SUMMER WILDERNESS COURSE
Bushcraft and Survival
Bushcraft and Survival
A Week of Living with the Land
Sometimes, what we need most is to slow down, to feel the earth under our feet, the warmth of a fire, and the rhythm of days shaped not by the ticking of the clock, but by sun, weather, and the land around us.
This 6-day Summer Wilderness Course invites you to step out of everyday life and into a simpler way of being. Together, in a small group, we live by the wild Sjoa River right at Jotunheimen National Park. Far from busy trails and noise, we learn how to be outdoors in a respectful, grounded, and practical way.
■ TIMELESS ■ OFFLINE ■ COMMUNAL ■ NATURE RESPECTING ■ AUTHENTIC ■ PERSONAL LEADERSHIP
★★★★★
“The one day we went on the challenge day and had to find our own food was amazing. It was incredible to get back to camp and share fish, berries and mushrooms around the fire.”
Jeroen
Summer Wilderness Course 2025
The Practicalities & Details
The Challenge Day & What you’ll learn
Over the week, we explore traditional bushcraft skills; shelter and knots, fire knowledge, carving, preparing food over the fire, and learning what edible plants and fish there are.
We will put those skills into practice and really experience how it is to live off the land throughout the “Challenge Day”. We will hike up the mountain, fishing in a mountain lake to then build camp at another spot. We bring only minimal equipment and eat what we find on the way.
Learning in our courses…
…is hands-on, practical and situational. We have a morning and afternoon focus block.
In daily facilitated sharing & reflection rounds we look at questions, challenges and insights.
Itinerary of the Course
Questions and Answers on the Details:
Price, Registration, Payment, Cancellation
- Pricing
Early Bird 790€ (Limited amount available – until 1.2.2026)
Regular price is 890€ (from 2.2.2026 or when all early bird spots are taken)
There is a special discount for those who have taken other courses with us before previously.
All prices stated include the MVA tax where applicable (VAT/ BTW/ MvSt).
Included is full board, guiding, fishing licenses, tarps, mosquito-net, foam mat.
The first meal is dinner on the starting day – the last breakfast on the departure day. -
Course Registration
Once we received your registration, we will send you more information (Documents on Arrival, Travel, Gear/ Equipment) and the Invoice, along with our Liability waiver that we will ask you to sign.
Further, we will ask you for additional information in a questionnaire on health/ food preferences/ emergency contact/ allergies/ rental and contact sharing consent for travel coordination. -
Payment
We offer payment by bank transfer to our EUR account in Belgium or NOK account in Norway, along with card-payments, ideal and some other options shown at the check-out. - Cancellation and Course Confirmation
The course will be confirmed when at least 4 participants are signed up or latest 6 weeks before the course starts. Should we cancel the course due to a lack of participants, you will get a full refund. For the detailed cancellation terms (what happens if you cancel your participation), see our general terms and conditions. We recommend you to take out a cancellation/ travel insurance.
Where will we meet and how do I get there?
We will meet at Maurvangen (bus stop), 2683 Tessanden, Norway at 13:00. It takes about 4h from Oslo by car or 4,5-5h by public transport to get there. The meeting point is right next to the campsite Besseggen Fjellcamp, where you can set up your tent, arrive with a camper van, or rent a cabin. It’s also within walking distance to the serviced DNT cabin Gjendesheim, which offers beds and meals right at the entrance to Jotunheimen National Park and the Besseggen hike.
The course will end at 14:00 at Maurvangen. The starting and ending times match connections with public transport and might slightly change once the bus schedules are updated.
You will get more detailed information on travel & arrival upon registration.
How will I sleep?
You will sleep under a tarp, which we will provide, along with instructions on how to set it up for yourself. You can bring your own sleeping mat or rent a reindeer hide from us to sleep on. We will set up a big tarp for the whole group, where we will gather, cook, and stay dry and comfortable around the fire in case of wind & rain.
On the Food, Diets and Menu
- Menu & Meals & Cooking
We provide ingredients and recipes for the all meals during the course. The cooking/ preparing is with a few exceptions done by participants with our instructions upfront. (Everyone gets to cook, and never alone.)
A typical menu day could look like:
Breakfast: Oats with nuts, seeds and fruit toppings
Lunch: Home-baked sourdough bread with spreads, cheese, local salami, some fruit and vegetables
Dinner: Vegetable stew with dear or moose meat (or tofu) with rice - Food preferences and dietary requirements
Some meals we provide contain fish and meat. However, it is possible to eat vegetarian or even vegan (or/ and gluten free), please let us know well in advance and we make sure you are well taken care of.
In a questionnaire we send you upfront, we will also ask you about requirements and preferences around food. Please tell us any food allergies there too. - Local, Organic and Wild Foods
Where possible we buy local, organic ingredients. We will also collect wild foods during the course to supplement our meals and fish for trout. The meat we bring is from local hunters, usually deer, moose or reindeer. - Challenge
For one day we will only eat wild foods: what we have collected before hand, find on the way and fish. - First and Last Meal & Snacks
The first meal is dinner on day one and the last one is breakfast on day six.
We ask everyone to bring their own snacks for in between.
Due to the nature of our courses, meals might be at different times every day although we try to keep a routine in eating times. It’s good to always have some snacks on you, especially on (day)-trips.
What to Bring & Packing List
- We will send you a detailed packing list with tips and ideas after you register. The most important items are a good 3-season sleeping bag (it can be cold during the night in the mountains), hiking boots and a rain jacket.
Group Living & Phone Free Time
- In this course, we will all pitch in together, whether it’s cooking, transporting equipment, keeping watch over the fire or collecting wood. We work together as a team.
Of course, there will also be time to rest and enjoy the enchanting landscape. - You should be willing to actively contribute to daily tasks in the camp. You should also be ready to face challenges together with your group and support each other.
- We invite you to a media- and clock-free time. We want to do without phones during these days together, even though they will be with us in our luggage for safety reasons. Course leaders carry phones and satellite emergency transmitter, and take care of photography.
- On the first day everyone will be invited to seal their phones and watches turned off in seal bags.
Course Prerequisites and Requirements
If you’re interested in this course, be prepared to spend 6 days immersed in wild nature.
You’ll need to carry your own backpack and some group gear to the campsite and take part in a two-day hike, moving with all your gear to a new location during the course. No previous outdoor experience or special skills are required, and you don’t need to be super fit to join – just bring a willingness to engage and explore!
I already have quite some experience, is this course still for me?
Do you already spend a lot of time in nature or have you joined courses before, and are now wondering if this course is still relevant for you? We offer input on a wide range of topics, but much of the learning happens through experiencing and exploring. There will be opportunities to challenge yourself and reach your personal learning edges, which means each participant’s experience will look a little different. If you are already skilled with tarps and knots, you might try setting up your tarp without ropes. Or if you feel confident carving a spoon, you can challenge yourself by carving or burning a bowl instead. For each topic there will be an extra challenge offered for those with a different level of experience.
Time until the next course starts:
0Months0Days
What is included
Pre-Course
✓ Video call with group upfront
✓ Detailed packing & gear list
✓ Document on arrival & tips on the area
During the Course
✓ Full board: breakfast, lunch, dinner
✓ Local & organic food where possible
✓ Tarp, mosquito-net, foam mat
✓ Group gear; shelter, axes, etc.
✓ Two experienced nature mentors
✓ Licenses and permits, e.g. wood & fishing
After the Course
✓ We send you the pictures/ videos we took
What is not included/ extra:
✗ Travel to and from the meeting point
✗ Individual gear, e.g. sleeping bag
✗ Personal insurance, e.g. health, etc.
✗ Special rental options, e.g. reindeer hide
Meet the Course Leaders
Marie Eckart
Guide in Natural Outdoor Life, Crafts & Leadership
Marie has a degree in Natural outdoor living, craft and leadership and has additional training in primitive survival skills all year round. Additionally she is a NOLS Wilderness First Responder. Marie has been hosting wilderness courses in Scandinavia since 2020.
She loves to create things herself such as wooden skis, canoes, her winter sleeping bags and winter tent. She also has been working for a traditional leather tannery sewing high end outdoor clothing from reindeer leather.
She lives in Norway in a small log cabin and is also a mother of a child.
Marie speaks German, English, Swedish, Norwegian and Spanish.
Manuel Sturm
Guide in Natural Outdoor Life, Crafts & Leadership
Manuel has a degree in Natural Outdoor Living, Crafts and Leadership and has done additional courses in primitive outdoor living. He is also a NOLS Wilderness First Responder.
During his studies, Manuel has been living outside for two years, one year in a Tipi tent on an island in a lake, and the other year in a treehouse.
Manuel has been hosting wilderness courses and been guiding groups since 2019 in Scandinavia. He is the founder of wildernessvision.no and lives in Norway in a small log cabin with his family.
Manuel speaks German, English, Dutch, Swedish and Norwegian.
Course Location & Area
“The Summer Wilderness Course was for me a way to come home to myself, ground in the landscape, and experience belonging.”
Zinzi
Summer Wilderness Course 2025
“This week has been absolutely amazing. I learned a lot about fire and food in the wild, some new knots as well, which is exactly was I was looking for. A bigger success of this week, however, was the great camp with homely vibes and the family-feel of the group.”
Melvin
Summer Wilderness Course 2025
Reserve with a deposit of 250 EUR — the remaining amount is due 6 weeks before
Booking Options
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