Outdoors-Woman workshop an escape for many

By David Rainer (Contact) | Clanton Advertiser

Published Monday, October 20, 2008

The joke going around the Alabama 4-H Center recently – when can you find 125 women with smiles on their faces all at one time? Easy, the first weekends in March and October each year when the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman workshops are held at the center on Lay Lake.

Actually, it’s not a joke at all. It’s reality.

Newcomers and veterans alike leave the stress of everyday life and are immersed into BOW’s three-day workshop, which introduces and instructs women ages 18 years or older in a wide variety of outdoors skills. The workshop offers hands-on instruction in more than 50 courses, such as backyard wildlife, rock climbing, camp cooking, map and compass, camping, mountain biking, shooting sports (gun safety, pistol, rifle, shotgun, muzzleloader), fishing, hunting, canoeing, nature photography, nature crafts, archery, ATV handling, bird watching, motor boat handling and more.

“While the goal of the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman workshop is to teach beginners introductory outdoor skills in a non-threatening atmosphere under the direction of patient, enthusiastic instructors,” said Sylvia Payne, BOW coordinator, “it also provides the opportunity for BOW alumni to perfect the skills learned as a beginner and build their self-confidence. That makes them excellent mentors for newcomers, not to mention providing social contact with like-minded individuals.”

Once introduced to the program – no matter how reluctant the start – many of the women become avid BOW devotees. Renee Smith of Jackson is a perfect example.

“In 2003, I came the first time,” Smith said. “I was recently widowed. I was looking for a way to connect with my pine trees. My husband and I had grown pine trees all of our married life.

“I had a done a little bit of hunting, a little bit of walking through the woods, but it was always behind him. Always. He loved the outdoors. I thought, ‘This will be something I can carry on.’

“It had gotten to the point where I didn’t want to go to the farm. I didn’t want to be there. I had several family members tell me, ‘You need to go back. You need to renew yourself and get in touch with things that are growing, things that are living.’ I kept thinking, ‘Nah, I can’t.’”

Smith then read an article in the Rural Electric Association magazine about the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman program, but she still resisted reconnecting with the outdoors.

“I thought, I’m somebody’s mama, somebody’s wife; I teach school, farming and I can’t take a weekend off,” she said. “Then it dawned on me that I had no reason not to. Then I got to thinking about it. It was in the spring, and I decided to do a search on the Internet and there it was. I said, ‘Well, I’ll pack my bags and go, but I’m not going to unpack anything if I don’t like it.’ I got up here and everybody was giggling and unpacking their stuff. I decided it wasn’t so bad. I went to the opening meeting, and everybody was whooping and hollering. They told me where to go, and I went to the dorm. There were three women there I’d never seen before. They had already unpacked and made their beds. You pick out which bed you want when you get there and you make your bed. Well, my bed was made. I thought this was kind of nice.”

The next BOW workshop is scheduled March 6-8, 2009. Cost for the weekend adventure is $199, which covers meals, lodging, program materials and instruction. All instructional equipment is provided.

Obviously, the popularity of the program makes early registration a necessity. Visit www.outdooralabama.com/outdoor-adventures/Events_for_women/bow/ for more information.

David is a guest columnist for The Clanton Advertiser. His column appears on Tuesdays.

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