Mark Schultz

With a BS in Environmental Studies from Bemidji State University, in northern Minnesota, Mark Schultz embarked on what he thought was to be 2 year absence from Bemidji, to join the Peace Corps, as a Fisheries volunteer in the Central African Republic. Little did he know that he would meet his future wife, Peggy, in the heart of Africa. Nor did he know that he and Peggy would move to SW Florida, then to Central New York, and finally return to Bemidji, Minnesota, nearly 18 years later.

Along the way, Mark worked in surface water management and aquaculture, was a stay-at-home dad, owned and operated a food service business, sold gardening supplies, and even served time as a school bus driver. Building on his work and life experiences, he now channels his passions into writing DIY books, manuals and guides, to share ideas to nurture a more self-reliant lifestyle. Through his writings at Backwood Basics Press, he takes the reader to Central Africa, shares thoughts on raised bed gardening in living soil, builds canoes and paddle boards, a mini camper, and even a composting toilet. Whatever the design, it will meet the criteria for a Backwood Basics project: It will be simple, functional, inexpensive to build, and attractive; while helping to nurture a self-reliant lifestyle.