Bonvoy

Video: World’s Largest Rope Swing

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 18:08:32 +0000

This makes us happy. Good work. Good work.

Getting Inspired

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:56:40 +0000

This morning while reading through our twitter feed, I stumbled upon this tweet “My American Roadtrip: Stats, Tips and Observations” http://su.pr/30G9da #Travel #writerswednesday” from @Brendanvanson. I was interested enough to click on the link. What started out as curiosity into this @Brendanvanson’s insight on an American road trip, led to a good 45 mins of reading through many more of his posts and pages on his site after getting sucked in reading his American Roadtrip post. Brendan has a really good site you all should check out (he writes really well). His observations of America left me feeling sad and prideful at the same time. Read: American poverty, going green and every American being on a different team. After reading, I figured he was European and was surprised to find out upon further investigating his site that he was Canadian. Are we really that different from Canadians?!

Read Brendan’s post about his American road trip for yourself here.

Also, here is an excerpt from another one of his posts, “Searching for Soul in the Southern States” that I couldn’t help but share.

As I walk into a dark bar in New Orleans and a group of big band musicians play inches from a bouncing crowd my heart races in the realization that this is what I have been looking for. I have been searching for the soul of America. I have been looking for that inspiration that moves the people. I have been looking to find the heart of an American culture rumoured to have long since died. I have been looking to find the America that so many people claim has been lost to the pop culture and mass media waves. In the South people may be not be as wealthy, the unemployment levels may be higher, and the amount of despair in the region is evident. However, what The South lacks in the wallet it doubles in heart and soul, and personally I’d take a rich soul over a full wallet any day.

I’d take a rich soul over a full wallet any day as well. Thanks for inspiring me to hit up a local blues bar tonight, for reminding me how much I love The South and for instilling my pride in the rich history of our (however flawed) country. Also, our radio stations do suck. Best to stick to a fully loaded ipod selection for sure!

February Newsletter

admin — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:12:53 +0000

February newsletter

As the snow is falling for the first time this winter in Oklahoma, I am off enjoying a different snow in Crested Butte, Colorado. (FYI for all those who do not know, Butte rhymes with suit. It is not Crested Butt Colorado, as in your behind. If you pronounce it this way around me, I will make fun of you).

Anyway, it is beautiful here and I’m taking a break from snow shoeing and skiing to write a quick letter of Bonvoy updates. If you follow us on our blog or facebook, you may have already seen some of this news, but they are so exciting to us we wanted to make sure and share again to reach as many of our clients as we can.

First, we have teamed up with a fantastic organization called ICEdot.org, an emergency identification and notification service. How it works? Upon registering for a trip with Bonvoy, your provided medical and emergency contact information will be entered into an “In Case of Emergency” profile. When you arrive on your trip, you will be given a “snap” that attaches to any article of clothing or backpack with a pin number on the back that will be synced to your ICE profile emergency information. If you should happen to be in an emergency situation any first responder with a cell phone can access your information using your pin number. This service will be provided to you as a year long membership. So, after your Bonvoy travels, you can keep your snap and continue to benefit from the service up to one year!

Secondly, we know that many of you appreciate the packing list we provide upon registering, however some of the items on the list can be a little intimidating if you are a first time traveler. So we are excited to team up with a local outdoor gear and apparel store to offer all of the items listed on our packing list at a 20 percent rate! A personal shopper will provide advice and information on the best options for you to choose of each list item based on the weather and activities for your particular trip. The personal shopper can even place an order for you over the phone should you choose to shop with us! It’s super easy and you will have discounted access to all of the best brands including The North Face, Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, SmartWool and more!

That’s it for now. Back to the mountain I go. Happy Valentine’s Day if you are in to Valentine’s Day. If not, go outside away from the hearts and find an adventure!

Yours Truly,

Sean Jackson

Bonvoy Managing Partner and your Camp Cook, Guide and Amateur Bear Wrangler

RECIPE TO TRY:

CAKE BATTER TRUFFLES

These are a delicious fancy pants recipe for cake balls. It’s a great, easy recipe that you can impress your Valentine or all your single party friends with for any occasion! They also travel pretty well in a zip lock bag although don’t put them in the bottom of your pack to get smashed. (They will still taste great, but will be a little bit messy).

Recipe from: The Girl Who Ate Everything

½ cup unsalted butter, softened
½ cup white sugar
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup yellow cake mix
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
3-4 Tablespoons milk
2 Tablespoons sprinkles

Truffle Coating:

16 ounces (8 squares) almond bark (or white candy melts)
4 Tablespoons yellow cake mix
sprinkles

Beat together butter and sugar using an electric mixer until combined. Blend in vanilla. Add cake mix, flour, salt, and vanilla and mix thoroughly. Add 3 Tablespoons of milk or more if needed to make a dough consistency. Mix in sprinkles by hand. Roll dough into one inch balls and place on a parchment or wax paper lined cookie sheet. Chill balls in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to firm up.

While dough balls are chilling, melt almond bark in the microwave in 30 second intervals until melted. Stir between intervals. Once melted, quickly stir in cake mix until incorporated completely. Using a fork, dip truffles into almond bark and shake of excess bark by tapping the bottom of the fork on the side of your bowl. Place truffle back on the cookie sheet and top with sprinkles. Repeat with remaining balls until finished. {Note: for smoother looking truffles, don’t add cake mix to melted chocolate, just leave it by itself}

Chill cake batter truffles in the refrigerator until serving. Makes around 24-30 truffles.

Enjoy!

FEATURED TRIP: CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE

Believe it or not, Chattanooga is one of the hottest new places to visit this year! But don’t take our word for it, check out a couple of the recent articles the Tennessee town has been featured in including this article from Outside magazine as well as one from The New York Times declaring Chattanooga #25 among the top 45 Places to Visit in 2012. Pretty impressive on a list that includes such exotic locations as Finland, Tanzania and Tibet.

Since The Rocky Top town was able to provide many of the outdoor sports Bonvoy loves such as white water rafting, mountain biking and climbing as well as a couple of new and unique activities (hang gliding and caving) we were excited to jump on the popularity bandwagon of this scenic town and provide a one-of-a-kind all inclusive trip that is already generating a lot of buzz amongst many of our return clients seeking a new adventure.

Check out our Chattanooga trip here for details and available trip dates!

Packing List Made Easy

admin — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:09:23 +0000

We’ve had the idea for a while now to seek a partnership with a local outdoor gear/apparel store that would allow us to offer our clients their products at a discounted rate. The perfect opportunity arose in our home base of Tulsa in the uber hip and fashionable outdoor apparel store, Ascent. When we walked in Ascent for the first time, we knew (well, hoped) it was going to be the beginning of a beautiful partnership. The store has everything we were looking for to outfit our clients including all of the best brands such as The North Face, Patagonia, Columbia, Mountain Hardwear, SmartWool and more! Luckily, we had a few things in common with the store owner, Phillip, and so our partnership began.

As many of you know, upon booking a trip with us, you fill out a trip registration form that includes a “recommended packing list” for your convenience. Now, we are excited to offer an easy, one stop shopping experience through our partnership with Ascent to help you purchase any of the items on the list you may need for your trip. Even better? You can do it all through your own personal shopper who helps give advice on the right items to buy………all at a discounted rate! It seriously is so easy and convenient and we hope will make your Bonvoy experience all the more personal and enjoyable.

Bonus if you are in the Tulsa area: Ascent offers some kick-ass roof top yoga classes. Just saying.

Sean Says……

admin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:46:43 +0000

“My catfish sandwich smells like cow manure. It also tastes like cow manure.” -today at lunch.

In Case of Emergency, Run Like Hell!

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:31:15 +0000

In case of emergency, run like hell. But if you can’t run, ICEdot has you covered.

Being in the adventure travel industry, we pride ourselves on practicing a number of safety precautions during our trips to ensure the well being of our clients. So I’ll have to admit when we were recently approached by the company ICEdot asking if we were interested in providing their service to our clients, I am a little embarrassed to say it took me a minute to process the meaning of ICE used as an acronym for safety rather than the way in which I keep my beer cold while camping. ICE…….In Case of Emergency……duh!

In 2005, a British paramedic came up with the idea to have cell phone users input ICE next to the name of the person they wished to use as their “in case of emergency” contact that would help emergency responders on location if an accident occurred. The ICE contact could help answer vital questions about the injured person’s medical history and list of allergies. Crucial information to know in accidental situations in which the injured cannot speak for themselves. Since then, the acronym has spread to the US and other countries but we still wonder how many people recognize it and use it.

ICEdot as I mentioned, is an emergency identification and notification service company. It has become popular among many racers in the running and biking communities. Medics are always on hand at these events but this gives them instant access to the injured person’s medical information. An ICE profile can be created by going online and entering a person’s identification and medical info as well as emergency contacts. That person’s profile will then be synced with a personal identification number that is displayed on an ICEdot identifier such as a bracelet or a snap that attaches easily to clothing It’s a wonderful service to have that we are hoping to have available to our clients very soon! With the addition of offering travel insurance as well, our clients can enjoy a one stop shop to a worry free ( just in case there is an emergency) adventure!

So how many of you knew the meaning of ICE before reading this post? How many of you will know input an ICE contact in your phone?

Climbing is Trending

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:33:34 +0000

Did you know Colorado High Schools have their own climbing league? We just found this out! They split the state up into four regions and compete against each other. I wonder how much climbing will continue to grow in popularity? Are there other states that have these leagues? How do veteran climbers feel about their sport becoming so mainstream? Please let us know your thoughts!

Great Deal on our Snowventure!

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:46:18 +0000

Hey blog friends -

We are running a last minute special through Living Social Escapes on our newest trip to the beautiful Crested Butte, Colorado! Check out the deal here and we hope to see you on the mountain!

Ironman Training Thoughts Part 1

admin — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:22:17 +0000

So, I don’t know if we have shared that Mr. Jackson is training for an Ironman? Here are a few tips and thoughts from him on training thus far:

Most of my swim training has been in a local pool. Quite possibly the worst thing about swim training is keeping count of the laps you’ve done. I can never keep count and always forget if I’m on lap 15 or 16, 23 or 24, and by the end of my workout I really have no idea how far I actually went.

A friend told me about a cheap simple solution to this problem. A swim lap counter. It’s a simple device that goes around your finger like a watch. Every time you touch the wall just click the button with your thumb and voila! You never have to keep count again. You can find these at a variety of online retailers and it only cost about $25

Kale Chips?

admin — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 19:43:36 +0000

Has anyone tried these? We are curious to know how much they actually taste like potato chips? Worth a try we suppose….