I think it all started when my parents were State Park managers here in Maine. My sister and I grew up spending our summers at the parks, in places like Sebago Lake and Range Pond. Our family vacations always took place during the off season when the rest of the park visitors had gone home. It was great having the trails to ourselves although I was much older before I realized that most people wear bathing suits at the beach instead of pants and long sleeve shirts!

The picture below was taken at Bar Harbor in Acadia National Park, one of my mom’s favorite places. Our family still goes there each summer to camp at Lamoine State Park. I was two at the time of this photo and I’ve been told that during a brief moment of freedom I ran headlong into the ocean in full fall attire. I imagine this was the start of my mother’s concerns about my decision making abilities and why the inReach has become a valuable tool for her to check in and make sure I’m not doing something foolish…

My parents were teachers during the school year and led interpretive programs at their parks during the summer. My time in the outdoors was spent on nature walks and canoe trips, poking around in tide pools and climbing fire towers on the tops of mountains. I was very fortunate to have a mom who taught us to be stewards of our natural spaces. She shared her enthusiasm for the outdoors with her children and with all of the kids that she met at her State Parks over the years. To this day I hear her “leave no trace” reminders when I’m on the trail and see a bit of litter that needs to be carried out.

Fast forward a few years and flip back through the DeLorme blog a few pages and you’ll see how my mom’s influence on that two year old in the picture above has steered me to a career that, while more in the technology world – my dad was a science teacher after all, helps people explore the great outdoors while staying safe and connected, knowing where they are and being able to share their experiences with their friends and family. As you all know, I just came back from the Backpacker Climb for a Cause event raising money to send urban teens on wilderness outings. Next week I’m headed to Colorado to speak about GPS and Satellite Communication technology at the Sierra Club Leadership Outing. While I’m not as directly involved in the protection of our natural resources as my mom was, I like to think that here at DeLorme we encourage people to get outside and enjoy their time in the great outdoors.

Photo courtesy of Jon Dorn – Backpacker Magazine

Which brings us to the inReach… remember that two year old that ran headlong into the ocean? Well, I’m older now but through amazing opportunities provided by DeLorme I still manage to find myself in situations that make my mother a little nervous. The photo above was taken at the bottom of the first rope section on Mt Whitney (framed in the background) at 12,300 feet. My mom was following along on the map and sending the occasional message to see how I was doing. It was a special event for me, knowing that my family and friends were with me as I climbed. This was an experience echoed by many of the people on the Mt Whitney team who were also sharing their tracks and messages via the inReach.

So as I reflect on the different ways that my mom has helped to make me the man I am today I encourage you to do the same… and consider how you stay connected with her at Mother’s Day and with the rest of your family and friends when you strike off on your own adventures. Consider DeLorme’s inReach and inReach SE, the proven communication tool of my mom and her forever-two year old running headlong into adventures whenever he can find them.

…and one last picture taken on my mom’s last day as manager of Range Pond State Park, used as her retirement invitation. A final walk in the park with her son after 30 years of service. Well done mom, well done!

Happy Mother’s Day to you Mom, and to the rest of the mothers out there on this special weekend!

Take care,
Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

All members of Team GBF have proudly served in the U.S. Military and will be riding to bring awareness and support to the Green Beret Foundation and the ½ of 1% who serve our country. The Green Beret Foundation is a non-profit foundation providing unique support and resources to wounded special forces and their families. The team hopes to raise $100,000 and at $50,000 they’re half way there!

Not only will this be a long and grueling race, but the team will also need to coordinate between their lead van, two chase cars and a 13-member support crew. How can you possibly stay in touch when you’re in the middle of the Colorado Rockies? The answer – inReach! The team’s coordinator will have each member’s device synced to his tablet so he can monitor everyone’s position and coordinate pick up locations.

When talking with Dave about the race, I asked him what his driving motivation was, and he simply replied, “You can take the man out of the army, but you can’t take the army out of the man.”

To learn more and help them reach their goal go to teamgbf.com or check out their Facebook page at facebook.com/teamgbf.

(Pictured above) Andrew Schaaf, Dave Johnson, Dave Viens and Gino Elsea.

Go Team Green Beret Foundation!!!

To learn more about inReach and how it can make your next adventure better, visit inreachdelorme.com or watch our new video http://youtu.be/LqQukvj_diI.

I met the rest of the members of Team 3 for dinner. Everyone is very excited for the climb. Five of us will be carrying inReach SE devices and sharing our stories as we go.

I came back to my room after dinner to get my gear ready for tomorrow’s 7am start. It was a bit of a challenge to go from this…

To this…

I’m especially excited to be carrying a DeLorme summit flag that Eric Larsen sent me from the gear he took on his South Pole expedition. He shipped it out to me with a nice note of encouragement.

Now that my gear is packed all I have to do is send a couple of postcards and get some sleep! Tomorrow is going to be a busy day! You’ll be able to follow along as we climb the mountain. Just go to the Backpacker Climb MapShare site, expand the User List to see the climber you’re following, and send them a message! Jon Dorn from Backpacker Magazine is summiting tomorrow with Team 2 while Team 3 gets ready to hit the trail. Team 1 was back in Lone Pine this afternoon and had plenty of great stories about their adventure.

Check out the MapShare here: http://share.delorme.com/backpackerclimb to see everyone’s location and send me a message while we’re climbing.

Don’t forget about the drawing for DeLorme prizes too! The odds of winning are excellent right now, the inReach SE could be yours!

http://www.summitforsomeone.org/sfs.php?page=4&climber=8606

Look for updates from the trail as Backpacker climbers summit Mt Whitney and share their tracking location and messages with the public. With 60 climbers going up and down the mountain it’s going to be quite an event and an amazing fundraiser for Big City Mountaineers!

Keep an eye out for MapShare messages as we get underway tomorrow.

Take care,
Chip Noble
DeLorme

The prize list:

• 1 inReach SE – be the first to own one, right off the DeLorme Map Store shelf.
• 1 PN-60w & inReach – handheld GPS and two-way satellite communicator.
• 1 PN-60 – rugged handheld GPS with Topo North America desktop software.
• 3 Topo North America – detailed topographic maps and desktop software.
• 5 Atlas & Gazetteers – paper map books for a state of your choosing.

Pledge more than $20 and I’ll enter your name one more time for each $20 increment.

That’s it. Who wants to win a satellite communicator or a GPS or some mapping software?!

Chip Noble’s Donation Page

Help the kids that Big City Mountaineers supports and win prizes. Check out the previous post for all the details…

Okay, I have to get to bed now. I’m climbing Mt Washington tomorrow with two other crazy people from DeLorme and a group of friends. -2 degrees, feels like -30 with windchill. 40 mph winds…

Last big training hike before tapering for Mt Whitney climb on the 20th. Follow along at our MapShare, you’ll see lots of other climbers across the country training for the event.

http://share.delorme.com/chipnoble

Send a message to any of the climbers, I know they’ll be excited to get an encouraging note about their training and the money they are raising for at-risk youth. Send me a note and tell me how warm you are at your computer! Ask me a question about the inReach SE, I’ll try to answer it if the weather permits!

Thanks and don’t forget to pledge, Big City Mountaineers needs our help and I know you want an inReach!

Take care,
Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

I wanted to share some exciting details about an important event that is taking place in just a few weeks. Backpacker Magazine has organized what might be the largest mountaineering event on US soil in history! 60 Backpacker subscribers will come together to form 6 teams of climbers on a continuous expedition to the summit of Mt Whitney, which at 14,505 feet is the tallest peak in the lower 48 states. This nearly month-long event will raise close to a quarter-million dollars for Big City Mountaineers and the at-risk teens that they support.

Note: Skip to my Donation Page for Prizes, Prizes, Prizes or read on for more details!

For those of you that recall, I’ve had the good fortune to represent DeLorme on two pervious Big City Mountaineers Summit for Someone climbs (Mt Langley and the Grand Teton) and am very impressed with the work they do. This is a wonderful organization that touches the lives of urban teens by taking them on wilderness adventures and helping them build their confidence by showing them what they are capable of achieving on the mountain as well as in life.

This cause is especially important to me having grown up here in Maine with four seasons of outdoor recreation all around me and a family that worked and played in the state and national parks systems. Now I have the privilege to share this same wilderness experience with my own children, watching their confidence grow with each adventure.

I know that many of you reading this post have similar backgrounds and a shared passion for the outdoors. That is why it is so important for me to connect you with an organization like Big City Mountaineers so that we can all help them with their important effort to bring kids from the city to the wilderness. Keep reading to see how you can help and what cool prizes you could win in return!

The inReach SE

DeLorme is one of the primary sponsors of this Backpacker event and we will be showcasing the new inReach SE two way satellite communicator during the expedition. We are sending 25 of the climbers up the mountain with inReach SE devices to track their progress and send messages to their friends, family, and followers on Facebook and Twitter. I’m expecting the largest inReach MapShare tracking event to date!

For those of you looking for information about our new device, you can read technical details on DeLorme’s new inReach SE site. I’ve also uploaded a video for you that I created during a recent training hike. I’ve been using the inReach SE to track and message during all of my climbs this winter and have found it very convenient to use the new screen and keyboard interface when I couldn’t take my gloves off to use the touchscreen on my mobile device.

I’ll be shooting more video and sharing details about the device during my next training climb on Mt Washington, when the DeLorme Outing Club will be testing the latest version in the harsh conditions of New Hampshire’s Presidential Range.

Prizes, Prizes, Prizes!

Okay… now for the important part. Not only is DeLorme sponsoring the Climb for a Cause event with Backpacker, they have made a very generous offer to match my own fundraising up to $4,000! That means that you can help me hit my goal of $4,000 for Big City Mountaineers and DeLorme will double that to contribute a total of $8,000 to help bring a wilderness adventure to kids who might not otherwise have that experience.

Now I want to help motivate you to visit my donation page by offering an incentive… and what better incentive than prizes, prizes, and more prizes!

Here’s how it will work – I’ve put together the following list of items from DeLorme… for each $20 increment that you pledge I’ll put your name into the pool one time to have a chance to be drawn for one of the prizes. You can improve your odds by donating more to the kids that Big City Mountaineers support. Donate $100 and have your name put into the drawing five times…

The prize list:

• 1 inReach SE – be the first to own one, right off the DeLorme Map Store shelf.
• 1 PN-60w & inReach – handheld GPS and two-way satellite communicator.
• 1 PN-60 – rugged handheld GPS with Topo North America desktop software.
• 3 Topo North America – detailed topographic maps and desktop software.
• 5 Atlas & Gazetteers – paper map books for a state of your choosing.

All totaled, that’s about $1,500 in prizes. Hopefully there’s something in the list that catches your eye and motivates you to make a donation to Big City Mountaineers!

So go to the following link and press the Donate button. It’s that easy!

Chip Noble’s Donation Page

Thank you very much for considering this and good luck with the prize drawing should you enter! I know I speak for Backpacker, Big City Mountaineers, and DeLorme when I say how much we all appreciate your support in bringing a wilderness adventure to the kids this Climb For A Cause event will serve.

Take care and see you on the trail!

Chip Noble
DeLorme

Photo: Alexandre Buisse – http://www.alexandrebuisse.org/

I encourage you to visit the Patagonian Expedition Race site tomorrow to see the finish. You can get the play-by-play from race officials at their Facebook page and watch the teams move across the map at their Patagaonian Expedition Race MapShare provided by DeLorme.

Here is a screenshot I took just a few minutes ago showing the three remaining teams as they approach the final section, a mountain climb followed by a descent to the coast.

DeLorme is proud to have provided inReach devices to race officials for coordination and to top teams for tracking during the race. I’ve been able to watch from behind the scenes, reading race coordinator messages and watching track info as the event crew worked through several logistical challenges. Pete Clayden, the Patagonian Expedition Race director, has been in close contact with me and gave permission to share some of his stories about their use of the inReach. I think you’ll enjoy them!

InReach saves the day…

During the early part of the race several teams were not able to meet the time cap set at Check Point 3 on the far side of a wide glacier. These teams had to return to the starting line for pick-up as this was the only way off the course. Three days after starting the race the teams arrived at the road however they could not get their sat phones to work (the required communications gear) and could not call for transport. Fortunately Sam from the DeLorme sponsored US team YogaSlackers had his inReach with him and was able to text the race coordinator and communicate details of the three teams waiting for pick-up. He coordinated a bus as well as Thai Food for everyone!

Sam’s message to Facebook was my favorite though… check it out here as it shows on the map where he was located.

A quote from Pete when he contacted me to let us know about the success story:

Chip,

These In Reach devices are just completely outliving our Sat phones, especially now Sam is in the loop and communicating with us. It’s helping us with a very complicated logistical problem.

A huge thank you to Delorme!

Pete.

The river crossing problem…

Five days into the race the Chilean Patagonia area experienced unseasonably heavy rains that caused river water levels to rise. Race leaders Adidas-TERREX Prunesco found themselves at a marked river crossing that had become too dangerous to ford. They managed to place a sat phone call to report their situation however race officials relied on the inReach that was tracking the team to determine their location and then passed details using the inReach to the Check Point crew to scout and arrange an alternate crossing location. They were able to share detailed coordinate information as well as specifics regarding the Check Point’s course of action.

Here’s a quote from Pete when he shared news of the situation with the Adidas team.

Hi Chip, I’m sure you’re following all this as we work the river crossing problem. Having the tracker and the PAT units is making coordinating this much easier, no crackling voices, no misheard coordinates, just clear information.

Brilliant!

Time for sleep now. Pete

We were very pleased to learn that Adidas-TERREX Prunesco was able to cross at an alternate location and continue without further incident.

Where are the YogaSlackers…

Last one but definitely the most exciting. I actually got to help Pete while he was in the field this evening! He sent me a text from his inReach while he was bringing gear to the YogaSlackers team. He wasn’t sure how far ahead of him they were or how fast they were traveling so he asked me to check the map and let him know…

My daughter Abby wanted to know what I was doing so she climbed in my lap and helped me find the YogaSlackers and determine how far ahead of Pete they were. We took our first adventure race coordinator role very seriously. Even Abby’s cat Jack got in on the action watching over my shoulder… Beezy the wonder dog was less enthusiastic as you can see in the background.

Imagine an important tracking question sent by inReach message from the back country of Chilean Patagonia, arriving on my cellphone in my living room here in Maine… I was able to make a quick reference to the Explore map and respond with the information Pete needed. Looking at the conversation thread at the Explore site, it took about 14 minutes for Pete to ask his question, for me to find the answer, and for him to let me know that he’d found the YogaSlackers. Not too shabby for someone well outside of cell phone range in Chile texting with someone many thousands of miles away here in Maine!

Well, I hope these stories from the Patagonian Expedition Race have given you a good sense of what the inReach is capable of as a tracking and communications system. I hope to share more news from the race after it has completed. I’m sure there will be even better tales once all the participants and officials return from “the last wild race!”

Take care,
Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

DeLorme is very proud to be a sponsor of this event, providing the satellite communications for race officials as well as tracking for the top teams in the competition – all via DeLorme’s inReach two-way satellite communicator!

You can follow along as teams like GearJunkie – YogaSlackers make their bid for first place and share their tracking location through the course of the entire adventure.

Watch the teams in near real time at the Patagonian Expedition Race MapShare page and read details from GearJunkie – YogaSlackers and the Patagonian Expedition Race officials at each of their Facebook pages.

The race officials will be using the inReach to share check point details throughout the race, helping to keep all of the race fans informed as teams make their way through the course.

We’ll be posting updates here at the DeLorme Blog and at our Facebook page as well.

Let’s all start cheering for GearJunkie – YogaSlackers and the Four Continents – YogaSlackers as they get ready for the Patagonian Expedition Race to kick off!

One more time with the MapShare link…

http://share.delorme.com/patagonianexpeditionrace

Go YogaSlackers!

Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

Eric Larsen, polar explorer, outdoor adventure, and self proclaimed ordinary guy is in the middle of an extra-ordinary journey to the South Pole… by bicycle!

You can read all about his Cycle South Expedition and even follow along with his daily blog posts and real time map tracking. His blog posts are incredibly descriptive and bring you as close as you can get to the ice while sitting warm in your house at your computer.

His map is not quite as exciting but I think it perfectly conveys what Eric is experiencing… a long trek over flat terrain with few if any features to break up the monotony of cycling between rest breaks. The following photo is courtesy of Eric’s recent blog post and shows the vast white scenery that is weighing on him both physically and mentally.

You will see from his recent post that he’s in the middle of some tough conditions with high winds and drifting snow. Reading further you’ll see the mental challenges Eric is facing as he approaches Christmas away from his family and new born son Merritt. I’ve never undertaken a challenge as difficult as the one Eric is facing but I do have two little girls at home and have been away enough to know how that can weigh you down when you’ve got nothing but miles in front of you to think about how far away you are from home.

My request to everyone that is reading this post is for you to take a minute and visit Eric’s site to wish him Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, or just good luck!

Write a comment on his latest blog post or like his latest Facebook Post.

After you do that share the link with all of your outdoor enthusiast friends that might also want to send Eric well wishes.

Eric is staying in touch with people back home and I’d love for him to get a Christmas update that shared how many people visited his website to wish him well. He has a solid base of followers but I’d like to see a spike of holiday cheer and positive energy headed to the South Pole to let him know that we’re thinking of him and wishing him well.

Let’s all hope for a tailwind and hard packed snow to carry Eric across the remaining 600 miles of his journey!

Thank you all for helping to bring some holiday cheer to the South Pole for Eric. Happy holidays to all of you as well!

Take care,
Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

Follow them at the North Country Endurance Challenge MapShare!

Team DeLorme will be there tracking 10 of the competitors as part of an inReach demonstration in one of the toughest environments for back country satellite communication. Remember, you can follow along as the race unfolds by visiting the North Country Endurance Challenge MapShare.

Please note that the participants are using the inReach in standalone mode for tracking only so the ability to send them messages has been disabled.

Learn more about the Endurance Challenge at their website and check in to see how the race is going tomorrow morning. Feel free to send me an email if you have any questions about the event or how the inReach is performing, I’ll be watching the Explore site throughout the day.

I’ll post a follow-up and let everyone know how things went. Good luck to all the racers!

Chip Noble
Team DeLorme

You can follow their ongoing adventure at their website global-encounter.com, or go directly to their Twitter Page to see all the messages they are sending to their followers using DeLorme’s inReach two-way satellite communicator. Visit their MapShare Page to send them a message and offer encouragement as they climb the remaining distance to the summit!

Good luck Toby and David, safe travels to the summit of Mt Kilimanjaro from all of us here at DeLorme!

Chip Noble
Team DeLorme