With the current debate over the plastics used in water bottles and how harmful they may or may not be to the average person, I have to admit I'm keeping my eye open for alternatives (besides, my new backpack has a really big water bottle pocket and my current one keeps falling out).

I was pretty happy to see Steel Valley Outdoors featured a recent post, Drinking Water and Hydration Solutions about the various types of water bottles available today, from the feared plastic, to steel (very tempting!) to the increasingly popular hydration packs. Water purification and filtration is also discussed, right down to an amazing pen that sterilizes water!

Maybe I'm old school, but I'm really tempted to go with the ole' wineskin pictured here.

For a lot of folks, bringing their four-legged canine friends along on outdoor adventures is an absolute must. Now Rover or Spot can help lighten your load with a trail pack all his own.

The Approach Pack II (available from RuffWear) ranges in sizes from XX Small and up, covering most breeds that would join you outdoors. It uses a spiderweb harass to secure the pack in a comfortable way.

Before you go strapping a weekend's worth of food to Fido though, make sure to understand the safety aspects of having your dog pack carry extra weight. An excellent article: Make hiking safe, fun for canine companions with special gear, from the Citizen-Times covers some important things to know. One highlight from the article: while wearing a pack can give your dog an extra workout, never load more than one-third your dog's weight, and remember that the additional weight will shorten how far your dog can travel.

This might be the sweetest device you hope you'll never have to use. The SPOT Satellite Messenger could quite possibly save your life.

The gps unit can be used to check in with friends and family, send a personalized distress message, or send for 911 rescue. Using satellites and SPOT emergency services, your location can be pinpointed even in areas where cell phone service is unavailable.

The unit is built to only send messages, not receive them, and is not the best choice for those more interested in GPS tracking units, but if you tend to spend a lot of time in the outdoors, back country or the wild, this could easily wind up being the most important gadget you carry.

For more info, visit the Spot site at FindMeSpot.com

Over 2,000 people have climbed Everest. More than 450 have been into space. Only 34 have rowed solo across the Atlantic Ocean, from the Canary Islands to Antigua. No one has achieved it in less than 42 days.

That's the way Sam Williams began his explanation for wanting to become the 35th person to row across the Atlantic Ocean. Sound like a good enough reason, right? Wrong. Turns out Williams motivation was to also raise more than £20,000 for FARM-Africa.

And last Thursday, after 75 days, 4 hours, and 43 minutes, Williams and Pacific Pete (his boat) arrived at Nelsons Dockyard Marina in English Harbour Antigua, after leaving La Gomera, Canary Islands.

I won't bore you with written details. Watch his story for yourself.

© allspice1
If you're like me, you're getting tired of the high gas prices affecting everything you do. And I do mean everything! From flying to off roading to simply driving to work and back, its getting out of hand.

There's something I CAN do that isn't going to cost me an arm and a leg, though, and I can invololve the entire family, including Gordon Leaf-Killer... I can go hiking!

There are no less than 4 different places to hike within a few miles of my house. (A great benefit to living in hickoryville.) If I don't mind driving for 15 or 20 minutes, there are even more places to hike that are not burdened with dozens of other people with the same idea as me.

If the cost of gas is getting you down, walk out!

© Joshua Davis (new website at jdavis.info)



Winter is over in the Northern Hemisphere, and that means bears are starting to wake up. And they're hungry! If you've ever seen the spongebob squarepants episode where Sandy Cheeks the squirrel is hibernating. She is rudely woken up by Spongebob and Patrick, and she's grumpy!

Mind your manners when you go hiking for the next few weeks. Make a bit of noise and try not to surprise any sleeping bears. It's not as bad as when they've got cubs around, but now is not a good time to go face to face with a bear.

If you are confronted, the best plan is to not be scared. Stay calm, don't look it in the eye, don't run. Walk away, talking calmly but loudly to yourself. Talking will help the bear realize you're human and that it doesn't want to mess with you.

San Diego's Balboa Park Gets Trashed by Earth Day Celebration

Yesterday, April 20 2008, was Earth Fair Day at San Diego's Balboa Park.

This is the largest free annual environmental fair in the world. Aside from the polluting gas powered generators stinking up the place, aside from the miles of congestion and grid-lock in and around the Balboa Park area during the event, aside from the tons of trash left all over the park and parking lot and surrounding area, aside from the hundreds of tie-dyed shirts getting stoned in the parking lot, aside from the wall to wall bodies everywhere, Balboa Park was the place to go this weekend to use massive amounts of energy and generate tons of trash and pollution to show hundreds of energy-saving, green products to help stop man made global warming, err, I mean climate change.

It's amazing how much disregard for nature there is at these events intended to, you know... protect nature.