The Recession + The Outdoors

There was an interesting article posted today on Paddling.net about how the recession is affecting the outdoor industry – in a POSITIVE way! In a nutshell, people are trading their normal, more expensive activities for low-cost alternatives, like camping, hiking, fishing, etc. Makes sense to me and I’m very happy that the recession is encouraging people to get outdoors!

The article is posted below for your convenience or you can read it at paddling.net


Outdoor Recreation in a Recession

Outdoor recreation and an economic recession go together like Baileys Irish Cream and your morning camp coffee. It's a historic fact, when a recession hits, outdoor pursuits increase dramatically. And lately I've seen a lot in the media proving that, in a time of economic crisis and financial uncertainty, the camping industry stands poised for growth. In Ontario alone, yurts in provincial parks are booked solid; some parks have now opened up Winter RV campsites, and the number one outdoor sports on the rise right now is snowshoe jogging.

"When times are tough, we get busy." says Jeremy Dickson owner of Canoe Canada Outfitters in Atikokan, Ontario. "The wilderness experiences we provide our customers are the perfect reprieve to a slumping economy." And Jeremy is not alone, according to a report prepared by the Outdoor Industry Association, the relatively inexpensive and convenient outdoor vacation has remained appealing to outdoor shoppers throughout the year. The trend points to outdoor vacations being the industry's bright spot as consumers look to the outdoors as an escape from the pressures of daily life.

For more proof, here's a report I was sent by Gord Baker of Algonquin Outfitters in Ontario, Canada:

"While early predictors show evidence of a decline in specific outdoor channels starting in November 2008, outdoor industry sales have remained fairly robust since the nation officially entered a recession in December 2007; posting a healthy 9.6% increase overall and outpacing traditional retail markets."

According to the report, the relatively inexpensive and convenient outdoor vacation has remained appealing to core outdoor shoppers throughout the year. Internet sales showed a robust 21.6% growth since December 2007 and core chain and specialty stores remained healthy, growing at 10.0% and 4.7% respectively. All core outdoor stores were up 6% in total unit sales and 9% in dollar sales year to date. In YTD dollars, all equipment increased 10%, equipment accessories 11%, apparel 9% and footwear 4%.

According to trendspotter and OIA Rendezvous keynote speaker Marian Salzman, the only businesses in which she would consider investing right now are soup and camping. Her reasoning is that Americans will be looking to escape the long-term economic turmoil and constant barrage of the media by returning to low-cost, simple activities that involve the entire family. If this prediction holds true, as it has in the past, businesses that support cycling, camping, hiking, fishing and paddling activities may be very well positioned for several years.

Cook-In-Bags™

We searched high and low for bags that are approved for use with boiling water, zip closed and have a nice bottom gusset. They were not easy to find…but find them we did!

We started with the large size (6.69" x 11" x 3.5") so that we could test them out and see if we really liked them. When you first look at them, they look exactly like our regular stand-up pouches. They don’t look like they’re made specifically for use with boiling water – but they are!

The best thing about them (other than the boiling water thing, of course) is that they have a really wide bottom gusset: 3.5 inches! That may not seem all that great but having a gusset this wide gives the bag an amazing degree of stability; so much so that when you cut the top off it basically turns your stand-up cook-in-bag™ into a eat-in-bowl. After using a bag to prep a meal, I use a sharp knife to cut the top off and then I have a pretty decent bowl to eat out of. The bottom becomes so sturdy with the food in it, that I can actually sit it down and have no worries about it tipping over.

Once we decided that we liked the large cook-in-bag™ we added the small (5" x 8" x 3") and medium (6" x 9.37" x 3.25") sizes. These are great for single serving meals (so that you can each end up with your own bowl) or smaller meals like soups or sides. They have a slightly smaller gusset because the overall bag is smaller but they both work great as bowls too.

Meal Planning Made Easy

When we go camping, we tend to plan our menus around the environment that we’ll be entering. So, if we’re going to an area with limited water availability we’ll go for "drought tolerant" meals that use a minimal amount of water. If water isn't going to be a problem, then we’ll go more gourmet. In order to make it a little bit easier for you to plan your next trip, we’ve posted a few set menus on the site that follow some of our most popular themes.


Burn Ban
A no-cook menu for hikers in "Burn Ban" environments or for those who like to avoid the time involved in cooking meals. Everything on the Burn Ban menu can be made with cool water making it possible to go without firing up a stove for the entire hike. Vegetarian options are included for hikers wishing to avoid meat and there is the option to add on snacks if you’d like to leave all of the planning up to us. Some of my featured favorites? Jump-Start Fruit Smoothies, Cheddar Jack Cheese Spread, Chicken Salad and Summer Berry Trifle. Yum-o!


Calorie Packed & Calorie Packed - Vegetarian
Hikers and paddlers covering longer distances each day need far more calories than the average recreational hiker, so we’ve gathered together some of our highest calorie meals for you to choose from. Meals requiring varying amounts of water and cooking effort are included on each menu allowing campers to tailor their menu to their personal needs and abilities. Available in both a meat packed menu and a vegetarian menu. The highest calorie meals of all? Polenta Scrapple, Chicken Salad, Bangers & Mash and Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes


Drought Conditions
When going to areas with limited water availability, meals requiring less water and that produce a minimal number of dishes to wash are required. On this menu, we’ve included meals that use our Cook-in-Bags or require 0-1 pots and involve different levels of cooking skills. Pick the combo that suits you the best. My personal picks? Cranberry Orange Griddle Scones, Italian Dry Salame & Wisconsin Cheddar, Roaring Campfire Pizza and Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingersnap Crust


Featherweight
Ultralighters can easily keep their full day’s worth of meals under 10 oz per person and still enjoy delicious, easy trailfood – including dessert! With several options to choose from and various cooking times and water needs, hikers can easily tailor this menu to their particular trip. The lightest of the light? Jamaican Peanut Porridge, Cheddar Jack Cheese Spread, Austintacious Tortilla Soup and Summer Berry Trifle


Quick & Easy
Want to enjoy meals that look (and taste) like a million bucks but don’t actually require much effort? This might be the menu for you. Our Quick & Easy menu features meals that take the least amount of work for the highest amount of reward. Meals with the highest ROI? Creamy Italian Polenta with Pork Sausage, Italian Salami Wrap, Austintacious Tortilla Soup and Banana Puddin'


Trailside Gourmet
Celebrate special occasions, set the mood or just enjoy fabulous food in the outdoors with our Trailside Gourmet menu. Each meal choice offers different levels of cooking commitment – so you can go for EZ+ or decide to really impress your mates and Chef-It-Up! It’s hard to choose favorites in this group but I’ll go with: Artisan Bread French Toast, Curried Cranberry Couscous Salad, Roaring Campfire Pizza and Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes


Plan It All Please!
If you don’t want to think about planning your menu at all, choose to add on snacks and beverages. We offer a great selection of instant coffee, tea and hot chocolate to accompany your breakfast; and two snacks throughout the day for each person in your party. Campers can each choose their own snacks; nut butter and cheese are available for your first snack of the day and jerky, sausage or energee nuggets will hold you over until dinner.

Nutrition Charts are Here!

It’s been very busy around here lately so I’ve fallen way behind on the blog. Part of what has been keeping me so busy is the addition of nutrition charts to all of the meals that we offer on the website.

Truthfully, I don’t really pay close attention to the nutritional beakdown when I’m planning for the trail unless I’m going out for a long time. I eat when I’m hungry, make sure the food I've packed has a lot of variety, is healthy and colorful (guaranteeing a host of different vitamins and nutrients), and a restricted amount of overly processed foods. This has always worked for me, but I know that some hikers are much more diligent than I am when it comes to the food they carry.

One thing that we’ve done that’s a little bit different is to list our two serving meals as both two and three person meals. This is because our two person meals are larger than average servings – we’ve designed them with hungry hikers in mind and made sure that each one would truly make a satisfying and filling meal for two people. If you’ve had an at-camp-day, are hiking with kids or just have a smaller appetite, you may want to view these meals as serving three people – it just depends on your personal appetite level.