by Clay Green
The great outdoors is a wonderful escape from the dull, mundane life that surrounds most of our daily grind. Getting the chance to leave the 9-to-5, the sounds of phones ringing, a chat program pinging, the hum from fluorescent lighting ringing in your ears, and the hustle and bustle of traffic taking away peaceful times in the day. Wouldn’t you like to leave that and just spend time basking in the glow of the sun? Catching a cool breeze flowing across a pond, or feeling the grass beneath your feet, and listening to the chirping of songbirds filling the air? What if you could also add a sense of camaraderie and learn something you haven’t tried before? That is what happened the first weekend this May at with a group of adventurous women spanning all ages (18+).
May 1-3, 2026, brought not only cooler weather in West Lafayette, Indiana, but also 108 women who joined in at Ross camp to be a part of Indiana’s Becoming an Outdoor Woman (BOW). At BOW, there was a wide variety of classes to choose from to learn a skill or event that some might not have heard of or have had a chance to partake in; from learning basket weaving, beekeeping, self-defense, firearm safety, archery, tree identification, fishing, outdoor photography, forestry, and many more.
A lot can happen when you attend an event like this. You form quick little weekend friendships. The sense of fellowship builds quickly during a weekend like BOW. Like getting to watch Christi catch her first fish ever in the Fishing with Lures class. You could hear the range of emotions in her voice: excitement, shock, and the awe that she did that. Not only did Christi celebrate, but you could hear her classmates cheering as she hauled her fish out of the water (maybe one or two moaned in jealousy!). Little moments like this happened all weekend long. Most of the women who enter this weekend as strangers leave sharing a new common interest or skill.
I was able to have a conversation with Shannon Green, who is completely deaf, to share her highlights from the weekend. “I really enjoyed the basket weaving class taught by Tammy (Wise). I’ve always wanted to take that class, and I was very excited to see it being offered!” What made her experience more enjoyable was having two interpreters who also really enjoyed the class while interpreting Tammy’s instructions.
I also asked Shannon how she felt about BOW, and she stated: “It is very welcoming, and everyone is so friendly, from the instructors to the other women. It felt so empowering”.
Shannon also shared that “you learn so much more than you thought you would. Stephen Spencer taught the survival class, and I just learned so much that I never knew or ever thought of.” She enjoyed her time and the classes she has taken; this was her second year going to BOW, and she is looking forward to her third year. She finished up saying that “Archery has been her favorite so far; however, I missed Steve Dickover.”
I also had the opportunity to talk to volunteer instructor Jennifer Hasenour, who shared her views about instructing during this event. She spoke about her time on the Shotgun range and her interaction with Sarah. “When Sarah first got up to the firing line, she was unsure and even made it known that she had hesitations about this (Shotgun), but was going to give it a go. After her first shot, she didn’t want to stop and said that she could do shotgun all night long!”
While talking to Jennifer, she did state that there was something from the weekend she loved; however, talking about it is “going to make her emotinal” There is one thing to see the participants step outside their comfort zone and learn new skills, but watching fellow instructors teach a brand new class to participants who are willing, eager, understanding, and excited is taking things to a next level.
“I have known Hannah (Green) forever. We have been teaching together since we were literal teenagers. But seeing her nerd out during her Outdoor Photography class and seeing the passion that comes from when she is teaching on this subject that she loves just brings out all the feelings.”
Jennifer went on to elaborate on an interaction between Hannah, a mother, and a young woman/daughter who took the Outdoor Photography class. A young lady, fresh out of high school, was playing around with Photography and Photoshop, but was not sure if she wanted to go down that career path. The mother came up to Hannah at the end of the weekend and said, “This class (Outdoor Photography) and the conversation that took place after the class had such an impact that she wants to go down this path and go into the creative field, especially in the photography medium.” As Tim Beck often states, Jennifer thinks that she (Hannah) had one of her major paychecks in that moment.
The weekend is not just all classes. This year’s BOW happened to land the same weekend as the Kentucky Derby. Hunter Education Coordinator Chris Clark did not miss the chance to celebrate the running of the roses. She themed the whole weekend around the derby. Roses ran up the poles in the Dining Hall. Women making their own beautiful and unique derby hats. Not to mention the main event, the BOW races. Volunteers had the opportunity to put their (air) equestrian skills to the test. Have you ever watched a group of women gallop/run a lap while riding blow-up horses? Well, Indiana did it. Some of the spectators stated that this race would give the actual Derby a run for its money.
There is something about taking a step back at this event and just watching these women experience new skills that is spectacular. Seeing the smiles, hearing the laughter, and celebrating with whoops and hollers will bring a smile to everyone’s face. You can learn a lot this weekend: how to pattern your shot and harvest a turkey, how to read a map, or even what type of tree is growing in your backyard.
This three-day event builds new friendships, strengthens bonds between family members, opens someone’s eyes to something new, creates everlasting memories, and (unknowingly) reconnects one’s spirit to the world around them. The women who attend this event want to learn…want to participate even if they are unsure…they want to get their hands dirty.
This is what makes Indiana’s Becoming an Outdoor-Woman so magical.
To view more photos from this event, please visit this link: 2026 Indiana Becoming an Outdoors-Woman
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