Join us for an invigorating weekend in Afton State Park's Group campground! This is an opportunity to enjoy the wilderness just an hour away from the Twin Cities and get some experience camping in the great outdoors along with some great leadership activities. If you are or have any interest in volunteering or being a leader/guide, you should definitely come and check out what we do and who we are! Or, maybe you're just curious about us or thinking about participating on one of our trips. Check us out!
We have reserved a group site and will have some large canvas group tents along with a variety of other tents. We will also have some shelters in case of any of that wettish precipitation.
We can provide equipment or you can bring your own. We will provide all the food. There is ample firewood provided for those great nighttime campfires and water is available nearby. It’s a wilderness experience such a short distance from the city! There are many miles of beautiful hiking trails, places to explore along the bluffs and a swimming beach (a bit of a hike from the camping area though).
This is the perfect opportunity to try out camping, see how Wild Hearts Adventures operates and meet some great people! Wild Hearts provides all of the equipment, food and guides.
We can provide transportation for up to 12 people with our van leaving from the Burnsville, Minnesota area to Afton State Park or you can meet us there. There is room for additional vehicles at the group site but if we run out of room we can also shuttle you from the visitor center parking lot to the campsite.
You will only be responsible for your clothing and a few personal items. You can, however, bring your own tent, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, camp chair, etc.
Important stuff will show up here when needed and when available! Check back often if you are going on an adventure with us because there could be some really, super-important stuff here. No, really, it could be the kind of stuff that decides whether you have a great trip or not like... oh, a list of things to pack, for example. That could be crucial. Actually, there's no "could" in that... it's definitely crucial.
Jay came onboard as a guide with Wild Hearts in 2017 and quickly became an invaluable member of the team! He is an experienced outdoorsman (especially in the art of hammock camping) and a wonderful outdoor cook!
Jay has tremendous leadership skills which he has used to help shape Wild Hearts Adventures as an organization and his desire to serve people and walk beside them no matter their struggle quickly becomes apparent during our adventures.
I started Wild Hearts because of a longing to reach out to those who have struggled with substance abuse and other destructive life choices to help them rebuild relationships with their families and with God. My desire to do this through wilderness experiences comes from a life-long love of the outdoors nurtured by my parents’ many family camping and canoeing trips. I now share this passion with my wife of 40 years, Pam and our four children, Diana, Andy, Jake and Nikki. I am also blessed with 10 grandchildren that I can share the beauty of God’s creation with!
I am an experienced outdoorsman and have led numerous trips to the Rocky Mountains, the BWCA, St. Croix River, the Appalachian Trail and many of our state parks and forests. Along with wilderness adventures, I love kayaking, backpacking, hiking, mountain biking, CrossFit workouts, watching movies and playing the occasional video game. I am also a commissioned pastor with The River Fellowship.
