We’ve moved!!

Posted on December 14, 2010 by Marian and Deb

We will no longer be updating this blog. If you want to continue getting our tips, comments etc, go to http://blog.adventuresingoodcompany.com. You can sign up for an RSS feed and receive everything we post or just on the topics that interest you. Hope to see you on our new blog.

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Please help us get Facebook’s attention

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Marian and Deb

The other day, in response to a question someone had asked on our Facebook page, I was trying to post a link to a trip description on our website when this popped up: “This message contains blocked content that has previously been flagged as abusive or spammy. Let us know if you think this is an error.” I’ve emailed them several times that I think its an error but looking at comments in the help section it appears that Facebook refuses to respond or investigate.

Why did this happen? My guess is that I frequently block or report people who place ads in our Facebook feed as spammers. I’m guessing that some decided to get back at me by reporting our website and Facebook didn’t even bother to investigate. Or perhaps it was a competitor. Or someone else who was angry at us for whatever reason. Regardless, it appears that Facebook just takes the word of any of their users and doesn’t bother to let the accused respond.

So what can you do? Please write a post with our website URL “www.adventuresingoodcompany.com” in it. When you get the abuse message, write them and let them know that we are not abusive or spammers. They didn’t pay attention to us, but perhaps if they hear from enough FB users, they’ll pay attention and let us at least address the accusations. Thanks!

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From the woman who won the free trip

Posted on November 13, 2010 by Marian and Deb

Last September we gave away the last space on the Colorado Rockies Ramble to a woman who was unemployed. This was the thank you note we received from her.

Dear Marian,

The trip to the Rockies was wonderful! It is the best thing that has happened to me in a long, long time. When there is an especially difficult day, I transport myself back to the Rockies and relive the hikes. Those mountains seem to bring me strength and peace. This quote by John Muir seems to fit well. “Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.” And yes, I definitely want to thank the woman who payed my airfare.

This trip made me realize how much my children and I have missed the past 20+ years. Hopefully, within the next two years, before my oldest daughter graduates, we will drive out to do some exploring and hiking in the mountains. It might take another miracle, which is what I consider this trip to have been. When I think how little I check email or use the computer, it is a wonder I saw your email offering a free trip in time to apply for it….and even more amazing to me that I actually won it. I definitely would like to go on another trip with AGC someday. All of your trips sound very good and what a great way for women to travel. I enjoyed meeting other women from all over. It was such a treat to not have to do any of the driving or cooking and just relax and enjoy everything.

I would like to be able to pay this forward some day and pay for another woman’s airfare to go on one of your trips and give them the opportunity that I had. My circumstances will change for the better. I have to believe in that.

There is so much more I want to say, but for now, just want you to know how grateful I am for this gift you gave a woman. I will never forget it.

Sincerely,

Linda

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Technology and Adventure Vacations

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Marian and Deb

We did a survey last year in which we asked women’s preferences about access to communication technology during a trip. 41.0% said they loved it when there was no access, 53.4% said they liked having access to cellphones or the internet but it wasn’t a necessity, and 5.6% said they couldn’t go on a trip without it.

Last year someone on a trip needed to call to check in with her elderly mom, and would not have been able to go away without that communication. But some women use their cellphone to stay in touch with their families in a way that seems to keep them from being fully present where they are and with the people they’re with. Are their vacations subtly impacted in a way that would never have happened before cell phones? And how about women who head for the nearest internet cafes when they get to a new city, rather than spending time wandering around or sitting in the square?

Whether you use cellphones or the internet on vacation is obviously a personal decision. But its worth considering the downside of not totally disconnecting. Even if you bring your cellphone, you always have the option to turn it off and leave it in your suitcase. There is increasing evidence that technology addiction is real: the more time we’re connected, the less we’re comfortable with not being connected. Your next adventure vacation may offer you a great opportunity to find out.

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Four Cures for the Common Winter Vacation

Posted on October 19, 2010 by Marian and Deb

With winter fast approaching, women are planning how to get a break from the cold and snow. While there are many options, such as cruises, spas, and beach resorts, mass tourism is unappealing to women who want something different in 2011. Adventures in Good Company offers four different approaches to winter vacations that enable active women to escape winter blahs and lethargy. Designed especially for adventurous women who love being outdoors, tours range from four days to two weeks and include sea kayaking, hiking, canoeing, trekking, and adventure vacations with multiple activities. With groups of 12 women or less, women-only tours are perfect for women who are traveling alone or with other women, and who want someone else to arrange all the details.

1. Take on a physical challenge
For women who are already fit and want a warm winter vacation with lots of physical challenge, the Mount Kilimanjaro Climb and Safari is a thrilling trek to the rooftop of Africa. At 19,300 feet, this is as high as women can go without any technical skills or experience. The final push to the summit under the light of the full moon is guaranteed to be a lifelong memory. Following this epic challenge women have a chance to relax and unwind during a 5-day wildlife safari to three different parks. February is the birthing month for many animals in Tanzania when the plains of the Serengeti become a giant nursery.

2. Try a beach vacation – with a twist
Many women want some time to relax on a beach time but get bored quickly. Winter vacations that combine sea kayaking with time to swim, snorkel, and relax on the beach are the perfect solution for active women. The clear blue waters and white sand beaches of Panama and the Caribbean offer all these opportunities. And Panama has the extra attraction of offering biodiversity that exceeds its neighbor Costa Rica and yet is still off the beaten path, offering a pristine tropical experience.

3. Learn about an exceptional ecosystem
One of the things women love most about an adventure vacation is the opportunity not only to try something different but to go somewhere and learn something about a landscape that is totally foreign – and women don’t even need to leave the United States. Winter is the perfect time to visit some parts of the US that are just too hot and/or buggy the rest of the year. Visiting them in winter allows women not only to stretch their muscles but their minds as they hike the bizarre rocky landscapes of Death Valley or Joshua Tree National Parks or paddle the mysterious river trails of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

4. Visit a traditional winter vacation spot in a non-traditional way
Mexico and Hawaii are both traditional warm winter vacation spots. But too often people leave with little more than a tan and a few extra pounds, without any experience of the diversity of wildlife and the history and culture of the people who live there. Many women find that an adventure vacation that combines time to relax with time to explore and try new activities is the ideal way to visit a new place or revisit a familiar place in an unfamiliar way.

5. Immerse yourself in winter
Definitely not in the category of warm weather vacations, some women think the best winter vacation is playing outdoors in the winter. Dog sledding, cross country skiing and snow shoeing on Minnesota’s North Shore are made even more appealing when the home base is a cozy condo on the frozen shore of Lake Superior.

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Dangerous Destinations

Posted on October 15, 2010 by Marian and Deb

Sometimes we’re asked “Is it safe to go to (Mexico, Greece, Nepal – fill in the blank)? When we hear about riots in Greece or drug violence in Mexico, it’s an understandable question. After all, we don’t have the familiarity with a country to know if some areas are safer than others or how riots in the capital city might affect a trip. But do you remember a few years ago when some German tourists were killed in Florida? It was horrible and the car rental agencies were quick to remove signs from the cars that marked them as rentals. We all applauded that. But we were shocked when Germany issued a tourist warning for the US. We all thought it was ridiculous! I mean that’s Florida, for goodness sake, and what can that have to do with California or New York City.

This issue of considering a country as a dangerous was further reinforced for me when I visited Nepal in 2003 for the first time. At the time there was an active Maoist insurgency and some tourist groups in Pokhara had been extorted for “travel taxes”. So people had asked me if it was safe. I explained that we weren’t going anywhere near Pokhara and the Khumbu Valley was a very different place that was not hospitable to insurgents.

The first day I was sitting in the hotel lobby reading an English paper and an article entitled “The 10 countries most likely to have a terrorist attack”. Nepal was 10. The United States was 5 and England was 6.

Familiarity breeds comfort. When a place is unknown, it can always look scary. We’ve had 2 room robberies in 12 years of offering trips and one was at an upscale resort in rural Michigan. I’m not discounting the need to be safety conscious and there are areas of many countries that are unsafe, just as there are many areas of cities in the US that are unsafe. You don’t blindly walk in a city or go into a country you don’t know anything about. But rarely is an entire country unsafe. The internet provides many resources for assessing safety an dis always a good first step.

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Three Myths About Women’s Travel

Posted on September 28, 2010 by Marian and Deb

Women’s travel has grown significantly in the last 20 years: there are now over two dozen companies that specialize in women’s travel or offer women-only trips in conjunction with their regular offerings. A more recent addition, about five years ago were “girlfriends getaways”, often hotel packages with an emphasis on getting together with your girlfriends to get pampered, drink wine, and recreate your college days. As this notion of women taking trips together becomes mainstream, certain assumptions, or myths, have become prevalent. And like all myths, they may contain some truth- but their widespread adoption obscures what makes women-only travel unique.

Myth 1. A women’s trip is usually just a watered-down version of a mixed gender trip. Truth: some may be. But women’s travel actually had its start in adventure travel, and many companies offer trips that are just as rigorous as mixed gender trips. So if you’re interested in a women’s trip, read the itinerary carefully and call the company with questions if you’re unsure. But never assume that just because it’s a women-only trip, “anyone” can do it.

Myth 2. Women’s travel is all about shopping, cooking classes, and pampering. Truth: Again, some women’s trips, especially Girlfriends’ Getaways, do focus on those things. But many others offer some activity of varying levels of difficulty. And many focus much more on spending time in nature than in stores.

Myth 3. On an all women’s trip, the main focus of conversation is men and “male-bashing” is common. Truth: Talking about men is uncommon and male-bashing is infrequent. Women’s travel is all about camaraderie, laughing, and the special feeling of connection that happens when women get together. Sometimes women going through painful transitions with a male partner may bring them up, but more in the context of seeking support than venting.

There are a wide variety of women’s travel opportunities available today (yes, we’re not the only company that specializes in it). Whether you want adventure or shopping, hiking or pampering, there’s something suitable for any woman who wants to experience the special magic that happens when women get together.

This piece was also published in the blog of Cheap Airfare

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Reviving your rain jacket

Posted on September 10, 2010 by Marian and Deb

We got an email the other day from a woman who has taken a few trips with us and knows the importance of having high quality, functioning rain gear.

Question: “I have a very nice North Face rain coat. I think it needs renewed water proofing. Would you suggest that or buy a new one?”

Answer: First, try washing it with NikWash laundry liquid. GoreTex is actually a layer of material sandwiched between the layers of nylon that make up the coat. if you don’t wash the jacket often enough or wash it in regular laundry detergent it affects the holes in the GoreTex layer, which is what is keeping the jacket waterproof and breathable.

If dirt, grime or the laundry soap gets in there it diminishes it’s waterproofness. Whatever this NikWash is, it helps “refluff” the GoreTex layer. They have both a laundry product to use regularly and a wash-in product to use every once in a while to actually revitalize the waterproof/breathability of the jacket.

Second, don’t wash your GoreTex jacket in regular laundry detergent anymore. Ideally you want a product that is only soap, but a very mild powder detergent can work as well, especially if you use the wash-in direct from time to time.

Third, if it is the outer layer that is no longer beading up as well when rain hits it, you can spray the outside with a water proofing spray. But this would be my last suggestion as sometimes the spray keeps the GoreTex from doing its job.

Now, if the North Face jacket is not Gore-Tex, you can still wash it in the stuff and see if it helps. Nikwax also make several other waterproofing products.

If none of this works (and sometimes rain jackets are past the point of revival), or if you just really want a new jacket, then go ahead and buy one. — Deb

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Packing Lists are useful for any trip

Posted on August 26, 2010 by Marian and Deb

One might think that as guides, we have been going on trips for so long that we just know what to pack for ourselves. While there are many of the basics that remain the same, each trip has enough different elements that autopilot packing does not always work. Plus, we are busy (like everyone else) before going on a trip and our minds can be in a million places trying to take care of loose ends.

So whenever I set off to guide a trip, I print out our trip information document and use the enclosed packing list for my own personal gear. They are detailed and include all the essentials you may need. Plus the checklist format makes it simple to just tick off what you have packed. These packing lists are accessible to anyone, even those not coming on the trip (in fact someone once emailed me saying he had used our packing list for a personal Grand Canyon trip). The link is posted in the “more information here” section of each trip’s web page. You click on “download complete trip information here” hyperlink and it takes you to the trip document. Packing lists are usually 2-3 pages down.

A packing list would have definitely “saved” my latest vacation, even though it is not a trip our company offers.

Sean and I went to Canada to a really remote, semi-rustic family cabin. It is a 10 hour drive from our house in Minneapolis, to just outside of Armstrong, Ontario. Then it is a 26 mile boat ride up the lake to where only 4 cabins reside, bordering on Wabikimi Wilderness. It is really incredible.

We remembered to pack the non-cotton long underwear, and the rain gear. We knew to bring the 20F sleeping bag and our head lamps. We remembered water shoes, hiking shoes and bathing suits. We even remembered to bring paddles, portage pads, canoe tie-down straps and a dry bag, even though we didn’t yet own a canoe. We made a grocery list as we drove and talked about our timing of meeting the boat at the dock to get to the cabin.

But about 2.5 hours out of Minneapolis, we remembered that we did not have our passports! Going into Canada from the US by car requires a passport now and we had forgotten. I knew Marian had once forgotten her i.d. when flying to a trip start and after much talking with TSA, they let her through to the plane without it. With fingers crossed, we called the US border and Canadian border stations. The U.S. said they would not refuse their own citizens coming back from Canada, if Canada had let us cross. Unfortunately, the Canadian rules were strict. We needed a passport or a driver’s license and birth certificate.

Since we had forgotten anything beyond our driver’s licenses, we had to go back home to get them. My wonderful spouse knows I hate riding in the car for hours on end, so he dropped me in Duluth, MN and he drove the 4+ round trip hours to get them. We had a terrific vacation despite this, but I know that if we had an AGC packing list we never would have left home without the passports!

And, I still wonder what would have happened if we had gotten all the way to the border without our passports. Would they have taken pity on us and let us through or would they have turned us away? Hopefully, we will never find out! – Deb

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FREE Trip for an unemployed woman

Posted on August 15, 2010 by Marian and Deb

Note; Since we first published this, someone offered to make a substantial contribution towards airfare if the person who won needed it.

We’re incredibly grateful in the current economy that enough of you have kept your jobs, and kept traveling with us, that we’ve been able to keep our jobs. But occasionally someone has canceled a trip because she just lost her job; or we see or read a story in the news about people who have been unemployed – and our hearts go out to them. We know how much these folks need vacations and it’s the last thing they can afford.

We have one space left on our Colorado Rockies Ramble and we’d like to give it to someone who has been laid off in the last 3 years and has been unemployed for at least the last 6 months. Women who have just graduated are not eligible. The free trip includes everything but travel to Denver, CO.

If this describes you, please send an email to marian@goodadventure.com with “Free trip” in the subject line by Wednesday August 16, briefly describing how you meet the criteria. On Thursday we will randomly select someone. At that point, if you are selected, we will ask for some kind of documentation about your unemployment status.

Please only send an email if you are sure you can take the trip if you’re selected. If you know someone who is eligible, please ask them to contact us directly. We need help spreading the offer as widely as possible and would welcome your assistance. Thanks! — Marian

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