Craig Caudill

Award Winning Educator, Author, Podcaster, Master Naturalist

Craig Caudill is the Director and Lead Instructor of Nature Reliance School. He is a best-selling author of several backcountry skills books and a certified master naturalist. His online school and in-person course programming is among the country's most respected.

He regularly teaches corporate, government agencies and the public sector. He is an avid tracker and has taught various first responders on the federal, state, and local level in the science of man-tracking. He has led survival and wilderness navigation courses for wildlife and biology students from 14 different universities in the southeast. He has been featured on Public Education Television for the shows Kentucky Afield, Kentucky Life, and Tim Farmer's Country Kitchen. He has served as a consultant for the Discovery Channel and History Channel He is regularly interviewed on local news segments to share safety and survival skills. He is the author of the books Extreme Wilderness Survival, Ultimate Wilderness Gear, co-author of Essential Wilderness Navigation, Vital Survival (available online only) and The Secret Signs of Nature (his first children's book).

His work can also be seen in Field and Stream, Outdoor Life, Backwoods Survival Guide, American Survival Guide, Self-Reliance Illustrated, American Prepper, Wilderness Way, American Frontiersman, and Ballistic. He has a very active blog containing his podcasts (host and guest spots) and guest blogs for Field and Stream, Georgia Bushcraft, Omega Gear, Joel Lambert, Survival Life, Knowledge Weighs Nothing, How To Do Stuff, and the Family Protection Association,. He has an active Youtube channel providing education on all things outdoors. Craig is forever a student and continues to train and grow in his skill set.

The following listing is a portion of the courses he has completed, and agencies trained:

BBA, University of Kentucky, Emphasis in Statistical Analysis
FBI, Infragard Partner and Educator
Certified Master Naturalist, University of Kentucky
Level II Naturalist, Kamana Training Program
Master Naturalist Program Instructor, University of Kentucky
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, Habitat Improvement Program Cooperator
Kentucky Division of Forestry, Stewardship Forest Cooperator
Lost Person Behavior, Tennessee Department of Emergency Management (no certification)
Basic Search and Rescue - Level 1, Kentucky Emergency Management
First Aid Certified, Red Cross, American Heart Association
Stop the Bleed Certified
Wilderness First Aid Certified, American Red Cross
Wilderness First Aid, Nature Reliance School (led by guest instructor)
80 Hour Survival Training, Earth School
80 Hour Tracking Intensive, Earth School and Midwest Native Skills Institute Combo
80 Hour Scout Reconnaissance Earth School and Midwest Native Skills Institute Combo
60 Hour Level 1 and Level 2 Mantracking, The Scott-Donelan Tracking School
40 Hour Level 1 Building Tactical Acuity for Counter-IED, Enhanced Tracking Applications
40 Hour Level 1 Mantracking, Tyr Group
20 Hour Basic Human Tracking, Natural Awareness Tracking School
20 Hour Visual Tracking Tactics, Hull's Tracking School
40 Hour Low Elements Challenge Course Certification, Eastern Kentucky University
20 Hour Basic Tracking, Nature Awareness Tracking School
40 Hour High Course Elements Challenge Course Certification, Eastern Kentucky University
30 Hour Basic Pistol Defense, Iron Sight Defense
30 Hour Advanced Pistol Defense, Iron Sight Defense
40 Hour Tactical Survival, Iron Sight Defense
30 Hour Team Fighting Course, Iron Sight Defense
10 Hour CQB Rifle/Pistol, Iron Sight Defense
20 Hour Fighting Rifle Level 1 Iron Sight Defense
30 Hour Fighting Pistol, Tactical Response
Certified Defensive Tactics Instructor, Force Options USA
4 Hour Rifle/Pistol Transition Training Performance Edge Training
Training in Judo since 1988
Training in Aikido since 1990, Certified Shidoin Shinjinkai Martial Arts Society
Occasional student of Krav Maga, BJJ and FCS.

AGENCIES AND ORGANIZATIONS WE HAVE TRAINED

101st Airborne, Ft. Campbell Kentucky
FBI SWAT, Mantracking Instructor
DEA, Adjunct Instructor Backcountry Skills
DEA Pilots, Survival and Land Navigation Skills Instructor
United States Border Patrol, Mantracking Instructor
Kentucky Army National Guard, Mantracking Instructor
Kentucky Army National Guard Erad Team, Mantracking Instructor
Kentucky Board of Emergency Medical Services, Disaster Readiness Instructor
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation Officers, Backcountry Skills (survival and mantracking) Instructor
Eastern Kentucky University, Wildlife Managers Instruction on Backcountry Skills
20 Universities Wildlife Managers Conclave, Wilderness Safety and Survival Skills Instructor
Department of Defense, MEAC Skills (Wilderness Safety and Survival) Instructor
Electric Cooperatives of Kentucky, Active Shooter and Situational Awareness Instructor
Public Library Program Speaker and Educator, Backcountry Skills (30 various libraries in Kentucky
Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Situational Awareness Instructor
University of Kentucky, Adjust Instructor of Backcountry Skills
Backcountry Skills Instructor (Mantracking and Safety/Survival), Several area Sheriff's Offices and Police Departments
Kentucky Tactical Officer's Association (SWAT, SRT, SRU teams) Mantracking Instructor

CURRENT OR FORMER ADJUNCT INSTRUCTOR WITH THE FOLLOWING ORGANIZATIONS

Mike Hull's Tracking School
Kentucky State Police
Fieldcraft Survival
The Bulwarks
MALC Training Institute
Boone County Conservation District
University of Kentucky Master Naturalist Program
University of Kentucky 4H
Berea College Outdoors and Adventure Programs
Eastern Kentucky University Adventure Programms

Craig was awarded the title of Kentucky Colonel and has also received numerous awards from the various military and law-enforcement agencies he has trained.

Nature Reliance School was recognized as the Outstanding Business for Excellence in Environmental Education by the Kentucky Association for Environmental Education in 2021.