The Beginnings of Wilderness Medicine Outfitters

The first class was taught by Carl Weil, Sandy Long, and Allan Duckworth, primarily to members of the St. Mary Glacier and Geneva Basin Ski Patrols. The course was held at Colorado State University (CSU), where all three instructors had recently become American Red Cross instructors.

Carl and Sandy remained deeply involved in ski patrol for more than 20 years—Carl as an instructor and Sandy as a patroller. Carl often notes that Sandy was the far better skier of the two.

At CSU, Carl also completed Athletic Trainer courses, along with numerous classes in biological sciences and outdoor guiding. After graduation, he began teaching a series of outdoor-focused first aid classes in the Fort Collins area, later expanding his work from Elizabeth, Colorado. Seeking to advance his medical education, Carl enrolled in his first EMT course at the University of Colorado Medical Campus on Colorado Boulevard in Denver.

He helped organize Elbert County’s first EMT class, taught by Ginny Korman and Chuck Baum, and soon after established the Elizabeth Ambulance Company. Using a $10,000 personal loan from Tony Anderson of the Kiowa Bank, Carl purchased the community’s first ambulance from Ambulance Service Co. in Denver. Alongside Hugh Shear of Calhan, he co-founded the Elbert County EMS Council, serving as its first president.

Carl continued to expand his medical qualifications by completing additional EMT training at Aurora Hospital and Northglenn Hospital, and he successfully passed the National Registry of EMTs in Colorado Springs during the 1980s.

His expertise led to his appointment to the National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) Medical Board, chaired by Dr. Steve Pehrson of Roosevelt Hospital in Utah—making Carl the first non-physician ever to serve on that board.

By this time, Carl was teaching wilderness medicine courses under his company White Mesa, a division of what became Wilderness Medicine Outfitters (WMO). The original White Mesa design remains a part of WMO’s logo today.

Five years after founding WMO, Carl joined the Wilderness Medical Society (WMS) to further expand his wilderness medical education and presentations. He became an instructor under Dr. Peter Goth, whom he respectfully calls “the grandfather of wilderness medicine education.”

Carl was the first individual to enroll in the WMS Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine (FAWM) program and among the first group to complete the requirements for that professional designation. He later became the first to complete the five-year, advisor-reviewed, thesis-based Master Fellow program, overseen by two PhDs and five physicians.

As of 2025, the Wilderness Medical Society includes more than 4,000 members (approximately 62% physicians). Carl’s record remains exceptional—he exceeded all program requirements, delivering over 20 public presentations, authoring three publications, and submitting an 86-page thesis that surpassed expectations from his two faculty advisors.

It may be many years before anyone surpasses the level of achievement Carl Weil has attained in advancing and teaching wilderness medicine.