Instructors

Aebhric O'Kelly

   As a naturalist and wilderness medic, Aebhric brings to Ireland a unique background in Military Medicine, Wilderness Survival and Native American philosophy.

He attended a two-year naturalist training programme at the Wilderness Awareness School founded by tracker and naturalist Jon Young. He continued his nature studies with Tom Brown Jr in New Jersey, and culminated this training with an internship at the Trackerschool. He recently returned to the school to certify the tracker instructors with the ten day Wilderness First Responder course.

   After serving as a police officer, Aebhric spent ten years in the US Army Special Forces where he trained in austere medicine, wilderness survival and special tactics as a Green Beret.

   Since he left the army he studied Naturopathic Medicine from Bastyr University and completed a Master’s degree in wilderness psychology from Prescott College. He is currently working towards a Doctorate in Remote & Austere Medicine from the University of Wales, Lampeter.

   Aebhric continues to work in military medicine as a part time instructor for Deployment Medicine International.

Anna O'Kelly

     Having grown up in Germany with a keen awareness of environmental degradation, I gradually became aware of the limits of growth (and thus life-as-we-know-it).

     I am concerned with the mysteries of ‘living lightly’ on the earth.Most of my work is practical, and oriented around the principles of Permaculture.I love growing things and building things.I am also deeply interested in the psychological issues involved in humanities’ struggle to maintain balance with and connection to the earth’s ecosystems. 

     In 1996 I learned about Self-Sufficiency from John Seymour at his smallholding in Wexford. In 2002 I completed the Permaculture Design Course taught by Rob Hopkins.

 

 

John Hourigan

    John Hourigan is an Irish native who first developed his love of the land and mythology from the stories of ancient Ireland.  He has traveled the world seeking the common thread that is found in the mythology and spiritual practices of all cultures.  John has studied many different traditions including Buddism, Sufism, Hinduism, and Native American Spirituality.  Through teaching meditations and spiritual practices John guides individuals towards accessing a deeper level of consciousness and helps people interact with the world from a place of inner purity and personal power.

John learned his bushcraft skills through his extensive studies with Tom Brown at the Tracker School in New Jersey, and attended a 6 month primitive skills program in Montana.   Through teaching primitive skills, ecology, and nature awareness, John connects people back to the natural environment in a way that develops empathy for people and the land.

John believes in finding balance between the mind, body, and spirit and utilizes the avenue of martial arts to maintain a strong mind-body connection.  He is a certified instructor in the Russian Martial Art Systema, and lived in Canada for six months to train with Vladimir Vasiliev. 

John is also a qualified Vision Quest Protector, facilitates sweat lodges, and continues to enjoy his passion for music, poetry, Irish mythology, and life in general.

 

Kristy McFetridge

     Kristy joins us from the United States. She teaches bushcraft and the Vision Quest. Devoted to learning through experience, Kristy dedicated over a year of her life to practicing primitive survival skills and clarifying her personal vision. During this year long quest she lived in an earthen shelter and adopted the simple lifestyle of indigenous cultures. She worked for over five years as an instructor at Tom Brown’s Tracker School and co-founded PAST Skills Wilderness School. As Kristy continues on in her journey with Mountain Sky, she works constantly to refine her skills and seek new and exciting ways to share her knowledge and experience to help others feel at home in the wilderness

 

guest Instructors

Anthonio Akkermans

     Anthonio joins us from Northern Ireland where he owns wild-live.org. IPNA and wild-live are teaming up to provide an Ireland wide system of bushcraft and outdoor medical courses.
      Our goal is to complement each of our teaching specialties in order to provide a more compreheshive programme for the student.
  Visit Wild-live.org to see what Anthonio is offering.