BIG BAY — A group of women are headed into the woods and getting wild this weekend in Big Bay.

94 women are participating in the Becoming an Outdoors Woman, or BOW program this weekend. These adventurous ladies will have the chance to try some fun, woodsy activities, like backpacking, wilderness survival, or archery.

“They’re just excited to try something new or to expand on a skill that they’ve already started on or something that they weren’t too sure that they wanted to try. So this weekend gives them a change to try that. Maybe they’ve never kayaked before and this is an opportunity for them to experience it and maybe purchase a kayak down the line,” said Sharon Pitz, the Upper Peninsula BOW Coordinator.

There are 26 classes offered, and the women choose four, lasting about three hours each. Many of the activities are thought of as “Men’s Activities” and Pitz says the whole point is to prove women can do them too.

“We want to be just as independent. I can go out there and go hook a worm on a line and go fishing and provide a meal and teach someone else that. Same thing with using a shotgun or a pistol, that you can actually shoot at a target. You don’t necessarily have to go out there to hunt, it’s not about that at all. It’s about learning a skill so that you feel comfortable so you don’t have to rely on somebody else,” added Pitz.

BOW has some other events coming up this summer. If you’d like to sign up, follow this link