Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark J Wienert.
Hi Mark J, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
“I began my professional teaching career in 1994. For 10 years I studied and pursued my passion for nature studies to someday teach wilderness survival to adults and teen groups.
I trained under Tom Brown Jr. during the early 1990’s through 1998, building my credentials in animal and human tracking and wilderness survival training, becoming a volunteer instructor and peer.
During this time, I also followed my interest in Native American heritage, including studying with renown traditional basket weavers, Dr. Julia Parker, and her daughter Lucy Ann Parker. Julia Parker demonstrated traditional basketry in the Yosemite National Park cultural museum for many years.
The desire to be a professional guide started early for me. During the summer of 1968, I took a temporary job guiding tourists on horseback (and shoveling manure!) in Banff Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada.
At 16, I guided a group of enthusiastic adults from the community of Healdsburg California, where I was enrolled in high school. Using only memory as a map, I hiked my group hiked over the coast range across creeks and valleys arriving at the coast in happy spirits.
It took another 24-years of study and experience to start my own business, “Lifesong Wilderness Adventures,” and to realize my dream to guide, teach, and to share the joy in the remarkable journey of nature awareness.
I have worked as a survival consultant and co-presenter for Discovery Channel’s “Adventure Crazy” TV series hosted by Phil Keoghan of Amazing Race fame.
I also joined Phil and crew, along with movie director Peter Faiman, director of the hugely popular blockbuster movie Crocodile Dundee. In the desert near Las Vegas, Nevada, for the “Show Girls in the Desert” episode.
Man Vs Wild. I also consulted for Channel 4 UK for the Discovery Channel series Man Vs Wild with Bear Grylls.
Volunteering as a camp host for the California State Parks from 1990 to 1995. I spent each February working at the remote and rugged Sinkyone Wilderness State Park along California’s Lost Coast.
The Sinkyone is the first indigenous wilderness state park in the state. Named for the Sinkyone Tribe, it is a working collaboration of the Inter-Tribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council to stop the cutting of old-growth rainforests and to restore salmonid habitat and coastal fisheries.
In 2006, I joined the Coos County, Oregon, Search & Rescue Team. Membership requires a full background check by the Sheriff’s Department and yearly certification. I specialized in SAR Man Tracking and Wilderness Survival, and my duties included certification of team members. In 2020, I retired as a volunteer SAR member to dedicate more time to teaching.
Over the years I developed the LOST-Texas (Lifesong Outdoor Survival Training) program which he operated out of Bastrop TX. Where I ran this adult program for men and women for 10 years, the month of March during spring break.
“I met a lot of great folks and found there was a lot of support for what I have to offer. I’m looking forward to teaching again in Texas again.
Currently, I operate in the foothills of the Oregon Cascade’s east of Eugene OR. Year round.”
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This work I’ve been doing for over 30 years has not been an easy one.
I’ve been blown off course many times over the years when the storms of change howled. But I never gave up. I have stuck with it for over 30 years.
Many struggles are ones that any small business encounters. Cash flow, changes in the economy, and competition. And challenges unique to the profession.
I ran a small Logging business for 20 years before I began teaching wilderness survival. And through that experience I realized that I enjoyed working small.
Small has lots of advantages where time becomes a precious commodity. Time to explore, play, hike, and backpack. Tracking wildlife is one of my favorite things to do.
I’m an elder now, in my 70’s, so I understand better how things are. The challenges still come and go, and will always be a part of life and business. I’ve always
taken this saying to heart – Be like the willow, flexible, not ridged, when the storms of life blow.
And yes, I still love what I do and the creativity it offers.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m the owner, director, and head instructor of Lifesong Wilderness Adventures. I started this business in 1994.
I teach emergency shelter, fire craft, wild useful plants, nature awareness, human and wildlife interactions, navigation, and animal and SAR tracking.
My specialty is connecting people to nature through teaching wilderness survival and nature awareness skills.
I do this through a variety of programs I offer to the public beginning with First Circle Camp.
A 6-day 5-night course where attendees campout in tents or have the option to car camp for the duration.
This course is not full survival. It’s a great course for folks who have little outdoor experience and for folks who are interested in building up their outdoor skills.
The First Circle is designed to be as comfortable and fun a learning environment as possible so students can focus on developing their skills.
First Circle is still challenging but definitely not about deprivation.
The name First Circle represents the circle of life and our part within this circle as humans. A sacred space.
I also offer extended weekend and custom programs throughout the year.
What I’m most proud of is offering students a space to be themselves.
Offering a safe space for people to challenge themselves. To learn in a community with no judgement.
Students have the opportunity to focus on what their learning in a relaxed and professional space.
What sets me apart from other companies? First and foremost is my dedication to my students.
It’s important to me that students have a space where they can relax and be themselves and enjoy the training.
Also, as a student you want an instructor that knows what he’s talking about. I have a lifetime of wilderness experience, which includes over 30 years of teaching, and my continuing dedication to my craft.
What really drew me to this profession was of course working outdoors. And the awareness that, in one lifetime, I could never learn it all.
I realized that teaching allowed for personal discoveries, and challenges, while growing as a person, teacher, and business owner.
What matters most to you? Why?
Integrity. Integrity matters the most to me. And my ongoing commitment to my clients, community, and the earth.
Pricing:
- $700
- $395
- Custom Training pricing varies
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lifesongadventures.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifesongwild/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/LifesongAdventures
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lifesong-wilderness-adventures
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/Lifesongadventuressurvivalcamp
