Search results for: travel

Not a teacher? Then don’t even think about volunteering for a week in a school or orphanage abroad. That’s just one of the guidelines Susan E. Gibson, Author of “How To Be An Amazing Volunteer Overseas: Stories from the Field, Rules of the Road” presents in her book. Because volunteering abroad is not just about visiting a new destination and getting warm fuzzies from doing good. Sometimes volunteering is harder work than you anticipated. Sometimes it does more harm than good. And sometimes it’s extremely beneficial to the local community. So for this Sustainability Spotlight we sat down with Susan and asked her to summarize, in a nutshell, how to volunteer abroad (the right way).

Many people who happen to be familiar with the Lake Placid region in New York think of it as a delightful summer destination (I mean, the lake says it all, am I right?). But those in the know know that it’s just as magical in the winter and provides a whole different experience. And it’s a rad experience. We recently spent some time playing in the snow in the area, so here’s our recommendations for all manner of Lake Placid winter activities so you can enjoy the fourth season.

Just about everything we do, everything we buy, sustainable or not, has a carbon footprint, meaning it creates harmful greenhouse gases of one sort or another. That includes the manufacturing of your favorite recycled rain jacket or vegan hiking boots. But while these gases can’t be avoided, they CAN be offset and balanced. Meaning a company, brand, heck, even an individual (yes, even you, dear friend), can put in the effort (and the cash) to make that foot print a little lighter. Think, oh, I dunno, footprints on the beach getting erased by the tide. Once a company (or, you know, you) offset 100% or more of those harmful emissions via sustainable endeavors that create carbon-positive effects, you can proudly call yourself carbon neutral. And that is a solid mark of a sustainable brand. But it can be an expensive, time consuming, and highly complicated achievement to reach. Which is why Climate Neutral exists: to help more brands and companies, large and small, reduce their footprint by becoming carbon neutral. So we quizzed Climate Neutral’s CEO, Austin Whitman, on the company’s mission and how they plan to achieve it. Read on to get the scoop.

Avid outdoorists are often guilty of getting so immersed in the culture of outdoor recreation that we throw around technical and highly specialized terms as if the whole world uses them in casual conversation. Usually, they don’t. Sorry about that. So we thought we’d throw together a quick backpacking dictionary full of commonly used hiking terms so if you’re new to the whole trail slang thang, you can nod knowingly when someone talks about getting beta for their thru-hike where they might have to do some bushwhacking and hope they don’t have to call SAR if they lose sight of the cairns. See what we mean? So read up and a carry on a hiking convo like a pro!

A quality cooler, whether you’re on a road trip or weekend camping trip, is a beautiful thing. After all, there’s nothing worse than opening your cooler after gathering a team to lug it to the campsite, just to find out your ice has melted and your beer/hard cider/Topo Chico is warm and your hummus has already started growing green fuzz. We wouldn’t wish that on anyone. So allow us to introduce you to the RovR cooler: the coolest, uh…cooler…for all manner of travel and outdoor adventure. Wanna know more? Read (or watch) to learn all about what makes the RovR RollR Cooler so rad.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, split between Tennesee and North Carolina, is the country’s most visited national park. Like, by a lot. A lot, a lot. This park, which is free to visit, btw, saw over 12 million visitors last year. Twelve! Million! The next most-visited park only saw a little over three! So yeah, it’s safe to say that the Smokies are overrun with tourists and visitors, especially if you’re on the south side of the park around the Blue Ridge Parkway. Fortunately, there’s a trick to avoiding the massive amounts of people (and traffic) rambling through the area: head to the quiet side of the Smokies, the northern edge where there are still picturesque hiking trails and adventures galore, just a lot fewer people. Wanna know what things to do on the peaceful side of the Smokies? Here’s what we recommend.

It’s one of the most common fears people cite when asked what they’re most afraid of when contemplating spending time outdoors: animals. Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Well, mostly mountain lions, bears, and snakes, but you get the picture. That said, those aren’t the only animals you should be cautious around when out and about in wilderness areas (don’t forget about bison, moose and alligators)! So if you want a quick cheat-sheet for what to do when you encounter a wild animal on the trail, we’ve got you covered. Read on for how to respond to the 8 most common animal encounters you’re likely to experience in the wild.

Not gonna lie, a little over a year ago when my dad said, “I really wanna go backpacking in Isle Royale National Park next summer; wanna come?” I was 100% not sure where the heck Isle Royale even was. So after a quick map search (it’s an island in Lake Superior) and a brief discussion of whether it’s pronounced roy-al as in Royale with cheese or roil as in the royal family (park rangers use the latter pronunciation), followed by a hearty bout of laughter brought on by my parents thinking I plan more than a month in advance…Isle Royal National Park was suddenly very much on my radar.

We’re always on the lookout for a quality pair of kicks here at Terradrift. Usually, that means vegan hiking boots or shoes. But we don’t live our lives in hiking books. In fact, we very frequently slip on a pair of sneaks for travel or just wandering around town. And when we do, we like those shoes to be sustainable and versatile. Enter the Astral Hemp Loyak. One sustainable, stylish, and yes, comfy, shoe. Because what else would you expect from us?

It’s still hiking season! So are you ready to hit the trail? But going hiking doesn’t mean you have to spend multiple days in the wilderness. Short day hikes are just as wonderful a way to spend time in nature and more accessible and achievable by everyone from city folks who just want to enjoy the outdoors for a couple of hours to seasoned hikers and trail runners stoked for a challenge. So pack a small backpack (whether it’s with your camera and a celebratory beer to enjoy at the viewpoint or just some trail snacks and hiking poles–just don’t forget the 10 essentials) and get to it! Don’t have a small backpack? Then check out these sustainable daypacks–they’re just what you need to get the job done.