Anake Outdoor School:
Connect with Nature - Change your life.

The most valuable gift I have taken from this program is a deep and powerful sense of my own belonging and worth in this world. I experienced numerous rites-of-passage that my soul was aching for.  - Brett

At Anake Outdoor School you experience 9 months of in-depth training in a powerful set of nature awareness and wilderness survival skills. You are guided through field studies focused on:

  • primitive wilderness survival skills
  • wild edible plant preparations
  • principles of leadership
  • nature-based mentoring skills
  • wildlife tracking techniques
  • bird language studies

At Anake Outdoor School you will develop a deep and intimate relationship with the natural world. This life-changing wilderness experience is grounded in a powerful, community-oriented philosophy of learning. Your year is informed by the legacy of indigenous cultures from around the world. Each experience is crafted around a cutting-edge understanding of our natural heritage as human beings.

This program has given me the opportunity to live, learn and grow within a community of naturalists in the beautiful Pacific Northwest — an opportunity of a lifetime. - Meghan

Your adventures are based out of our beautiful campus in Duvall, WA. You travel on exciting expeditions throughout the year:

  • across the Cascade and Olympic mountains
  • through the high deserts of eastern Washington
  • among the sand dunes of Oregon
  • under the redwoods of California
  • and many more beautiful locations!

As Ingwe, the grandfather and co-founder of Wilderness Awareness School, never tired of saying "The Wilderness holds all truth and knowledge."

At Anake Outdoor School, you will develop the eyes, the ears, and the awareness with which to help our culture move forward into the future in a healthy and sustainable way.

Check out the profiles of current students.

There are over 200 graduates of the Anake Outdoor School – will you be one of them?

The year was intensive, hands-on, and chock full of activities. I have been amazed at how wonderful this wilderness course is, and can’t believe I ever doubted coming for the year. —Rich

Fill out an application!

Apply Now We welcome applications for the 2012-2013 year!
$10,350 Scholarships available
33 weeks September-June, Tues, Wed & Thurs with extended trips

Get a free DVD to learn more!

Request DVD
Receive a free DVD and color brochure by using our quick info request form.

Anake Outdoor School at a Glance

For full details, see the FAQ page

Location Based out of our campus in Duvall, WA with field trips to locations further afield in the Northwest.

Duration School-year schedule. Meets Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with several extended trips during 33 weeks between September and June.

Facilities Wilderness Awareness School's campus, which includes multiple classrooms on 40 acres of forested land adjacent to the vast wilderness of the Cascades.

Instructors Core instructors Marcus Reynerson, Laura Gunion, Mike Prince, and Lindsay Huettman as well as staff specialists and guest instructors. Instructor biographies.

Credit 18 transferable undergraduate credits through Western State College. Our students have also had success in receiving credit for the Anake Outdoor School at their college. Details.

Enrollment Class size ranges from 30 to 40 students. Apply now.

Tuition $10,350. Scholarships are available. We are also able to offer Financial Aid funding in the form of VA tuition benefits for veterans.

Housing The Anake Outdoor School has limited on-campus housing. Many students rent homes nearby.

Get a free DVD to learn more!

Request DVD
Receive a free DVD and color brochure by using our quick info request form.

Anake: Fire - Bowdrill Song

What our Alumni have to say...

"I learned an immeasurable amount about nature, community, and myself." – Ryan

"The skills of tracking and survival-living that I have learned at the Anake Outdoor School have changed my perspective on the world." – Gabe

"I am comfortable in the woods like I never have been before. Being lost does not scare me as much as it used to, for I know that if I was lost I could create shelter, make fire, and take care of my most basic needs. A price cannot be placed on this type of confidence." – Angie

"By spending so much time with a group of people committed to studying the natural world I got a chance, for the first time in my life, to experience the power of a community." – Tim

Read more alumni testimonials here

Ingwe

Ingwe
“The wilderness holds all truth and knowledge.” –Ingwe (1914-2005)

The choice of the term Anake carries weight in the lineage of our school. Our Co-founder and Grandfather, M. Norman Powell, known to his family, friends and students as Ingwe, brought this term to us. Ingwe was raised on a colonial plantation in Kenya, Africa, where he grew up under the tutelage of an older boy, Ndaka, a member of the local Akamba community. He was eventually initiated into Akamba society, and carried those traditions with him through all his life, bringing them to Jon Young and the Wilderness Awareness School in New Jersey in 1984.

Anake is translated as “protector.” These protectors, which Ingwe referred to as “warriors” are those who have come into their power as individuals, and who have the knowledge and skill to be in genuine service to their communities.


Wilderness Awareness School, PO Box 219, PMB 137, Duvall, WA 98019 | 425.788.1301
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