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Primitive Living Skills Apprenticeship
Photo Tour • Program
Specifics • Topics Covered
Exploring the traditions of the
Hunter, Gatherer, and Caretaker of self and earth.
The Earthwalk Northwest Apprenticeship
Program is a year-long, intensive wilderness program designed
to develop the inner spirit through learning to
live in accordance with the laws of the natural world. The
program is designed to teach a balance of skills from the
ways of the past to the technology of the present. Students
will study the skills of the hunter, the gatherer, and the
caretaker, while developing an understanding of the connectedness
of each of these roles. Students learn to appreciate themselves
and their community through direct interaction with the many
gifts of Mother Earth.
The Hunter
In the ways of the old, the
hunter was an accepted integral weaver of the web of life.
The hunter
provided life to their community and their environment by
harvesting animals out of necessity and the utmost respect.
During this portion of the training, students will learn
to blend and flow with the rhythms of nature through
advanced study of nature awareness, tracking, honoring the
animal, primitive fishing, and the skills of the camp. Projects
will include harvesting materials to create a fish net, then
using it to dip out local migratory fish. Through this process,
we will be learning about the relationship between hunter,
gatherer, and ultimately caretaker, as we create an important
healing
oil from these fish.
The Gatherer
Wild plants can unlock the
portal to good health and balance. This aspect of the program
will take
an in-depth look at how all beings are given life through
the gifts of the plant nation. Students will learn to identify,
harvest, prepare, and incorporate wild plants into their
daily lives through edible, medicinal, and utilitarian uses.
Weekly plant studies will focus upon the vast gifts of one
plant species. Students will create an herbarium collection
to enhance their plant studies. For the term project, students
will create a new wild plant recipe to share at our
end-of-year
Potlatch ceremony.
The Caretaker
The caretaker aspect of
the program will be divided between caretaker of self and
caretaker of
the earth. Within caretaker of self, participants will learn
the value of using local plants for nutrition and health
maintenance.
The indigenous peoples relied upon these local species for
survival and we have learned many lessons from them. The
medicinal aspect of both plant and animal species
will also
be explored. In addition, students make a variety of salves, tinctures,
and herbal mixtures to start their own herbal first aid kits.
In learning about the caretaker of earth, we will be learning
ethical harvesting
methods
to
ensure
that
our
participation
in the natural world leaves a positive legacy for generations
to come.
A Unique Course of Study
The Apprenticeship
Program is intended to foster a connection between students
and the Earth, not by study alone, but by getting
their hands dirty and practicing the skills. One important
aspect of
this is learning ways to integrate the skills into their
modern daily lives- walking in both worlds. Students finish
the program understanding and experiencing not only primitive
skills, but also modern
applications such as fishing, hunting,
knife sharpening and safety, skinning, cleaning,
and butchering wild game, modern survival strategy, basic
woodworking with hand tools, and integrating wild foods into
their diet. Students have the opportunity to learn practical,
usable skills, gaining the invaluable feelings of self-reliance
and connection to the Earth.
| Frank & Karen
have really boiled down what's important if you
want to learn these skills, and it really cut the learning
curve for me- because they've
been
doing it themselves for over twenty years. And
they learned from the tens-of-thousands of students
they saw at the Tracker School how
to teach the
skills
most
efficiently and
effectively. It was really valuable for me to actually
DO the skills-
whether gathering and cooking wild edibles or making
my own bow and actually hunting with it- while having
an experienced mentor guiding me. I'm thankful that
I was
able to do the
program now, because it increased my confidence
with the skills
and my ability to teach myself-and I'll have that for
the rest of my life. |
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-Ryan Whisnant
Apprenticeship Program '03-'04 |
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| This apprenticeship
program is teaching me so much. I feel so blessed to
have such passionate and knowledgeable teachers dedicated
to passing down these ancient skills. I am truly learning
to see with new eyes. |
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-Cedar Jansson
Apprenticeship Program '03-'04 |
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