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Carol Patterson

INSPIRING EVERYDAY EXPLORERS Through wildlife tales and trails

Carol Patterson

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Missouri Connections

November 12, 2014 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Missouri TravelMost people – even young children – spend as much time in front of a screen as they do sleeping each day. You might think cuddling indoors with a computer is harmless, but new research shows your health improves with time in nature.
But how does Mother Nature compete with mega-malls and computer games? Perhaps we need things outside to be as exciting as on a video game. The Missouri River is North America’s longest river and was the backdrop for the great Lewis and Clarks’ Corp of Discovery Expedition. Homesteaders followed and settled along the fertile Missouri watershed. My ancestors were so inspired by the river they named my great, great aunt after it.

Now a new generation of Park Managers is using the Missouri River to plug people into nature. Mark Rettig, superintendent for Nebraska’s Niobrara State Park, says people arrive with a backseat full of videos and kids clambering to watch them. When they discover the park’s nineteen cabins lack televisions or consistent cell phone service, they wonder how they will fill their time. “We tell them to go turn over a rock and see what insects live underneath,” Rettig says, “And you wouldn’t believe how many kids have never made s’mores.” So there are s’more making lessons and afternoons at the pool. I enjoyed the trails near the river, looking for birds fleeing Canada’s cold weather. Supper was a buffalo cookout and a living history presentation that made me appreciate modern conveniences even while taking a break from them.

Further down the river, Ponca State Park has an education program that will engage even the most reluctant outdoorswoman. I signed up for archery lessons and felt like Robin Hood after shooting tips from Tyler Wulf, Assistant Superintendent. I passed up the chance to shoot a rifle or toss a tomahawk, opting instead to kayak the Missouri. The 95 kilometers near the park border is free flowing, not channelized, and looks much like when Lewis and Clark paddled it. I knew however I was only a couple of hours from a very comfortable lodge and training on how to start a fire with flint (although I could cheat with matches if needed).

Jeff Fields, Park Superintendent, encourages creativity from his staff and all ideas for new programs are considered. The biggest success has been the annual Missouri River Outdoor Expo a two-day bonanza of outdoor fun for 52,000 people from 27 states. “The first year we had eight inches of rain (20 centimeters) and still 4,500 people showed up,” Wulf commented on the event’s success, “We knew we had something.” Ten years later, registration for the pre-expo School day sold out in thirty minutes!

The Missouri Outdoor Expo includes a Grunt, Gobble & Growl contest where people imitate the animal of their choice. Dog lovers can watch the aquatic competition where dogs – some in life jackets – throw themselves off the dock in an attempt to jump the longest. Kids can compete in the gourmet s’more contest, while their parents sample wine. Yes, wine is grown in Nebraska and provides a soothing end to a busy day.

I missed the Expo but was kept hopping at Ponca, trying to decide between hiking and learning to fish. Time on the trails won out – I figured I could always get take-out – but checking my email seemed less attractive.

As Rettig summed up, “when people leave the park, they admit they enjoyed being away from their screens.” Like me, they have forgotten what it is like to be unplugged. Thanks to a new generation of parks personnel, it is easier to connect to nature. I understood better why my great, great aunt was called Missouri and vowed to spend more time in mega-nature.

If You Decide To Go:

Niobrara State Park has rustic cabins overlooking the Missouri River and many outdoor activities. Ponca State Park offers deluxe accommodations along with the Missouri National Recreational River Resource and Education Center www.OutdoorNebraska.org RV facilities are found at both parks.

To learn more about the Missouri River stop at the Lewis & Clark Missouri River Visitor’s Center http://www.mrb-lewisandclarkcenter.org

Carol Patterson inspires everyday explorers within organizations. When she isn’t travelling for work, Carol is travelling for fun. More of her adventures can be found at www.carolpatterson.ca

 

Filed Under: Nebraska Tagged With: adventure, lewis and clarks' corp of discovery expedition, missouri river, Nebraska, nebraska tourism, ponca state park, travel

Adventure Takes Over The World?

November 10, 2014 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

Adventure TravelGet ready. Adventure is taking over the travel world. Once regarded as a niche within the travel industry, it has grown rapidly in the past two decades. Now, Phillippe Duverger, PhD Consulting, predicts all travel will become adventure travel. “What is an adventure?” Duverger posed at Canada’s Travel Tourism and Research Association conference, noting that dining out can be called an adventure as can summiting Everest. He suggests that as mass tourism organizations incorporate adventure activities and terminology into their businesses, adventure may become a state of mind. If global corporations put their marketing muscle into selling adventure, it will be hard for small-scale adventure companies to distinguish themselves.
Duverger’s research done in conjunction with the Adventure Travel Trade Association, suggests that instead of describing adventure as hard or soft, we will move to the categories of grazers (someone checking off high thrills on their bucket list), adventurers (working on their skills) and enthusiasts (people keen on one activity, higher skill, going to unique locations for their sport).

Never have words seemed so powerful; their ability to redefine an industry will impact many of us. For if we are all having adventures, how do we delineate those tours and activities that carry higher risk?

TWEETABLES

Adventure is taking over the world. Get ready! Click to Tweet.

Find out why adventure is the new way to travel! Click to Tweet.

Adventure and travel…do they really go together? Click to Tweet.

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: adventure, adventure travel, canada's travel tourism, reinventure, think like an explorer, travel

Airlines Reinvent Destinations

May 13, 2014 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

icelandIf you have worked with tourism businesses in remote locations, you know easy access is important in attracting customers. So when an airline adds a new route, it creates untold opportunities for adventure businesses. Recreation and real estate development took off in B.C.’s Comox Valley when WestJet added Calgary to Comox flights. Now, Icelandair is adding direct flights from Edmonton and Vancouver to Reykjavik.
In less time than it takes to reach Halifax and for the same price as a trip to Toronto, people can visit one of Europe’s coolest destinations. And that is cool as in hip. While it’s located near the Arctic Circle, Iceland’s climate is moderated by the Gulf Stream. It feels more like a chilly Vancouver than Iqaluit. And there is much to do for adventure seekers – hiking, bird or whale watching, tours of glaciers and geysers, and visiting museums on whales, seals or sorcery.  Here’s hoping more Canadians experience the destination National Geographic Traveler rated one of the best places to travel!

TWEETABLES

Discover how airlines are reinventing destinations & creating tourism businesses via @Reinventure. Click to Tweet.

This is one of Europe’s coolest destinations & should rate one of the best places to travel. Click to Tweet.

@WestJet is reinventing destinations by adding new routes such as this exciting adventure opportunity. Click to Tweet.

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: comox, iceland, national geographic, reinventure, think like an explorer, travel, westjet

The Power of Photography

March 21, 2013 by CarolPatterson Leave a Comment

It feels like everyone is a photographer now. With smart phones and tablets, people are taking pictures everywhere – many public places have disclaimers warning that you may be photographed by entering their premises. Never has it been so hard for a recluse to retain their privacy!
But, never has there been so many people adding photography to trip activities or making it the purpose of their travels. If you are one of those people caught up in the photography craze, there is an exciting way you can use your hobby on vacation to help save wildlife. Dr. Tom Hart, a penguinologist with the London Zoological Society, created Penguin Lifelines, hoping new photographic technology and camera-toting tourists will revolutionize conservation.

Dr. Hart and his co-founder, Dr. Ben Collen have been putting up cameras around Antarctica to film penguin colonies. Cheaper and hardier than a human, the cameras photograph penguin activity year-round. The data has been used to monitor population trends and shape conservation policy.

Tom and Ben hitched a ride this Antarctic summer on Quark Expedition’s Ocean Diamond ship to do their Penguin Lifelines work and on a December voyage I had the chance to see first-hand how they are involving tourists in their research. “Tourists have much better cameras than scientists can afford!” Tom says. He hopes to have tourists take photos at signature spots that scientists can then compare to historical shots for evidence of climate change. Tom would also like to see people work with facial recognition software to help distinguish between penguins on the photos gathered on Antarctica. I love the idea!

If you are tourism professional, is there a way you could include photography to enhance experiences? The Ellis Bird Farm in Lacombe, Alberta installed a beaver cam to capture the underwater antics in their beaver pond and quickly developed a large following. Can you find a way to get your visitors involved in citizen science?

And if you are a curious traveler, does the idea of helping scientists excite you? Perhaps your hobby can provide a new reinventure® in the future.

TWEETABLES:

If you are a curious traveler, does the idea of helping scientists excite you? Click to Tweet.

When snapping your next travel picture think about whether it can help scientists with their research. Click to Tweet.

Could your travel photo help scientists compare historical shots for evidence of climate change & other studies? Click to Tweet.

Filed Under: Reflections Tagged With: photographer, photography, tourism, tourism professional, travel, traveler

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