Adventure Anywhere, really.

Working at NEMO has some great perks—I'm not going to lie. Having a love for the outdoors and access to a vast array of top-of-the-line gear really enables us to have some serious adventures. This past weekend I was able to try Hexalite 6P (new for 2012). Although we have already identified this new product as an ideal shelter for groups in need of a large communal space, I never really thought about it as an ice fishing shelter. Just as I was packing up for our annual ice fishing trip I perused the weather report for Danforth, Maine and decided that instead of standing in blowing snow and freezing rain for 3 days I should find a tent or shelter to protect us while attempting to catch lunker lake trout and salmon.

This turned out to be a better idea than I could have ever imagined. Although the predicted winds were supposed to be about 5 mph and a balmy 25 degrees, we were in for a big surprise when the wind started gusting between 30-40 mph...non-stop, sunup til sundown. About mid day we decided it was time to strengthen our shelter with a few more ice screws and some extra guy-out cord. This added strength kept the shelter nice and taut.

Bolted.

Capron, old friend from college with his 4.47 lb salmon

Set up with no footprint or floor, we didn't have to worry about taking off boots or making the floor dirty. Hexalite gave us not only a great place to duck out of the wind but also a place to drill a few holes and fish with the jigging rods.

The best fish of the weekend, a 8 lb Lake Trout

We made our temporary home over a mile from land for 3 days, caught some great fish, ate some amazing food (including an entire roasted turkey), devoured piles of fresh scallops and of course, fresh salmon!

beautiful male salmon

It just goes to show, NEMO can really help you have Adventure Anywhere.

-Bill

Sights from SLC

Some pics from the Winter Outdoor Retailer show in SLC last week. The snow came after most of us left, but that didn't stop us from searching for it.

-Connie

Local Wildlife: The Snowy owl

Its been a while since I last posted about the amazing natural world found right around our office. In fact, the last time I posted we were still located in our Nashua office. Our move to Dover, NH opened a new world of animals and birds to be discovered.

With our new location so close to the seacoast I have had a great opportunity to explore all the nooks and crannies of the rugged New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine coast, all of which are just a short drive away.

Although hardly considered "local" I wanted to share some hard earned images of the Snowy Owl.


Many years can pass where local residents may not see even a single owl, while other years such as this one, the owls migrate down in droves in search of food. From what research suggest the owls move solely on the population of voles. When the population recedes, the owls move further south. This article in the New York Times has great information about this migration as well as its possible effects.


Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed witnessing such an amazing bird! More photos can be found here.
Cheers
Bill

This Year's Snow Drought

As a World Freeskiing Champion and the founder of the Save Our Snow Foundation, and award-winning global cooling consultant, I'm often asked about my viewpoints on climate change in regard snow droughts, like we are experiencing this year.

I found that people couldn't relate to "climate change" and that the term "global warming" left people confused, so I switched to "global weirding." That term more accurately describes what is happening -- while the planet is actually warming, the actual result is extreme weather. Global temperature increases result in really strange local weather -- record low temperatures, record heat waves, more windy weather, record droughts, and yes, even record snowstorms. As the air warms, it can hold more moisture, so in the short term we can have larger snowfalls. In the long term, more of those storms will fall as rain.

Today in Colorado, we are seeing record dust storms that are assisting in extremely early snowmelt -- up to 40 days earlier than historic records. I don't think anyone has to be a rocket scientist to see that the weather is a bit weirder than usual. The extremes are just so much more pronounced. It's January, and I'm going for a bike ride. How strange is that? In Pakistan, I saw glaciers advancing in 2005 due to increased snowfall, and then watched them retreat up to 50 percent by 2007. On one ski expedition it was raining at 17,500 feet -- something I have never seen in my lifetime. In Bolivia, I skied the highest ski area in the world at 18,000-plus feet, that glacier disappeared forever in 2009.

Folks ask me about a critical tipping point - In my opinion, we have already passed a critical point in the concentrations of carbon dioxide on our planet. But, I'm an optimist, I believe we have the ability to change.

I started the Save Our Snow Foundation in 2006, when I realized there was a need to spread the word nationally that solutions to save our snow could be cost-effective and improve quality of life. I had started a local non-profit The Office For Resource Efficiency in 2004, working to calculate and reduce the community's carbon footprint and energy use, with much success, and wanted to take the message worldwide.

Besides Save Our Snow, I run three non-profits, The Office for Resource Efficiency, www.LocalFarmsFirst.com, and Save Our Snow, and two For-Profit companies -- KEEN Rippin Chix Ski, Bike and Surf Camps, my keynote speaking tour "Be Green, Save Green" for businesses and "Alison's Global Cooling Ski Adventure Show." I also travel often for photo shoots and filming as an ambassador for KEEN, Osprey, Patagonia, NEMO and Elemental Herbs.

In the end, I don't care if you believe in climate change. What my personal experience has shown is that it is quite easy to make simple changes in my life that have saved me money and reduced my energy use in half -- getting LED lightbulbs, carpooling, riding my bike or taking public transit, combining work and vacation trips, buying greener products that have lifetime guarantees, and generally consuming less crap. Every day we eat, drink, travel or live we are presented with some choices to make, and I just try to do the very best I can.

My most recent effort is to grow and raise all my own food, which has been an intensely rewarding experience, plus I can ski right off the farm. This Christmas was not kind to us, as the BLM announced over 30,000 acres for oil and gas drilling bordering and surrounding our farm, and containing all our water. All those years fighting to save our snow by using less energy and clean energy now hit home more than ever, and I'm stoked that I got off dirty natural gas over 2 years ago. If anyone wants to help, you can help us Save Our Farm by WRITING THE BLM, or even easier, Can you sign our PETITION to protect our farm from potential drilling? Learn more on MY BLOG.

-Alison Gannett

Wyoming Triumph Episode 9 - The Absaroka Range

One of our favorite segments from the feature film Wyoming Triumph and one of the last segments we filmed. Lots of wildlife and big airs make this a must watch episode.

For those in UT, we have a show in Park City this Thursday Jan 5th at the Jim Santy Auditorium. This is the first film of the Park City 2012 Film series – please come check it out!

~Chris & Sam