Travis and I went to Ketchikan in 2024 to visit our friends Matt and Caitlyn. The plan was to spend our time hunting, fishing and adventuring together in some of the most beautiful terrain in southeast Alaska. We would drive 45 minutes into Tongass National Forest, park the car on the side of the road and walk into the bush with nothing more than the clothes we were wearing and the guns we were hunting with. Travis and I took turns going with Matt, while the other stayed behi

Did you know that today is the autumn equinox? Day and night will are in balance, and then will tip us over the edge into nights that outlast our days. It may officially be the first day of autumn, but it sure doesn't feel like it. As I sit here writing this, the high in Raleigh today is 90 degrees. The raging intensity of this summer's heat feels like an omen — I find myself anticipating a tumultuous, powerful winter, fueled by the chaos this heat has stirred into our global

For YEARs the two questions I get most from students are: What should be in my day pack? What should be in my first aid kit? And my answer is always the same— "Well, that depends...." It depends on what you're doing, where you're going, who you're going with, what time of year, your group size, and your trip duration. A list I hand you is built for my trips, my experience, my preferences and my training. Instead of copying someone else's packing list, I use a systems met

Why You Need it There's a reason the first principle of Leave No Trace is Plan Ahead and Prepare. Most people who need rescuing did not plan or prepare for their trip properly- and they end up in a survival scenario because of it. But what does plan ahead and prepare and prepare actually mean? How to we accomplish being prepared? That first step in a trip plan- even something as simple as a day hike- consists of several considerations: What activity are you doing? Where are y

Last week, a climber fell 20 feet in Linville Gorge. His injuries caused life threatening internal bleeding, and he needed blood, fast. The blood he needed was in a parking lot, 1.5 miles and 1,000ft of elevation away. There was only a rough trail between them- no ATV and no helicopter that could make the delivery. Will Soper, a fellow climber, EMT and SAR volunteer, answered that call. He made the delivery in just 31 minutes and absolutely made the difference between life

Yesterday (August 1) was Lughnasadh- one of four Celtic fire festivals and a day that marks the halfway point between the summer solstice and the autumn equinox. A Deep Fullness If you've spent time outside lately, you've probably felt this deepening. The days are still long and hot- but there is a fullness to them that wasn't there in June. The greens are deeper, the light is more golden, the fields are tall and heavy with crops, and the fireflies glitter at dusk. This

The difference between an epic adventure and a survival nightmare is usually about three decisions. And those three decisions are mistakes that were made because of lack of knowledge, lack of skill or lack of fitness. Many situations could have been prevented because people got lost. Or because they didn't realize the way they were feeling was hypothermia. Some people end up in dire situations over something seemingly minor- like a sprained ankle. But here's what most people

How would you describe wilderness? Is it defined by human impact? Whether you have cell phone signal? How remote it is? Ok, now what about 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 first aid? What makes it different from regular first aid? Did you know that in emergency medicine, we consider anything 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳 from higher medical care a wilderness scenario? I bet you've been in wilderness settings more times than you realized -maybe more times than you can count. Highway 40 thr

I knew aging was a thing that would happen, I just didn't expect it to happen to me , specifically 39 and still climbing trees, wearing crop tops and causing ruckus. But seriously, in so many ways, age IS just a number. I know plenty of old people who did not grow wiser with age, and plenty of young people who think their best years are already behind them. It's true you probably can't join the circus at 80. . . some ships do sail. . .but. . . Some of my greatest mentors

A household uses money as a resource to add value to the lives of the people in the household. A (traditional) business uses people as the resource to add money to the business. -@weaselle ​ I run Wayfinder Outdoors like a household- resources are shared to add value to the lives of instructors, our community and the natural world. And we'll do that while providing our clients with incredible, life changing experiences. ​ Instructor Pay Pay structure at Wayfinder Outdoors i

If you hesitated, you need wilderness first aid training. Is there a voice that starts whispering when you lose cell signal, when the sun sets, or when you're a full day from civilization? A voice that whispers… “What if something goes wrong? What if I can’t handle it? Maybe we should go back…” That anxious voice isn't about fitness, navigation, or gear. It's about medical confidence. And you can gain it in two days. This isn't death-by-PowerPoint. Ali and Mike throw re

The wilderness doesn't just test your skills, it shows you who you are. Challenge in wild places has the power to transform us. ​ I've...

I spend a lot of time on a particular beach along the Pamlico River. Along this beach, there is a band of beautiful blue-gray clay...

- It starts with feeling - Humans have adorned themselves in all sorts of ways for thousands of years. These different ways of...

The equinox is tomorrow- the 22nd of September, and I'm writing this mostly to remind myself to take time to enjoy it. If you want to...

Originally posted to WayfinderAli.com From even before I can remember, I always felt the need to get in whatever body of water was...

Wisps of hair that had escaped my braid from three days in the wild suddenly brushed my cheeks in warning. My conversation with a fellow...

Rewilding is becoming a buzz word these days, and companies are jumping at a chance to make some money trying to turn rewilding into a...

We believe that time spent in the nature is critical to the human spirit, but that simply recreating in wilderness maintains the modern...