FOR CHURCHES & FAITH COMMUNITIES
Your congregation is hungry for embodied discipleship.
We help you meet that hunger with theology, training, and the safety systems to take your people deeper into God’s creation, and deeper into life with Christ.
THE PROBLEM
Your people are desperate for authenticity over artificiality.
The wilderness has always been both a primary classroom for discipleship, and a front door to belonging in the family of God. There is a longing for a deeper, more embodied discipleship journey with genuine encounters with Christ. Most communities just don't yet have the systems, the training, or the theology to take their people there safely and formatively.
That's the gap we fill.
Custom training for your community. Annual immersion for individuals.
WHAT WE OFFER
Two distinct ways to work with us, built for two distinct audiences. Same theology, same proven methodology, two different forms of wilderness ministry.
CUSTOM • BUILT FOR YOUR CHURCH
Wilderness Ministry Training
Starting at $1,850 · One weekend → five days · At your church or Snoqualmie Pass
✔ Custom scoped to your communities’ context and mission
✔ Theology, formation, trip systems, risk management
✔ Hosted onsite at your church or with us at Snoqualmie Pass
✔ Discovery call to design the right scope
ANNUAL COHORT • WITH RICHARD DAHLSTROM
Ancient Paths Certification Week
$350 ·per participant • 5 days at Snoqualmie Pass • Once per year
✔ The full Ancient Paths curriculum, deep immersion format
✔ Co-led by Richard Dahlstrom (founder) and John Wayne Seitzler
✔ Cohort of small teams from multiple churches and ministries
✔ Lifetime access to the WF content library
✔ Certification on completion
Wilderness Ministry Training is the right starting point for a community that wants to build or strengthen its own outdoor ministry. Ancient Paths Certification Week is the right starting point for a community or small team hoping to facilitate and offer Ancient Paths experiences.
What working with Wilderness Formation looks like.
THE PROCESS
01
Discovery Call
20-minute conversation to asses any existing systems, and understand the hopes of your community.
02
Custom Proposal
We recommend a training path, timeline, and scope tailored to your team.
03
Training
Your team is trained in the WF methodology, ready to facilitate outdoor ministry.
04
Ongoing Support
Content library access, peer coaching, and a community of trained ministries.
Communities putting the methodology to work.
PROOF POINTS
Multiple communities trained and equipped, now facilitating encounters with God in Creation.
FLAGSHIP CASE STUDY • SEATTLE, WA
Central Community Church → Outdoor Central
One beloved annual backpacking trip transformed into a front door ministry with thriving, intergenerational, year-round, multi-modal wilderness program serving 150 participants in its first year.
RECENT ENGAGEMENT • JACKSON HOLE, WY
Presbyterian Church of Jackson Hole → Wilderness Together
A three-day ministry launch: leaders trained, congregation taught, vision preached from the pulpit. Wilderness Together leaders planning a full summer of outdoor ministry.
NOT A CHURCH?
If you're an individual who knows the value of wilderness, start here.
A 20-minute discovery call could still be right for you. Together, we can determine next steps for pioneering a local and contextual wilderness ministry.
Visit our resources page for teaching and tools that you can carry into your own outdoor experiences.
Looking for your own regular rhythm of retreat outdoors with God? Our friends at Bethany Wilderness Ministry run Ancient Paths trips open to any and all individuals.
Ready to build a thriving wilderness ministry in your church?
Start with a 20-minute conversation. We’ll offer a fresh assessment on any current systems, help you figure out whether wilderness ministry is right for your community, and which path fits.