The thought behind Scandic Bushcraft… ‘The power of the Outdoors’
We need ‘elemental mystery’.
This is a part of the power of the outdoors!
Learning through the outdoors is for Scandic Bushcraft, about elemental mystery. Part of the charm is that most of our direct contacts with the outdoors, whether sailing in the sun or being blasted by hail and snow, remain a wondrous puzzle. It’s not just about building expertise, though that’s part of it.
Similarly, it’s not just about broadening experience, though that’s also part of it. For us it’s about direct contact. It’s about shifts in thinking and philosophy. In our case it’s certainly close to understanding how to survive. It’s about spirit, mystery, challenge and much, much more.
This might sound corny, but every year we hear direct from people who have been involved in the outdoors – on land or sea – about the life-enhancing and -changing…. power of the outdoors:
“I never knew I could do it”;
“It gave me my daughter, son, father or mother back”;
“It put bereavement into perspective”.
“It made me overcome my fears”!
It is a privilege to have some sort of relationship with the elements. Perhaps what gives learning through the outdoors that special power is that, in the outdoors, there will always remain a sense of striving, a sense of mystery and, perhaps most of all, a sense of challenge and adventure.
The outdoors is a powerful arena for learning, for joy and simply having fun. The outdoors – and our development in it and relationship with it – is a part of the spirit of our origins and history.
Being in contact with nature
There is growing discussion of ‘nature deficit disorder’, which, according to some, is damaging children and has an enormous impact on their remaining adult life. An ‘outcomes-driven’ industry of tick boxes, ‘milestones’ and performance indicators is destroying our closeness to nature itself and, as such, our own nature.
No tangible contact with nature’s reality is too large a sacrifice for any part of society to make. There are real dangers involved. There are huge pitfalls if we drift apart from closeness and respect for the elements and our environment.
Providing inspiration
As long as I can remember I was active in promoting the value of the outdoors with young and ‘older’ people. To experience and be inspired by that challenge, that adventure is to connect with the elemental mystery of the outdoors.
Scandic Bushcraft
Our aims
Experiencing the outdoors can be a powerful stimulus for learning. Being deep in a forest, feeling alone on a hillside, or just sharing a cup of coffee or tea around a fire can set us off on a path that changes the way we think about ourselves. Our relationships and the way we live our lives is vitalto a healthy mind, body and soul. Why not discover a new path here!
- practicing our philosophy gives the youth at Scandic Bushcraft a challenge. Send them!
- Creating a more healthier, more active live for all involved,
- Bringing everyone more close together by creating new networks,
- Give people the chance to experience the outdoors,
- Develop community capacity,
- Change the way people see themselves, their relationships and their future,
- To bring the educational part ‘back home’,
- Give visitors the opportunity to have just plain ‘fun and joy’.This is so important!
Our hope
Our hope is that what follows will encourage more people to engage with the outdoors’. With Scandic Bushcraft, you can embrace experience this relationship, and actions involved.You can reflect on it! Above all we want to encourage people to see being ‘back home’ as integral to the experience.
To start
It is important to stay focused and to think through any outdoor education experience. If we stay focused and have taken account of the users, the group, colleagues or any environmental concerns it will be a relatively easy process. We need to try to be prepared.
We need to consider whether the activity is something,
- we are able to do
- and legally covered to lead our self,
- if we would require professional input and/or equipment.
Adventure sports seems to be more often more appealing, but they are also more physically demanding and often stretch people’s boundaries; they intend to release more adrenalin and create feelings of exhilaration and achievement. That is however not our focus.Which is our aim, but not our first choice of method. However, we might offer those sports in the future if there is a sufficient demand. Our primary focus is on the Nature-based activities, such as bushcraft, survival or environmental art. Those activities might not be as physically demanding but they often have equally powerful effects.
Type of Activities
We will focus specially in the beginning on Bushcraft, basic survival art. With a strong focus on teamwork. Expect small competitions or just single experiences in for example;
- Alternative Fire making
- Setup camp, making a safe campfire
- Building shelter
- Cutting your own tools, bowls, cups, fork, spoon, etc.
- Learning about local flora and fauna and how to use it in
- Canoeing
- Making a raft
- Fishing
- Learn to navigate with map and compass
- Water games at our own waterfalls or lake
Followed by grilling over a big campfire, overnight sleepover etc. etc.
Subsequent activities include
- Light hiking- a walk that everyone can do young and ‘old’
- Medium hiking- for the more experienced one or two days
- Heavy hiking- three till four days walk, with just a map, compass and basic equipment
- Climbing- under supervision of professionals.
- Photographing classes
- Art classes-Paint and sketching.
- Dog sled rides summer and winter run by our trusted colleagues and their dogs
Winter camps
Learning basic winter skills, melting drinking water, finding food
- Light hiking, easy shelter build that everyone can do young and ‘old’
- Medium hiking- on snowshoes or skies, for the more experienced one or two days
- Heavy hiking- on snowshoes or skies, just the basic equipment, building snow-hut.
- Extreme hiking- with or without skies or snowshoes, setting traps for food, ice fishing building long term shelter one or two weeks
Things to remember
Creating new memories and good experiences is the main goal. An achievement here can motivate your further engagement with nature. Being a part of this will be enjoable! it can and will encourage people to stay involved, Good outcomes matter to us! we aim to give you something concrete to build further on.
Teambuilding Course
Scandic Bushcraft offers a range of original corporate development courses which are highly enjoyable yet challenging and educational. In our experience Bushcraft and Survival based teambuilding courses offer far more potential for expressing individual creativity than traditional teambuilding workshops.
1 or 2 day Survival
This course is based on a plane crash Survival Scenario. The teams are required to pass a series of challenges such as building a Shelter, lighting a Fire, Cooking a meal etc. There is also an orienteering Treasure hunt, and a series of mental agility exercises that will decide which team survives. This course is designed to be Fun, and is suitable for participants of all ages and abilities.
We have a range of scenario based courses specifically designed for the business community. Our courses are challenging yet safe, and can be adapted to your requirements. Our courses are educational, fun, and we believe far more worthwhile than many other activities.
We have formulated our courses to bring out the very best in individual team members by allowing them to develop their self confidence through creative expression and group participation. Our scenario based activities require team work and creative thinking. We encourage all participants to “think outside the Box” when dealing with problems and scenarios.