NOLS Blog
Backpacking Among Giants: A Trip Report from Norway’s Jotunheimen Mountains
In August of 2025, the inaugural NOLS Alumni Norway Backpacking Trip ventured into the Jotunheimen Mountains for ten days of challenging hiking amongst stunning scenery. Our group first met in Oslo before traveling about five hours by bus to the Jotunheimen region in western Norway. The bus conveniently dropped us off at our first hut of the trip and…
What a NOLS Risk Review Really Looks Like: A Case Study with NatureBridge
In the same year as NOLS’ 60th anniversary, we are celebrating 20 years since the formation of NOLS ...
Case Study: Dental Emergency while RaftingÂ
Photo by Anvesh Thapa The Setting You are on day three of a 4-day rafting trip on the ...
Case Study: Sea Kayaking SlipÂ
A fall partway through a sea kayak trip deep in the wilderness poses unique issues. How do you apply your wilderness medicine skills to this incident?
Gap Year Pros and Cons: Solo vs. Group
Explore the gap year pros and cons of solo vs. group programs to find the right balance for you between independence and shared experiences.
Trip Report: Inaugural NOLS Alumni Climbing Trip In Greece
In May of 2025, the Inaugural NOLS Alumni Greece Climbing Trip traveled to the Greek island of Kalymnos, one of the most famous climbing destinations in the world. Our small but mighty group of alumni and NOLS instructors climbed, swam, staged breathtaking photo shoots, practiced climbing skills, visited nearby islands, sampled the best spinach pies…
Exploring the World and Finding Yourself: The Power of a Gap Year After High School
Discover the power of taking a gap year after high school—adventure, cultural immersion, and self-reflection highlight this transformative experience.
Case Study: Embedded Tick while Backpacking
In the Appalachian Mountains of New York you friend notices that they have an engorged tick on their leg. How would you apply your wilderness medicine skills in this scenario?
Instructor Spotlight: Caeden Greene
A NOLS experience can truly be a transformative experience for a young person’s life, and that was certainly the case for field instructor Caeden Greene. In high school, Caeden embarked on a 30-day Waddington Range Mountaineering Expedition (WAD), long known as one of NOLS’ most rigorous courses. The WAD expedition had such a profound effect…
Grown & Flown: N Phone Calls, No Emails, No Texts
That’s when it hit me: how good it was that we couldn’t connect; that a single phone call or text from me might have undermined the most important part of what he was doing.
My Suburban Life: Life-changing Wilderness Expedition
A three-month wilderness expedition through the Rocky Mountains with National Outdoor Leadership School gave Hellwig focus.
Army and Navy Academy: Cadet Completes NOLS Course
Cadet recently completed a 30-day National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) Course in Alaska. The course is designed to develop leadership and ethics while also teaching technical outdoor skills, like map reading and how to exit from a wet kayak
Trail Lovin’: NOLS Pacific Northwest Trip Leader Seminar Overview
Reflections on my own personal outdoor adventure: a 9-day backpacking course with NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School)
County 10: CWC Students Make Fascinating Discoveries
CWC students, NOLS grads make fascinating discoveries on Dinwoody Glacier
Huffington Post: I Used to Think The Answer Was a Balanced Life
You would just use map and compass and navigate off landmarks. I learned that at National Outdoor Leadership School, which I did when I was 20. And now I'm insanely into saving the planet with maps through my work. My life has been really different in each of those phases.
Charlotte Observer: Mom of the Week
Mom of the week's early camping days with Girls Scouts led to a summer of rock climbing in the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS ) in the summer of 2014.
Eagle Rock School: Scholarships Foster Leadership Skills
Through our growing relationship with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), Eagle Rock School is awarded a small number of highly coveted scholarships for our students to attend either a NOLS expedition through its Gateway Partnership Program.
Boise Weekly: Mark Blaiser ‘was a dirtbag once’
The evening was calm and peaceful. Mark Blaiser dipped his paddle through the still water of the Kawishiwi River near the border of Minnesota and Canada. The 25-year-old sat silently in his canoe and watched a moose and her calf splash into the river and swim across. The moment struck Blaiser as profound. Now, at 41, Blaiser is the new executive director of Idaho Rivers United, a nonprofit devoted to protecting, conserving and restoring the state's rivers, streams and riparian areas.
Wave3 News: Three Incredible Women Honored for Athletic Achievements
In 1999, Murden McClure became the first woman and American to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She loves to see the changes coming to women’s sports as young women aren't afraid to go after what they want—and it's being recognized
Adirondack Almanack: NOLS Gives Back
This August, NOLS Northeast, in collaboration with the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), hosted a service project trip specifically for NOLS graduates and family members in the Adirondacks.
