Carolina Panther’s Schedule On Page 3
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Tracy Whisnant 704-477-7391
www.shelbyinfo.com Our 43RD Year • Issue No. 33 • August 20, 2026 704-484-1047
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Shelby’s Mark Folk is helping men navigate the wilderness of life By Alan Hodge Life these days can be like deep woods or a trackless desert. That is, a real challenge to navigate and stay on a course that gets you to the other end in one piece, mentally, physically, and spiritually. Realizing this about 25 years ago, Shelby businessman and outdoor enthusiast Mark Folk came up an idea to tackle that thorny quandary and founded the nonprofit New Wilderness Adventures, a service that takes guys out in the literal wilderness and teaches them how to survive in the figurative one of modern life through a closer walk with God. “Our modern wilderness includes challenges such as career pressures, questions about purpose, family struggles, and isolation,” Folk says. “No man should walk the wilderness alone.”
Adventurer, author, and Shelby businessman Mark Folk has guided men through his New Wilderness Adventures ministry for 25 years. Here he’s seen with his new book “Soul Weathered: Devotions Forged in the Fire of Real Life”. (Photo by Alan Hodge)
Folk, who feels that there is a strong connection between God, Nature, and Man, ‘our DNA loves wild places’, he says, explained how the idea for New Wilderness Adventures came into being. “In 1998 I went on a two-week backpacking trip with North Carolina Outward Bound,” he said. “As a Christian man and the son of a pasKayaking on Lake Fontana, NC. tor I had a spiritual
Grand Lake, Colorado winter guide training trip.
epiphany. The next year I led a trip to the Grand Canyon and God told me this was what I was made for. The idea for New Wilderness Adventures took off from there.” Trips that New Wilderness Adventures embark on include hiking, fishing, hunting, scuba, kayaking, scuba, and more. In other words, just about anything exciting and outdoors. Participants are an eclectic blend. “They come from any walk of life,” Folk says. “We have men ranging from business types to welders.” The range of New Wilderness Adventures excursions spans the nation. “We take trips from Florida to Alaska,” said Folk. Since its launch a quarter century ago, New Wilderness Adventures has grown. These days, there are branches in Texas and Colorado. Grand Lakes. The leaders there include Barry Strickland in Dallas and Tim Little. They are aided by an able staff of trained guides. A sinewy and youthful 65 years old, Folk plans to keep his hands, See FOLK, Page 2
Here are just a few of the many outdoor spiritual retreats Mark Folk of Shelby has led his New Wilderness Adventures clients on over the years. (Photos provided) Above: Alaska salmon fishing.
Rutherfordton, NC father/daughter retreat.
Grayson Highlands, Virginia backpacking trip.
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