The Land

We are now available for half and full day private guiding, as well as a variety of unique guided hikes, clinics and classes in the Tillamook State Forest, and on the Criterion Tract above the Deschutes River near Maupin, OR.

The Tillamook Rainforest

Climb to the summit of coast range peaks, explore roadless river canyons, traverse mossy hillsides on long abandoned logging roads, range out across a long network of trails or explore the depths of canyon creeks accessible only by elk path. Tillamook country is rich in histories both told and untold, and full of secrets.

The Tillamook is home to deer, elk, cougars, bobcats, wolves, bears, and is known as a Bigfoot sighting hotspot. We guide our clients to places that you won’t find in any guidebook or on any hiking forum. Our trips here are informed by 30+ years of experience in the coast range mountains of Oregon.

The Criterion Tract

The Criterion Tract is a gorgeous piece of land located above the Deschutes River, near popular rafting town of Maupin, OR, directly across the river from the Mutton Mountains on the Warm Springs reservation. There are no formal trails. This particular area is home to a huge herd of elk, mule deer and so-called “benchleg” deer, bighorn sheep, bears, bobcats, wolves, all kinds of snakes, chukars, pheasants, grouse, rodents and other small mammals. There are caves, seeps, archeological sites, sweeping views, and endless objectives. We have hiked more miles in the Criterion than anywhere else in the world. It is not featured in any guidebook, but our expert guide can show you the way.

URBAN EVENTS

CEREMONY in the City

This is our ongoing series held here in the city that allows us to dive deep into the practice of Intimacy With Place, using the beautiful island of Elk Rock as our backdrop.

Discover the magic of intimacy, reciprocity, connection and community collaboration as practice and develop new ways of touching in with the present moment through observation and intuition.

You can join us for just one event, or join our very first cohort and get a deeply discounted price granting you access to all six ievents.

$20/person or $50 for all six events

BOOK NOW

August 11th, 6:00- 8:00 PM

August 25th, 5:30- 7:30 PM

September 1st, 5:30- 7:30 PM

September 29th, 4:30- 6:30PM

NON-ATHLETIC EVENTS

Forest Social

Swim. Forage. Rest.

Forest Social is part community building event, part summer swim party, part creek side foraging lesson, part nap time for grown ups. Join us for a relaxing afternoon spent by the creek. Bring some snacks, maybe a hammock or a chair, get wet, talk about plants and relax in the shade. Probably the best part of this event is that you get to pick my brain for free for hours, what could be better than that? This event is a sleeper bargain! Held on Gales Creek or Wilson River, depending on water levels.

$50 per person

BOOK NOW

August 28th, 2022 1- 5PM Gales Creek, OR.

FORAGING CLASSES

Introduction to Foraging

This is a sweet, fun two hour foraging class held in the Wilson River Canyon each month, designed to introduce you to the edible qualities of everyday plants. Participants will become familiar with 25+ edible plants, and learn all the ins and outs you need to get started with your own foraging practice.

$50/person

BOOK NOW

August 28th, 2022 10- 12AM Gales Creek, OR.

Foraging Foundations Class

Foraging is a great way to deepen your connection with nature. In this class, we talk about reciprocity, relationship with place, harvesting ethics, identifying edible weeds, as well as the historical and cultural contexts of foraging. You’ll learn what to look for during different seasons, how to build yourself a foraging map, and how to identify plants with confidence.

$75/person

BOOK NOW

September 25th, 2022 10AM- 2PM Wilson River Trail

NIGHT HIKING

Silent Night Walk

Learn to feel at ease in the forest at night with a silent walk on Wildcat Mountain at sunset. Experience all of your senses coming alive as the light fades from the sky. The forest is extra fragrant at dusk, birds will talk to us from the trees, and animals will be moving in the forest all around us. Sharing space with others without saying a word is a powerful layer to add to the experience. Afterwards, we all share a cup of tea together and discuss our individual observations. This is a two hour walk done without lights, or voices, usually on the last Saturday of every month.

$100/person

BOOK NOW

August 27th, 2022, 7- 9PM, Tillamook State Forest

September 24th, 2022, 7- 9PM, Tillamook State Forest

October 29th, 2022, 5- 7PM, Maupin, OR

December 17th, 2022, 3:30- 5:30PM, Tillamook State Forest

January 28th, 2023, 4- 6PM, Tillamook State Forest

February 25th, 2023, 5- 7PM, Tillamook State Forest

Full Moon Party

Join us for a reverent, beautiful, monthly walk under the light of the full moon. Slow down and reconnect to the wheel of life in a joyful night walk with others. Timber, OR.

$125/person

BOOK NOW

PERESEID METEOR SHOWER AND STURGEON MOON EDITION! Saturday, August 13th, 2022, 9:00- 11:00PM Criterion Tract, Maupin, OR.

September 3rd, 2022, 7:30-9:30PM, Tillamook State Forest

October 8th, 2022, 7- 9PM, Tillamook State Forest

December 3rd, 5- 7PM, Tillamook State Forest

January 7th, 2023, 6:30- 8:30PM, Tillamook State Forest

February 4th, 2023, 5:30- 7:30PM, Maupin, OR

WILDERNESS SKILLS CLASSES

Off Trail Travel Clinic

Our newest offering, the Off Trail Travel Clinic, is part map reading lesson, part guided hike, part choose your own adventure! You’ll learn how to use digital layers to do some of the legwork ahead of time, what clothes to wear, how to choose your lines when working through difficult terrain and more.

$150-$180/person

BOOK NOW

August 14th, 2022, 10-2PM, Maupin, OR

INTIMACY WITH PLACE

The Intimacy With Place Series

Our cornerstone offering. This is a series of trips designed to teach you how to build intimacy with place through solitude and repetition. A little bit of everything we offer at Wild Solitude rolled into one: foraging, map reading, relationship with place, mindfulness, silent hiking, community, competency, and skills practice all while we tour a spectacular and off-the-beaten-path area you won’t soon forget.

Each event will highlight a different area and we will use our time spent afield to practice a variety of skills like identifying plants, navigation, foraging, animal sign observation, creek crossings, off trail travel, map reading, trip planning and more. If you know you are interested in our work but aren’t sure where to start, this event is the heart of it all.

After the days hike is over, you’ll receive a digital handout from us detailing everything you need to know to continue building a relationship with the area, including GPS coordinates, driving directions, and seasonal suggestions for future visits to the area.

$150-$180/person

BOOK NOW

New! Central Oregon Location! Criterion: Home of my Heart. August 13th, 2022 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Maupin, OR

North Fork Salmonberry. August 27th, 2022 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

Beaver Slide on the Salmonberry. September 3rd, 2022 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

North Fork Trask River. September 24th, 2022 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Tillamook, OR.

North Fork Salmonberry River. October 8th, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

Criterion Tract. October 29th, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Maupin, OR.

Beaverslide to the Salmonberry. December 3rd, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

Wilson River Canyon Secrets. December 17th, 2022, 8AM- 2PM. $180/person. Glenwood, OR.

Kilchis River Waterfalls. January 7th, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Tillamook, OR.

North Fork Salmonberry. January 28th, 2022, 9AM- 3PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

Criterion Tract. February 4th, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Maupin, OR

Beaverslide to the Salmonberry. February 25th, 2022, 10AM- 4PM. $180/person. Timber, OR.

PRIVATE GUIDED TRIPS

If you can dream it, we can craft it for you on one of our two spectacular locations. Want to backpack deep into a canyon to sleep under some of the last old growth trees in the forest? Do you long to take a private tour of the best swimming holes in the Tillamook? Are you ready to dive deep into the impassable-seeming canyons above the Deschutes River, searching for passage in places only seen by bands of deer and elk? Want to spend a day visiting every known waterfall in the Kilchis River canyon? Or maybe you dream of knowing the steep, ancient legacy roads of the Trask, it’s towering waterfalls and basalt formations. Along the way, we’ll practice skills specific to the forests and steppe of the PNW, find some forest snacks, maybe see some animals, and you’ll come away with dozens of ideas for trips to the future area.

Every private event is fully customizable, and after the days hike is over, we will send you a digital handout that covers everything you need to know to return again and again, building a relationship with the places we share together. You’ll also know how to apply our methods to your own favorite forest homes, so you can continue finding cool secret spots and developing intimacy with place wherever you go.

Four, six or eight hours of guided hiking and instruction, plus an intake interview to assess your fitness level, discuss your goals and make arrangements.

Prices below assume ONE guest. We accept groups up to 5 total, but please note that some locations require us to transport you and our limit on those trips is three. You may add another guest for $100, subsequent guests $75.

4 hours: $400 weekend, $200 weekday

6 hours: $450 weekend, $250 weekday

8 hours: $500 weekend, $300 weekday

Overnight Trip Rate: $550 weekend, $350 weekday

BOOK NOW

Consulting and Expert Local Advice

I grew up on the Central Oregon Coast and spent summers on the Metolius River as a child. Currently, I spend over 150 days a year traveling, camping and hiking in the Pacific Northwest. I have lived all over the western and central parts of the state, so I have locals-only knowledge over a wide range of areas in Central and Northwest Oregon.

In addition, I am downright obsessed with the Southeastern part of the state, particularly Lake County. I have talked to locals for hours, and read countless books on the area. If you endeavor to spend any time around Hart Mountain, Summer Lake, or Christmas Lake Valley, you won’t want to miss out on acquiring a healthy dose of my expert advice. Desert travel comes with its own sets of challenges and rewards, so if you are uninitiated to the basin and range landscape, don’t miss your chance to optimize your experience.

I also have extensive experience with Northern California, Mount Saint Helens, Mount Adams, the Gifford Pinchot, the Dark Divide, Blue Mountains (Oregon), Oregon Coast Trail, and parts of Washington State east of the cascades.

Just Ask! If we don’t know the answer, or you have questions about an area that we aren’t knowledgeable about, there’s no charge.

Norther Knows Best!

$10 each

Just-for-fun, for the low price of $10, you can tap into my encyclopedic wealth of knowledge about local destinations and I will recommend up to three hikes, camp sites, points of interest or travel ideas, based on your time and experience level.

BOOK NOW

Norther Knows Best is perfect for you if you have questions like….

“Where can I go backpacking with views, no crowds, and no permit system?”

“Where should I take my out-of-town and out of shape family when they come to visit next weekend?”

“Where should I take my date hiking near Portland? Short drive/not too hard/enough people around that she doesn’t get creeped out?”

“Where can I go camping with my kids in the Tillamook? Somewhere with water to play in but not enough to be a hazard?”

Custom Beta Packages

$25 and up!

When you want detailed advice or trip planning help, choose a local expert who knows all the best spots. A beta package is more involved than a simple NNB request, and features involved descriptions, photos, GPS coordinates, and more.

We get questions like…

“I want to know all the best swimming holes near Portland”

“I want help planning a hot springs road trip in the desert”

“Help me plan a romantic camping trip to the coast for my anniversary”

“I want some ideas for a full summer of easy to moderate hikes within 90 minutes of Portland,”

“I’m new to town and overwhelmed by my choices! Help me understand different areas and their strengths and weaknesses so I don’t feel so lost!”

ASK ME!

In-Depth or Professional Consulting

$60 per hour

When you want more in-depth, professional advice, beyond the scope of #NortherKnowsBest, or a beta package, book a consult with me where we can discuss in-depth trip plans, camping, road trips, swimming holes, locations for movie and TV, photo shoots, weddings and more. We can pack a surprising amount of info into a one hour session, and afterwards I always follow up with any notes, driving directions or coordinates you might need to be successful in your journey.

ASK ME!

Questions? Suggestions? Crazy Ideas? Drop it in the comment box below and we will get right back to you!