The explanation for this site is going to take some time, so please bear with me.

For many years we have been involved with wilderness activities such as backpacking and canoe tripping. We brought this experience to our Boy Scout Troop and for a long time were satisfied to teach boys to love the outdoors. Several years ago, we decided to expand beyond just Boy Scouts to include other men who weren't involved in our Scout Troop. This first excursion outside of Scouting was very successful.

The next logical step was for these non-Scouting men to bring their sons and daughters on the trips. The inclusion of daughters on trips was traumatic for us as Boy Scout Leaders. However, the girls that went with us showed us that they fit into the wilderness as well as most of the boys we had lead and they did better than some of the boys.

Our third step was to open our trips to anyone who wanted to go, even women. Although we had some doubts about this, our trip was a great success and one woman who went started talking about the next trip before she finished her first one. The success of this trip led us to plan a year in which we led this group on several types of wilderness trips. Soon after I sent out these plans, I received a reply, "I want to go on all of these trips! You've created a monster!"

For our major trips, we have silk screened t-shirts made for the trip members. The idea of creating a monster became the slogan for our t-shirts with www.WildernessMonster.com one element of the shirt design. After we designed the shirts, we checked and the internet domain was available so here we are.

As we go forward, we intend to use this site for more of our trip information and also as a forum to provide information for other trip leaders. We hope that some of our ideas may help you. Please remember, that our ideas apply to some very specific circumstances. Your wilderness area and climate may be different so please seek the assistance of other experienced people in your area to check your plans. Safety in the wilderness is our primary goal. Please make it yours as well.