Since 1965
Our story
Founded on a simple idea
In 1965, legendary mountaineer Paul Petzoldt gathered 33 students in Lander, Wyoming, with a radical belief: the wilderness is the best classroom for developing leaders. What started as a single expedition has grown into a global institution that has shaped hundreds of thousands of lives.
Petzoldt saw that the outdoors demanded real decision-making, teamwork, and resilience in ways no lecture hall could replicate. That conviction still drives everything we do.
Headquarters
Mission & values
What drives us
Our mission is to be the leading source and teacher of wilderness skills and leadership that serve people and the environment.
Wilderness
Wilderness is at the heart of what we do. We seek out the natural, remote, and uncertain for the kind of accountability, inspiration, and meaningful challenge that only wilderness can provide.
Leadership
Leadership is our middle name. It is a set of skills that can be learned and practiced. We value integrity, humility, and accountability in our leaders.
Community
We are a community of learners and leaders and are stronger because of our differences. We believe that the ability to work well with people of different backgrounds, experiences, and identities is a part of Expedition Behavior and is a critical leadership skill.
Education
We believe that education can empower people to act. In our classrooms, people learn by accepting and meeting real challenges. Our instructors and staff are educators, not guides.
Risk Management
Risk management is in our DNA. We accept risk as an integral part of the learning process and the environments we navigate, recognizing that effective risk management is critical to the leadership and well-being of our community.
Expertise
We commit ourselves to the lifelong pursuit of skill mastery. We hold true competence in high regard, viewing it as essential to our mission and a reflection of our character. Through expertise, we advance our dedication to integrity, resilience, and excellence.
Our purpose
The wilderness teaches what classrooms can't
Real challenge—weather, distance, uncertainty—produces the kind of accountability and growth a syllabus never can instill. Our job is to take students into wild country, hand them real responsibility, and bring leaders home.
In practice
Expedition Behavior
Our values come to life through Expedition Behavior, the discipline of keeping a group functional, generous, and trustworthy under pressure. It's the foundation of every NOLS course.
Our campuses
Where we operate
From the Rocky Mountains to the Himalayas, NOLS runs expeditions and courses across the globe.
Lander, WY
World headquarters and the birthplace of NOLS. Home to our longest-running expedition programs.
Headquarters
Alaska
True wilderness at scale. Mountaineering, glacier travel, and backcountry expeditions in the Last Frontier.
Baja California Sur, Mexico
Rainforests, volcanic peaks, and wild coastlines. Sea kayaking, mountaineering, and backpacking.
New Zealand
Desert canyons, red rock, and river systems. Canyoneering, backpacking, and river expeditions.
Patagonia, Chile
Dramatic peaks, glacial rivers, and iconic sea kayaking in one of the world's most stunning landscapes.
East Africa
Cultural immersion, service learning, and expedition travel across Kenya and Tanzania.
India / Himalaya
High-altitude trekking, cultural exchange, and leadership development in the world's greatest mountain range.
And More
Our Wilderness Medicine courses run in all fifty states and many international locations.
From the field
"I find it incredibly rewarding to hear students say, 'Look what I can do,' as they finish their course. Having students feel empowered to step forward in an emergency medical situation or seeing their pride in leading a group is incredibly rewarding as an educator."
Marco Johnson
Wilderness Medicine and Expedition Instructor | 1000+ weeks teaching for NOLS
Get involved
Join the NOLS community
Whether you want to explore the backcountry, build a career in the outdoors, or support our mission, there is a place for you at NOLS.
