"Love is the beauty of the soul."Saint Augustine
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6 Things You Must Do If You Want To HaveThe Secret To Catching More Trout
It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish and loses has it coming. ~John Steinbeck 1. How Fish Think When you hunt for deer, and any other animal for that matter, there are some set rules you have to ...
Find The Sunglasses That Are Right For You
There are so many different types of sunglasses on the market today that finding the right pair to fit one’s needs can be a very daunting task. The best pair of sunglasses should offer protection from UV rays, be extremely durable, look good, and serve ...
New Year's Resolutions For The Backcountry
The New Year has begun and you probably have a few New Year’s Resolutions under way. You’ll lose weight, lose a bad habit, add a good habit or even mend an old fence. But do you have any resolutions for the backcountry? Are you ready to make this year ...
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Does the thought of buying a gift for a friend or relative make you smile or does it stress you out? Is there a hiker or camper on your gift giving list? What can you give to the someone who already has everything? The secret of gift giving is not always the “what.” Many times the “why, when and how” make an ordinary gift the Perfect Gift. Continue reading to discover 5 sure-fire steps to giving the perfect gift to the outdoor enthusiasts in your life.
Step 1: Do Your Homework. This is the toughest of the 5 steps. Doing your homework means thinking about your outdoor enthusiast and what he or she likes about being in the backcountry. Are there any current or past outdoor interests? Perhaps he likes to fish or she likes to climb. Maybe you overheard the comment “I remember when I used to go camping every long weekend. I miss those days.” Our personal shopper service receives hints like this all the time. Chances are you already know their interests, so take a few minutes to think prior to shopping. There are loads of great outdoor gifts available.
Another part of your homework is to understand the relationship between you and your gift recipient’s outdoor hobbies. Last year I was camping with a dear friend who got mildly lost. After about an hour, he showed up in camp a little embarrassed – but safe. So the perfect gift for him before our next trip was a GPS unit. I also included a hand written coupon good for one free lesson and an extra set of batteries. The relationship we had allowed me to have a little fun with the gift giving. I did provide him with a quality gift and he uses it all the time.
Step 2: Speaking of High Quality. The best way to get the most enjoyment out of our backcountry experiences is to have good gear. When giving a backcountry gift, be sure it’s high quality. There are two gear buying rules to live by. First, only give gear you would use. And secondly, buy the best gear you can afford. Nothing derails good times in the great outdoors like bad gear.
Step 3: The Right Way to Give Certificates. Gift certificates can be an excellent choice for a gift. Here’s a great use of a gift certificate - I was
fortunate enough to be on the receiving end of this story. A friend living across the country knew I loved to hike. He also knew from his own experience that you can’t just buy a backpack for someone else. Backpacks are a very subjective purchase. Instead of buying a me a pack and giving me the task of returning it in order to get the right one, he sent me a gift certificate AND he told me what to buy with it. So now I get the backpack I want and my friend has proven once again how well he knows me. I loved the gift. When giving gift certificates, tell the recipient what to buy with it.
Step 4: Seek Out Customer Friendly Retailers. This is especially important when purchasing a gift on-line. Make sure you are purchasing from a store with visible customer satisfaction and return policies. If your gift recipient needs to exchange or return a piece of gear, the process needs to be hassle-free. If the return procedure is clunky, the perfect gift just became imperfect.
Step 5: Timing is Everything. The best time to get “the birding binoculars I always wanted,” is not on your birthday or at Christmas time. The best time to get them is just before you go birding. The new backpack is a more thoughtful gift just prior to hiking the Grand Canyon than it is for graduation. The value of a gift is greatly increased when given at the right time. Surprise someone with a perfectly timed present.
Giving the Perfect BackCountry Gift is easy to do. Determining “what” to give is important, but so is knowing “why, when and how” to give. Make your next gift giving experience a good one. The outdoor enthusiast in your life is counting on it. Use this information and you’ll Get It Right The First Time.
Get Outdoors!
Chuck Fitzgerald is the President of Arizona based BackCountry Toys, an online store providing backcountry specialty gear and educational information for outdoor enthusiasts. Visit www.BackCountryToys.com to receive the free newsletter "FreshAir” or call (800) 316-9055.
chuck@backcountrytoys.com
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 Gadgets for the Great Outdoors - PC Magazine
Summer is coming to a close, so now's the time to get back to nature and soak in those last few rays before school's back in session or it's back to business as usual. Whether camping in the wilderness is your thing, or simply lounging on the shore ...
Outdoors news and notes - St. Petersburg Times
The Tampa Bay Boat show will be Sept. 5-7 at the Tampa Convention Center. The show features all types of boats, personal watercrafts, wakeboards, electronics and fishing gear. In all, there will be more than 600 boats on display. There will also be ...
Have a Labor Day picnic in the great outdoors with scrumptious food - San Diego Union-Tribune
When Sue Palmer & Her Motel Swing Orchestra plucked the first note of the final summer concert at Trolley Barn Park in University Heights on Aug. 8, David Baron and his group of veteran picnickers were already tucking into homemade quinoa and ...
A stylish indoor-outdoor master bath - AZCentral.com
Anthony Theiler had an unusual request when he decided to remodel his master bathroom. He wanted an outdoor shower. He had seen one at a friend's house and was intrigued. "I thought, 'You could easily do this in Arizona,' " said Theiler, who lives in ...
Eli has a Super Bowl ring, but he's not Peyton - CBS Sportsline
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Even late last season, listing Eli Manning among the NFL's top quarterbacks would have been outlandish. Now after an improbable run to a Super Bowl in which he was named the MVP, the Giants quarterback is being listed just below ...
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