Programs I currently offer: Please scroll down the page to see all programs available.
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Bending Sticks, Throwing Stones: Traditional
Bow Making Workshop
Where: Various Locations. See Schedule for upcoming classes.
With Who: This program will be run by Sticks & Stones Wilderness School and led by seasoned bow maker Skeet Sutherland. I (Chris Gilmour) will be there to assist as well.
For Who: Anyone interested in archery, hunting, woodworking, and/or deepening their connection to the land that supports us.
Learn the Ancient Art of Bow Building; through this hands on workshop students will be shaping, tillering, bending and finally shooting their own bows. The journey from the forest to the hand tailored finished bow in 4 days.
Price: $400, includes
• All course materials, wood and tools (bring your own tools if you have them.)
•Accomadation
• Bring your own Breakfast, Lunch and Snacks, Full Kitchen facilities available.
• $200 deposit
No Experience is Necessary!
Space is limited so book soon by contacting Skeet Sutherland @ skeetsutherland@hotmail.com or calling: 519-216-6842
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Empowering Ancient Ways
- Deepening our connection to nature through ancient wilderness living skills -
Where: The Wolf Den Hostel in Oxtongue, ON. (Hwy 60, west side of Algonquin Park).
With Who: Wilderness Guide and Outdoor Educator Chris Gilmour & Skeet Sutherland, a former Instructor at Tom Brown Jr’s Tracker School, now teaching classes through his Ontario based company Sticks and Stones Wilderness School (SSWS).
For Who: The core skills of this course are sure to enrich the lives of the most seasoned wilderness guide to the novice nature enthusiast
Price: $700
* Price includes course materials, all meals, and 6 nights accomadation at the Wolf Den Hostel*
Description:
This course is being put on by Sticks and Stones Wilderness School. Instructors will include myself (Chris Gilmour), Skeet Sutherland, former teacher at Tom Brown Jr's Tracker school, and guest instructors.
This will be the second Empowering Ancient Ways course we have run. The first one happened this past spring and was a very powerful and inspiring week. I can assure this next one will be as well!
The course will be very hands-on and jam packed from morning through night so come expecting to be loaded up with great experience and knowledge.
Course Topics Include:
- Shelter, Water, Fire, Food
- Wildlife Tracking
- The language of nature
- concentric rings
- base line symphony
- Stone, bone, and antler tools and usage
- World of Natural Fiber- Harvesting, Processing and Preserving,
- Trees and plants
- Animal skins and sinew
- Wild Edible, Medicinal and Utilitarian applications
- Traditional hunting and trapping methods
- Stalking, Natural Movement, and Camouflage
- Caretaker Ethics Emphasized
- Empowering our ecological footprint
- Traditional cooking and food preservation
- Container making
- And More!
For registration or more information please contact:
skeetsutherland@hotmail.com or by phone at: 519-216-6842
or
chris@earthmentorship.com or by phone at: 705-788-1210
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Empowering Ancient Ways - Advanced Skills
Prerequisite: Empowering Ancient Ways
This course will continue where we left off in the first Empowering Ancient Ways course diving deeper into many of the arts we have already covered as well as learning many new skill sets. This course will focus on many long term wilderness living skills.
Topics will include:
- Advanced Shelter Building
- Advanced Fire Making Skills
- Bow and Arrow Making
- Container Making and Basket Weaving
- Primitive Fishing Techniques
- Advanced Awareness and Cocentric Ring Reading
- Naturalist Knowledge Building
- Advanced Tracking Skills
- Camoflauge and and movemen techniques
- Much More!
Contact me for more info and/or join my mailing group for updates by clicking - HERE -
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One of my favorite things to do is runnig naturalist and traditional living skills workshops at staff training events. Working in the outdoor education and guiding industry for several years I have observed that many people who work in this field have a lot of hard skills in first aid and wilderness exploration but often lack basic naturalist knowledge of the land, (ie: trees, edible plants, tracking, ancient bush craft, awareness, survival skills without modern equipment, and fun ways to engage participants in these skills). These workshops are aimed towards educators already working in the field or wanting to enter it. They can be customized depending on the companies needs and staffs current experience and knowledge base.
Please contact me for more information by clicking - HERE -
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I frequently design and run customized workshops for schools and other private organizations or groups. There are all kinds of possibilities for topics and formats to meet various different needs. In the past I have designed programs for Outward Bound Canada, Northern Edge Algonquin, and Northern Tier Boy Scouts of America. To contact me for more information: - click here -
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I run a number of workshops open to the general public. Some of these are done through other organizations such as Northern Edge Algonquin and some I run independently.
For my schedule: - Click here -
To Book a workshop or for more information: - Click Here -
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I have worked for several years as a Wilderness Guide contracting my services out through various wilderness outfitters. I occasionally run private trips as well.
Private trips are often flexible in date and can be customized to meet your groups interests. Possible topics may include: wilderness exploration, primitive living, basic camping skills, nature awareness, relaxing retreat, wilderness crafts, and many others.
Trips can include but are not limited too: Canoing in Algonquin Park or surrounding area, hiking, winter camping, snow shoeing, and dog sledding.
To see upcoming trips open to public - click here -
To book or inquire about a private trip - click here -
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I am in the process of developing a month long intensive. It will be a very affordable opportunity for those wishing to gain a much deeper understanding of the Earths rhythms and ecology, deepen their connection with the earth and spend a lot of time practicing and learning ancient and modern wilderness living skills. By the end of the program participants will have developed proficiency in many tradtional wilderness living skills that allow them to travel much lighter and more comfortably in the wilderness with a greater awareness and understanding of what is going on around them. Please contact me for more information by clicking - HERE -
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I will design custom programs for people who wish to have customized private naturalist mentoring for themselves or children. This program is also ideal for home schooled children and young adults interested in nature discovery. Please contact me to learn more by clicking - HERE -
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