Calendar: Programs

MVG June 2005 Program: “The Latest in Outings Gear”

Join the Sierra Club for a picnic dinner at Elmwood Park followed by a presentation on the newest concepts in outdoor gear for the ultra-light backpacker.

At 6 p.m. we will meet for dinner by the picnic areas on the west side of Elmwood Park. Bring your own picnic food and beverages. There are plenty of picnic tables, or bring your own blankets and/or folding chairs if you wish.

At 7 p.m. Tom Dolphin of Omaha’s Backwoods store will demonstrate and display new equipment and clothing available to the outdoors enthusiast. Tom says backpackers hiking the Appalachian Trail these days are carrying 25-pound packs, as extremely light backpacking equipment has come on the market. Tom will show us some of what’s available in backpacks, tents, sleeping bags, and clothing. Tom will also tell us about the sport of “Adventure Racing,” in which people carry everything they will need for a day or several days of races that may include running, canoeing, rock climbing, rappelling, and more.

Tom is the manager of Backwoods and has been with the company for 21 years. He has backpacked and hiked extensively in the Sierra Nevada in California, the Wind River Range in Wyoming, and in Colorado, Arkansas, and southern Missouri. He also enjoys canoeing and fly-fishing.

(Note: you can come for both the picnic and presentation, or just the dinner, or just the 7:00 presentation.) In case of rain, we will cancel the picnic and hold the presentation at First United Methodist Church, 69th and Cass Streets. If in doubt about the location, call Mary Green at 556-1830. Sierra Club programs are free and open to the public.

This article originally appeared in the June/July 2005 issue of the Missouri Valley Sierran