NOLS Blog
Lou Gordon: Three Decades of Influence
Louise “Lou” Gordon’s office in the Wilderness Medicine wing of NOLS Headquarters is tucked into the perpendicular intersection of two banks of offices, in the center of the activity but quiet and a little reserved. Like Lou herself. After more than 30 years, the last 6 1/2 as NOLS Wilderness Medicine’s Wilderness EMT Supervisor, Lou…
Climate Medicine: Where Climate Change and Healthcare Meet
Fires at wildland-urban interfaces—the transition zones where human development, such as houses and infrastructure, meets or intermingles with ...
Summer Travel Programs for Teens: Why Wilderness Expeditions Offer More Than a Passport Stamp
Most summer travel programs for teens promise adventure. A select few actually deliver it. Lila Sternberg There is ...
Staying Power
Shari Kearney didn’t just find a place at NOLS—as our longest serving female instructor, she has worked over 424 weeks in the field and influenced generations of students. Shari Kearney is checking on Three Peaks Ranch’s stable of horses, kept on pastures outside of Lander, Wyoming in the offseason. Each autumn, the horses—dozens of them—are…
Connection, Resilience, and Dal Bhat: Manaslu Circuit Alumni Trip 2025
In November 2025, five gentlemen, one lady, three guides, and three support staff met in Kathmandu in preparation for a two-week NOLS alumni trek on the Manaslu Circuit in Nepal. Although we were all strangers coming from different parts of the world, our shared excitement for setting foot in the Himalayas was palpable. During those…
Best Summer Programs for Teens: Outdoor Adventures That Build Leaders
Most teens will spend this summer doing something fun, but maybe not so meaningful. Not because they lack ambition, but because the summer camps available to them were designed to center around fun, rather than building long-lasting skills. The difference between a summer that fades and one that becomes a reference point — something your…
Case Study: Motion Sickness on a Surf and Dive Trip in Oahu, Hawaii
The Setting You’re leading a small group on a combined surf and introductory scuba trip on Oahu. The group is staying on the North Shore and driving early in the morning to a south shore harbor to meet the dive boat. The coastal road is narrow, hilly, and full of tight curves. Several group members…
Summer Programs for High Schoolers: Choosing an Adventure That Lasts
Every parent of a high schooler feels it: these summers matter. The window is short, and how your teen spends it shapes more than you’d think. The science backs that up. Adolescence, roughly ages 12 to 18, is one of the most significant growth windows a person will ever experience. It’s when teens actively figure…
The Complete Guide to Summer Programs for Teens
Each summer between high school years is about 90 days. For most teens, the time passes quickly — and how it’s spent matters more than it might seem at the moment. For parents thinking about how to help their teen get the most out of these months, a structured summer program is one of the…
The Ultimate Recipe to Upgrade Your Campfire Cooking
Molly Herber, Staff Writer at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) recommends a recipe that’ll knock the socks off any camper: backcountry pizza.
Op-ed: As Recreation Booms, Access to Public Lands Becomes More Crucial
My life has been connected with the outdoors, as an instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School and now as the leader of a conservation organization.
The Kids Are All Right?
A Big City Mountaineers teen trip opens a window on some of the more daunting challenges of increasing youth diversity in the outdoors. By Corey Buhay
Summer Sunday: The Wyoming Winds
I wanted to go Lander, home of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), and to the Wind River Range, where the fishing was supposedly epic.
The Lander Valley Leadership Expedition Attracts Eight Inspiring Students
The Lander Valley Leadership Expedition has become a tradition for upcoming seniors at Lander Valley High School who elect to serve as 'Senior Mentors'.
So You Want To Be An Astronaut?
One of the toughest aspects of the training is NOLS Expeditionary Training. This involves the whole class roughing it out in the wilderness for 10 days.
Program Connects At-Risk Kids With Nature
The idea behind City Kids is to get kids out of these neighborhoods and into wilderness adventures that help them learn, grow and build skills.
Murie Center Honors Spirit of Conservation
Actor Harrison Ford received the 2016 Murie Spirit of Conservation Award, adding a wow factor to the event. NOLS Director John Gans also attended.
Taking a ‘Whole Person’ Approach to Helping At-Risk Students
Summer Search Boston, a nonprofit enrichment program has students take NOLS courses during the summer as part of their participation in the program.
Nadia Carrie’s Summer Semester in Alaska
The 19-year-old recently finished a 75-day expedition in Alaska, kayaking, hiking and mountaineering hundreds of miles. This was part of a summer semester with NOLS.
A Rejected ‘Bachelorette’ Contestant Finds Love
After the Bachelorette, as an escape, he signed up for a three-week National Outdoor Leadership School sailing expedition in Mexico in October 2012.
Journey 4 Renewal: Canoeing from Minnesota to the Hudson Bay
They paddled 1,239 miles over 66 days from Wilderness Canoe Base to Hudson Bay–raising over $40,000 for Wilderness Canoe Base in the process.
