Our Mission & Story

Mission

Our mission is to help people experience life-impacting and life-enriching adventure in the outdoors that will catapult them to experience greater success in their everyday lives.

We live in a world with an ever increasing confusion and disconnectedness. Our wilderness trips seek to provide the connection, adventure, and renewal to meet life’s ever increasing demands with greater purpose, clarity, authenticity, support, and confidence.

We are committed to the personal safety, protection, and support that each participant needs to experience the best outdoor adventure possible.

We believe each wilderness trip should be exciting, safe, challenging, educational, and rewarding for each participant no matter their skill level or background.

Our Story

Petra Wilderness International was founded in 2019 by Jared Cox as a result seeing a great need for getting young men and women away from the noise and stress of the world and to get outside to grow in personal development, learn outdoor skills, and enjoy adventure as God intended.  

Jared grew up backpacking, rock climbing, and mountain biking in Arizona.  After a climbing trip in the Superstition Wilderness in Arizona and climbing the Grand Teton in Wyoming, he was convinced that there is nothing better than the outdoors to personally grow, experience healing, enjoy the spirit of adventure, and experience a strong, loving community of like-minded friends.

Although Jared played high school football, soccer, and ran track he realized organized sports did not compare to the magnitude and power of spending extending periods of time backpacking, climbing, and being challenged in the outdoors.  The beauty,  clarity, peace, and satisfaction experienced going into the wilderness on backpacking or climbing trips has been far more rewarding than any other kind of athletic activities.

As he also enjoyed and saw how much trips impacted his wife and four children, he had a heart to extend the opportunity to others who have not had the privilege to be able to learn outdoor skills, leadership qualities, and team dynamics, while at the same time enjoying the shear beauty of the wilderness.  Adventures in the backcountry are an open door of opportunity to each willing to gear up, prepare, and head out into the mountains to understand the purpose and reason they exist on this earth.