September 2018 I had the pleasure of attending the Becoming an Outdoors Woman in Arizona (BOW) Experience at Friendly Pines Camp in Prescott, Arizona. Becoming an Outdoors Women in Arizona is sponsored by the Arizona Wildlife Federation.

About Becoming an Outdoors Woman in Arizona

BOW helps “give women a chance to enjoy and appreciate the diverse outdoor opportunities that Arizona has to offer.” The instructors that teach at the camps are all volunteers. The volunteers are usually the top in their field. For example, my archery instructor competed on a Worlds Archery team and traveled to different countries to compete.

Friendly Pines Camp

The camp is a third-generation owner-operated camp with 110 acres and a lake. The property is in the Ponderosa Pines of the Bradshaw Mountains. The camp is located approximately 6 miles south of downtown Prescott. The property is at an elevation of 6,300 feet.

September 2018 Camp

There were 100 women registered for the camp. When I submitted my application, the registration was full and I was put on a waiting list. I was fortunate that an opening became available and I was able to attend. If the roster is full when you apply, ask to be put on the waiting list because you could get lucky like me.

The minimum age for the camp is 18 years old. There were women who came by themselves (like me). Some women brought friends. Also, I met multiple mother and daughters who attended camp together to create long time memories.

Sessions

There are 4 main sessions. One session is on day 1. Two sessions on day 2. One session on day 3. You get to choose your class within each session. It is first to come, first served. So be sure to sign up as soon as the registration is available. The good news if you sign up late is that all the classes are amazing and you can’t go wrong with any of them.

Example of class categories include:
Archery (For more view blog day 2)
Camping
Climbing (For more view blog day 3)
Firearms
Fishing (Fore more view blog day 1) – night fishing and tying lures
Outdoor Knowledge (For more view blog day 2)
Hunting
Outdoor Activities
Photography
Wildlife
Paddling Sports

Lodging

On your registration form, you can pick either an early bird vs night owl. BOW uses this information to group campers in cabins. I am an early bird and I am grateful that I was not in a cabin with night owls or I would not have gotten any sleep. The cabin I stayed in had 5 sets of bunk beds. We had 4 women stay in our cabin. Campers provide their own bedding and towels. I brought a sleeping bag and pillow. Others brought blankets and pillows. Each cabin had a water closet (bathroom), shower, and sink. We also had electrically and plenty of plug-ins for charging cameras.

Three Day Structure

The first day is registration/welcome/group photo and session one.

Meals are between sessions. The camp provides breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The optional morning activity was a bird walk. (For more view blog day 3)

In addition to the daily activities, there were many night activities for campers to choose from. Such as game tasting, campfires (with smores), fly tying, handgun seminar, night fishing, night hiking, and raffle/silent auction.

The last day after the morning session and lunch there was a farewell to all the campers.

Becoming an Outdoors Woman in Arizona September 2018 Camp Overview

Thank you BOW. The entire weekend was an amazing experience for me. I highly recommend attending a Becoming an Outdoors Woman in Arizona event.

For more information about the BOW program go to http://azwildlife.org/bow/

What was the last outdoor activity that you did?