Outdoor Education Classes Centered Around Women
Welcome to the Sisterhood.
Meet me in the woods.
At the heart of our mission is creating a supportive and safe environment for women to build confidence in outdoor adventure. We offer experiences such as backpacking and flatwater paddling, along with women-only homesteading classes focused on self-sufficiency skills like growing food and herbs, making herbal medicine, preserving harvests, plant identification, and more.
Currently, we are developing a semester-long Women’s Backpacking Course designed to take you far beyond the basics. In this small-group experience, you’ll gain the skills, knowledge, and confidence needed to embark on multi-day backpacking trips—whether on your own or with friends. Along the way, you’ll earn your Wilderness First Aid certification, and most importantly, you’ll walk away with a stronger sense of resilience, community, and self-reliance.
If you’re interested in joining this 2026 course, keep an eye out for details later this year—or reach out to Alisha to learn how to reserve your spot.
Sign up for my newsletter to stay up to date on 2026 offerings, such as women’s backpacking course, women’s homesteading skills course, day trips, plant walks, and more.
“To be strong does not mean to sprout muscles and flex. It means meeting one's own numinosity without fleeing, actively living with the wild nature in one's own way. It means to be able to learn, to be able to stand what we know. It means to stand and live.”
— Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Women Who Run With the Wolves
Why Women in the Outdoors Matters
For centuries, women had to fight for the simple right to step outside — to climb, to paddle, to hike, to labor, to lead. The outdoors wasn’t always open to us, yet women have continually pushed boundaries and reshaped what is possible.
In the 1890s, the bicycle became a symbol of women’s freedom, even as critics claimed it was dangerous and improper.
Mountaineers like Annie Smith Peck wore pants instead of skirts to climb mountains — sparking controversy, but choosing practicality and power.
During the world wars, women stepped into forestry and farming, proving their strength in rugged outdoor work.
In 1926, Gertrude Ederle swam the English Channel, beating men’s records by hours.
In 1975, Junko Tabei became the first woman to summit Everest, defying sponsors and peers who said women didn’t belong.
Title IX (1972) opened the doors for girls to access outdoor sports, education, and adventure.
Every step of the way, women have had to challenge clothing, culture, and access itself — just to claim our rightful place in wild spaces.
That history matters, because the outdoors is more than recreation. It’s about empowerment, resilience, confidence, and reclaiming our connection to the land and ourselves.
That’s why I offer women-only programs at Forest Cradle: spaces designed for safety, community, and growth, where you can step into this legacy of courage and connection.
🌿 Come join me — let’s continue the story of women reclaiming the outdoors.