Update:  The Philadelphia class has been cancelled due to insufficient registration.  Another class will be offered in the Spring in Philadelphia.  Email susq.pc@gmail.com to be notified of the Spring class.

This looks like an awesome class for anyone who’s available on Mondays in Philadelphia, or Saturdays in Lancaster, Pa.

Wild Land Immersion: Philadelphia

Wild Land Immersion: Lancaster

Learning ancestral skills is something that’s important for increasing your ability to be self-sustainable.  Our ancestors took care of their basic needs in ways that our current society has forgotten.  Leaning things like foraging for wild plants, creating fire, crafting tools and weapons, tracking, and hunting are all key to survival if you’re not relying on others in some way.  A big part about permaculture is forming ommunities, because it’s much more efficient to work as a team than to try to do everything yourself.  Classes like this are also a great way to meet like-minded individuals and start forming a network of friends.

The description of the class on the facebook page says the class will cover, “gathering wild foods and medicine, building debris-huts, animal tracking, fire-making techniques such as hand-drill and bow drill, making basic hunting implements such as a survival bow and simple traps, and much more!”

This class is being taught by Ben Weiss and Wilson Alvarez.  Ben is a permaculture teacher from Lancaster County.  I took a 7-month long Organic Gardening class with Ben in the Summer of 2014, and I thought it was great.  I learned a ton of practical knowledge that I used in my garden, and I met a lot of smart people with similar interests.  Ben is a great teacher, and is very patient and thorough with his explanations.  I haven’t met Wilson Alvarez, but I’ve heard good things.  He’s “a permaculture designer, an inventor, gardener, skilled tracker, bowyer, nature-awareness instructor, and poet from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.”  This is definitely going to be a knowledge-packed experience.  I wish I could attend, but I work on Mondays, and Lancaster is a bit far for me.  If they have any Saturday classes in Philadelphia in the future, I’ll definitely be there.

The Philadelphia class is 6 Mondays: November 24th, December 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th.  Every class runs from 10AM-4PM.

The Lancaster class is 6 Saturdays: November 22nd, December 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th, & January 3rd (January 10th postponement date in case of bad weather). Every class runs from 10AM-4PM.

The cost for the classes is $236, and the class requires a minimum of 4 students.

Email susq.pc@gmail.com to register.