NOLS Blog
Case Study: Chest Injury with Fall
The Setting You are on a climbing trip in Red Rocks, Nevada. You’ve spent the last week dialing in your climbing, swapping beta with new friends at the crag and soaking up the desert sun. Today, you decide to take a break from long routes and focus on bouldering. You’re chalking up, eyeing a new…
Backpacking the Vilcabamba Valley to Machu Picchu Alumni Trip: Inaugural Trip Reflection
An Interview with Kellsie Forbes, NOLS Alumni Trips Manager Where did the idea to create an alumni trip ...
Alumni Spotlight: How my NOLS Course Impacted My Career
Almost exactly 10 years after coming to Alaska for the first time to take a NOLS course, Asa ...
The Wilderness Risk Management Conference: a Conference and a Community
An interview with Elyse Rylander, Wilderness Risk Management Steering Committee Chair The 33rd annual Wilderness Risk Management Conference (WRMC) will be held this fall, October 20 – 22nd, in Portland, Oregon. If you haven’t attended yet, the WRMC was developed from the work of multiple outdoor programs who wanted to create a space to foster…
Case Study: Bear Spray in the Face
The Setting You are almost done with a 3-day backpacking trip in the Wind River Mountain Range of Wyoming with two of your friends. You only have a couple miles left to get back to the car, and you’re already dreaming of the cheeseburger and milkshake you’re going to have once back in town. Prior…
Case Study: Fishhooks
The Setting You’re on the first day of a twelve-day whitewater canoeing expedition down the Green River. Your group consists of fifteen students and four instructors. Everyone is paddling close together down a stretch of flat water practicing strokes, building skills, and getting to know one another. Spirits are high. People are laughing, chatting, and…
When Everything Came Into Focus — Hiking Patagonia’s Torres del Paine O Circuit Alumni Trip
I first learned about the O Circuit in 2025, a year before I actually did it. My wife and I were in Patagonia on a Road Scholar trip. It started with a cruise through the Strait of Magellan and the Darwin Passage, followed by a few days in Torres del Paine National Park doing short…
Case Study: Heat Illness on an Early-Season Wildland Fire Assignment
The Setting You are working on a Type 2 initial attack handcrew in the Deschutes National Forest during the early part of fire season. It’s one of the first assignments of the year, and while conditions aren’t extreme yet, temperatures have climbed into the mid-80s°F with full sun exposure on a south-facing slope. The crew…
Rothberg-Birdwhistel Expedition Fund: Panchachuli III Peak Climb
In May 2025, Bharat Bhushan, Prerna Dangi, and I took on a challenge to climb Panchachuli III (6,349m), believed by local residents to remain unclimbed. We aimed to approach it via the northeast route through the Meola Glacier. Despite occasional visits by military and paramilitary personnel, there was no recorded mountaineering information or documented route…
Up Mountains and Down Rivers: Packrafting at NOLS
Instructor Tim Kelley shares his passion for packrafting and explains what to expect on a NOLS packrafting expedition, based on a course he taught in 2017.
Carbon Reporting at an Outdoor Nonprofit
Environmental stewardship is a foundational value at NOLS and greenhouse gas reporting is one way we're engaging with climate change mitigation.
Creating a Diverse Community of Risk Managers
Antarctic expedition contractors, wilderness therapists, university outdoor program supervisors—what do they have in common? Managing risk in dynamic environments.
Easing Back Into Your Frontcountry Life
The post author learned that stepping into life back home is as important a skill as living in the wilderness.
Your Favorite Stories from 2017
We hope you enjoy taking a look back at the seven most-read stories from 2017.
From the Office to the Wild: How I Became a Naturalist
Adventuring in nature has the ability to open our hearts and interpretive learning opens our minds.
Leaving a Legacy: Learning and Leading Risk Management Collaboration and Dialogue in Seoul
Director of Teaching and Learning at the Korea International School (KIS) talks about lessons learned from a risk management training.
Case Study: How to Manage Frostbite
Test how you would respond to possible frostbite with this wilderness medicine case study.
55 and Climbing
I had registered for the women's climbing course for many reasons, but my essential motive was to be in a positive, supportive, and encouraging environment.
9 Wilderness Medicine Jobs You Can Get With A Wilderness Medicine Certification
Check out the top 9 wilderness medicine jobs you can score with a wilderness medicine certification.
Enhancing Student Experience and Inclusion through Risk Management
Cal Poly recreation and adventure education staff talk about how risk management adds perspective and growth for their students and programs.
Transform Your Backcountry Cooking with the New NOLS Cookery
To help students learn about backcountry cooking, we started collecting recipes and published the first cookery in 1974. The 7th edition comes out this year.
