The Turtle Island Staff
Eustace Conway
Founder of Turtle Island Preserve, star of the hit TV series, “Mountain Men”, adventurer extraordinaire…and so much more…what an amazing opportunity to have him helping to direct and lead Boys Camp again this year. His reputation as an amazing outdoor educator precedes him. Eustace Conway is a unique naturalist. He celebrates the freedom of individuality in all aspects of life. He is a spokesperson for the Earth, giving voice to the natural environment he loves. The renowned wildlife artist, Sallie Middleton, told him on his thirtieth birthday, "You are the most interesting man I have ever met." Perhaps this is because Eustace has lived the life he has imagined...followed his dreams. Like Thoreau, Eustace has gone to the woods to live deliberately, fronting only the essential facts of life, to see if he could not learn what it had to teach, and not when he came to die discover that he had not lived. He has lived in the woods for over forty years. He learns by visiting extremes; once when Eustace severely cut his thumb, he sewed it back together with twelve stitches, and used plant medicine to heal it.
Family Camp & Young Boys Camp Director
Spencer “Two Dogs”
Spencer 2 Dogs Bolejack operates Land of the Sky Wilderness School in Western North Carolina where he lives with his wife and three kids. An apprentice of mountain man Eustace Conway in the 1990s, Bolejack holds dan rank in multiple styles of martial arts including Tang Soo Do, Kenpo, IMA, and a 5th degree black belt in ninjutsu. After a rough start at Appalachian State, he gave everything away and moved into the woods for a total of three years, surviving on little and accumulating many of the skills discussed in camp. Eventually graduating from UNC-A, he has taught public school, won state level awards from the Veterans of Foreign Wars, has been published in Best Practices for Middle School Teachers and has taught internationally. The 11th generation Carolinian also co-hosted 59 episodes of Discovery’s Hillbilly Blood.
Spencer likes to use one of his best resources; his teachers and friends! Whenever possible we bring in guests from a variety of backgrounds who are experts in their fields of study. These have included beekeepers, blacksmiths, craftsmen, bushfolk, trackers, and fellow martial artists.
Spencer with his daughter, Iris
Ryan Timmermans - Head Counselor Young Boys Camp
Taylor Moorefield - Father-Son Camp Director
Taylor Moorefield is a Park Ranger with Tennessee State Parks and has studied personally with Eustace Conway for several years. Additionally, he is an Eagle Scout and earned the yonah nugali (bear claw) from Spencer “Two Dogs” Bolejack of Land of the Sky Wilderness School. Taylor has a passion for teaching, nature and the potential of the human spirit. Taylor lives in East Tennessee with his wife and two children.
I grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, and at the age of eleven, found myself attending the week long inaugural wilderness camp hosted by Eustace Conway at Turtle Island Preserve. Growing up, I was always fascinated by the stories of the frontiersmen of years long ago like Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, but it was during my time at Turtle Island that I grew deeply connected to the Earth and to the wild under the guidance and living example of the frontiersmen of our times: Eustace, Preston and Frank.
I joined the military at age 32 and became an Intel Analyst and a Psychological Operations Specialist, and ultimately spent 3 years deployed in Afghanistan. In my journey to heal the wounds of war in my life, I remembered some of the experiences and lessons that I gleaned from my experience at Turtle Island Preserve so many years ago. These experiences with Eustace and the natural world helped me form the idea for my own non-profit that aims to help veterans heal and connect to nature. “Veterans Offgrid” is located in the high desert of Taos, NM and helps veterans build sustainable homes and live more in harmony with the Earth.
I am looking forward to returning to my roots at Turtle Island Preserve and giving back to the next generation of young folks just like Eustace, Preston and Frank invested in me.