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Under the Canopy
On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, former Minister of Natural Resources, Jerry Ouellette takes you along on the journey to see the places and meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and Under The Canopy.
Under the Canopy
Episode 104: Getting Women In The Outdoors w Brittani and Garrett
When was the last time you truly disconnected? In a world where screens dominate and demands never cease, finding authentic connection with yourself and the natural world grows increasingly difficult. This episode explores how glamping—that perfect blend of glamour and camping—has emerged as a powerful gateway for women and beginners to discover the transformative effects of outdoor experiences.
Our special guest Brittany shares her perspective on why glamping resonates so deeply with women seeking outdoor adventure without sacrificing comfort. "It creates a safe and accessible entry point into the outdoors," she explains, "bringing together both being in a tent but also having the comfort of home." This isn't about diluting the authentic outdoor experience—it's about creating accessible pathways for more people to discover what nature has to offer.
Beyond the practical aspects, we dive into the profound mental wellness benefits that come from time spent outside. As Brittany beautifully puts it, "One of the rarest sounds that we'll ever get is quiet," highlighting how outdoor experiences allow us to ground ourselves in a way that's increasingly rare in modern life. From fishing adventures to building confidence in new skills, this conversation explores how outdoor activities allow people to shed societal expectations and rediscover their authentic selves.
Ready to take that first step into outdoor adventure? Whether you're considering glamping, fishing, paddleboarding, or simply spending more time under the open sky, this episode offers practical advice and heartfelt encouragement. As Brittany reminds us, "Thinking about doing something takes a lot more effort than actually doing it." Your journey to reconnection and self-discovery might be just one camping trip away.
How did a small-town sheet metal mechanic come to build one of Canada's most iconic fishing lodges? I'm your host, steve Nitzwicky, and you'll find out about that and a whole lot more on the Outdoor Journal Radio Network's newest podcast, diaries of a Lodge Owner. But this podcast will be more than that. Every week on Diaries of a Lodge Owner, I'm going to introduce you to a ton of great people, share their stories of our trials, tribulations and inspirations, learn and have plenty of laughs along the way.
Speaker 2:Meanwhile we're sitting there bobbing along trying to figure out how to catch a bass and we both decided one day we were going to be on television doing a fishing show.
Speaker 3:My hands get sore a little bit when I'm reeling in all those bass in the summertime, but that's might be for more fishing than it was punching you so confidently you said hey, pat have you ever eaten a drum?
Speaker 1:Find Diaries of a Lodge Owner now on Spotify, apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.
Speaker 4:As the world gets louder and louder, the lessons of our natural world become harder and harder to hear, but they are still available to those who know where to listen. But they are still available to those who know where to listen. I'm Jerry Ouellette and I was honoured to serve as Ontario's Minister of Natural Resources. However, my journey into the woods didn't come from politics. Rather, it came from my time in the bush and a mushroom. In 2015, I was introduced to the birch-hungry fungus known as chaga, a tree conch with centuries of medicinal applications used by Indigenous peoples all over the globe. After nearly a decade of harvest, use, testimonials and research, my skepticism has faded to obsession and I now spend my life dedicated to improving the lives of others through natural means. But that's not what the show is about. My pursuit of this strange mushroom and my passion for the outdoors has brought me to the places and around the people that are shaped by our natural world. On Outdoor Journal Radio's Under the Canopy podcast, I'm going to take you along with me to see the places, meet the people that will help you find your outdoor passion and help you live a life close to nature and under the canopy. So join me today for another great episode and hopefully we can inspire a few more people to live their lives under the canopy, more people to live their lives under the canopy Well, as always. We want to thank all the listeners all around Canada, the United States, the world, switzerland, ghana, trinidad, tobago, the friends in the Bahamas. I know we got great listeners out there and, as always, I'm not going to say it, but if you got them, ask them questions. If you want to see it or hear it, find something interesting, let me know and we'll try and do a show for you. Now it was the usual morning out. I was out running with Gunnar Chocolate Lab and we got a second flush of reishi mushrooms that are looking really good. So next time I'm out, I got to bring my little jackknife and I'll be harvesting the reishi and then I'll let it dry and be able to use that. Plus, I'm seeing all kind of self-heal, all heal out in the fields now, so that means they're up and they're ready.
Speaker 4:The little purple flowers, which is a great mix. It comes from the mint flame family and makes a good tea and has a lot of benefits to it as well, plus the the mullein's up there, so you want to get the mullein and I don't see any mullein flowers yet. But when you get mullein flowers it's great to make a salve or actually drops out of the flowers and what they do is they take the flowers and then they'll use those and they make great eardrops. I've never tried it or had anybody that tells me about it. But drops I've never tried it or had anybody that tells me about it. But all I read about when the mullein is that it's great for ears. Not only that, but of course mullein leaves are a little bit different in that once they're harvested they can be made into a tea or a smudge that people use for lung infections, but all those sorts of things.
Speaker 4:It's just that time of year that things are happening out there. Now we've got something a little bit different for a show today. As you know, we usually have Garrett, my son, out on quite a number of podcasts and this time he's bringing a guest and Garrett's going to ask a bunch of questions about a little bit things different and how they happen and what takes place out there in the outdoors under the canopy. So we're going to turn it over to Garrett and I'll get them going and come on in, come on over, all right. Well, we've got Garrett out and Garrett is brought his girlfriend, brittany. Well, welcome to the podcast, brittany.
Speaker 5:Thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to chat with everyone today.
Speaker 4:Are you sure you're not too nervous coming out from Calgary and all that?
Speaker 5:A little bit nervous, but we're here for a good time.
Speaker 4:Well, that's not a problem, Just relax and we'll get to talk to all kinds of things and find out, like some questions about how we get females and women out into the outdoors and what's a great way, and then I'll kind of let Garrett bridge some questions. But there's some other questions. So, brittany, how many boyfriends did you have before Garrett? Zero, I'm kidding, of course. Anyways, yeah, so we'll talk about a number of different things on the sort of the pros and the cons and what inspires females to get out in the outdoors and what we can do to get them, whether it's down hiking the trails or in all those places.
Speaker 4:I mean, we talk quite a few shows about the oh, the Royal Botanical Gardens and things like that, which is a great way to get people out, to start it and initiate it. But you know you've got bird watching and all the other things that take place, or we had individuals on that specialize and do butterfly watches, monarch butterfly watches in August and stuff like that. So there's a lot of opportunities. But, garrett, go ahead. You got some questions maybe.
Speaker 3:Yeah, you can run with it. I want to talk about how do you get females in the outdoors and, as me and Brittany have grown our relationship together, it's more about introducing her into things that I like to do, so whether it's hiking, fishing, hunting and stuff like that. So we're here to talk about things about how do you get women in the outdoors. So I just want to start and just pretty much ask you what was your starting in the outdoors? Like, how did you get into enjoying the outdoors?
Speaker 5:Yeah, that's such a great question, garrett. Thank you so much, and thank you for everyone for joining in today. I'm really excited to chat with all of you. I think, specifically growing up, my dad was an outdoorsman, so he really enjoyed fishing and hiking, and camping, especially, was huge in our family. But as I got older and more conversation was happening around mental hygiene whether we recognize that verbiage as mental health or mental wellness hygiene. Whether we recognize that verbiage as mental health or mental wellness, whatever that is. It's so important to be able to get out and ground yourself and really enjoy the outdoors, enjoy the sunshine. You know that vitamin D and all those sorts of things.
Speaker 3:Yeah, of course, like I can definitely understand that for sure, because I know, I remember stories of my parents taking me out as a kid and getting me in the outdoors like that way. And now here I am spending x amount of money on fishing gear that I'm always sad to say how much I spend on it well, christmas time, it helps everyone it makes for an easy Christmas list.
Speaker 3:You know there's this lure, there's that lure, there's this line, there's this cape, bait caster and everything else. But um, you know, you mentioned there about camping and hygiene stuff. So it kind of leads me into like glamping is one of those things I find is coming more and more popular of getting people into the outdoors or into a camp or into that scene. So why do you think glamping has resonated with women so well?
Speaker 5:now, Totally Again, just circling back to that piece around, you know, mental hygiene, whatever that looks like.
Speaker 5:We're going back to encouraging individuals to get out and see beyond their little square that they're involved in every day and you know, learn how to do these things. So, specifically, exactly like what you had mentioned, garrett, glamping has exploded in popularity over the last few years, especially through social media. I think what resonates with women so much, especially as they have children and families and things like that, is it creates a safe and accessible entry point into the outdoors, where it does bring together both being in a tent but also having the comfort of home. It's cleaner, there's less bugs, you know. It's a good transitional space. It's an introductory experience, you know, and it doesn't involve, you know, being an experienced hiker or knowing how to build a fire. It's more luxurious than that. It brings the glamour and the camping together, which is why we call it glamping. And I'm starting to think, going back to your little you know things about all the fishing pieces that you buy. I'm thinking we need to do a segment on what to buy your partner for Christmas.
Speaker 3:I mean for the outdoorsman person, it's not hard to shop for them at all. Um, more or less, there's always new things coming out. There's always the latest and greatest technology. You know, uh, for fishing folks, uh, live scope was one of the biggest thing, or the pan optics was one of the biggest thing out there that people have uh learned to adjust and get into more easier things for fishing, and that's one of the latest and greatest technologies out there.
Speaker 3:But yeah, as you said, like glamping, though I know like hygiene is definitely big, as I myself I am not a female, I'm a male and I don't have the same issues or same challenges that a female might face in the outdoors. You know, for most guys it's especially when you got to go to the bathroom or something like that. It's just there's a nice tree over there, I'm going to lay up against and do my business. But you know, glamping has become more and more popular and I do understand the hygiene sense of it makes more sense. But there's also people like the hardcore campers that are going to say like, pitch a tent, sleep on the ground, you know, wake up when the sun wakes you up, kind of thing, because there's no alarm clocks and everything else. Do you find that glamping takes away from that nostalgic of camping, kind of thing?
Speaker 5:Absolutely not. It definitely depends on who you're asking. I mean, garrett and I had a great conversation last night with Jerry in regards to different tiers of camping, whether it be you know you're out in the lake or not sorry, not out in the lake, but you have your own space to camp or you're side by side with another family, or you know you go into that glamping and absolutely not. There's different tiers and it all. The whole point of camping is being able to get away and enjoy yourself and relax, right, and so that is defined very differently for many different people, I know. For women, being able to glamp means a lot because, again, there's better hygiene, it's a little bit safer, there's access to internet, especially if you have children. You're able to go out into the wilderness and really be able to enjoy that, while having all of those accessible features to you, even a working toilet, a bathroom, you know.
Speaker 3:So yeah, no, and I agree, it definitely is necessities there that have made it easier on the family household to manage, bring everything else out. Like I remember, as my kids, or me and my brother were kids, and my mom and dad would pack all this stuff and we're sitting in the car and then they go oh we need this and oh we need that. And you know, because when you're camping, like, you don't have that ability to go, oh, we forgot something, let's go pick it up. Because when you're out, say in Algonquin, and you're, uh, doing a portage kind of thing, you know you don't have it. You, you don't have it. Right, you forgot it, that's it, so you gotta without.
Speaker 3:But I understand, like camping, the way society is going is that it's harder for people to spend vast amount of time camping. So if you can combine a little bit of, I want to get in the outdoors, but I still want to be able to say, if I can work a little bit on my projects, that way I can manage my time better. I understand that it makes it easier for people to get in the outdoors, for sure, but do you find, like the roughing it though, is that more of the enjoyment of camping, because you said when people find what their piece or what their stick is is calming for them. For example, I like to run the water before I get in the shower because it helps calm my nerves down. I just enjoy the sound of running water. You know it's like water on a tin roof, like people argue, like what's one of the best sounds in nature, or white noises to fall asleep to.
Speaker 3:But I find like the enjoyment is also like if people like just having that a cottage on the lake where it's nice and quiet, and you wake up every morning and all you hear is you know the birds chirping, or you hear the rain and the mist kind of falling down as everything slowly starts to dry up from the rainstorm last night, kind of thing down as everything slowly starts to dry up from the rainstorm last night, kind of thing. Do you think glamping is kind of adding to that or is taking away from that effect of what people might find is peaceful in regards to dealing with nature?
Speaker 5:Yeah, I think that, again, everyone defines being at peace in many different ways, right, and it's finding the balance between having a safe space that's still kind of local to the city, where you're able to quickly escape. We're seeing a lot of companies start to do retreats for women where it is glamping, getting them back into nature and maybe roughing. It isn't for them. I can't speak for all women when it comes to that but you're still in an environment where you can wake up and you're still hearing the birds and you're still hearing the rain. You know all those relaxing things that you mentioned. I mean. Just circling back to the portage part, my goodness, if you want to prep anyone for a good, authentic camping trip, get them involved in a good portage. I think that was my initiation into a good camping trip and that part you potentially do miss in the glamping piece, but you do still definitely get to experience all those beautiful noises and sounds.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and you know one thing I find when I go camping stuff like that, or I go camping with the guys we've gone a couple of years now in Algonquin. I don't know what it is, but cooking food on a campfire, on an open flame and just kind of roughing, guessing it like if it's done, if it's not done, I don't know what it is. But when you take away that temperature control and that stuff, you feel a little bit more like you appreciate the value of a nice cooked meal, because my gosh, like a fire cooked anything. It just seems to be so much more better. So you think you know.
Speaker 3:If there's one thing I would say to people, if you're going glamping and stuff like that or you're trying to get in the outdoors, it's, you know, at least try and plan to have a campfire or have some kind of meal on the fire, even if it's just, you know, hot dogs, or we used to call them spider dogs, as we would just take and you would cut the ends and the way it would curl up. It looked like a spider kind of thing. You know, just make it fun for the kids as well. But I don't know.
Speaker 3:There's one thing I'd recommend is definitely for people to enjoy food being cooked on the campfire, like a shore lunch and stuff like that is always a nostalgic thing when people go away for you know big time fishing trips there's always the oh're going to plan a shore lunch on your third day here and everyone enjoys that and everyone talks about that the most because that's where you share your stories, too, with other people, right, everyone gets around and you share your stories about your camping trips or you know what you did last week or all the funny things that happened in your life. Now, is there any like say must haves, other than say like I would say you need to bring, like your firewood stuff for the fire ward because you need to sell that nostalgic. But is there any like must-haves that you need for glamping kind of things, like necessities, especially as a woman coming in and being like I still want to, you know, feel the safety and comfort, but also, you know, what are those must-haves that people should be kind of thinking of bringing?
Speaker 5:Yeah, absolutely. I just want to mention that I feel like we got a little nostalgic there. Spider dogs, my goodness. I think our listeners are going to have a little smile with all the nostalgia happening here, my goodness. Yeah, and you and I had a brief chat about this. What can even men bring for their girlfriends if they want to bring them out glamping for the first time and introduce them to maybe what they enjoy doing? Some items that they could bring glamping is a cozy robe, a good book, one of their favorite books, Bluetooth speakers for music, maybe some lights. You could even go as far as making it a little spa where you're getting them a face mask, an eye mask and of for those pesky mosquitoes, some bug spray. That is a big one for us. I can't stand mosquitoes. I was eaten alive as of recent, so that would definitely be number one on my list, Garrett.
Speaker 3:Oh, I could agree. And we have a dog, belle. She's a a year and a half now and she's Doberman and you know she was out exposed for the first time and I definitely bet if she could talk she would say these bugs are biting me. I don't know what to do, because it was always funny when she would get bit she would, you know, sit down on her bum because she's always like something's touching me, I don't know what it is, and then she would run and dash away kind of thing, because it was the first time being exposed to the flies and mosquitoes and it's just a funny scene. But yeah, absolutely Like bug spray, I definitely think is one of the big things, especially because a lot of people, you know, want to be comfortable in their skin.
Speaker 3:And you know, one thing that we have I'm sure my dad's mentioned several times is Chaga and there's that Chaga cream which helps with the anti-inflammatory of the bug bites, stuff like that. So we've put on a couple of your bug bites and it's not like it works right away, but it does help soothe that spot or soothe the itch a little bit. Did it help you there with stuff like that?
Speaker 5:Totally. Yeah, it was fantastic, even with the sunburn that we were able to get, just being able to enjoy the weather here in Ontario.
Speaker 3:Absolutely. Well, you know. And then there's other things I would say too. For a guy to bring to say to get your partner into the outdoors, Glamping is a good way to start, unless you want to rough it right away. But if you're going to rough it right away, surprise your girl with something nice, or partner, or partner, because you know what, you know how many times when you're trying to do your thing and then they get a moment of frustration or irritation for example bug bites, and it just throws off your whole day, you know what your partner could do. Bring them their favorite snack, bring them their favorite little thing that they enjoy. Go out of your way and spend a little extra money to bring that special treat. Be what makes the memory happen there and what makes it more of an enjoyable time, because that surprise moment will definitely feel more comforting for them.
Speaker 5:Or a favorite blanket, a little nice fuzzy blanket that they really enjoy by the fire, or whatever.
Speaker 3:Yeah, fuzzy, that favorite thing, you know, fuzzy blanket for sure. I mean definitely on those cooler nights, you know people don't realize it gets hot. It was like we went on, you know, going back a little bit here. We went on a family trip to Egypt and you know it's stinking hot there because it's desert sand. It's Egypt, it's hot, and we're in T-shirts and shorts and we're sweating. And then the locals there, when we were out there on the river, the guy was brought out a leather jacket when it was like eight o'clock at night because the temperature change went from, you know, say, 40 to 35, and that 15 degree temperature change was enough to justify it's cold. So you don't think about it, but it's like during the day you're going to get hot, during the night You're going to feel that temperature on your skin being more colder. So, yeah, definitely bring a sweater, bring a comfy blanket, bring something that's going to be cozy and comforting for them, because that'll make a difference for your partner for sure.
Speaker 5:Yeah, and dress accordingly, just going exactly like what you're saying, Garrett. And to our listeners out West and Alberta, our heat is very different than it is out in Ontario, isn't it, Garrett?
Speaker 3:Oh, absolutely Like it's a dry heat, wasn't it Garrett? Oh, absolutely Like it's, it's a dry heat. You know, the guys at work I'm out there working with, they always make fun of me because they're like oh, how are you still wearing a sweater? It's, you know, 20 something degrees now and the sun's out and we're all sweating and I'm like yeah, but what happens when it reaches 35 or 30 degrees and we're still have to? You know, told to go pack steel all day and you're already at your base layer because, like in the winter time, you can always keep adding more layers, but in the summertime you can only take off until you're like at your bare skin here and you're not allowed to go shirtless on the job sites anymore. So you got to wear, you know, your long sleeve and your safety gear and everything else. So I like wear a sweater, acclimatize my body to adjust for that temperature, because people are always going, ah, it's so hot when it's 30. But I'm like nah, it's not that bad now.
Speaker 5:But I feel 30 degrees here is so much worse than 30 degrees back home.
Speaker 3:Well, that's true, because the humidity air and the thickness in the air is definitely different. In Calgary the air is much thinner and plus it's also because you get that mountain breeze. You're in the priors there, so you get more of a direct wind, where here it's like a little bit more broken up kind of thing. So you do feel a difference for sure. Even, like you said, even like, for example, going on the coast and on, say, vancouver, like they get so much rain there, the humidity there has got to be just as bad as here, I would think, because we get more like in Ontario, you get more of the lake effect, weather and climate change there because of that.
Speaker 5:Totally. And, garrett, you were saying that when you're camping or we're going to the cottage or having those experiences, pack snacks. What are your favorite snacks that you like to bring?
Speaker 3:I mean I'm a chips and pretzel guy. I mean Doritos are probably like one of the go-tos here. Like, keep it simple.
Speaker 5:What do you think my favorite snack is to bring?
Speaker 3:I mean, I know you like the shower, cherry blasters.
Speaker 5:I do, definitely a fan favorite.
Speaker 3:If I had to guess something else. Oh, you know, you surprise me a lot of times. Sometimes you go trail mix, sometimes you feel chips, so it's like I kind of have to feel what you're feeling that week.
Speaker 5:Definitely.
Speaker 3:You know, you can't just go in just to say, all right, she's going to want chips this week. Is it a sweet and salty type thing? You got to mix it up. You got to have options.
Speaker 5:You know, you got to have variety, so take note everyone, bring variety when you go outdoors.
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Speaker 4:And now it's time for another testimonial for Chaga Health and Wellness. Okay, I'm here in Millbrook with Trevor, who had a great experience and wants to share it with us with the skin cream, the Chaga skin cream. Trevor, tell us what you went through and how much you used, and go ahead.
Speaker 8:I've had eczema on my arm since I was a little kid and it's always been quite a rough patch there on my arm and no lotion seemed to ever get it so that it was smooth Right. But using the Chaga, probably for three weeks, it feels like normal skin now. Yeah, and how often did you put it on? I put it on maybe once every other day. I didn't remember to do it every day, so once every other day, one time a day.
Speaker 4:Very good and you had great results and now it feels like normal skin again. Very good.
Speaker 8:And you didn't try anything else, so you figure that's what? No, that was. They work, so I'm sticking with that.
Speaker 4:Very good. Well, thanks, trevor here in Millbrook.
Speaker 8:Yeah, okay.
Speaker 4:We interrupt this program to bring you a special offer from Chaga Health and Wellness. If you've listened this far and you're still wondering about this strange mushroom that I keep talking about and whether you would benefit from it or not, I may have something of interest to you. To thank you for listening to the show, I'm going to make trying Chaga that much easier by giving you a dollar off all our Chaga products at checkout. All you have to do is head over to our website, chagahealthandwellnesscom, place a few items in the cart and check out with the code CANOPY C-A-N-O-P-Y. If you're new to Chaga, I'd highly recommend the regular Chaga tea. This comes with 15 tea bags per package and each bag gives you around five or six cups of tea. Hey, thanks for listening. Back to the episode.
Speaker 3:So let's just go touch back on gramping a bit more here. Yeah, because the one thing is like yeah, like people, it's like a good way to get exposed to the outdoors, especially for women, because it's like you get a little bit comforts of home but you also get exposed in the outdoor stuff, you know. I just want to ask you like, do you feel glamping still creates connections, like you know you're still connecting to you know you're making those stories. You're making that camping story, that classic, nostalgic of going camping with your friends and like that. Do you still feel like glamping allows you to create that connections and stuff like that?
Speaker 5:Oh, a hundred percent. And that's such a great question, garrett, and you know, just going back to the conversation around, is glamping even camping. What is it? What is it considered? And again, it's different, different tiers for for everyone. But again, a lot of organizations are creating glamping retreats where some places have Wi-Fi, other places don't have Wi-Fi. It's away from the city and it allows you to disconnect, turn your phone off, put it away and enjoy what's right in front of you outdoors, and it creates conversation. When you're put into an environment where you're almost forced to talk to the person beside you, you're having that social interaction outdoors, enjoying the air and, in my opinion, just being more present and not being so distracted by the screen that's in front of you. Absolutely, it creates more connections, a lot of people because they're more relaxed when they go glamping or camping or at the cottage, because they're more relaxed, I find you know you'll walk by someone and they'll say hello, good morning, and you're creating those connections and I feel like sometimes we do lack that here.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely, and you know, like a story that I want to share, that kind of like just reifies like you can create those connections as well in different ways. You know, growing up as a kid, my best friend was Ryan, and we were neighbors. We were literally less than a minute walk from each other, and you know, every day after school he's like I'll go to your house for 10 minutes or we'll go to my house or we'll we'll do something together. We'll walk to school together and stuff. We'll do something together. We'll walk, like to school together and stuff.
Speaker 3:And so Ryan's mom, jackie, had a trailer just outside of Coboconk, and one of the things that they did this trailer park, which is kind of like Lampy, because, you know, you have TV, you have AC, you have all this stuff. But the one thing that was still committed as camping, though, was we were still were still like pitching a tarp to cover the bikes that we ride, or we would, you know, get the firewood out and ready to have a campfire at the end of the day, kind of thing. But the other thing is that that community, though, what they did was they would have like events for the kids. So I remember we had this relay race and you know I was cause I was always big of competitions because I play a lot of sports or anything else. So I was like, oh, I need to win, need to win. So the one thing I did was I did this relay race, which was I'll go over here to this obstacle, come around.
Speaker 3:And then you had to eat a donut with your hands behind your back and you know it was good. It was, uh, just powdered. You know old-fashioned plain powdered, glazed, uh, donut kind of thing. Still remember it surprisingly, but um, it was good at the end of it. You know old fashioned, plain, powdered glazed donut kind of thing. Still remember it surprisingly, but it was good at the end of it. You know and Jackie goes to say this to me it's like you know, it's not about winning here, it's just about having a goofy silly time and enjoying the little activities and just being together and watching everyone else, you know, trip and fall and bump into each other, and you know that's one of the things I would say like you know, that's one of the things I would say like you can still enjoy those things while glamping 100%, and especially like as like, say kids, and bring your kids into it.
Speaker 3:It's a good, easy way to ease them into the outdoors as well, because it allows you to give structure and stability that they know and comfort of home. But you can ease them into doing little things Like I remember one of the things was cutting firewood too. Mine was just a bit older at the time because I don't think any parent would trust their kid a little kid for that matter with an action like that to go, yeah, go chop some wood up, and because that's just a recipe for disaster. But you know, when I was old enough and realized, cut wood by myself. Here I am still, 15 years later, and I'm still cutting wood now on more of industrial grade scales. But it's just those things that I find that you know, there's always something in the outdoors for people to enjoy.
Speaker 5:Definitely. And you know, garrett, like I'm as girly as they come, you know, but I also am such a big tomboy going out into the outdoors. You know, ladies, I have my nails, you know, and you know I don't like getting bit, I don't like getting burnt, but you can always wash the dirt away. But it's truly the memories that you make while you're outdoors. And just circling back to glamping, I think that and I think about it more and more it's so great for young children as an introductory type thing, because you know just what Garrett was saying earlier when you go camping, you almost have this infinite list of things that you just don't want to forget.
Speaker 5:But when you go glamping, whoever is organizing it, it's all there for you. You got your linens, you got your cut wood. Yes, you may be not be interacting and roughing it, as we want to call it, but you get to go and relax and that's the whole point. Everything is taken care of for you. You have a special space and you just don't need to worry. And that looks different for everybody, but it's something that the family can take a break from.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely. And and like I said, when people are like, oh, is you know glamping such a big topic and stuff like that for people nowadays, it's like I also think of, as I remember you know a lot of stuff as a kid. It's like, yeah, it was kind of glamping categories, but you added things, or my dad or mom would add things of let's rough it for this little section here. Let's expose you to these little things. So eventually, as the kids grow up or as your partner gets more comfortable in the outdoors, eventually they might say to you hey, let's go on that portage trip, I want to just pitch a tent and I want to do this stuff, because you get those stepping stone building characters from hey, let's put tarps up to cover the bikes so they don't get wet in the rain. Hey, let's go and prep the firewood so we don't have to do that stuff. Hey, let's make sure we have, like, let's do our checklist when we go and pack all our food.
Speaker 3:Is there any else of things that you can think of what you want? You know those steps. They're all going to be related to doing more roughing, kind of camping style, because you know you're going to learn to do tying knots. You're going to learn to you know how much support can a tarp hold or a water, like just even controlling where you want to sleep at night because the water wants to run off you so you're not in a pool, kind of thing. So you're on Like these things that you'll learn during those stepping stones of glamping kind of thing, ultimately leading into more exposure to the outdoors. And you know one thing that more exposure, that we did as well as we went fishing when we were here and it was nice, we caught a lot of bass. I mean we were just targeting bass, but we caught a lot. We probably caught, I'd say, between the both of us, over 50 or so, 100%. I mean they're not trophy bass, people, they are like I mean, I thought I had a good trophy bass.
Speaker 5:I outfished Garrett in his own spot, you guys.
Speaker 3:Yeah, she did. She probably caught about a, maybe close to a two pounder, and I think my best is maybe a one pounder kind of thing. So but no, like it's definitely. Like you said, you build up those things and go fishing. So one thing I would like to say is after glamping, what's that next little step? Or what's that next little add thing? Because I hear paddleboarding is one of those hot topics now too, because you know, between saying taking canoes out or paddleboard or kayak kind of thing, you know especially, let's go back to saying how do you get your partner or more women involved?
Speaker 3:you know, yeah, do you want to carry a canoe through the bush? Or would you want to carry an inflatable paddleboard and go out in the lake, kind of thing? You know what's that next exposure that people would use to get you know a little bit more in the outdoors. So, like the next thing is, you know, going from the beach and now going on the water. What would you say would be a good option there?
Speaker 5:Yeah, absolutely, that's such a good question and, again, it all depends on who you ask. Paddleboarding is fantastic out West. All everyone does is paddleboard. You know, a man might want to carry that canoe where a female will carry the, you know, the paddleboard or whichever I mean. Even for me, I would like to carry an inflatable paddleboard because I don't want to carry the whole thing. But in terms of next steps, absolutely, after glamping, you can definitely try just roughing it and doing the regular camping. I think one thing that I want to note for everyone is that, yes, camping is relaxing. The fresh air, oh my goodness. The sleep that you get outside is wonderful, but learning how to? There's no gender roles assigned to learning how to survive.
Speaker 3:Right, oh, absolutely. Because, like you know, everyone's got to do it or everyone has to be exposed to it, because you never know what's going to happen or take place.
Speaker 5:Learn how to fish, learn how to tie those knots, learn how to start a fire. It's just, even if you don't use it, it's really good to know, and so I think that doing that the roughing at camping after doing a glamping experience would be the best thing Absolutely.
Speaker 3:Now I know you're not a big fan of kayaking.
Speaker 5:Oh dear.
Speaker 3:Now, if you were to say you know fears that people have with certain things, I know you. I mean, maybe I'll let you say it, but like, what's your fear with kayaking and why would you be leaning towards a different thing?
Speaker 5:Yeah, okay. So just so everyone knows, I have experienced paddle boarding. I have experience with canoeing, I've done the portaging ever since I was a kid but I have a really odd fear of big bodies of water. But I have a really odd fear of big bodies of water and I fear that if I go kayaking and it flips upside down, I am not going to recover from that, I'm going to panic and I won't be able to flip back over Garrett.
Speaker 3:And that's a fair statement to have, because I remember going back on, say, a grade eight grad trip and one of the things that they did there only myself did, because I was exposed to it was they said we're going to go kayaking and you can go on the big ones that are designed not to flip because they just have the side thing out so you're more stabilized. But I went in the single one because I've been used to it and they did. So the instructor there, what they did is they did a demonstration of how do you flip a kayak and flip back over, and it was that simple exposure that makes it more comfortable. So I was going to say something here is that you know people getting into it. Go to those camping facilities, go to those campgrounds that have these activities for kids and stuff like that, because they will teach you and expose you. It's not a scary thing, because you're just most of the time being scared because you've never done it before.
Speaker 3:You know, like I, we've talked about going skydiving, for example. You know, obviously it's a scary thing, but I'm like how many people have done it nowadays? And I'm like, oh, I could do it for sure, no problem. But like, just taking that initial step and seeing that's safe is one of the biggest things. And I was going to say like little activities that you can do to help build confidence in people. Oh gosh, is taking them to like a ropes course.
Speaker 5:Yeah.
Speaker 3:You know, for example, treetop trekking is big. We're in Ontario here now and they've been around for, I think, a few years. But that's one of the things where you learn to trust your equipment.
Speaker 5:You know.
Speaker 3:trust your abilities, trust yourself, Like you realize it's like you know, hey, that safety line rope you know, go test it. You know, Like, cause they do it like that. They have the little small stepping stones there where they make you be comfortable in your equipment. Yeah, so I feel like that's one of the good thing for people to do is expose themselves to these little things, to build that confidence to do stuff.
Speaker 5:And I love the topic around building the confidence. That's huge. I think I'm just going to speak for women here, you know, or men too, when it comes to their vanity. We are really taught. I know I was just saying to Garrett's mom last night that I feel like I have been told by the beauty community that if I don't put black goop on my eyelashes I am not pretty. And I think outdoors really helps build your confidence and it's all about the art of letting go. Truly. You're not gonna have that makeup, you're going to be yourself and, as women, building feminine confidence without makeup or without our high heels like that's a power and really being able to sit with yourself, whether, again, whether you're female, male or however you identify.
Speaker 3:That's one of the best practices and being in nature oh, absolutely, and you just touched on like a really golden topic there too, is that when you're camping, you don't need to focus on impressing other people.
Speaker 5:Yes.
Speaker 3:Like who are you trying to impress when?
Speaker 3:you're camping, I think of it as like you don't need your makeup kit, you don't need this stuff, because it's like it's just you and your partner or you and your close friends, kind of thing, and it's like, you know, just be yourself, like don't have to worry about the world around you. What they think is because you are alone, you're isolated and you have the ability and time to just reconnect with yourself and feel good for yourself, not feeling that they have to feel good for others, put on your best shirt, kind of thing. It's no, you're feeling what's comfortable for you. So bring your comfy clothes, bring that raggedy old t-shirt that you know, for some reason you still has holes in it but it still gives you comfort to wear around. You know, like that's.
Speaker 3:I still have a bunch of those and, mind you, a lot of them are all nostalgic. You know stuff now it's like, oh, I was here for this tournament or oh, I was, I played team Ontario rugby and we did a West Coast tournament. So I have all the stuff there when I was playing. I'm like those are just comfy shirts that I still have that are full of holes now, but they're just. It's just that comfiness because, like I'm, not trying to impress people.
Speaker 5:I can wear my junky clothes, you know. I think we forget how to be who we are. Honestly, we are. So, you know, for the people that work nine to five or 12 hours like Garrett, you know, every day we are so involved in the hustle and bustle and we're surrounded by social media, influenced by our colleagues, influenced by anything. Do we ever really have time to sit and just be with ourselves? You know what I mean. Even when we go home, maybe a doom scroll for a couple hours on social media, and we're finding this time where it's happening so much that people are so unhappy with their own lives. I think camping or glamping or going to the cottage or however you like to spend time outside gives you the opportunity to be your authentic self, whatever that looks like, with no judgment, and that is amazing.
Speaker 3:Oh, absolutely, and you know, one of the things I think of too, is that you know, I ran a half marathon just the other day and my legs were completely shot and people could tell this is my first time and I had zero training. I'm going to use that as my excuse.
Speaker 5:But why did you run the half marathon, Garrett? Everyone needs to know.
Speaker 3:Well, I mean, people were listening before, but they know, I ran the half marathon because I lost my fantasy football league and the punishment was to run a half marathon and I ran in a football jersey of course.
Speaker 3:So I did it, did it in two hours and 34 minutes, which was great. But you know, something that was like I just kind of connected there is, like you realize, it's like I put myself in a situation or an area that I wasn't comfortable in. I am not a runner, you know, if people saw me on the street, they're like this guy's a power lifter. And you know, I was up at the college because we were fixing a beam up there and the guy that was helping us out was like you ran a marathon. You look like the guy that'd be doing like the cable toss and the Scottish games and stuff like that.
Speaker 3:So, and I was like, but the thing that I was out of my element, and people that were running that you could tell that they were runners um, they were giving me high fives, they were cheering me on, they were like you know, keep going. Like you know, you see me like you're sweating. Well, I mean, I can take the heat, but like you're seeing me sweating, you're struggling and you know, like running is not my stick, but they're, they're people that are supporting me and making me comfortable in my own skin, in my own abilities, and the same thing goes when you're outside and camping, for example, hiking, you know how many people on the hiking trail especially say we're in Calgary and Banff and the mountains there, you know, look at you and say, hey, how's it going, how's your day? You guys are doing so good, you're already halfway up, kind of thing. They give you that motivation. And because people are, just because the only thing you're trying to impress is your self-abilities.
Speaker 5:You know what the best way I can compare it to is. When you want to go to the gym for the first time, you feel uncomfortable, but everyone at the gym no one's judging you, they've been there, they're just doing their own thing. That's the best way I can compare it to.
Speaker 3:A golden example there. Right, it's just yeah, you're in an uncomfortable situation and you just take that first step and people are there most of the time, are going to try and say help you, or they're going to look over their shoulder and be like, oh, do you need a spot to get that last rep, and kind of thing. It's the same thing.
Speaker 5:It's like put yourself in the uncomfortable situation and just do it for yourself yeah, you know, and we forget to do that a lot oh, absolutely a lot of things do get in the way of that, I think, when it comes to glamping, when you it, if it's your first time or if you've done it before, share your experience, bring a friend, do it, or your partner, or go by yourself, whatever you need. Take that time to not stop, but pause and enjoy what's around you and what you bring to the table.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely. You know, it's like. It's like holding the fish for the first time too. You know I remember, um, so we were there with my brother and his uh, his partner Casey, and you know Casey was like, oh, I can do this because he's watching us do it and I, you know he didn't realize it, but on the back side of a bass they have their, their dorsal fin, which has very sharp spikes on the top of it and that's their defense thing. So if you hold it from the top and they twitch and flinch and everything else, you're gonna get cut. Like I got cut and I've pulled the fish like thousands of times now. But you know she didn't notice until I told her I'm like, hey, grab it from the belly or put your thumb in its mouth, because they don't really have they like, just like little soft barbs. They don't only have like teeth, they're not going to be.
Speaker 3:You can do that with the bass, right, and once you learn how to hold that, you feel more comfortable doing it and it's like, hey, you're able to take the hook out for yourself. You know same kind of concepts. Like you know, going fishing for yourself for the first time, it's like I don't want to touch it. How do you take the hook out Right? Like you need someone to show you I flipped over. I'm like you know. Do you need a hand with this one?
Speaker 5:you're like nope, I got it I'm good, you're good.
Speaker 3:Yeah, right, other than when it was deep and you need pliers, because it's like I get it. It's. You know if, if you're not used to do like working with pliers and everything else, it gets a little bit challenging.
Speaker 5:But yeah, nailed it, you crushed it the only thing I was missing was the bobber. You enjoy seeing that bobber. You enjoy seeing that bobber go into the water and enjoy that action.
Speaker 3:That's exciting, yeah Well we're up, we're up in, like the corth is there and if I don't fish with a bobber, because you know, I've fished a long time and I realized if people want to catch bass and you're taking your kid out for the first time, use the wacky rig, which is what, which is what I put on for her. It doesn't have a bobber. You can put a bobber on it if you want. But the Wacky Rig is one of those things where you don't really have to think of how to reel it in, how to work the bait. You kind of cast it out, forget it. You know, you give it a minute or two and you're like, oh, I haven't reeled in. So you reel it in tight and then you let it sink again and it's effective Like we caught over 50 bass.
Speaker 5:Oh, gosh, yeah. And the fish were happy that day. Oh my goodness, they were flopping around.
Speaker 3:I've never seen somebody like bass jump out of the water.
Speaker 5:Yeah.
Speaker 3:They were putting a frenzy on for feeding, but I'm just like. This is the first time I ever saw that. I know so.
Speaker 5:That was fantastic. I think we had a great time we were and being together. You know, Garrett and I have almost been together for about two years now, which is amazing all within itself. We've had so many adventures together, but we haven't gone fishing and we did it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we did it, and it was one of those things where I'm obsessed with fishing, as people probably know, and, yeah, it was one of those things that was really nice to be able to finally do that together.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I that together, yeah, so I think we got a lot of outdoor activities to accomplish together.
Speaker 3:Still, Well, I think we definitely do like that portaging trip. We got a plan.
Speaker 5:Oh gosh, well, all right.
Speaker 3:Maybe we'll just go camping first. I'll carry the lighter stuff, fair enough, well, um, no. Well, since we're kind of wrapping up here, I guess, is there anything else that you think that you could say to to to get women out in the outdoors? It's, like you know, like taking that first step, putting yourself out in a different comfort zone, kind of thing. You know, is there anything else that you can say or add as like a final statement here to say to people, like you know, is it scary, is it not scary? Like what's going to get them to be, help them, kind of process this.
Speaker 5:Yeah, fantastic question, garrett. I think thinking about doing something takes a lot more effort than actually doing it. It causes more stress to overthink it than it does to actually do it. And, regardless if it's camping or not, I always encourage everyone to do something that allows them to be out of their comfort zone. It allows you to become confident, it allows you to you know, prove to yourself that you can actually do it. And I think, when it comes to glamping, ladies you know, or men who haven't done it before, definitely get outside and do be in nature, enjoy the fresh air and the sleep that you get, and listening to the birds. Enjoy the fresh air and the sleep that you get and listening to the birds One of the rarest sounds that we'll ever get is quiet, and being able to ground yourself outdoors really heals the nervous system and whatever capacity that looks like for you. Whether it's one night or a week, I encourage you to do it. Spend some time outdoors, get that hike in, get a walk in, because you deserve peace and you deserve mental wellness.
Speaker 3:Yeah, absolutely, Like, really well said there. Like you know, take that little step, baby steps. You know small things, Like you'll work up to the big step eventually. But don't be shy because someone's already at the level of expert or experienced there you know, think of like me and my brother, for example. I always use this example is my dad told me once that, you know, Josh is two years older than me, so he's got two more years of growth and development for me to do the same thing. Because I'd always fall walking across the logs, on a downed log, across the pond or a river or something, and I would slip and fall, but my brother would, he would go across, and I would slip and fall, but my brother would, he would go across, and I would get frustrated Like how come I can't go across? You know, just because someone has more experience doesn't mean I won't get to that level too.
Speaker 5:Right, right, and that goes for anything. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, it's a little bit uncomfortable at first. You might have a couple of bumps along the way but you don't have a.
Speaker 5:You know a friend, I know. When I moved to alberta two years ago I'm from ontario originally as well I didn't have anyone. So join a facebook group, get some information, collect what you need before you, you know, take action.
Speaker 3:Facebook groups are fantastic yeah, especially even for, like, the local areas. You know, like I celebrate all the time like I am a part of a couple of fishing groups out here, because there's always some person for example, ice fishing groups, they're gonna, are going to hey, I'm checking the ice, you know we got three inches, or oh, we got two inches not quite safe, yet you know it's that, that local or that experience that you're going to get. So when you're out in Calgary or Banff, it's like find a group out there or find a group wherever you're from, get the information, because information is, you know, knowledge is power Absolutely. So if you're in the know, you feel better about things.
Speaker 5:Knowledge is power is such an amazing thing and if you're going to glamp or go fishing or do any of these fantastic outdoor activities, you know emailing in and asking questions to Jerry. I'm sure he will absolutely love to help and, you know, provide you a list. Maybe we need to work on that and get that published together.
Speaker 3:We can do that for sure. Well, I think we're going to wrap it up here. Folks, thank you for listening. As always, I know my dad's always looking. If people have any questions or need any information, always feel free to reach out. And you know, brittany, thank you for joining the show.
Speaker 5:Thank you so much.
Speaker 3:And everyone, wishing you all the best of luck here.
Speaker 5:Take care everyone.
Speaker 4:All right. Well, thanks very much, brittany and Garrett. We really appreciate you taking the time and bringing a different perspective to what's happening out there and how to get people involved and more involved with a lot of things out there under the canopy. And, as always, any questions, comments, let us know. We'll do what we can. Have a great week.
Speaker 2:Hi everybody. I'm Angelo Viola and I'm'm Pete Bowman. Now you might know us as the hosts of Canada's Favorite Fishing Show, but now we're hosting a podcast. That's right. Every Thursday, angelo will be right here in your ears bringing you a brand new episode of Outdoor Journal Radio. Now, what are we going to talk about for two hours every week? Well, you know, there's going to be a lot of fishing.
Speaker 6:I knew exactly where those fish were going to be and how to catch them, and they were easy to catch, yeah but it's not just a fishing show.
Speaker 2:We're going to be talking to people from all facets of the outdoors, from athletes, All the other guys would go golfing Me and Garth and Turk and all the Russians would go fishing.
Speaker 8:To scientists, but now that we're reforesting and laying things free, it's the perfect transmission environment for life.
Speaker 7:To chefs if any game isn't cooked properly, marinated, you will taste it.
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