Early this July, eight lucky participants got in touch with their primal instincts in the Cottonwood Institute’s Stone Age Survival Course. Yes, this is how we used to thrive and survive back in the day before cell phones and electricity. Before all of our modern comforts this is how humans survived. But these skills are not outdated. In a survival situation they could save your life.

On July 8th, 2009, the students and two instructors, Brittany Salley-Rains and Clark Patton, met and set off to a stone-age living skills school called Earth Knack located in Crestone, Colorado. They spent the following 7 days learning primitive skills and sleeping under the stars. Every participant got down and dirty making primitive fires using hand drill and bow drill sets, flint knapping stones to make knives, and weaving baskets out of willow. They learned about the edible and medicinal plants of the area and made debris hut survival shelters. One student even spent the night in the freshly constructed shelter.

Throughout the course the students learned about sustainable living and building and how to apply all this to their own life to reduce their ecological footprint. After learning all the stone age skills the participants completed several small service projects, building ditches and garden beds to give back to the land and the Earth Knack community.

Instructor Brittany Salley-Rains commented that it was a great trip. “I was really impressed with the students dedication to learning the skills. Everyone rose to the challenge. They learned a lot not only about primitive skills, but also sustainable living.”