Outdoor Adventure Show 2019 – Part 2

After a good nights rest following a busy Saturday at the Outdoor Adventure Show, it was time to head back to the centre for day two. There were definitely fewer events lined up for Sunday, but there was still lots to see and do, and I definitely got my steps in.

If you haven’t been keeping up, you can click here to read about day one.

Sunday

Sunday morning started with a surprise from the Happy Camper (AKA Kevin Callan) – You can head over to Camper Christina’s Facebook page and watch her videos to find out exactly what shenanigans we got up to. Kevin also had some new stickers, so we played a game of tradesies and had a lot of laughs. It was a great way to start another busy day at the show.

My first stop was at the KIHD booth to get a KIHD toaster! I already have a KIHD stove to test out this year, and this toaster will be a great addition to my kit because I love having toasted bagels and English muffins while on trips, but making toast over a campfire can be a challenge. Be sure to keep an eye out for my upcoming blog post where I’ll talk more about this KIHD setup.

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With my new toaster in hand, and before the general public hit the floor, it was time to wander the centre once more while waiting for the first presentation of the morning. This gave me a chance to stop and chat with a few of the vendors, like Frontenac Outfitters, before the crowds showed up, so I could drool over their boat display. This also reminded me that in the spring I’ll be heading to Frontenac park to re-cert my Wilderness First Aid course.

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The first presentation of the day was by Justin Barbour, The Newfoundland Explorer. My parents have been talking about him for a while and I knew I had to stop and meet a fellow Newfoundlander, especially since he was doing a presentation about crossing Newfoundland with his dog. I knew from growing up there that this was not an easy task because lugging a canoe up and over the rocks from pond to pond was a huge challenge. Justin, however, found a creative way to solve this problem by using a pack raft for his trip. Yes b’y!

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Up next was David Bain with a presentation about the Georgian Bay Coast – Ontario’s lesser known canoeing paradise. While taking in the images of smooth bedrock and stunning sunsets in his presentation, I was dreaming of heading back to the French River and thinking of all the other areas where I’d like to go paddling in Ontario. David is also the organizer for the Ontario Backcountry Canoe Symposium (which occurs in the spring), and the Ontario Winter Camping Symposium (which occurs in the fall). These are both excellent symposiums to attend as you get lots of good local information. I really need to see if I can make it to the event in April (alas the tickets are sold out….)

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As I wandered around the travel and tourism booths, I found myself walking very slowly through the ten (yes ten!) Newfoundland booths. Even though I’m from there, I was in awe. I have told many people about the beauty of The Rock – many of whom, talk about how one day they would love to visit – and to have it showcased in such a way was just heart warming and really made me want to be home… I found myself coming back to one spot in particular – a very cool rug that looked like a Newfoundland beach. As it turned out, the photo was from Middle Cove beach, a place that I’m very familiar with – I was married there!

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I spent a little more time checking out other booths including the US travel pavilion, foreign lands, and some other Canadian booths. I spent so much time wandering that I had forgotten to eat lunch, but luckily I found some chocolate samples to tide me over!

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Time was moving fast and it was time to check out a presentation by Kevin Callan (The Happy Camper), who was talking about his trip around Algonquin Park called the Meanest Link. The idea behind this route was to complete a journey that connected all the Algonquin Outfitters stores, with no food drops or “cheating”, in the fastest time possible. Kevin definitely did not follow these rules, as he had multiple food and whisky drops along the route, AND took the Opeongo canoe taxi across Opeongo Lake – definitely cheating by some peoples standards! Cheating or not, I think it’s safe to say he enjoyed the adventure.

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The time had come for the last presentation of my day – Leanne Hennessy from Live Love Get Outside, who talked about her 40 day hike through the Quebec wilderness and crossing lands from the sea to summits. She and her hiking partner have completed some pretty long treks, and this was just the next trail to check off their list. Along their route they were gifted many items from “trail fairies” and met some really interesting people. I’m not sure if I would ever be able to hike that long, but she really did make it seem like it was a possibility for anyone.

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With that, it was time for me to leave, even though the show was still bustling. Before I was able to get out of the building, I did see a few more new and familiar faces, which meant a little more chatting before hitting the road and heading home.

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Thank you so much for taking the time to read about the Outdoor Adventure Show. If you did not get a chance to be there in person, I hope this gave you a little insight on how great of an event this is, and maybe I’ll see you there next year!