphasize that this hike is rugged, primarily off-trail throughout most of the journey. For those inexperienced with off-trail hiking, this could potentially be the most challenging trek you’ve encountered. While each day may test your limits, our support will be unwavering, standing by your side every step of the way. Ensure preparedness and opt for comfortable footwear to tackle this adventure. Hiking boots should be thoroughly broken in before embarking on this journey. Additionally, ensure that your backpacks have been tried and tested for comfort and functionality. An unused pack and heavy loads can be taxing on a long trek, especially navigating steep hills and overcoming obstacles. This hike is a serious endeavor and will undoubtedly put your endurance to the test.

PACK WEIGHT

If you are not an experienced hiker, your backpack and gear should not be any more than 25% of your body weight. Please check your gear weight before arriving. Also keep in mind that we will be operating at elevations from 9500 feet to 7,000 feet above sea level. If you are not used to this altitude, you will move slower and tire quicker.

LENGTH

4 days/3 nights

FOOD AND WATER REQUIRED

You must pack your own food, water and cooking utensils. A Jetboil, BioLite or similar lightweight cooking stove is recommended but not required. A quality water filter is a must as we will be on the move and not at a base camp where you can easily fill your water bottle.

SUGGESTED GEAR LIST

We do not provide students with gear unless they have purchased it from us ahead of time. Not much gear is needed for our courses, though good equipment does speed the learning process up greatly! Gear does not have to be purchased from our store to attend the course, but we recommend survival gear of equivalent quality.

• Fixed blade knife (Preferably a full tang bushcraft style knife WITHOUT a serrated edge)
• IFAK – individual first aid kit
• Ferrocerium rod
• Freeze dried or hiking meals
• Poncho or Rain Gear
• Outdoor Clothing and appropriate footwear
• River shoes (we will be making multiple water crossings)
• Swimsuit (in case you want to swim)
• Folding hand saw
• Overnight Camping Gear: Tent, sleeping bag, ground pad, etc
• 100’of 550 Paracord
• Shemagh or large cotton scarf
• Headlamp and extra batteries
• Cooking pot and eating utensils
• Single walled metal canteen
• Sunscreen and sunglasses
• Insect Repellent
• Toiletries
• Hiking Backpack

CLOTHING REQUIRED

Warm outdoor clothing, warm gloves and hat, outdoor boots and wool socks. Cotton clothing is highly discouraged in the mountains! Wool will keep you warm even when wet and synthetics will dry faster. Layers are important in Colorado. You will want a water wicking base layer, an insulating mid layer, and a waterproof breathable outer shell. Check out our Clothes Layering Basics if you are unsure of what to wear.

Check Recommended Items List for more details!

If it is still not clear what gear is needed for our survival courses, then we have assembled a complete kit that is still high quality but for a budget friendly price. All the items in this kit were hand selected by our instructors to be the best bushcraft tools on a budget. This survival kit is a useful starter kit that can be used in all of our courses. These are all must have tools at a good price. It’s a great survival kit, bug out kit, go bag, or use it as a solid foundation to build a kit that perfectly fits your needs. With this kit and our training anybody can survive like a king in almost any environment!

NOTE

Due to the different levels of prior experience and knowledge among students in each class, individual outcomes may vary. Weather conditions can also be a factor in changing class content slightly. Nonetheless, our instructors will always endeavor to be as accommodating and consistent as circumstances will allow to ensure students get the best training experience and value for money.