Join Jason Evert and our chaplain for a once-in-a-lifetime 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 on Kodiak Island. Upon arrival, we’ll take a 30-minute boat ride to Raspberry Island and settle into our accommodations at Kodiak Big Timber Lodge.
Kodiak Big Timber sits on secluded Raspberry Island, just off mainland Kodiak. From the front porch, guests often see whales, orcas, bald eagles, and sea otters in the waters right in front of the property.
Nestled among towering old-growth spruce trees, the lodge spans 190 acres of unspoiled wilderness. The property includes a wood-fired “Banya” and a cozy fire pit—and warm meals are prepared daily by the team’s chefs.
All activities are based at the lodge, giving our group a private setting immersed in nature. You’ll enjoy indoor cabin accommodations with beds, full bathrooms, and expansive ocean views—except for one night spent in shelters we craft ourselves.
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 a copy of Meditation on Givenness.
Over the course of several days, participants will receive spiritual formation from our priest, theology discussions with Jason Evert, and thorough wilderness survival training with Casey Harver and his staff—hiking from the shoreline through the Alaskan bush to the alpine peaks, where we’ll spend the night.
Survival Training
The customized wilderness survival course includes training in the following:
Shelters
Learn how to find or construct shelter when you need it—discovering the woodsman’s art of innovation. We’ll show you how to not only survive, but thrive and stay warm in the bush. This class covers:
- 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. We’ll explore the beaches and identify fish, crabs, algae, invertebrates, and more. Lessons include:
- Timing the tides
- Edible seaweeds
- Fish and fishing
- Crabs
- Identifying safe vs. poisonous species
- Edible greens
- Food preparation
Cold Water Immersion
Do you know what to do if you fall in? This part of the course teaches you how to remain calm in an emergency. In a realistic training scenario, we’ll demonstrate the body’s response to cold water and best practices to escape—and 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
- The 1-10-1 rule
Primitive Fire Making
Most people say they can make a fire—but in the backcountry, that often means lighter fluid and a store-bought lighter. This clinic prepares you to get a fire going even in the rain. We’ll cover:
- Building blocks of fire
- Tinder and where to find it
- Natural accelerants
- Various types of fire (cooking, signal, Dakota hole, and more)
- Reflecting walls and construction
- Survival kit items
- Types of wood and their uses
- Bow drill
- Improvised fire starters
A U.S. Navy SEAL developed this curriculum to teach what you need to survive in bush Alaska. Your group will start in the classroom with lessons on fire, water, shelter, food, campfire cooking, signaling, and more. After practice, we’ll transport the group into bush Alaska to continue in an immersive environment.
You’ll live off the land, stay in a shelter you built, procure food, and build confidence like never before—with highly trained staff helping the group hone skills along the way.
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 instruction
- Group camping gear
What’s Covered in the Cost
The trip cost includes all meals prepared by a chef at Kodiak Big Timber Lodge, airport pickup, boat transportation from Kodiak Island to Raspberry Island, accommodations for the week in furnished cabins, and daily survival instruction from a team of four to five highly qualified trail guides. These guides will also safely accompany participants through wilderness on Kodiak Island—home to one of the densest concentrations of coastal brown bears in the world.
Not included: airfare and incidentals.
Registration opens soon.