NOLS Blog
How to Make Hash Browns with Cheese
Hash browns have a well-deserved reputation as a delicious breakfast treat, but this cheesy version is great for lunch or dinner too—and that’s before you add nuggets of ham or bacon and a few shakes of hot sauce into the mix! This recipe requires a little forethought—both the hash browns and dried onions benefit from…
NOLS Picante Sauce
Picante perks up almost any savory recipe—try it on eggs, beans, in soups and coupled with anything on ...
Backpacking Among Giants: A Trip Report from Norway’s Jotunheimen Mountains
Photo by Amanda Klein In August of 2025, the inaugural NOLS Alumni Norway Backpacking Trip ventured into the Jotunheimen Mountains ...
Case Study: Altitude Illness While Trekking
The Setting You are on the trip of a lifetime hiking the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal with one of your best friends. This trip has been in the works for over a year. You’ve spent countless hours training, reviewing maps, and daydreaming about being in the mountains. You can’t believe you’re finally here! You flew…
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 Risk Services. For 60 years, NOLS has operated in remote locations all over the world, and in 2005, NOLS Risk Services was formed to share what NOLS has learned about operational risk management in the process. NOLS…
Case Study: Dental Emergency while RaftingÂ
A member of your rafting party loses a tooth partway through a 4-day trip. How do you respond?
Where Play Meets Purpose: A Journey Through the Canyons
Since 2022, NOLS and the University of Michigan Ross School of Business have collaborated on a yearly weeklong expedition to the canyons in southeastern Utah. This expedition is the culmination of a semester-long leadership course for Ross undergraduate students. It combines concepts and learnings from the classroom course with the NOLS leadership curriculum in a…
Rothberg-Birdwhistell Exploration Fund: Expedition to the Peruvian Andes
In the spring of 2025, we set out on an Alpine and ski mountaineering expedition to Peru’s Cordillera Blanca. As outdoor educators with experience leading students on NOLS courses, our team shares a deep commitment to learning through challenge and a connection to wild places. Our goals: explore new terrain, attempt several high peaks, and…
How to Make Oat Scones in the Backcountry
Oat scones taste delicious plain or with honey, peanut butter, wild berry jam, or cheese. They are also excellent with soups or casseroles and make good trail food. Oat Scones ½ cup butter 2 cups oatmeal 1-1/2 tsp. baking powder Pinch of salt (allows recipe to use less sweetener) ¼ cup honey or brown sugar…
Wilderness Risk Management Conference Welcomes Three New Steering Committee Members and Appoints New Committee Chair
Ahead of the 27th annual Wilderness Risk Management Conference (WRMC), the conference Steering Committee appointed Mike Pigg, Outward Bound USA National Safety Director, as the new chair and welcomed three new members; Elyse Rylander, Partnership Manager at Camber Outdoors and founder of OUT There Adventures and LGBTQ Outdoor Summit; Moleek Busby, Field Operations Senior Manager for the Washington Trails Association (WTA); and Michael Davis, YMCA BOLD & GOLD National Program Manager.
Exploring the Backcountry with a Mule
In an article for Sierra, Stacey McKenna consults NOLS horsepacking instructor Ari Hertz on the history of wilderness exploration with stock animals in the U.S.
Bainbridge Island Review: Goodlin completes New Zealand expedition
Bainbridge Island Review: Goodlin completes New Zealand expedition
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Resident Completes 76-Day Fall Course
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Resident Completes 76-Day Fall Course
Ridgefield Press: Resident Completes Spring Southwest Course
Ridgefield resident completes 80-day Spring Southwest Course
‘An American Ascent’ Takes Home Best Doc., Best Director
'An American Ascent' Takes Home Best Doc., Best Director
Adventure Medical Kits Helps Fund NOLS Scholarships
Adventure Medical Kits Helps Fund NOLS Scholarships
Lessons from Patagonia’s Culture of Sharing
Stagg traveled to Patagonia this spring on his International Professional Service Semester (IPSS) assignment to work with NOLS in Coyhaique, Patagonia.
Fall Semester Grad Savors the Outdoors
Liam Tuveson participated in an adventure of a lifetime as part of a fall semester program with the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), Lander, Wyoming.
Mountaineering Courses Promise Epic Treks
Backpack through Washington’s North Cascades for 29 days, on a mountaineering course offered through the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).
Raúl Castro, Director of NOLS Patagonia [Interview]
In 1993, Raúl Castro was living in Santiago. He attended a presentation by National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS).
Eight Month-Long Adventures You Can’t Miss
Perhaps you’ve decided to take a year off from the daily grind. or maybe your career allows you to work from anywhere.
