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the Earth will teach". Wise words worth pondering and the mantra of Mick Dodge, co-founder of The Earth Gym, a practice using sticks and stones, trees, rope and sand to recapture the bond our ancestors had with the land.
Jacquie Chandler, Lake Tahoe resident, first met Mick Dodge on a beach in California in the early ‘90s. She was intrigued with his habit of using items in nature as exercise equipment: lifting large stones to develop strength, playing with sticks for stretching and balance, using rope to swing and dance from the trees.
The pair became serious about their play and began formalizing it into the practice now known as The Earth Gym. Jacquie ended up at Lake Tahoe and Mick returned to his birthplace, the Hoh Rainforest along the Olympic Peninsula in Washington but, even though separated geographically, they remained connected and committed to developing and sharing The Earth Gym practice.
Mick, who has a Marine Corps background as well as training in the martial arts, built his body into sculpted muscle but something was wrong. His feet hurt.
While reading an article in a National Geographic magazine about the old practice of binding the feet of girls and women in China (now illegal), Mick had an epiphany and took off his shoes.
It was not easy at first but he began developing his feet so that they could catch up to the rest of his body and he began to feel truly connected to the Earth. He had tree roots tattooed onto his feet and began incorporating barefoot training into his Earth Gym practice and soon became known as “The Barefoot Sensei”.
Two students, who also happened to be taking a college film class, asked Mick if they could film Earth Gym activities as a project for their class. The video they shot caught the attention of members of a production company who decided to take more video to see if they could interest television networks, resulting in the birth of “The Legend of Mick Dodge”.
The television show, which spanned three seasons, depicted Mick as a survivalist, off the grid, living off the land. As is the way with television, the show was dramatized but Mick stuck up for his principles and managed to retain the core values of his innermost story. Mick often coins words to describe his meaning more clearly; thus, he calls himself a “thrivalist”.
Mick has made his way to Tahoe where his partner, Jacquie, resides, and together they are working to share the methods of The Earth Gym.
They recently taught a class at the Tahoe Expedition Academy in Tahoe Vista, following one of their main missions: capturing the interest of children. They want to teach children that physical exercise does not have to be boring or tedious and to engage children with the Earth so that they will become future stewards of the land.
The children who took the week-long class loved it, as in Ate. It. Up. I attended a presentation given last week by Mick and Jacquie which was attended by several of the children who took his class and their excitement about Mick, his teachings and what they learned was apparent.
The presentation included an 8-minute video created by a friend of Mick’s, Mike Hatchett, who also happens to be an acclaimed videographer, who, along with his brother, specializes in creating extreme snowboarding movies through their company, Standard Films.
Mike agreed to shoot enough video to create a three-minute commercial but became so captivated with the class that he filmed the entire week, donating his time to participate in the exciting project, documenting it with the video which can be used to demonstrate to others interested in taking the class or for educators interested in offering it in curriculums at schools.
Getting this program into schools is the focus of The Earth Gym, as well as creating Earth Gym playgrounds throughout communities surrounding the lake.
Mick and Jacquie and other people dedicated to helping their cause of teaching children the ways of the Earth are happy to give talks and presentations to anyone who is interested. Please contact Jacquie Chandler at (775) 413-9211 to book a presentation for your group or school or if you would like to host an Earth Gym playground.
To follow Mick Dodge and the Earth Gym, visit and follow the official Facebook page.
Toree Warfield is an avid nature lover, and writes this column to teach and stimulate interest in the marvels that surround us.
