Durango Wild Soul

07/04/2026

What’s that gorgeous design on Ted’s arm? Stop by the kids booth at the farmers market today to find out and try it yourself!

06/26/2026

I've been thinking a lot lately about how the current times are affecting our kids - the amount of upheaval and unrest in our society is unreal, and it has both direct and indirect affects on our children. I also see the ways that the work we are doing serves as a powerful antidote to some of this, so I wrote a short article that I'd like to share:

In times defined by rapid change and pervasive uncertainty, the feeling of instability is no longer just an adult burden. When the external world feels chaotic, how can we build resilience in our children and provide a sense of safety and trust in life?

At Durango Wild Soul, we believe the answer lies in our relationship with our community and the natural world. We intentionally use tools such as understanding, connection, awareness, and reverence to create a foundation that can mitigate and minimize feelings of uncertainty, instability and anxiety. When a child learns to identify edible plants, track animal signs, or understand the language of birds, they move from feeling like a stranger in an unknown world to an active and aware participant in it. They realize they are not alone; they are part of a vast, interconnected web of life that is everywhere.

To truly build resilience, however, it’s not only about connection: we also equip kids with competence. When youth acquire tangible survival abilities—making fire, building shelter, navigating in the wild—they gain something profound: a sense of agency. In a climate of abstract threats, knowing how to survive offers a unique form of physical and psychological safety. It transforms fear into empowerment, confidence, and security.

We believe that many of the problems afflicting our youth are symptoms of a disconnected existence. Our work targets the root cause by providing experiences that foster feelings of safety, trust, and deep belonging. By holding a culture where humans can thrive as an interwoven part of the natural world, we aren't just teaching skills; we are raising a generation capable of caring for themselves, each other, and our shared future.

06/06/2026

Stop by our booth at the Durango Farmer's Market today!

06/06/2026

We'll be at the Farmer's Market today, come by the booth and say howdy!

We still have space in some of our summer camps (7-12 and teen!) and are enrolling for our school year programs, so if you have questions our lead instructor Ted Packard will be at the booth to answer your questions, but watch out he may ask you a question or two as well!

05/14/2026

Excited about and experienced with Nature Connection work? Come join our team! We are looking for summer and school year instructors! This is a special opportunity to be mentored in the eight-shields model, develop your passions and sharpen all your naturalist skills.

05/13/2026

Here's an easy lift opportunity to support our work! With just a moment of your time, you can help us increase our visibility and be seen as a valuable part of our local community! Vote for us as the "Rising Star" nominee. ⭐️😊

03/31/2026

03/31/2026

You’ll laugh 😂, you might just cry 🥹, and you’ll be tempted to bid on that beautiful painting, on that well-deserved massage, those hand-beaded earrings, that jar of local honey, or on that full-body ninja suit 🥷 at Wild Soul’s Storytelling Festival and Silent Auction Fundraiser!

🌿Come out to support life-changing nature-connection programs for youth and families happening right here in Durango. Simply buying a ticket and enjoying the afternoon is already helping!

The Silent Auction is filling up with local experiences and exciting items that you will have to see to believe—

I said there would be full-body ninja suits 🥷, right?! 😄

Saturday April 11th 1-4 at the Smiley The Smiley Building! Tickets $20 at the door for adults and kids are FREE!!!

03/26/2026

Does your kid need more Vitamin N???

Weekly Nature connection programs for homeschool enrichment and monthly programs for all kids!

WILD TENDERS (AGES 7-12)
Mondays and Wednesdays 9am-3pm
Come join our Wild Tenders program, where kids spend their days on the land getting to intimately know the beings that live there, and building deeply meaningful relationships with the natural world, the wild ones, mentors and each other!

FOX WALKERS Monthly Saturday Program (AGES 7-12)
Want some meaningful activity, learning and connection time in nature for your schooled kiddo? Come join Fox Walkers, our Saturday program designed for kids who want to do all the fun, exciting and connective things we do in our school year program, but can’t come during the week!

Enrolling for school year 2026-7 now! More info and registration at our website: https://www.durangowildsoul.org/our-programs.html

03/20/2026

Equi-nox: Equal night. Often hidden within our words are clues to a deep connection with this world that we have had, and can have again.

As we spring into a new season(for remember, seasons are verbs!), we celebrate our wintering, even though we missed the snow here in the Southwest.

The Wild Tenders, Fox Walkers, and Earth Walkers tended fires, built bow-drill kits, trailed Bobcats, built shelters that shed water, stood with Pygmy Owls, listed to a Cooper’s Hawk’s silence, climbed through snow drifts at 10,000 feet, listened deeply to the stories of our Southern Ute neighbors, and grazed like deer on the purple flowers of new mustard greens.

Our parents and community gathered for stories again and again this season, as we told some of the most central parts of how Wild Soul came to be and how some of our dearest cultural gifts came to us.

There are more stories to be told, and more gratitude than these words could hold.

Thank you for being part of our community. As you catch our story, you help to hold it, and to hold us.