Outdoor Women Lead (OWL) reduces barriers women and girls experience in the outdoors.
We believe when more people have meaningful experiences outdoors, their quality of life, health, and social well-being improve.
We offer:
- An Outing Group for Women. Participants explore local land preserves and water-ways while learning about local natural ecology and getting outside with like-minded women.
- A Summer Camp for Girls. Girls learn outdoor, naturalist, and gardening skills at Milbridge Commons Wellness Park.
- Outdoor Skill-Building Workshops for Women and their Families. Workshops are family orientated and focus on skills you need to successfully navigate and thrive in outdoor settings.
Giving– it's the Maine thing to do.
OWL is a collaborative project between WHRL and Maine Outdoor School, and is open to anyone for whom “woman” is a meaningful identifier or lived experience.
Outing Group for Women
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? This outing group is reserved for women and girls 16+.
Upcoming Outings
In the event of a necessary weather-related cancellation, outings will be rescheduled. Registered participants will be emailed the Friday afternoon before an outing in the event of a postponement.
Ecology and Geology of the Bold Coast
Ecology and Geology of the Bold Coast
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Ecology and Geology of the Bold Coast at Cutler's Bold Coast. Absorb the beau...
Flowers at the Pike Lands in Lubec
Flowers at the Pike Lands in Lubec
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Flowers at Pike Lands in Lubec. Did you know that this area has some of North...
Spring Plants and Birds at Taft Point Preserve
Spring Plants and Birds at Taft Point Preserve
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Spring Plants and Birds at Taft Point Preserve in Gouldsboro. If you're a nat...
Nature Journaling at Great Wass Island Preserve
Nature Journaling at Great Wass Island Preserve
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Nature Journaling at the Great Wass Island Preserve. Start your nature journa...
OWL Outing the MITA
OWL Outing the MITA
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? This month's outing is a collaborative effort with the Maine Island Trail Association (MITA). More details to come! This outing group is reserved for...
Canoeing on the Narraguagus River
Canoeing on the Narraguagus River
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Canoeing on the Narraguagas River in Cherryfield. This mellow paddling outing...
Fungi on Catherine’s Mountain
Fungi on Catherine's Mountain
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Fungi on Catherine's Mountain. What's spookier than a local ghost story? Not ...
Unique Organisms at Ingersoll Point Preserve
Unique Organisms at Ingersoll Point Preserve
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Unique Organisms at Ingersoll Point Preserve in Addison. This mossy wonderlan...
Winter Plant ID at Boot Head Preserve
Winter Plant ID at Boot Head Preserve
Are you interested in joining other women on outdoor adventures and learning more about our local natural ecology? Join OWL's Outing Group for Women! This month's outing is Winter Plant ID at Boot Head Preserve. Learn how to identify plants in the wi...
Outdoor Skill Building Workshops
These workshops are geared towards women and their families, ages 10+. You do not have to have kids to participate.
Orienteering Basics
April 27-28, 2024
Knowing how to use a map and compass can be the difference between a fun outdoor adventure and a scary one. Your phone or GPS won’t always work, but a compass and your brain will—if you know how to use them! Learn how to use a compass, take bearings, and triangulate your location through this two-day course with Registered Maine Guide Hazel Stark.
Wilderness First Aid
November 2-3, 2024 – 9:00 – 5:00 PM
Accidents happen. People get hurt, sick, or lost. The temperature drops, the wind picks up, and it starts to rain. Would you know what to do? Many back country emergencies are preventable; even when bad things happen, sometimes the wrong care can worsen things. By learning a few basic skills, you can make the difference between a good outcome and a bad one – and maybe even save a life.
Wilderness First Aid is the perfect course for outdoor enthusiasts who want basic first-aid training for short trips with family, friends, and outdoor groups. We are excited to have Nancy Zane, Registered Maine Guide and owner of NorthStar Adventures, come back to teach this course!
Registration coming in August.
Our Mission
To advance and promote the health and well-being of the woman, her family, and her community.