giveaway

When I sign up to be an ambassador for a brand, one of the major draws is being able to give something back to our readers/viewers. It’s a great way to be able to say Thank you. This week we’re working with the Sierra Trading Post hub to give away $50 gift cards to 3 random winners!

The #TeamSierra project

#Teamsierra bloggers contribute all sorts of useful articles to both encourage your outdoor adventures and give you tips on how to make them safer, more fun and all-round more awesome. We all have our own Forte, so if you love the outdoors, you’re bound to enjoy the hub.

If you haven’t checked out the articles, I recommend you head over there to the Sierra Trading Post Hub and catch up on some reading.

Here are some typical posts that I’ve found interesting:

5 Common Backpacking Mistakes That Can Cost You Your Life – We all make mistakes, but not being prepared in the back country can be a lot worse than just feeling miserable. Check out Andy’s tips on how to avoid these big oopsies.

Brand Spotlight – Every week they post a brand spotlight that tells a bit about the background of a brand… oh and it includes a giveaway too! A couple years back I picked up a fancy pair of trail runners via the spotlight and my wife even won a pair of Winter Pack boots.

3-ways Outdoor Adventure Gets Easier As Kids Get Older – Traci encourages those of us with smaller kids to hang on and keep adventuring. It gets easier the older they get.

How to Find Dog Friendly Trails – Jessica shares her tips on how to find hikes that you and your canine will find enjoyable.

The Best Campsite Dessert Ever – I have to admit, this campsite friendly dessert looks pretty amazing. I started looking for a cast-iron dutch oven when I read this article.

How to choose a fishing rod and reel – A great video tip from John Chlarson of Intense Angler fame.

How do I enter to win one of 3 $50 Sierra Trading Post Gift Cards?

I know what I enjoy, but I want to know what kinds of tips and posts you want to see both on my site (The Outdoor Adventure) and on the Sierra Trading Post Hub.

Leave a comment below and enter using the rafflecopter widget. Oh, and feel free to use this 30% off coupon code ‘SHUB73114’ good until 8/31.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

On my first backpacking trip, I was introduced to something called beaver fever (or giardia). I remember a friend’s dad pulling out a mess of hoses and filters and a pump… and then sitting around, taking turns to filter water for a group of about twenty people. It took a long time, but there wasn’t much alternative. We didn’t get sick, but we didn’t want to ruin our trip by suffering from intestinal problems in the backcountry.

Water-born parasites are all too common in lakes and streams, especially in areas with lots of people, wildlife and/or cattle.

In fact, you don’t even have to head into the backcountry to need a backup method for water purification. At least twice a year we have boil-water advisories in our town, due to runoff from the snow and rain.

Check out these quick reviews of some Potable Aqua products and then enter to win a Coleman cooler filled with supplies for your summer outdoor activities.

Portable Aqua Ambassador

I spend as much time in the backcountry as I can, so water purification is common practice. On the John Muir Trail, I had to purify gallons of water every day. That regular need for reliable water purification was the reason I accepted when I was asked to be a brand ambassador for Potable Aqua.

Potable Aqua is a trusted name in water purification. Their product line offers several options for water purification including Iodine tablets, Chlorine Dioxide tablets and very soon a tiny, portable electrolytic water purifier “PURE”.

Here’s a quick look at what I’ve received so far:

Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets

Potable Aqua® Drinking Water Germicidal Tablets & Potable Aqua Plus

These tablets are a standby product great for purifying your water from Giardia. Potable aqua tablets are used and proved by military and emergency organizations.

How do they work?

They use Iodine to kill off bacteria like Giardia, that can cause serious problems. Two tablets treat a liter of water in 35 minutes.

Iodine Tablets

Iodine is a reliable short-term solution for water purification. They’re suited for emergency kits at home, on the trail, in a boat or in the car. The small bottle of tablets is perfect for long-term storage and they have a shelf life of 4 years.

These tablets are designed to handle even cloudy, cold or extreme pH levels in water, meaning they’re a very reliable solution.

Neutralizer

Potable Aqua Plus contains a neutralizer that can remove the iodine taste and colour from the water if that bothers you.

What we think:

Chemical tablets aren’t everyone’s first choice, but Potable Aqua and Potable Aqua Plus are a proven method to get clean, bacteria free drinking water. The 35 minute purifying time can be worked around with a bit of planning. We like to drink our remaining water at the water source, fill up, drop in the chemicals and then hit the trail.

Both of these products work swimmingly when used as directed and they really are simple to use. If you’re looking to go lightweight in backpacking, or need something compact and small to put into your emergency kits for home, fishing, camping or in the car, these water purification tablets are perfectly suited for your needs.

Potable Aqua® Chlorine Dioxide Tablets

I’m no stranger to Chlorine Dioxide. I used it to purify all my water for the 221 mile John Muir Trail. Chlorine Dioxide has the benefit of not only handling Giardia, but a wide variety of other bacteria and cysts (like Cryptosporidium) without generating harmful bi-products.

Chlorine Dioxide

Chlorine Dioxide is very commonly used; it’s even used in the treatment of water at community water treatment facilities.

The tablets are easy to use, and the boxes come in 20 and 30 tablet blister packs. 1 tablet treats 1 liter of water.

To be completely effective, the packaging recommends that you wait 4 hours for water to be completely purified. This is to take into account cloudy water, etc. It’s a long time, but a more effective choice than Iodine where water is even more questionable.

What we thought:

I like to use Chlorine Dioxide when backpacking. Typically I’ll finish off my water at a water source and refill while there. The tablets can be dropped in my water containers and I can resume hiking. If my water is clear, and not too questionable I don’t wait the 4 hours recommended unless the water is really questionable.

That said, the tablet form of Chlorine dioxide, with its 4 year shelf life is best suited for emergency situations.

Win a Cooler full of outdoors goodies!

Do you live in the US or Canada and want to win a cooler of Coleman and Potable Aqua gear? Check out these items and enter using the Rafflecopter widget:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

This affiliate deal has come to an end. I hope you all enjoy your packs. Feel free to email me if you’d like another discount code on a Gossamer Gear Pack.

Interested in 15% off awesome lightweight backpacking gear for the summer? If so, I’m happy to announce that I can share a 15% Gossamer Gear backpacking discount with you!

If you’ve been around my blog for a while, you’ve probably noticed my pack. Scratch that, packs. Last year, a few month after owning my first Gossamer Gear backpack, I applied to be a member of the Gossamer Gear ambassador program. It was a no-brainer for me. I love their lightweight and comfortable packs. In fact, I took the 40-liter Gorilla on the John Muir Trail! I use the 70-liter Mariposa for family trips to hold the bulk gear too! Gossamer Gear make incredibly durable, lightweight packs and other gear, and I’m really happy to be able to announce their 15% off affiliate code.

If you shop Gossamer Gear, using the affiliate coupon ~Sorry! No Longer Valid~ you get 15% off any and all purchases on the Gossamer Gear website for the foreseeable future! Every purchase you make using the coupon also translates to a small credit in the Gossamer Gear store for me too, which means more blog content for you to see on our site.

Regardless of whether you use our coupon, or another Gossamer Gear Trail Ambassador‘s coupon, I strongly recommend you take advantage of this discount on not just a backpack, but on any of their other gear.

Apply the coupon ~Sorry! No Longer Valid~ to your shopping cart at Gossamer Gear to get 15% off:

• Backpacks
• Shelters
• Lightweight Trekking poles
• Cook and Water Treatment

Note: This coupon cannot be combined with other offers.

Oh, and don’t forget to check out some great Backpacking reports on their Trail Blog.

Now, tell us: Have you ever tried a Gossamer Gear Backpack or shelter? What do you think?

At the Outdoor Adventure, we love the great, natural and clean outdoors… and we like to keep it that way. Getting outdoors and preserving the outdoors goes hand in hand. Earth Day rolls around on April 22, 2014, and we see it as an opportunity to reflect on the importance of our decisions and actions and their effect on our and subsequent generations. It helps us set goals on what we will do greener this year.

Whether it’s cutting down on waste, starting composting, planting a tree, choosing to more efficient and green options or simply turning off the lights and getting outdoors for a walk, there are lots of opportunities to make little changes that add up to big steps in keeping the earth clean.

To help get out the word about making green changes, we’re working with a bunch of bloggers and brands to encourage everyone to make some green decisions and get outdoors. To spread the word we’re offering 3 amazing prize packages in the theme of green in a contest open to anyone in the US or Canada. You can enter below in the Rafflecopter widget.

Here’s what’s up for grabs in 3 different prize packages:

Get Active! (Grand Prize)
Onya Baby: Recycled NexStep Onya Baby Carrier with Organic Booster & Chewies ($195)
KIND Mixed case of KIND Healthy Grains Bars ($39)
Taylor’s Pure & Natural 2 PITS! & 2 PITS! Spray (winner chooses scent) ($33)

Total Prize Pack Value: $267

Get Growing! (Prize Pack 2)
Sage Spoonfuls Glass Let’s Get Started kit, Glass Snack Pack, and a pack of Bamboo Spoons ($123)
Cubit’s Bee Friendly Seed Collection ($20)
Green Toys Gardening Kit ($23)
Green Team Distribution Mosquitno SpotZzz ($4)
Goddess Garden Kids Sport Spray, Kids Continuous Spray, and a Facial Sunscreen ($60)
Total Prize Pack Value: $230

Get Playing! (Prize Pack 3):
Green Toys Tugboat, Sand Play Set, and Tractor ($57)
Pure Play Kids Fishing Rod Set ($30)
Old South Essentials Bug Repellant Essential Oils Blend ($8)
Eyla’s Imports Scout & Stainless Aqua Vessel Water Bottles ($55)
Total Prize Pack Value: $150

a Rafflecopter giveaway

We’d like to hear what green changes you’re making in your life to keep this place a bit cleaner and greener.

I’ve saved literally thousands of dollars shopping at the Sierra Trading Post. I almost exclusively shop there for everyone in the family. Why? Because I can buy high quality brands at incredible
prices. From my first pair of kids Vasque runners for $16 to my Mountain Hardwear snow pants, there isn’t much that I can’t get, and get cheap, at their store.

I usually keep a cart full of stuff and wait for their discount codes on twitter and at the hub (Like this awesome 30% off code SHUBTS0613 you can use this week at http://www.sierratradingpost.com). This year I even picked up four sets of snowshoes and had them shipped to Canada for cheaper than I could buy them anywhere else!

As you may know, I accepted an offer to join their #TeamSierra blogging program. The Team Sierra crew has been posting all sorts of great articles on the Sierra Trading Post blog site (The Sierra Trading Post Hub). Definitely check them out. One of the things they offered in return was a promised $100 gift card giveaway for one of our followers. So, let’s get right to that!

How to win $100!

So, here’s what we’re going to do. You’ve got a couple options:

• Leave a comment below telling us something you?ve purchased or would like to purchase at the sierra trading post (links are appreciated). (only one entry will count!).
• Tweet the following:
  Enter to win a $100 gift card via @bcoutdoor, @sierratp and the #TeamSierra bloggers! http://www.theoutdooradventure.net/2013/12/100-sierra-trading-post-teamsierra-giveaway
  We’ll choose one entry at random at the end of the week.

Extra 30% off

Even if you don’t win, you can take advantage now of a special 30% off code. Click here and use this code: SHUBTS0613 good until December 22nd, 2013. (Some exclusions apply.)

Participate with us:
If you want to get involved with outdoors minded folks, feel free to get involved at:

• The Sierra Trading Post Social Hub
• Twitter
  – Sierra Trading Post Twitter account
  – Weekly #stplive twitter chat
• The Outdoor Adventure on Twitter

Starting tomorrow, we’re rolling out 3 weeks of awesome gear package giveaways. We’ve been working with some great companies so we can share reviews of great outdoor gear and at the same time give you you an opportunity to win some of it. Tell your friends, tell your family. You don’t want to miss it!