NOLS Blog
Case Study: Dental Emergency while Rafting
The Setting You are on day three of a 4-day rafting trip on the Rogue River in Oregon. The trip has been incredible so far. Great rapids, beautiful scenery, skies full of stars, and endless cups of hot cocoa. You’re almost to your campsite on day three, but have one more rapid to go. At…
Case Study: Sea Kayaking Slip
Oscar Manguy The Setting You are enjoying an amazing day of paddling on Prince William Sound in Alaska. ...
Gap Year Pros and Cons: Solo vs. Group
Taking a gap year can be a transformative experience that expands your horizons, fosters personal growth, and unlocks ...
Trip Report: Inaugural NOLS Alumni Climbing Trip In Greece
In May of 2025, the Inaugural NOLS Alumni Greece Climbing Trip traveled to the Greek island of Kalymnos, one of the most famous climbing destinations in the world. Our small but mighty group of alumni and NOLS instructors climbed, swam, staged breathtaking photo shoots, practiced climbing skills, visited nearby islands, sampled the best spinach pies…
Exploring the World and Finding Yourself: The Power of a Gap Year After High School
Discover the power of taking a gap year after high school—adventure, cultural immersion, and self-reflection highlight this transformative experience.
Case Study: Embedded Tick while Backpacking
Photo by Eva Darron The setting You’re on day 6 of a week-long backpacking trip on the Appalachian Trail in New York. The last few days have been beautiful, and you’re so glad to be enjoying this time outside. You and your friends decide it’s time for a break, so you sit down to enjoy…
Instructor Spotlight: Caeden Greene
A NOLS experience can truly be a transformative experience for a young person’s life, and that was certainly the case for field instructor Caeden Greene. In high school, Caeden embarked on a 30-day Waddington Range Mountaineering Expedition (WAD), long known as one of NOLS’ most rigorous courses. The WAD expedition had such a profound effect…
Case Study: Jellyfish Sting in Paradise
Photo by Molly Hagbrand The setting You and your friend are enjoying some early morning sunshine and perfect waves while surfing on the Pacific Ocean. While waiting for the next break, you are sitting on your surfboard taking in the beautiful scenery when you hear your friend shriek. You ask what’s going on and they yell,…
Through the Diamond Heart of Brazil: Our Next Alumni Adventure!
Lush valleys, waterfalls, ancient ruins, and diamonds can all be found in Brazil’s Chapada Diamantina National Park, the backdrop for one of NOLS’ newest alumni trips. Murilo Bellese and Moaci Dantas, the trip’s primary architects, share a little more about the trip and what makes it special. Looking out over Chapada Diamantina National Park. Photo…
Burrisisland: Learning Leadership
Dr. Qubein’s leadership qualities sparked memories for me of the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), the premier teacher of outdoor living skills and leadership, offering courses from 10 days to full semesters in some of the world’s most spectacular natural settings. Over my lifetime, I graduated from four NOLS courses
Polymath Mag: My Journey to Becoming Comfortable Being Uncomfortable Through NOLS
Ever since my cousin told me about his NOLS expeditions that he took in high school I had been interested in going on one myself. The fact that I had always had a little bit of wander lust and a major spirit of the wild only helped encourage me to take the plunge and go on this adventure. The summer after my sophomore year of high school I decided that it was the right time for me to take my outdoor Sabbatical.
BioLite: Why Remaining Calm is the Most Important Preparedness Tool
When was the last time you attended a class focused on scaling a mountain face or navigating rapids? For most of us, spending a class period outside on the quad during college was a one time thing. At the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), class is held on the mountain or walking through the woods. Students embark on expeditions where they learn to rock climb, whitewater raft and lead through outdoor challenges. Instructors guide students through extreme scenarios daily so they can learn to remain calm under stress and make good decisions. For the past 30 years, Marco Johnson has actively instructed wilderness education courses while recruiting and training NOLS field staff worldwide. We sat down with Marco to learn how he teaches students to thrive in off grid situations and how we can keep our cool when faced with an indoor emergency. Here are his top three tips:
Slate: What Counts as Wilderness?
When you hear the word wilderness, what do you picture? Vast woods full of leaping stags? A mountain rearing up into the clouds? Jungles tangling in all directions? Or something else entirely?
Casper Star Tribune: NOLS turns 50, talk with former student and founder of Black Diamond
To help recognize NOLS’ 50th anniversary, the Star-Tribune caught up with Peter Metcalf, founder and CEO of international outdoor gear company Black Diamond Equipment and former NOLS student to explain how his experience in the organization helped shape his future.
WPR: National Outdoor Leadership School Celebrates 50 Years
NOLS was founded in Wyoming and is still headquartered in Lander, where it serves tens of thousands of students each year. Wyoming Public Radio’s Caroline Ballard caught up with John Gans, the executive director at NOLS, to hear his take on the school’s 50-year legacy.
Sierra Club Radio: An American Ascent, the first African American expedition to take on Denali
Photographer Hudson Henry on the new documentary An American Ascent, which covers the first African American expedition to take on Denali.
KDLY/KOVE: NOLS Holds Welcome & Opening Event
John Ganns, Director of the Lander based National Outdoor Leadership School, welcomed over seven-hundred returning NOLS graduates , former staff, community members and officials during opening ceremonies last night (Thursday) of the 50th Anniversary of the school, founded in March of 1965 in Lander.
Casper Star Tribune: Congrats to NOLS on 50 Years
Students learn to be adaptable and resourceful. They learn to persevere and to pursue goals doggedly. Those are life skills – skills that will stay with students long after they leave their mountain, desert, jungle or ocean classroom.
County 10: NOLS Celebrated 50th with Reminiscing, Parties, Workshops, Planning
Fifty years ago on March 4, 1965, Judge Jack Nicholas and Paul Petzoldt signed papers establishing the National Outdoor Leadership School in Lander,' current NOLS Executive Director John Gans told a large gathering at the Lander Community and Convention Center. 'While Paul was a visionary, he did not envision that today we would be an international school that taught courses in 28 countries, otherwise he probably wouldn’t have chosen ‘National’ for the name.'
RMFI: Staffer Travels to the NOLS 50th Anniversary Party
This month, on October 8th through 10th, the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) will celebrate its 50th Anniversary with an alumni reunion full of events and merry-making. The celebration will take place in Lander, Wyoming, the school’s home base. In attendance will be Liz Nichol, RMFI’s Office Manager, who completed her first NOLS course as a student in 1967
County 10: NOLS Celebrates 50 Years with 10th Mountain Division Living History Display
As part of the NOLS 50th Anniversary Celebration, the 10th Mountain Division is hosting a Living History Display featuring the uniforms and equipment that Paul Petzoldt, founder of NOLS, helped develop for the Army. The display includes mountaineering equipment, skis, sleeping bags, packs, climbing boots, and a display of military mountaineering medicine from that time.
