August, 2024 Vermont Guideline

Vermont Outdoor Recreation
Industry News

Vermont Outdoor Guide Association Mission Statement


"Dedicated to the support and promotion of professional outdoor leadership,

education, and stewardship."


Recreation Industry News


September is Vermont's Official River Cleanup Month


Vermont Launches Trails For Adaptive Biking


Wheeler Mountain is now public land, conserved forever for hiking, rock climbing


Three Invasive, Non-Native Pests Threaten Vermont's Trees


Local investors to buy Killington and Pico Mountain ski areas


Heading to Maine for an adventure vacation? North Country Rivers is Maine's premier adventure vacation resort company.


Endangered lynx makes its first appearance in Vermont in years.


MORE NEWS


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If you have the time, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the state of outdoor recreation industry today, how changes in the industry are affecting your business.

Email: gray@voga.org


Have fun and be safe out there,


Gray


Graydon B Stevens

Executive Director

Vermont Outdoor Guide Association (VOGA)

www.voga.org

gray@voga.org

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What's Happening in Vermont's Outdoor Recreation Industry


Recreation Job Openings - https://www.voga.org/recreation-jobs.html


Recreation Based Events - https://www.voga.org/vt-recreation-event-calendar.html


Outdoor Education Events - https://www.voga.org/outdoor-education-events.html


Women's Outdoor Events - https://www.voga.org/womens-outdoor-programs.html


Recreation Industry News - https://www.voga.org/recreation-industry-news.html

Get the best liability insurance for your lodging, retail shop, association, guide or outfitter business for the lowest price in the US.



NaviTour Seeks Partnerships with Distinctive Vermont Properties


NaviTour connects guests with local guides to create unique experiences, from walking history tours and food adventures to outdoor activities like hiking and paddling. In Maine, we've successfully onboarded 175 guides and collaborated with accommodation partners to provide a place for people to stay and enjoy their bespoke experiences, significantly enhancing guest satisfaction and encouraging longer stays for the accommodation partner.


We’re excited to expand into Vermont and are looking to partner with distinctive properties. Our international travel buyers constantly seek authentic, off-the-beaten-path experiences and frequently ask for accommodation recommendations.


We’d love to discuss how your property can benefit from this partnership or if you are a guide what experiences you offer. Email, call or text if you would like to chat shay.bellas@navitour.com (207) 632-8471

Outdoorly provides Vermont Outdoor Guide Association members insider deals to a wide selection of gear, apparel, and food from larger brands like Mammut, Mountain Hardware, and Obermeyer to more niche brands like RXBAR, Liberty Skis, and Klean Kanteen. Outdoorly is your way to access insider deals for the VOGA community. We've partnered with them to make sure that as a pro, you're getting the discounts you deserve.

VOGA

Join VOGA and get referrals from our Outdoor Recreation Directory.



Marketing and Networking Opportunities in 2024 - 2025


September 13 – 29, 2024, The Big E

W. Springfield, MA - "New England's Great State Fair". The largest fair on the eastern seaboard with an attendance of 1.5 million. The Vermont Dept of Tourism asks for volunteers from Vermont businesses and associations to staff our Tourism Booth in The Vermont Building at The Big E in West Springfield, MA. https://www.thebige.com/ You can sign up for a volunteer shift here: https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/84120940063/false#/invitation


September 25 - 26, 2024, Vermont Conference on Recreation & Trails Symposium

We are excited to welcome parks and recreation professionals from around Vermont at the 81st VT Conference on Recreation! We are thrilled to be partnering with Vermont Trails & Greenways Council (VTGC) to offer a Trails Symposium in tandem with our long-running conference. The Trails Symposium adds an outdoor recreation angle to the traditional municipal parks and recreation focus of the conference. VRPA's event is a great place for networking, sharing ideas, learning about current trends, and getting a pulse on what is happening throughout the state. https://www.vrpa.org/Conference-Overview


January 13-16, 2025, Northern New England Recreation & Parks Conference

For over 70 years, the Northern New England Recreation & Parks Conference has been one of the highest quality parks & recreation conferences in all of New England. The conference is organized by a committee made up of parks & recreation professionals and exhibitor representatives from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont & Massachusetts. https://nnerpc.myrec.com/info/default.aspx


January 17-19, 2025, The Yankee Sportsman's Classic

Champlain Valley Expo, Essex Junction, VT - Join us for three days full of fun and learning. Check out photos from previous years and watch the Human, Nature documentary. Visit with some of the best vendors in the nation. Bring the kids and let them experience the wonders of the outdoors. A portion of our show proceeds benefit Camp Ta-Kum-Ta! https://www.yankeeclassic.net/


January 17, 18 & 19, 2025, The Fly Fishing Show

Marlborough, MA. - With sold out exhibitor space in 2024 and record crowds, we are excited for the 2025 season to be one of the best ever! https://flyfishingshow.com/marlborough-ma/


March 1-2, 2025, The Boston Outdoor Expo

The Boston Outdoor Expo is coming to Boston, MA, Spring 2025. The expo offers a full weekend of inspiration for outdoor enthusiasts, like you. See influential speakers, take part in activities, and shop the latest gear, tech, nutrition and advice. It is a one stop shop to prepare you for your next adventure. If you love hiking, climbing, water sports, camping, mountain biking, trail running or just being outside, you don’t want to miss it. https://thebostonoutdoorexpo.com/

Women's Outdoor Survival Classes

with

"Alone" Season 9 Participant

and

MasterClass Wilderness Survival Instructor, Jessie Krebs


Last Call - Don't Miss Out!!


** For all of our one and two-day courses we are offering $25 off if you register by September 4! Code: ENDSUMMER **


We are pleased to announce the return of nationally known survival instructor, Jessie Krebs who will be teaching women's outdoor survival skills for 3 weekends in October, 2024.


October 12, 2024: One Day Women's Survival Course

Monkton, VT - 9 - 5 pm - This “crash course” in basic outdoor survival principles is excellent for those who are short on time, yet want to feel more confident in the outdoors. This is the perfect course for an introduction to core concepts that will help keep you centered and making healthy decisions if things get hairy. It's mostly lecture-style with some hands-on training on topics such as staying warm, building fires, signaling for help, navigation concepts, knife sharpening, building emergency shelters, and more. Young, old, injured or otherwise are welcome! Class cost: $150.00. https://go.thryv.com/site/6zyw7zstcjg3hf6c/online-scheduling?category=3txj8yh2r2omnxpw


October 13, 2024: Shelter Craft for Emergencies

Monkton, VT - 9 - 5 pm - Shelters are a primary survival tool with a wide variety of styles and building techniques depending on the environment and resources available. They are a survivors' second line of defense, and basic knot craft is a natural pairing with shelters. Building and living/staying in shelters can also be a lot of fun! Concepts that we can look into based on folk's interests are: snow shelters such as a fighter trench, quinzee, igloo, or snow cave; jungle shelters like platforms and methods to stay dry and insect free; mountain shelters for various seasons such as various types of A-frames, lean-tos, immediate action versus long term shelters; improvised abodes for coastal and tundra environments; concepts for hot/desert conditions; safe site selection; living considerations; insulation beds to be more comfortable and off the ground; how to use hot rocks and coal beds in chilly conditions; natural versus man-made shelters; debris huts; and knots, hitches, and lashings specifically useful in shelter building. This class can be modified for children 10 years old to the elderly, and those with handicaps of many types. Class cost: $150.00. https://go.thryv.com/site/6zyw7zstcjg3hf6c/online-scheduling?category=3txj8yh2r2omnxpw


October 19-20, 2024: Practical Fire Craft

Monkton, VT - 9-7 Saturday, 9-5 Sunday - Fire is the “sexy” and “cool” survival skill that draws our attention. “One channel, everyone watches!” An extremely useful tool, fire is a skill that can be very difficult, especially if a survivor is hurt, inexperienced, or dealing with wet conditions. In this two-day course we explore approaches for: finding and gathering various types of fuel; preparing fuels by breaking them down (or up!) into stages; the fire triangle and how to modify fire lays (how to put fuel/wood on a fire) to fit form to function; ignition styles and concepts; finding and preparing tinder in various environments and conditions; a multitude of different uses; and how to bank a fire (keeping a fire going overnight so you don't have to start from scratch in the morning). Students will practice creating embers or flames using a variety of tools like: matches, lighters, flint and steel, ferro rods, and a magnifying lens among others. Class runs from 9 am-7 pm on Saturday and 9 am-5 pm on Sunday. Students may camp on property Saturday night. These classes are great for children 14 years old up to the elderly, and those with a variety of handicaps. Just contact us if you have any questions or concerns! Class cost: $350, https://go.thryv.com/site/6zyw7zstcjg3hf6c/online-scheduling?event=fjg5a4ej1jf87fx9


October 25-27, 2024: Women's Weekend Core Survival Principles

Monkton, VT - Friday 4 pm to Sunday 4 pm - What do you do when things go wrong? There is a lot of false information out there around wilderness survival skills, so come learn the real deal. Included is information on: the five basic needs of a survivor, knife selection and sharpening, finding and disinfecting water, signaling for rescue, basic knots and shelter building, fire concepts, scouting technique and basic compass use, survival kit building and design for all contingencies, and food principles. Clients practice and get feedback on many of the techniques demonstrated and discussed. We spend the entire weekend outdoors regardless of the weather. Dinners are provided and cooked over an open fire. This is an intense class where students often don’t hit the bag until 10 or 11 pm on Friday and Saturday night due to evening instruction after dinner. We usually wake at 8 am and begin class at 9. If you’d like to go a little more in-depth and get more practice with the skills, this is the class for you! This is a stand alone class in basic survival principles for women and non-binary folks that are comfortable in women-only spaces. It is suitable for folks 12 and up (must be accompanied by a parent or guardian), and elderly or physically impaired folks that can walk on their own for at least a few hundred feet. This class is not a test of physical fitness, we are in a base camp learning and practicing skills, not hiking. We hope you can join us! Class cost: $520 https://go.thryv.com/site/6zyw7zstcjg3hf6c/online-scheduling?category=n15slu2zhgecfhvv


Gift Certificates are available.


Questions regarding these classes can be directed to Jessie at: owlsskills@gmail.com

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