Hiking News - February 2010

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Boat Ramp Renovation Completed

Sunday, 28 February 2010

On February 22, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division completed the boat ramp renovation at the public access area located above The Narrows on Lay Lake. This facility is located at the end of Shelby Co. Rd. 400, and was closed for several months while a new launching slab was constructed.

The Alabama Department of Conse rvation and Natural Resources promotes wise stewardship, management and enjoyment of Alabama's natural resources through five divisions: Marine Police, Marine Resources, State Lands, State Parks, and Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries. To learn more about ADCNR, visit www.outdooralabama.com.

Walk the Wicklow Way in Ireland with HilltopTreks

Saturday, 27 February 2010

The Dublin/Wicklow Mountains are saturated with a patch work of forests, glens, lakes and valleys and whether your doing a 1 day stroll or a more adventurous few days walk they provide the perfect settings. Wicklow has always been and still remains a place of great inspiration to poets and writers alike. It is also steeped in its history of Irish resurrection being so close to the capital and in the heart of the Glendalough Valley there is the remains of the 6th Century Monastery of St. Kevin. The Neolithic passage tombs monuments on Seefin and Seefingan (Suí Fingain) are also very impressive.

The Wicklow Way takes a North to South directions right through the whole County of Wicklow and manages to cover wonderful parts of the County that are made for walkers. The Trail does not cover very high ground and goes around rather than over most the mountains along its path. The highest point on the Wicklow Way is White Hill which is just 635m. The length of The Wicklow Way is 128km and can be broken into many stages for the best enjoyment of it.

The Trail:

The Trail begins and finishes in the outskirts of south county Dublin in a public park in Rathfarnham called Marlay Park. It is a long distance self guided marked way that can be walked throughout County Wicklow and it continues onto Clonegal in Co Carlow, a distance of 128km.

The trail was planned by J.B. Malone in 1981 and was one of the 1st such trails to be organised in Ireland. A memorial to him is placed on the trail coming of White Hill and approaching Lough Tay.

The trail can be broken into parts and covered over many days or weekends. There are a lot of places providing accommodation along the way from youth Hostels, B+B, Guesthouses and for those of you who enjoy their comforts a number of Hotels as well, Including a Ritz Carlton near Enniskerry.

The nicest thing about these long distance trails is that you can guide yourself along the way and take it all at your own pace.

Highlights along the way: The Wicklow Mountains National Park, excellent views over looking Dublin Bay, Prince William's seat, Lough Tay, Powerscourt Waterfall, Glendalough with it's 6th Century Monastic site, Glenmalure Valley, picturesque towns of Tinahely, Shillelagh and many more.

HilltopTreks provide guided and self guided vacations and walks along this trail. Check hilltoptreks.ie for more details.

Source: www.prlog.org

MSR Hubba Hubba HP Tent Wins Editor's Choice Award

Friday, 26 February 2010

Seattle, U.S.A. -- Cascade Designs, Inc., the Seattle-based industry leader in the design and manufacture of premier outdoor equipment, is proud to announce that the company's MSR Hubba Hubba HP tent has been honored with a highly respected Editor's Choice award from German-language adventure magazine outdoor. The tent was recognized for its lightweight, comfort and extreme durability.

Outdoor magazine's Editors' Choice Awards are only presented once a year to their favorite products based on months of testing in the field and the laboratory. This year, the editors tried out over 500 products through trekking tours in Europe, North and South America and Ozeania, ultimately choosing only 15 products as the best of the best. The MSR Hubba Hubba HP tent was chosen as a result of this testing as well as standing up to a 450 horsepower-strong wind machine in the laboratory.

Outdoor editors recognized the MSR Hubba Hubba HP tent for its "sensationally low weight - despite lush amenities" and noted that its "lightweight and weather performance impressed on test tours in the Rocky Mountains and Newfoundland."

The freestanding, two-person MSR Hubba Hubba HP tent is the high-performance version of the popular MSR Hubba Hubba tent. At only 1.69 kg, it features a lighter technical fabric and less mesh that provides superior protection in more extreme three-season conditions like snow, sand and wind. The all-in-one hub-and-swivel pole design is strong and simple to use and is uniquely configured to provide maximum interior space for two including two doors and two vestibules for gear.

The MSR Hubba Hubba HP is available in stores now, with a Moss Green-colored fly exclusive in Europe. The March Editors' Choice issue of outdoor magazine hits newsstands February 16, 2010.

Source: www.outdoorindustry.org

Insight HD with Host Hugh Downs

Friday, 26 February 2010

Boca Raton, FL -- In experiencing a severe economic downturn in almost every aspect of our society one would think that might stop people from traveling. But this is not the case. People are more interested now than ever in finding the best and most affordable vacations including the best in outdoor excursions. Tourism is a major factor in our economy and even President Obama continues to work to wards creating a more stable tourist agenda in the United States. Insight HD will be highlighting opportunities that speak to making tourism more stable in this new series.

The senior producer for the show said, "People will always want to travel and get away from it all when there is stress in their lives." What better way to do that then to get back to the great outdoors. Upon speaking with different industry experts, it appears that consumers are also traveling closer to home this year, so adventures in their own backyard will be more prevalent. "I'm sure we will see everyone getting back to nature," said the Executive Producer.

Data from the 2009 Outdoor Recreation Participation Report shows that an increasing number of Americans returned to nature and active outdoor excursion of activities last year. The study finds large participation increases in nearly every nature-based activity including double-digit increases in backpacking, mountain biking and trail running and close to a ten percent increase in hiking and camping. Overall participation trends in recreation, sports and fitness remained largely unchanged from last year.

"Americans, once again, are finding solace and security, adventure and excitement in the great outdoors," said Christine Fanning, executive director of The Outdoor Foundation. "During these challenging economic times, a return to affordable, nature-based recreation allows individuals, friends and families to reconnect - with one another, with the natural world and with natural values."

Insight HD will be highlighting companies and organizations that are bringing to light innovative outdoor excursions to the public. From rock climbing, to whitewater rafting, to hiking and biking vacations, Insight HD will be covering all areas of the outdoors for their Public TV series.

Source: www.pr.com

MH & Montrail Announce 2010 Gives Back Grants

Thursday, 25 February 2010

RICHMOND, Calif. - Sister companies Mountain Hardwear, Inc. and Montrail are pleased to announce the 2010 recipients their respective Gives Back Grant programs. For 2010, the Gives Back Board of Directors, all employees of the two companies, worked to narrow the focus of both Gives Back programs.

Mountain Hardwear Gives Back: Getting youth outdoors and fresh water.

Mountain Hardwear's primary focus for the first half of the year is Helping to Create the Next Generation of Outdoor Enthusiasts. In the second half of the year, the focus will shift to supporting research about the fresh water crises occurring in mountainous regions of the world. Stay tuned.

For the first half of the year, Mountain Hardwear will once again focus on funding and raising awareness about organizations that provide opportunities for underprivileged youth to attend an outdoor camp. Ten camps across the country where chosen to be part of the program. In addition to receiving funds, the camps benefit from added traffic to their websites driven by Mountain Hardwear's outreach and social media efforts. For every visitor to the Gives Back landing page and clicks on the Send a Kid to Camp button between now and April 15, 2010, Mountain Hardwear will donate one dollar towards the cost of camp for a youngster who would not normally have that opportunity, up to $40,000 total.

The following programs are part of the 2010 Send a Kid to Camp program:
Big City Mountaineers – Denver, Colorado
City Wild – Denver, Colorado
Girl Ventures – San Francisco, California
Kismet Rock Foundation - North Conway, New Hampshire
Outdoor Outreach - San Diego, California
San Jose Inner City Outings, Sierra Club – San Jose, California
St. Louis Inner City Outings, Sierra Club – St. Louis, Missouri
SOS Outreach - Avon, Colorado
Summer Search - New York, New York
Youth Enrichment Strategies (YES) - Richmond, California

Additional Mountain Hardwear Gives Back grants for 2010 are awarded to the following organizations:
Access Fund
American Alpine Club
American Mountain Guides Association
American Hiking Society
Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies
Conservation Alliance
Leave No Trace
Outdoor Industry Women's Coalition
The Outdoor Foundation

More information about the Mountain Hardwear Gives Back program can be found at www.mountainhardwear.com/GivesBack.aspx

Montrail Gives Back: Healthy Lifestyles and Healthy Trails. Montrail's primary focus has been narrowed to support trail running as a healthy lifestyle choice. For 2010, the board recognizes a local need for support of community races and school running programs in Montrail's backyard of the San Francisco Bay Area. Programs supported by Montrail for 2010 include:
Richmond YMCA Bayfront Run
Berkeley Athletic Fund
Richmond/Oakland area middle school running programs
Conservation Alliance
HERA Climb4Life Run

Montrail's secondary focus on maintaining and preserving healthy trails was supported with a fundraiser at the Winter Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake City, Utah in January. Montrail sold the Sabino Trail shoe to raise funds and awareness for wilderness designation of the Hardrock 100 Trail in Southern Colorado.

Source: www.outdoorindustry.org

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