The WondaWedge

• Fishing
• Reading outside
• Reading/watching TV in bed
• At the beach/pool
• At an outdoor concert

There are many uses for the WondaWedge, and since it’s inflatable storage is a snap. One thing I would like to see is a quick deflate opening. That is the one minus I saw as it took several minutes to squeeze all of the air out.

Info:

• Weight: Under one pound without carrying bag. (15 ounces)
• Height: ~18 inches
• Width: ~17 inches

What do you thing about the WondaWedge? You can purchase one on their site. Let me know what you think of it.

May 11, 2010 update: 20% off at checkout! Use the code WILD510 when checking out.

The wondaWedge

WondaWedge in use

I was not given any money for this review however I was supplied the product to review. Just letting you know.

Hello everyone! Boy this oil spill is a real disaster for wildlife. Check out this article by the National Wildlife Federation on how you can help. I’m a little low on funds for donating right now so I’m going out to help on a social basis. Here are a couple of helpful twitter accounts, if you know of any others please add your comments.

• NWF
• John Amos

Please also check out this article on how they’re cleaning the birds. It takes up to 4 people up to 45 minutes to wash a large bird!

You can also help out by stumbling this article or the NWF article to help with traffic and building awareness. Thanks!

Womp'em Sticks

• Scrambled eggs with crumbled sausage
• Peanut butter mixed with jelly
• Marshmallows! (MMMM) Roasted marshmallows even better!
• A roasted hot dog with your favorite condiments

The Womp’em Sticks also come with a metal attachment that will hold your hot dog, marshmallow, or anything else you need to skewer and cook over your camp fire. The Womp’em Sticks also come in a handy container for easy storage in between uses. For more information about the Womp’em Sticks or to purchase them use this link. YouTube video.

Womp'em Sticks 2

Womp'em Sticks with attachment

Spot GPS Satellite Messenger

• Send a SOS/911 message. If you are in a serious accident or situation this one button call for help can be, quite literally, a life saver.
• Send a Help message. If your situation is not dire but you need some help from a friend then you can notify them of your need with the press of a button.
• Check in with loved ones with an ‘Ok’ Message.
  Send a custom messages back to your family with your GPS determined location.

Hike or camp with the peace of mind that your loved ones know you’re ok with the SPOT Messenger.

In all there are 74 ways to enter! Go here for full contest details and to enter the contest.

Geocaching App

Overall I really like this app. It’s around $10.00 and lets the novice break into geocaching with out spending alot of money on an GPS device. I did say something earlier about saving something for offline mode. Offline mode is good for when your iPhone cannot get service. I recommend saving a cache to offline mode each time. You never know when your phone might loose service when you’re tracking down a cache that is deep into a leaf covered woods. Also if you do not have service the satellite view will not show up at least the version I have.

Another feature I like with this app is it’s tie in with the geocaching.com website. I can mark a cache as found on my phone and it will show up on the website. Great feature. Another reason why I didn’t mind spending $10 for the app. Now I’m just waiting for the ground to dry out so I can get back out there and finally find Lumppy’s Loot!

What do you think of the Geocaching app for the iPhone? If you do not have it yet and you’re interested in starting the geocaching hobby I definitely recommend this app.

Music used in this podcast is from a band called 77 South and the song is I Dig You.

GORE-TEX

Only One Week Left to Enter the GORE-TEX® Brand Experience More Challenge

The winner will receive $10,000 towards planning their dream adventure

Elkton, MD (January 6, 2010) – The GORE-TEX® brand Experience More Challenge ends on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 11:59 p.m. The online contest launched on December 3, 2009 in conjunction with the brand’s new online community, www.MyExperienceMore.com. In the first month, 750 members have registered for the community and more than 250 experiences have been shared.

“We are seeing that people who love the outdoors also love to connect with one another and share their experiences,” states Melissa Riggs, GORE-TEX® brand marketing. “Our goal is to continue to provide a community where they can do just that.”

The Experience More Challenge invites community members to share their outdoor experiences for a chance to win the experience of their dreams. Members can submit photos of themselves “experiencing more” outdoors, and community members are invited to rate these experiences. Entries receiving a certain average rating will then be considered for six finalist positions, chosen by a panel of Gore representatives. The six finalists will receive GORE-TEX® gear and will be reevaluated by the online community, who will vote for the winner of the Experience More Challenge. The Grand Prize Winner will receive up to $10,000 towards planning his/her own dream experience, including expenses and gear. Additionally, the GORE-TEX® brand will donate $5,000 to one of 10 participating outdoor non-profits, to be selected by the winner.

About W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.

With more than $2.5 billion in annual sales and approximately 9,000 employees in 30 countries worldwide, W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc., provides diverse, high-performance solutions in consumer, industrial, electronic, medical, and surgical markets. As well-known for its unique corporate culture as for its products, Gore’s 50-year success story rests equally on product and organizational innovation. Perhaps best known as the inventors of expanded PTFE (ePTFE) and the makers of GORE-TEX® fabric, Gore is a leading manufacturer of thousands of advanced technology products that comprise a breadth of capabilities.

Gore logo

Thanks for stopping by! In this podcast I get to talk to Melissa Riggs who is a marketing associate with Gore’s fabric marketing division. Melissa and I talk about Gore’s new outdoor community called Gore Experience More. Some highlights:

• Free to register
• Free to upload pics
• Add your friends
• Enter for your chance to win $10,000 for your dream outdoor experience!
• Winner will also get to donate $5,000 to an outdoor charity

I figure the 4th point above will get you to register! Who couldn’t use $10k for their favorite outdoor experience! What’s your dream experience? Feel free to share it in the comments.

GORE-TEX

Hello everyone! I wanted to let you know about a new outdoors portal that you may be interested in checking out. Head over to My Experience More and enter for your chance to win $10,000 to make your dream outdoor experience come true! The winner will also get $5,000 donated to their favorite outdoor charity! Come be a part of this new outdoor portal. After you register you will be able to customize your profile and upload your favorite outdoor pictures. Here is my profile. Add me after you have registered. My Experience More is also on facebook you can become a fan here.

Add me when you register at the My Experience More outdoors website. Maybe one of the readers here at Great Wild Outdoors will win the $10k :]

The days may be getting cooler and shorter but this is no reason to keep yourself cooped up indoors! No matter where you are in this big ol world there are things you can do outdoors. From life in the big city to life in the country there are ways to get out and enjoy this beautiful time of year. The beauty of fall is not to be missed! From the range of colors on the trees to their crunch underfoot a beautifully crisp autumn day calls out to be experienced.

Life has me living in a big city these days. The parks of the city are my best source for a chance to experience autumns natural glory. My area is full of so much diversity that just lately there have been a few unannounced firework shows celebrating different and exotic holidays. An old British tradition is one that I have fast fallen in love with, a game called Conkers! The conker nut grows all over England and this is when they drop. This game is played by putting a hole in the conker to thread on a bit of string, people compete to crash and break each others conkers. Soon there will be hot roasted chestnuts available, why not try finding some of your own to roast?

I grew up a farm girl and while I love city life I long for some of the joys of fall in the country. From hay rides to huge bonfires the country freedom made for some of the best outdoor fun. A great way for city folk to have a taste of that fun is with the pumpkin picking trips. If you don’t actually know how to make a pumpkin pie from a raw pumpkin and don’t have room for huge jack-o-lanterns small towns often have lively festivals and events to entice and delight. Living in the southern country side of the US as a kid the churches were a great source of outdoor community activities. The would organize the hay rides for kids, teens, and adults who are kids at heart. If you don’t fancy a church activity why not organize your own with your friends and family? My family had loads of yearly traditions, we had our annual pot-luck and our annual bonfire night where everyone was invited.

Fall does not need to be a cold, wet and miserable experience. You may have mini adventures instead of major ones, this means you can be spontaneous and discover your local autumn treasures. You may not venture far from your city or town but themed markets offering exotic foods or goods contribute to the holiday season that just begins in fall and lasts all the way to Christmas! If you don’t find local activities already set up, why not start your own! From ice skating to roasting chestnuts chances are you will inspire everyone around you to get into the spirit.

Justin’s note: Leaf piles are a favorite fall activity for many kids! It’s a great way to get the yard raked and the kids get a reward for their work: a leaf pile!

Boy and His Leaf Pile

Have you ever wanted a better way to add wood to your campfire? If so you really need to check out Campfire Tongs! I used them and they make managing your campfire an ease! No more burning hairs on your arm or leather gloves that heat up quickly. With Campfire Tongs you can safely add wood to your campfire. I’ll add a video below you can also see more pictures of the tongs in action here on flickr.

Campfire tongs features:

• Quick setup
• Sturdy construction
• Long enough to keep your body out of the fire
• Used to either add new wood or move burning wood around
• Lightweight aluminum grips
• Solid wood handles

Here’s a quick movie I made.

Here is an official video of the Campfire Tongs.

Department of Goods

I have five invites to the new Department of Goods website. Never pay full price again for your outdoor needs!

Want an invite? Leave me a comment below. I’ll e-mail you an invite and reply to your comment when I have sent your invite. If you get an invite I ask that you share yours on your blog too.

Too many times I have been out at my Grandpa’s in the woods and I see wrappers or shells left by careless hunters or other people enjoying his land. I try to carry a bag with me just in case I see someone else’s garbage out there while I’m out. In Cub Scouts my son learned about the Leave No Trace program. Maybe that program would be good for some of the people who use my Grandpa’s woods and three ponds (that link is not to my Grandpa but to a cool post I wanted to share, check it out) We always make sure that when we leave everything is the same as when we arrived and I think that is an important part of preserve and respecting the outdoors. I know if my son watches me pick up after myself he will in turn pick up his garbage (most of the time on his own). The main reason for this post is this: think about your actions when you’re enjoying the outdoors. Even if it’s playing ladder golf with the neighbors or the Great American Backyard Campout. No one likes to come along after you and pick up your mess. (Not even your Mom )

I’ll cut it off here. Just remember whatever you are doing outdoors, pick up after yourself and enjoy the outdoors!

This post is part of the OBS Challenge. Are you up to the challenge?