I am surprised no one came up with any ideas. Truthfully, I pondered this one a bit as well.
I think you need to refine your ideas of what you are trying to achieve, and how much you are willing to "put out" to get to that end.
Some points to consider:
- how far are you willing to travel
- how much $$ are you willing to spend
- how much time can you/will you devote to classes
- will your current set of tools suffice for the entry level tools required
In our fair state of Texas, the second largest, I know of only two full time schools devoted to woodworking. One is close, the other is a few hours away and would require overnight stays in a hotel for a week once I was there.
So...
maybe some alternatives.
(Sorry group guys, I am a sucker for an honest question from someone that wants to learn....)
Some community colleges still have woodworking classes. I have heard that there are night classes available at some of these colleges at very reasonable costs.
Our local Woodcraft has different woodworking classes throughout the month. Although the quality of the instructors vary quite a bit, you just might get a good one. One of my old amigos teaches those weekend classes, and he is quite the talent and a good teacher as well.
Woodcraft may also know of private individuals that teach, or would be willing to teach.
Join a woodworking club. While for no apparent reason our local club is a bit snobbish, others I have been to have been great. Like any other club, participate, contribute what you can, and in all likelihood you will find someone willing to share their skills. For years our woodturning club had seminars and we took turns teaching the most basic to advance skills.
If you find others that are interested and enthusiastic to learn and play with, woodworking skills can be acquired rapidly. Toiling away in your shop all alone when you first start out can lead to lot of frustration and cut your interest very short in woodworking. As you build your skills, the problems get easier to solve. You will do more on your own, and my prefer it that way.
Figuring out how to do things is by yourself is great. More people should try that. On the other hand, there is a line on that. Why spend hours/days trying to figure out a problem that a fellow woodworker might be able to cure in just a quick explanation? Why have wasted hours of frustration spent doing problem solving when you could be woodworking? Worse, you could "teach yourself" how to do things incorrectly using poor methodology.
Don't quit working on your own, but look around and see if there aren't avenues for you to pursue in your backyard.
Just my 0.02.
Robert