Join Jason Evert and Father Josh WalTz for a once-in-a-lifetime custom wilderness survival retreat on Kodiak Island, Alaska! Your trail guide will be Casey Harver, a retired Navy Seal and survival expert, along with his staff. (men only)
Our adventure begins when we land in Kodiak Island on the afternoon of June 14th. Upon arrival, we’ll take a 30-minute boat ride to Raspberry Island. Upon disembarking, we’ll settle into our accommodations at Kodiak Big Timber Lodge.
Kodiak Big Timber is a unique and enchanting destination located on secluded Raspberry Island, just off the coast of mainland Kodiak. This pristine wilderness offers an incredible array of natural wonders. From the front porch, guests are treated to breathtaking views of diverse wildlife, including whales, orcas, soaring bald eagles, and playful sea otters as they gracefully leap from the waters right in front of the property.
Nestled amidst towering old-growth spruce trees, Kodiak Big Timber encompasses a sprawling 190 acres of unspoiled beauty. The property is thoughtfully equipped with a wood-fired 
“Banya,” and a cozy fire pit allowing guests to savor the joys of outdoor relaxation. Warm meals will be prepared daily and provided for by the team’s chefs.
All activities will be based at the Lodge, which is a private setting that will allow our group to be immersed in nature, while enjoying indoor cabin accommodations (with the exception of one night we’ll spend in shelters that we’ll craft), with beds, full bathrooms, and expansive windows that grant you mesmerizing views of the ocean.
Mass, Adoration, Confession, Liturgy of the Hours, and presentations by Jason Evert on Saint John Paul II’s books Love and Responsibility and Meditation on Givenness will be integrated into each day’s itinerary. All participants will receive copies of Meditation on Givenness.
Over the course of the next several days, participants will receive spiritual formation from Fr. Josh Waltz, engaging theology discussions with Jason Evert, and a thorough training in wilderness survival with Casey Harver and his staff, while hiking from the shoreline up through the Alaskan bush, to the alpine peaks, where we’ll spend the night.
The customized wilderness survival course will include training in the following:
Shelters
Learn how to find or construct shelter then you need it, discovering the woodsman’s art of innovation. We will show you how to not only survive but to thrive and stay warm in the bush. The shelters class will cover:
– Various types of shelters
– Site selection
– Weather and waterproofing
– Insulation
– Warming fires vs cooking fires
– A frames
Tide pooling
Tide Pools have almost everything needed to sustain life. This class will show how to find food near the ocean. We’ll explore the beaches and identify fish, crabs, algae, invertebrates and may others. These lessons include:
– Timing the tides
– Edible Seaweeds
– Fish and fishing
– Crabs
– Identifying Safe vs Poison
– Edible greens
– Food preparation
Cold Water Immersion
Do you know what to do if you fall in? This part of the course will teach you how to remain calm during an emergency situation. By placing students in a realistic situation, we can demonstrate the body’s response to cold water and best practices to escape. Our instructors will teach you how to use your equipment to get warm again. Topics Covered:
– Proper cold weather clothing
– How to rescue someone from the ice
– How to self-recover
– How to rewarm in the backcountry
– Mental Toughness
– 1-10-1 Rules
Primitive Fire Making
Most people will tell you they can make a fire, but the reality is that most people in modern society will default to using copious amounts of lighter fluid and a store-bought lighter. But can you make a fire without those things? How confident are you that you can build a fire in the rain to help your situation? If there is any doubt in your mind about your ability to get a fire going, this class will prepare you before you go into the backcountry. In our fire-making clinic, we will cover the following and more:
Building blocks of fire
Tinder and where to find it
Natural accelerants
Various types of fire. (Cooking, Signal, Dakota Hole, Etc.)
Reflecting walls and construction
Survival Kit items
Types of wood and uses
Bow Drill
Improvised fire starters
A US Navy SEAL developed our curriculum to teach you what you need to know to survive in bush Alaska. Your group will start in the classroom, where you will learn lessons on fire; water; shelter; food; campfire cooking; signaling, and more! After practice, we will transport your group into bush Alaska, where we will continue lessons in an immersive environment.
You will live off the land! Stay in a shelter you built! Procure food! Feel confidence like you have never felt before.
Highly trained staff will be there to help our group along the way. While we are in the bush, they will work as a team to help us hone our skills.
Also included:
– Transport via boat to a remote location
– Survival Kit
– Bear Safety Class
– Emergency Signaling Class
– Traps and Snares Class
– Survival Medicine Class
– Water purification instruction
– Group Meals
– Classroom
– Group Camping Gear
– Kodiak Survival School Certificate
COST: $5,295 per person (20 spots have been tentatively filled, but waiting list is open)
The cost of this trip includes all meals prepared by a chef at Kodiak Big Timber Lodge, airport pickup, transportation via boat from Kodiak Island to Raspberry island, accommodations for the week at furnished cabins on Raspberry Island, and instructional daily survival lessons from a team of four to five separate highly qualified trail guides. These guides will also safely accompany the participants through the wilderness on Kodiak Island, which has arguably the densest concentration of Coastal Brown Bears in the world.
Airfare and incidentals are not included.