Outdoor & Adventure Travel Show - Ottawa

07/09/2024

Mexican Monday was a hit! Looking forward to next week! For reservations DM or call us 613-963-0749! Salud! 🌮💃🏻

06/20/2024

04/28/2024

A look at Adam Shoalts’s two-month, 1300 km solo journey across the vast, bug-infested Hudson Bay Lowlands. Part I. Stay tuned for Part II. See www.adamshoal...

04/20/2024

Attention, all diver enthusiasts! Come chat to plan your next dive trip, making memories. Dive Curacao 613 DIVE - OTTAWA

04/20/2024

Come on in! Sat/Sun 10-5, Free Show. Free Parking.

04/19/2024

04/19/2024

Come to this FREE SHOW, FREE PARKING and see the latest outdoor, travel, camping and activity exhibitors. Great for the family (animals, balloons) and all things outdoors, including trips, rafting, canoes, kayaks, outdoor gear, clubs, resorts, lodges, and much more. See you there!

04/06/2024

Meet MHO Adventures in person at the upcoming Outdoor & Adventure Travel Show - Ottawa - April 20-21, Saturday/Sunday 10am-5pm at the Nepean Sportsplex. FREE ADMISSION. FREE PARKING. All things outdoors!

MHO Adventures specializes in canoe instruction courses. We are offering a 5 Day Multi Level ORCKA Canoe Tripping Course this spring! Contact us for more information or to Register. 6 Spots remaining. Prerequisites for Level's 2 & 3 are listed on our website.

LEVEL 1: INTRODUCTION
Introduction to canoe tripping for those that have little or no tripping experience

LEVEL 2: SKILL DEVELOPMENT
Providing the experienced canoe tripper with the opportunity to improve their canoe-tripping skills, stressing organization, safety, leadership, risk and crisis management

LEVEL 3: CANOE TRIP LEADER
The Canoe Tripping 3 course is designed for those looking to lead and/or guide wilderness canoe trips. This course focuses on planning and leading a multi-day wilderness expedition. The course involves a canoe trip, stressing organization, safety, leadership, risk and crisis management.

04/02/2024

THIS WEEKEND! --- Free Admission. Free Parking. All things Outdoors! www.AdventureOttawa.ca

03/28/2024

Cinemas in Canada March 29-April 4th. Links to tickets at most of these cinemas here, www.500daysinthewild.com/screenings/
Thank you to everyone going to see this film in a cinema in Canada.
We are going into week 4 and sit at number 11 in highest grossing English Canadian theatrical releases in Canada in the last 52 weeks.
Thanks for spreading the word, sharing with friends, kindness was the currency of the journey, and has proven also to be the heart of the films cinematic release in Canada. ✌🏼❤️
Telefilm Canada
Elevation Pictures
Fox Theatre
The Vic Theatre
Bookshelf Cinema
Vernon Towne Theatre
Viff Vancity Theatre

03/20/2024

We have some exciting news to share...

Heliconia is pleased to announce that Brendan Mark is our new CEO! 🎉 Brendan Mark, a former professional world class athlete is set to lead Heliconia into a future marked by innovation in outdoor content production and marketing.

With the mission of “Guiding People to a Lifetime of Adventure”, Heliconia has Mark in place to manage its business growth as Heliconia’s reach expands.

Read our full press release 👉 https://bit.ly/3VF68kX
Let's chat partnerships 👉 https://bit.ly/3PmCtc4

02/24/2024

No Kayaking 😆

02/21/2024

look for a kayaker my dear , someone who’ll paddle alongside you😍😆

02/13/2024

There is something magical about paddling in Ontario. Listen carefully to the lyrics of these talented musicians who share what it means to them.

02/13/2024

Yay or Nay?

02/06/2024

Lake Cabin with Yakbeds 😄

01/30/2024

Winter is calling, and Camper Christina is answering! 🏕️ In this episode of the podcast, the queen of four-season camping shares her expertise on how to thrive in the cold. From “cold camping” to “hot tenting,” Christina’s comprehensive course has got you covered – without breaking the bank on gear!

Don’t miss her tips on using what you have for backyard trials, and get a glimpse of her time-intensive video creation process that’s all about sharing her passion, not the profits.

The winter camping symposium was a hit, and Christina’s hands-on demos were a crowd favourite! Do you want to learn how to sew your tent or choose the right sleep system? She’s your go-to guide.

Follow Christina’s journey, get inspired to create your own adventure, and never stop learning. Check out the podcast and connect with the outdoor community. Let’s get outside and explore, one step at a time! 🚶‍♂️💨

Link in Bio!

01/28/2024

Give monthly to maintain the Trail.

12/08/2023

My new Algonquin maps are finally here!!! 😀😬😁

→ https://www.mapsbyjeff.com ←

It’s been 5 years in the making and is, by far, the biggest update I’ve ever done.

So, what’s new??

The short version: Way more of the stuff you love, and new features you never knew you wanted.

–– The long version ––

• My Favourite New Feature: Portage Elevation Profiles

Created from hundreds of GPS tracks, most portages now include a ‘side view’ showing the ups and downs along the trail. I also highlight where the hills are, how steep they are, how long they are, and, in my opinion how tough they are (Steep, Very Steep, Crazy Steep)

• Way more interesting tidbits of info

There are *significantly* more points of interest:
- 3x as many Historical POIs (e.g. old ruins, ranger cabins, fire towers)
- 2x as many Nature POIs (e.g. life science, earth science, lookout points)
- and, a whole bunch of new categories of POIs – to name a few: Cliffs, Recent Forest Fire Sites, Exceptional Moose Habitat, Swimming Spots and Super Clear Lakes

• Colour-coded route difficulties

💛 Yellow → Typical Route 😃
✴️ Orange → Challenging Route 🥵
🚨 Red → Very Difficult Route 👹

If you ever catch yourself wondering ‘why does Jeff think this is a [Typical/Challenging/Very Difficult] route’, the great thing is that those colours are just summaries. They’re always more info on that map that explains, in detail, *why* the route is that difficult.

• Bushwhacker Approved

One of my *favourite* activities on a canoe trip is exploring places no one else goes. Bushwhacking is muddy, sweaty and painful – but you just can’t beat the sense of adventure that comes along with emerging onto a lake no one else has visited in years. If you’re anything like me, I’ve got you covered:
- The 2.5m contour interval shows the terrain in extreme detail, emphasizing flat spots and valleys
- The wider a creek is on the map, the wider it is in real life
- I’ve penciled-in ‘Adventure Routes’ – old, forgotten routes, that no one has travelled in decades or centuries. They’re all plausible routes, but bushwhacking is *required*

• Distances & Travel Times

Each stretch of canoe route is labelled with both the distance, and an estimated travel time. Since we all travel at different speeds over different terrains (e.g. we’re faster on big lakes and slower on portages) they help you avoid planning a route that gets you to your campsite at 9pm (I’ve been there!!).

If you’re familiar with the previous version of my map, they work the same way, but now they’re supercharged. They now take into account how twisty a river is, hills on portages, obstructions like dense alder, and the condition of each portage (how easy it is to find and whether it’s overgrown)

• Starting Points

Each starting point (access point) has a website, detailing everything you need to know about it – how much parking there is, where the nearest outfitters are, permit info, and a detailed description of it.

But the coolest part, is that each page has a big blue ‘Take Me There!’ button. If you tap in on your phone, you’ll automatically be routed from your current location to the starting point using Google Maps. This is especially handy for little used, unofficial starting points.

An example – Big Bisset Lake Starting Point: http://startpt.info/al/24

• Ultra-Detailed, But Easy to Read

The previous version of my map had 4 single-sided map sections. The new one has 5 double-sided maps. That’s allowed me to increase the zoom/scale by an amazing 70% – from 1:84,000 to 1:50,000. That’s meant I was able to both cram on *way* more detail, and increase the size of the text so it’s a lot easier to read.

But that’s not all – there are a few spots where I found the map was still hard to read because there was just so much detail. So, I’ve added enlargements with 5x zoom where I need them (1:10,000 scale).

Oh, and there’s more contrast too! That’s key when it’s windy or rainy and you only have a moment to glance at the map.

• Digital Versions Included

If you buy a map, not only do you get a beautiful waterproof, tear-resistant copy – you get 5 different digital versions as well:
- An Avenza Maps compatible file for iOS/Android
- A Garmin ‘Custom Map’ file, compatible with most modern GPS’s (except the inReach series)
- A high-resolution JPEG, perfect for making enlargements
- A Google Earth file
- A GeoTIFF, compatible with a variety of of mapping applications

–– But that’s not all! ––

This post is already long enough, so I couldn’t list all of the new features and improvements here. You’ll just have to explore the new maps to see them all =)

You can check them out to your hearts content, for free, on my website!

→ https://www.mapsbyjeff.com ←

Please feel free to send me an email if you have any questions. I will be a bit delayed in replying since I’ve been inundated with messages, but I always love talking maps!

Thanks for your patience and support through all the years. This has been the toughest project I’ve ever worked on, but I couldn’t be prouder of the end result!!

-Jeff

🐷✈️

11/28/2023

As a member of Ottawa’s County of Renfrew Paramedic Service, Matt Hamilton keeps in tip-top shape.

11/15/2023

The Happy Camper is teaching his Winter Camping Workshop at Frontenac Outfitters, but space is limited! In this hands-on course, you will practice essential skills like building a fire in the snow, setting up a hot tent, identifying trees to find quality firewood in the winter, and more! Register today! https://www.frontenacoutfitters.com/products/winter-camping-workshop-with-kevin-callan-dec-2nd-2023

11/10/2023

November is a quiet month – a time to slow down, before the onslaught of the ski season and the Christmas holidays. In the Eastern Townships, there are dozens of ways to do just that! Visitors can stroll in the heart of nature, meander through city streets, relax in the warming waters of a spa, li...

10/27/2023

If fall makes you yearn to get moving by day and cozy by night, this one’s for you.