Girl vs. Wild NewsOK.com Blogging Community

I walk through life with the understanding that it is far better to give than receive. I also feel this same thing applies to the great outdoors. The excitement I get when sharing climbing, hiking, etc with a person that has never experienced it as I have is amazing. To see a young person light up with joy when they have conquered their fear of climbing a route they swore they were not strong enough to achieve is just one of the many things that gives me new energy to keep enjoying my own outdoor adventure and renews my love for climbing.

A few months back I started guiding on the weekends with Compass Wilderness, a faith based 501 c3 guide service that has set it’s path to share a message of Christ to Christians and non-Christians alike. The centered purpose to parallel adventure activities such as rock climbing, rappelling, hiking, camping etc in an way that connects with people on their daily walk with Christ.

Compass Wilderness reaches youth groups, mens groups, at risks youth, and the list goes on. It really boils down to meeting people where they are in life – connecting on a deeper and individual level. Sharing the simple yet overwhelming and amazing joys of the outdoors with those who maybe have never even been on a hike or slept under the stars.

Compass wilderness is a guide service that offers hiking, climbing, and camping primarily, but Compass staff share far more than wilderness knowledge. They work to give individuals the tools to stretch out of their comfort zone and try new things.

Over the past few months I have seen angry hearts softened, self esteems soar, and closed minds open to brighter possibilities all because Compass Wilderness gives people something that sounds so simple, yet what everyone is searching for. Strength and acceptance.

On one of my first trips with Compass I was assisting in belaying a girl who had never climbed outside. She was trembling with fear and talking herself out of trying from the start. She was just sure she couldn’t do it and that it was going to be to hard. It’s in those instances Compass’s staff is able to to reach inside a person and pull out their stregthens. Showing them that it’s ok to take risks and pull for what they want in life. She and I talked on the rocks that day until she reached the top. The look of joy on her face as she was coming down is exactly what Compass Wilderness strives to share.

For more on Compass Wilderness head to NewsOk.tv for a video interview with Compass Wilderness’s Oklahoma DIrector of Operations, Steven Charles.

Happy trials Girl vs. Wild style,

Jacquelyn Farris

You only get good grades if you do your homework, correct? Yes correct, and the same goes with selecting and buying your adventure gear. It’s like picking a new car or even a spouse. It’s a big deal. This is the gear that you are trusting to save you in tight situations, right? You can’t go to the local five and dime and get a “super deal of a tent” and honestly believe it will stand up like a tent that is sold and trusted by the guys at your local gear store. Sure the gear at local shops might cost a bit more, but you are honestly paying for quality. Every bit of quality should be counted when headed out into the wild. You can’t control the way the wild will act, but you can control how you and your gear will hold up in any senario.

Buying gear can feel taxing at times when the total seems to be adding with each “necessity” added, but you can take relief in knowing that if you get the best you can afford in the beginning you are much less likely to have to replace it anytime soon.

Shopping around and doing your research is the only way to give yourself good peace of mind.

Right now is the perfect time to grab the great deals on apparel weather it’s online or in stores. This is the time when stores are flipping their retail floors over to spring and summer. If you thought all winter how you really would like to have a quality winter jacket you can now find it, but not feel like you will go to the poor house after paying for it. Just tuck it away in the closest for next year. It will be there waiting for you.

Honestly all retail stores have sales you just have to be a bit more patient for the best deals. Online is ideal if you aren’t set on a certain color. Most items found online are last season’s styles. For instance, for 2008 a pair of climbing pants might come in grey and green, and last years colors were blue and brown. Same pants just last season colors making them half off.

I myself have a gear acquiring method I use when outfitting myself with the latest and greatest. I work both ends of the shopping spectrum online and in store. When it comes to an item that needs to be tried on, for instance apparel, shoes, and so on. I suggest going to a local store. Ask the important questions of the products and their recommended wear. If your feeling indecisive as to which product is honestly the best choice ask the sales associate which they use, wear, or have tested. You will find it’s not always the most expensive. I have never gone wrong with this method. The gurus at Backwoods on North May have helped me in countless buying decisions. The guys and gals know their stuff inside and out.

Now when it comes to replacing an item that I have used and loved in the past, or buying from a brand I know fits spot on I go direct to an online store. If I search hard enough I can land a great deal, and most of the time get free shipping. But bottom line, if it’s something I am not for certain on I go straight to a local store and save the headache of return shipping nightmares.

In the end shop around, get good advice, and buy the gear your most comfortable with because your the one using it.

Girl vs. Wild,

Jacquelyn Farris