Portland Homeschool Outdoor Adventure Program (HOAP)

Legend of the Rangers Guild

The Rangers are hunters and scouts for the village. They are versed in the arts of wilderness survival, tracking and awareness. In their listening they find a silence, one that compels them to protect what is Wild.

Flow is the Way of the Ranger. They follow the trail of the cougar, deer and other animals. With finely honed senses they become the eyes and ears of the village, living completely with the land and tending to it as if an invisible ghost.

The Remembering is here. There was a time you forgot who you were, how it feels to release an arrow, the music of the bowstring resonating, the route of your blood, the path of those who came before.

You felt you were asleep for a long while. The world engined on. And then, one day, you woke up.

Rangers Level 1 Mentoring

Our expert instructors mentor older students (ages 10-17) to accomplish the following basics at the program and also through independent study.

Tracking Basics Youth

Completing the Tracking Basics means doing 21 lens journals and 4 week-long home based studies in different soil substrates in Track Aging Profiles.

☐ 18 lens journals for clear tracks of different wild mammals
☐ 1 lens journals for clear track of a small domestic dog
☐ 1 lens journals for clear track of a large domestic dog
☐ 1 lens journals for clear track of a domestic cat
☐ 1 week-long Trailing Profile Study in sand or dirt
☐ 1 week-long Trailing Profile Study in leaf debris
☐ 1 week-long Trailing Profile Study in debris of choice
☐ 1 week-long Trailing Profile Study in lawn or meadow

Survival Basics Youth

Completing the Survival Basics means completing 25 different primitive skills based experiences.

☐ demonstration of Trackers knife safety and competency skills
☐ ability to navigate by compass cross country .5 miles
☐ working knowledge of topographical maps
☐ by the sun and a watch pinpoint and walk a straight line South for 500 feet through brush
☐ 6-feet of cordage harvested from natural fibers capable of suspending 5 lbs
☐ sleeping two-nights in an all natural debris shelter with no sleeping bag (fall overnight)
☐ one liter of water harvested from dew or solar still
☐ one spring followed all the way to source
☐ one page journal and three water borne illnesses and prevention
☐ boiling 1-liter of water with rocks
☐ lighting one fire with one match in 5-minutes in severely wet conditions
☐ bow-drill coals from each of these materials
-two softwoods (one domestic, one wild harvested)
-two hardwoods (both wild harvested)
☐ one hand-drill coal
☐ arrowheads made from each of these materials
-glass bottle bottom, flakes across all surfaces
-bone or obsidian, only stone tools are used
☐ completion of three quickie survival bows made from different woods (make them pretty)
☐ making a wood eating bowl by coal burning
☐ skinning one small animal (domestic rabbit, we provide)
☐ tanning the hide of one small animal (bark tan)
☐ hitting an 8-inch target 25-feet away with a rabbitstick ten times in a row
☐ hitting an 8-inch target 50-feet away with a bow and arrow set three times in a row
☐ making one simple basket that can hold 1 pound of grass or grain seeds

The Curriculum of Shadows Youth

Completing The Curriculum of Shadows Basics means 25 different invisibility and awareness projects

☐ sit one full day alone sun-up to sun-down in one wild area
☐ camouflage on well-used game trail in minimal clothing for 4-hours
☐ one full day blind-folded (get assistance, don't die or get hurt)
☐ one full day silent
☐ give up sugar and processed foods for one week
☐ move one full day at half speed
☐ move one morning: sunrise to noon at quarter speed
☐ balance on one foot for 20-minutes (both)
☐ successfully evade trained Rangers (Level 1) trailing your guided team within a defined area for 1/2 day
☐ one page journal and 10-different localized song birds
☐ ability to mimic 3-bird calls impeccably
☐ develop and teach to instructors 5-different stealth scenario relevant hand signals (keep 'em secret, keep 'em safe)
☐ find and lens journal one set of large predator (over 25 lbs) tracks by bird alarms
☐ feed wild birds eating out of your hand

Voted the Coolest & Best Camp!

Find out why Portland parents voted Trackers best camp with NW Kids and coolest camp for kids with Red Tricycle.

Rave Reviews

"This has been the best camp! And, we've gone to a few! I have been telling everyone about it. I don't think you could have developed a more perfect camp experience for my son. Seriously… Honestly, I cannot think of enough words to describe how great this week was for Ethan. He was engaged, enthusiastic and exhausted at the end of the day. The storyline that his group developed was amazing and kept him thinking and connecting every night. I love the enthusiasm of Stewart. The patience and guidance he has with kids is inspiring. He has the ability to command a group of excitable kids safely and in a way that gets them thinking, creating and using their imaginations-- which is an under utilized skill (in my opinion). I loved how he made the whole camp adaptable to what the kids were interested in, and had the flexibility to flow with it. Fantastic job you guys!!!" -Forest Ninja Parent, Age 6

"As a city dweller, I take pride that my son still has an opportunity to catch frogs, go fishing & be outdoors. By far one of the best camps he's attended." -Forest, Fishing, Fly and Reel Parent, Age 7

"They are the best I have seen! Smart, passionate, energetic, funky and caring." -Little House: Wilders Homestead Parent, Age 6

"A totally new experience. Like Junior Outward Bound." -Welcome to Middle Earth Parent, Age 5

"He's been proud to share new things he's learned with whole family. He specified, however, that he's not learning like school, he's "discovering." Thank you!" -Welcome to Middle Earth Parent, Age 8

"Surpasses any experiences with camps so far; this is our first Trackers Camp." -Stealth, Archery & Wilderness Survival Parent, Age 9

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