Summer, Fall Adventures in Big Bear

Reward yourself with a weekend getaway or vacation where you can let the rod and reel do the work or a boat or bike! Immerse yourself in one of Earth's Garden of Edens at Big Bear Lake in California. Explore with soft or extreme adventure in the Rocky Mountains in the San Bernardino National Forest on mountain bike trails or on horseback.
Explore the back country hiking the alpine trails or birding for downtime or get some extreme adventure ziplining, water skiing, kayaking, parasailing and more. Allow the thrilling adventures get your feet off the ground and take your breath away.
Feed your inner soul, re-energize with a spa treatment and revitalize your energy.
Enjoy Big Bear in any season; from sparkling summers, to crisp autumn colors and the magic of winter on the slopes.
Find out more here, www.NewTravelAdventures.com or here, www.Bigbear.com
From romantic getaways to family vacations, Big Bear is just a short drive away and offers lodging packages with free pre-paid Visa card deals. Travel to Big Bear this spring, summer or fall and we'll help pay for your trip. Those who stay at a participating lodge one or two nights get a $25 Visa card three or four night stays are good for $50 and five or more nights receive a $100 Visa card. Guests can spend the pre-paid Visa cards freely at any place that accepts Visa, such as dinner at a nice restaurant, a pontoon boat rental, tickets to an event or a shopping spree in the Big Bear Village. The free pre-paid Visa card promotion ends November 22, 2010. Restrictions may apply.

National Trails Day June 5th

This Saturday, June 5th, is National Trails Day, with hundreds of events being held throughout the United States and here in Florida. Sandra Friend of Florida Hikes, offers some great guided hikes with maps and photos of trails in and around Florida. You can find more here and sign up for her blog, or ezine to keep you apprized of great hikes, www.floridahikes.com Find more info here and events near you, www.Americanhikingsociety.org
For example, Florida Trail Association/Choctawhatchee Chapter is hosting the Highest Point in Florida & lake Jackson Hikes, in Lakeview, FL, on June 5th from 8 am until 1:30 pm. This will be a guided hike/walk about four miles. The highest hikes in Florida are the short loop trails on Britton Hill (less than one mile) in North Walton County. At 345 feet Britton is Florida "NOSE BLEED" country. Later hike the Lake Jackson Loop Trail (four miles) in Florala, Alabama and then do lunch at a local restaurant.
Photo above is from the American Hiking Society website, from the First Annual Hike on the National mall. 
Also, visit our website for more info on hikes, www.NewTravelAdventures.com

Geocaching Challenge at Ft. Yargo State Park

Geo-Challenge Kickoff at Fort Yargo State Park, 

May 8th, 2010, from 10 am until 4 pm, 

Ft. Yargo SP is in Winder, on GA Hwy. 81. 

Georgia State parks 770-867-3489

More than 40 of Georgia’s state parks will soon join one of the largest treasure hunts on the planet.  With the May 8 launch of the Georgia State Parks Geo-Challenge, the park system is inviting GPS-toting explorers to travel trails in search of hidden caches.  Geocaching is thought to be one of the most popular games in the world, with more than 1 million caches registered on www.Geocaching.com.

The premise is fairly simple; adventure seekers use a GPS unit to find hidden treasures, then share their experiences online.  Caches usually contain trinkets that geocachers can keep, replacing them with something else.  Some trackable items, called travel bugs, make their way across the country and create a story as they go.  With the Georgia State Park Geo-Challenge, players download a PassPort from www.GeorgiaStateParks.org, find hidden stamps in each cache to spell out the PassPort’s message, and collect custom geocoins. 

“Geocaching can be enjoyed by all ages and is a creative way to explore your own state, and even the world,” said Georgia State Parks Director Becky Kelley.  “The game is a fun excuse to get outdoors, and it introduces a whole new group of visitors to our state parks.”

Forty-two state parks have hidden caches with “first to find” prizes of a free night of camping.  Three parks also have more elusive “bonus caches.”  Players go to www.Geocaching.com to find the GPS coordinates for each hidden box.  After their journey, players can talk about the parks and what they found.

Park officials see geocaching as the perfect blend of technology, trails and trees.  The Geo-Challenge is crafted for younger players as a way to encourage them to get more exercise outdoors.  Caches are hidden in public-access areas, so treasure hunters will not venture off trails or into remote locations. 

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources worked closely with the Georgia Geocaching Association (GGA) to create the new statewide program.  Geo-Challenge’s official kickoff coincides with GGA’s May 8 meeting at Fort Yargo State Park in Winder. 

“Anyone interested in geocaching is invited to the kickoff event,” said Kelley.  “Experienced geocachers will help newcomers learn about GPS units and the more social aspects of the game.  We’ll have extra caches hidden just for this event, plus animal programs and refreshments.”

JetBoil Helios

I'm so excited, I just received my JetBoil Helios cookware and I'm looking forward to using it for the Americna Cancer Society's Relay for Life, coming up April 9-10, at Ocoee High School. We are excited, we have 48 teams registered for the West Orange County Relay! Our team, the West Orange Kiwanis Club has a tent where we will be offering complimentary spa facials and makeover for a donation to the ACS. Several of our members will be playing cards in between walking the track all night. We have quite a few teens from West Orange High School who will also be joining us for this Celebration!

it looks like my JetBoil Helios (cookware) is great for camping and hiking, is small, making it portable and very lightweight!

You can find out more here: www.jetboil.com

More on this fabulous product soon!

You can also go online to: www.relayforlife.org if you are interested in volunteering or making a donation, or perhaps you are looking for information about Relay for Life or the American Cancer Society and their programs for patients, family and friends.