Cub Scouts in Yardley, PA

Last Friday evening we were invited to talk about Leave No Trace with a pack of 14 Cub Scouts and their families in northern Pennsylvania. The opportunity to work with the kids through PEAK pack activities such as Minimum Impact Match allowed us to help the scouts make connections between the 7 Principles of Leave No Trace and enjoying the outdoors responsibly.
The evening wrapped up with a group discussion about the group's next adventure into the outdoors and how to approach outdoor recreation in a responsible way.

Ahead this week the Traveling Trainers visit Princeton University to work with students who will be facilitating outdoor recreation trips for incoming freshman during the fall of 2010.

All the best,

Jason and Agata

Bigfoot Sightings...!

Bigfoot has had an extremely active summer!  There have been rumors of sightings at the Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake City and the Lights On summer camp in Lander, WY.  There has also been confirmation that Bigfoot was seen dancing up a storm at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, Rocky Grass and Folks Fest,  the Planet Bluegrass music festivals in Colorado.  Apparently he likes to boogie! Keep your eyes peeled because Bigfoot could be attending an event near you.  If you have not seen him yet, worry not.  You can get your Bigfoot fix by taking this months Bigfoot Challenge and be entered to win great outdoor gear from our partners.  Remember, you can reenter each month of 2010 for your chance to win! 

Happy Adventuring...Kate, Tracy, and Bigfoot!

Picture(s) of the Week 8/27/10

Sometimes just one isn't enough...

Tracy over looks Wizard Island atop Mt. Garfield
Moon rise over Crater Lake

Happy Adventuring...Kate and Tracy

It's good to be back East

We've been back east for a few weeks now and luckily have had time to do some exploring as we travel and teach. While at the New River Gorge last week, we checked out historic downtown Fayetteville and hiked a number of trails to incredible panoramas of the gorge. On our way north from West Virginia, we decided to take the scenic route and enjoyed a winding drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway as well as a great hike out to McAfee's Knob (pictured above). Shenandoah National Park was our next stop and we enjoyed our visit despite the torrential downpour of rain we experienced at the Loft Mountain campground.

Keep an eye out for us in Pennsylvania and New Jersey in the weeks ahead as we continue our journey as Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers!


All the best,

Agata and Jason

Lizards, Hoodoos, and Goblins...Oh My!

On our way from Colorado to Oregon, we stopped in for a play day at Goblin Valley State Park in Utah. This park is a magical place covered in rock formations that resemble goblins! We arrived in the evening to a park lit by the full moon. We felt like we were on the moon, the way the terrain glowed and the stars sparkled. We awoke at sunrise and bicycled to the Goblin Valley in anticipation to explore this unspoiled terrain. We climbed, hiked, and photographed the area, all the while not running into another person the entire time! The silence of the morning was truly amazing. If you are even driving along I-70 in Utah, be sure to take the side trip and check out this park!

Happy Adventuring...Kate and Tracy

New River Gorge National River

On Saturday, we spent the day doing outreach at the Canyon Rim Visitor Center at the New River Gorge in West Virginia. We talked to over 1oo visitors who came to the Visitor Center to get information about the many hiking opportunities available in the park, to catch a glimpse of the gorge, or on their way to raft down the river.



The local TV station, WOAY, stopped by and interviewed Jason about the Leave No Trace program and our important partnership with the National Park Service. The piece was the highlight of the evening news program!

A special thank you to Jodi French-Burr for putting our visit together and being such a gracious host.

All the best,

Agata and Jason

Run, (in the forest), Run!

All week long, more than 250 athletes are lacing up their sneakers and testing their endurance at the Gore-Tex Trans Rockies Run. This race begins in Buena Vista, CO and travels for over 113 miles up to Beaver Creek, CO through beautiful mountain scenery along the Continental Divide Trail. We were excited to be invited to speak to all of the athletes during the opening ceremony dinner and share with them tips on how to leave no trace during the race, as well as share our latest Leave No Trace video! We joined all of the athletes at tent city, shown above, at the Arrowhead campground. The amazing part of this race is that the runners only need to worry about running through the high altitude terrain. Trans Rockies takes care of food, medical supplies, lodging, and entertainment! Gore-Tex and Solomon even provide a "relaxation station" where the athletes can recover after the days stage of the race. We were invited to be a part of the relaxation station and speak with the athletes about Leave No Trace.

One topic that continually came up was what to do with orange and banana peels on the trail. Even though these items are biodegradable, it can still take up to two years for one peel to decompose. Another reason to pack out those peels is the wild life impact they can represent when left behind. Once animals get a taste for human food, they can potentially lose their fear of humans and become habituated. This represents a potential dangerous situation for both humans and wildlife.

Transrockies, a partner of Leave No Trace, does an excellent job of educating their runners before the race begins about the skills and ethics of Leave No Trace through emails and newsletters. We applaud their efforts and look forward to working with them at future races.

Happy Adventuring...Kate & Tracy

Operation Purple at Camp Twin Creeks

We ventured into the far corner of southeastern West Virginia on Tuesday for a full day of presentations for the Operation Purple program at Camp Twin Creeks in Minnehaha Springs. Operation Purple is a program developed by our partner, the National Military Family Association, to provide an opportunity for kids with a mom or dad at war to go to camp.

Throughout the day, we taught the principles of Leave No Trace through various activities including, Watch Your Step, Minimum Impact Match, and How Long Does it Last?, to over 150 kids ranging in ages from 6 to 16. All the young campers were excited to learn about Leave No Trace and were enjoying themselves at camp.

All the best,

Agata and Jason

Rocky Mountain Folks Fest

Planet Bluegrass celebrated the 20th anniversary of the Folks Fest held every August in Lyons, CO. Camping is available on-site, so for the fourth year in a row, Planet Bluegrass has partnered with the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics to promote the "How Green Is Your Grass?" Campsite Challenge. We challenge festavarians to stop by our booth and let us know how they are being sustainable, creative, and clean at their campsites. A random winner is chosen each day, then from those three entries the grand prize winner is chosen. What is the grand prize you ask? None other than a pass for on-site camping at the festival the following year! The daily winners received an awesome prize package including a pair of Keen Shoes, Planet Bluegrass CDs and DVD, and Bigfoot also threw in a hat, patch, and a one year membership to Leave No Trace. Congratulations to all of the campsites that took the challenge of keeping your grass green!
Speaking of membership...we had twenty festivarians join Leave No Trace as individual members this weekend. Everyone who signed up for a membership at Folks Fest received a pair of Smartwool Socks and were entered in a drawing for a pair of Chaco Shoes or a Seal Line Urban Backpack from Cascade Designs! We want to thank all of our partners who support the Traveling Trainer Program! Also a big shout out goes to all of our volunteers this weekend- Betsy, Lindsey, Alex, Molly, and of course Bigfoot!

Happy Adventuring...Kate & Tracy

Hanging out with Yogi

We have spent the last three days on the Current River in Missouri at the Jellystone Park in Van Buren. We spoke to a number of families during the five sessions we held and introduced a variety of activities, including What Principle Am I?, How Long Does it Last?, Minimum Impact Match from the PEAK pack. At the last session, we made Leave No Trace posters for the campground. A special thank you to the Wacaster family for inviting us to their campground and for their enthusiasm!

All the best,

Agata and Jason

Jellystone Park camp resort

This week the Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers are visiting Van Buren, MO to work with staff and guests at the Jellystone Park camp resort. We will be teaching PEAK activities with Yogi and BooBoo in the morning sessions, and talking about enjoying the Frontcountry campground more responsibly in our evening sessions.

All the best,

Jason and Agata

PEAK Training in Salt Lake City

After a busy week at the Outdoor Retailer Show in Salt Lake City, we rejuvenated by hiking through the beautiful Big Cottonwood Canyon.  A little time in nature always provides much needed therapy after a nonstop work week.  After enjoying the fresh air of the mountains, we were back at it again providing a PEAK (Promoting Environmental Awareness in Kids) presentation at the REI store in Salt Lake City.  We trained 7 participants that have strong ties with teaching the youth of their community.  We would like to thank the enthusiastic Celeste Eppler for hosting the Traveling Trainer program.  We are already looking forward to a repeat visit  in the Salt Lake area.  Below is the two of us inviting the group to put on their 8 year old hats and enjoy the activity "What Principal Am I?"

Bigfoot sightings at Summer Outdoor Retailer

Lucky winners of the Great Gear Giveaway, sponsored by Backpacker Magazine and Subaru
Our youngest winner ever of the Great Gear Giveaway
Bigfoot entertains the crowd during the Great Gear Giveaway
High 5's for all of our daily winners
The eager crowds await the daily drawing

Day 9 @ The Boy Scout Jamboree

The group of volunteers and staff from the Boy Scouts Outdoor Ethics action center at the 100th anniversary National Jamboree. Many thanks to Charlie Thorpe and the entire crew for all the hard work put into this year's event.

All the best,

Jason and Agata

Day 8 @ The Boy Scout Jamboree

Consider joining Leave No Trace as a member. Special Jamboree membership benefits include Smartwool socks, a Bigfoot Patch, and your choice of a member t-shirt or water bottle.

Membership benefits include:

• One year subscription to Learn.Network.Together., Leave No Trace's electronic newsletters that keep you updated on programs;
• Personalized Leave No Trace membership card;
• The Membership Resource Guide to help you get involved and stay connected;
• Invitations to attend events and presentations in your area by others in the Leave No Trace community;
• 10% discounts on Leave No Trace educational materials and merchandise;
• Receive 10% off your gourmet backcountry purchase at PackIt Gourmet (email us for your password).
• The Leave No Trace bumper sticker and reference card;
• Memberships of $35 or more will receive either a limited edition Member t-shirt or a Leave No Trace waterbottle;
• Eligibility for the Subaru VIP Partners Program after six months of being a member, helping you save as much as $3,300 when you purchase or lease a new Subaru;
• Unique discount opportunities from other Leave No Trace partners for cool schwag and gear;
• Access to the on-line Coleman Pro Store (email us for your password), to take advantage of exclusive prices on quality outdoor gear and accessories;
• Satisfaction that you are furthering your essential role in spreading Leave No Trace.

Day 7 @ The Boy Scout Jamboree

Everyone is getting excited about the Bigfoot Challenge. Check it out here.

All the best,

Agata and Jason