ESTES PARK – Colorado is notorious for the iconic image of mountain men—those rugged trappers and explorers who roamed the Rocky Mountains from 1810 to the early 1840’s. But aside from brute strength and a commitment to living simply, how did these unrefined individuals survive the rigors of winter? What can we learn from their methods, and how have they been improved upon?

Join Rocky Mountain Conservancy Field Institute on Saturday, Feb. 28 for a Winter Survival Skills class to answer these questions, discuss survival needs, and put your skills to the test. This course will cover prehistoric, historic, and contemporary strategies for surviving in the Rockies in winter. It will begin by looking at examples and discussing basic survival needs for short- and long-term survival situations. Then, participants will head into Rocky Mountain National Park to test out skills—building shelters and making fire amidst the snow. Participants will finish this course equipped and informed with historical and relevant survival skills.

Anyone who has been humbled by the harsh realities of winter knows how vital it is to be taught by someone with experience, and our course instructor is the closest thing to a mountain man that we could find. Doug Hill is the founder and director of Gone Feral, which focuses on keeping traditional skills and primitive technology alive through hands-on workshops. He is a former high school industrial arts teacher, turned environmental educator, naturalist, writer, and primitive living skills practitioner. He is also an adjunct instructor with Red Rocks Community College’s Outdoor Education program. Learn how to outsmart winter alongside this naturalist!

To register, go online to http://www.rmconservancy.org and click on the Learn With Us tab, or call 970-586-3262. If interested in learning alongside Hill at a later date, join him for Technology of Your Ancestors: Primitive Survival Skills on June 6. Don’t let winter stop you from exploring!

Visit Rocky Mountain Conservancy to learn more.