Most women do not avoid the outdoors because they lack interest. They hesitate because they do not want to be the only beginner in the group, the only one asking questions, or the only one who feels behind before she even starts. The hardest part is rarely the skill. It is the first step.
That is why Go WYLD exists.
Hosted at Chateau Oklahoma by Jess Rice and Rebecca Johnson through WildHERness, Go WYLD is built to help women find their footing through real experiences, shared community, and low-pressure instruction. Rice puts it plainly. “That’s the brilliance of a Go WYLD weekend, is that it’s a try before you buy opportunity.”
Over the weekend, women rotate through a range of outdoor experiences and practical skills, including archery, kayaking, backpacking, fly fishing, rappelling, cooking, and food preservation. Some participants arrive with a background in the outdoors. Others are starting from scratch. The common thread is that nobody is expected to perform. They are encouraged to try.
Johnson believes confidence is not something most women are born with, especially in spaces like this. “I don’t think a person is inherently self-confident most of the time, especially not women and especially not in spaces like this,” she says. “You have to have somebody who’s saying, ‘You can do this.’ You have to have somebody who’s leading by example… to make sure you succeed.”
One of Rice’s most memorable moments came after a shotgun clinic, when a participant approached her in tears. “No one ever told me that I could like guns without hunting,” the woman said. Rice explains the woman was a vegetarian at the time and had never shot a gun. Over time, she took the next steps at her own pace. She later attended pheasant camp, harvested a bird, ate it, and now helps coordinate deer clinics for WildHERness.
That is the impact Go WYLD is designed to create. Not a perfect weekend. A door that stays open.
Ducks Unlimited supports this kind of work by helping amplify organizations like WildHERness and bringing greater visibility to programs that welcome more women into the outdoors. Awareness leads to participation. Participation builds lifelong conservationists.
Go WYLD is not about becoming an expert in four days. It is about leaving with proof that you belong outdoors, and the confidence to keep going.
Watch the Ascend episode to see how Go WYLD helps women take that next step.
Learn more at ducks.org/ascend.
The Women's Outdoor News, aka The WON, features news, reviews and stories about women who are shooting, hunting, fishing and actively engaging in outdoor adventure. This publication is for women, by women. View all posts by The WON
