Spring Break Camp My Side of Oaks Bottom

Wilderness Survival CampMore spring break camps >

10 kid limit for this camp Our policy for small class sizes.

Wilderness survival and lore

Throughout literature many great stories of wilderness survival and adventure have inspired children to connect and care for nature. The greatest wish of many a kid is to wander to through the woods and know how to live and care for all their own needs and the land around them.

This camp begins with that story. We train the ultimate skills of bushcraft and wilderness survival while reading the tales of My Side of the Mountain.

We have fun developing a working knowledge of various bushcraft including lighting fires with no matches, safe wood carving skills, learning about wild edible plants, animal tracking, building the best shelters for different situations and much more.

All this, plus learn the voices of the birds and animals; what their calls and behaviors tell us of other creatures in the woods and resources for survival and sustainability.

Everyone learns to be prepared while enjoying nature and the out of doors. Kids learn how to keep themselves warm and found. This class greatly adds to the confidence and peace of mind for parents that often take their children out of doors and on wilderness excursions. We teach kids how to build a story map that lets them always know where they are, how to dress properly for any weather and how to pay attention to their surroundings and the health of their own bodies.

Please read every word on this page together with your child. Especially "A Good Fit?"

Register for My Side of Oaks Bottom

Online Closed
Contact Us for the waitlist
Ages 6-7 $60 Get aftercare until 5:30pm
Public Schools March 22, 2010 8:30am-3:30pm
5040 SE Milwaukie Avenue, Portland, Oregon Map It
Closed
Contact Us for the waitlist
Ages 8-10 $60 Get aftercare until 5:30pm
Public Schools March 22, 2010 8:30pm-3:30pm
5040 SE Milwaukie Avenue, Portland, Oregon Map It
Add to cart
Ages 6-7 $60 Get aftercare until 5:30pm
Waldorf Schools April 6, 2010 8:30pm-3:30pm
5040 SE Milwaukie Avenue, Portland, Oregon Map It
Add to cart
Ages 8-10 $60 Get aftercare until 5:30pm
Waldorf Schools April 6, 2010 8:30pm-3:30pm
5040 SE Milwaukie Avenue, Portland, Oregon Map It

Ages 6-7 My Side of Oaks Bottom includes...

mobile camp around Portland Greenspaces
• learn to stay found and safe
• practice wilderness survival
• navigate by map, compass, sun and story
• build the best wilderness homes and shelters
• safely harvest wild edible plants
• track animals
• communicate and learn from the animals and birds of the forest
• gain the skills bushcraft
• be a child, outside and free

Ages 8-10 My Side of Oaks Bottom includes...

mobile camp around Portland Greenspaces
• learn to stay found and safe
• practice wilderness survival
• navigate by map, compass, sun and story
• build the best wilderness homes and shelters
• safely harvest wild edible plants
• track animals
• communicate and learn from the animals and birds of the forest
• gain the skills bushcraft
• be a child, outside and free

A Good Fit?

Before you register PLEASE READ the critical information below to help you decide if your program is the right match for you or you child. TrackersNW invests in families and students dedicated to maturity and accountability as a team. The experience of your child is heightened as these filters insure a safe, supportive and competent collaboration with both our instructors and all other team members (including students).

This program is a good fit for the child and parent who...

• trust one another
• are interested in and empathetic to the natural world
• crave a different way of experiencing and seeing both natural and modern world
• want to have fun
• possess a sense of adventure
• make intelligent choices
• display competent autonomy when needed
• can make and keep clear agreements concerning safety
• can help insure the safety of their peers and collaborators
• works diligently toward adult accountability, consequences and responsibility
• will come dressed appropriately to stay warm, dry and healthy
• is okay with being muddy, cold and wet at times
• can be a real kid
• shares well with others

This program is NOT a good fit for children who...

• are not interested in nature & scout awareness
• are not empathetic for the natural world
• are being forced to come to camp
• cannot display competent autonomy when needed
• cannot make and keep clear agreements and choices concerning safety
• is kept inside all the time so may be uncomfortable
• will not dress appropriately to stay warm, dry and healthy
• is not okay with being muddy, cold and wet at times
• has trouble working with others and respecting the needs of other participants

Please note that if your child is positively working on behavior, we are willing to work with them and you with clear agreements

Updates from articles & classes

Articles on our Blog

Follow us

facebook
twitter
youtube

Our Philosophy for Learning & Living

A Smile

We help children to feel like that group of kids wandering country backyards 50 years ago: independent, tired, muddy, wet and happy from the woods and wild. We are acutely aware of full and real hazards of the out of doors after years of working in environmental education. We try to move away from the highly structured and limiting tolerances of conventional environmental education while keeping kids truly safe but not encapsulated from, or phobic of nature. We are deep patriots to the value of offering guided yet very free and transparent experiences for kids. We believe it is okay to be thirsty at times, cold at times, and wet at times. It builds empathy and care for the gifts of life. It fosters adventure and sincere accomplishment. We also believe it is critical to feel supported and cared for as they truly explore their passion and responsibility. And through a healthy life immersed in nature, they test the limits and great potential of the often untapped physical and emotional resiliency they possess