Get into the Outdoors

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Outdoor Recreation Rental Gear

Order online for pick up or shipment directly to your home or final destination.

GoGITTO.com

1-877-GoGITTO
(1-877-464-4886)

Backyard Campouts,

Backyard Birthday Party Campouts,

Backpacking Adventures,

Car Camping,

Kayak/Canoe/Raft Adventures,

Glamping,

Scout Troops,

and Youth Groups

Leaving Your Mark is Overrated

GITTO takes the promotion of Leave No Trace Principals and Ethics very seriously. So seriously, in addition to partnering with the Center for Outdoor Ethics, we have taken the extra steps to become Master Educators ourselves! This provides us the ability to offer numerous classes throughout the year to certify Trainers and educate the general public in LNT Ethics through Awareness Workshops.

Leave No Trace Course Schedule - Classes held in Jacksonville, FL

The Seven Principals of LNT:

Plan Ahead and Prepare

Know the regulations and special concerns for the area you'll visit.
Prepare for extreme weather, hazards, and emergencies.
Schedule your trip to avoid times of high use.
Visit in small groups when possible. Consider splitting larger groups into smaller groups.
Repackage food to minimize waste.
Use a map and compass to eliminate the use of marking paint, rock cairns or flagging.

Details ( + )

Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces

Durable surfaces include established trails and campsites, rock, gravel, dry grasses or snow.
Protect riparian areas by camping at least 200 feet from lakes and streams.
Good campsites are found, not made. Altering a site is not necessary.

In popular areas:

Concentrate use on existing trails and campsites.
Walk single file in the middle of the trail, even when wet or muddy.
Keep campsites small. Focus activity in areas where vegetation is absent.
In pristine areas:
Disperse use to prevent the creation of campsites and trails.
Avoid places where impacts are just beginning.

Details ( + )

Dispose of Waste Properly

Pack it in, pack it out. Inspect your campsite and rest areas for trash or spilled foods. Pack out all trash, leftover food, and litter.
Deposit solid human waste in catholes dug 6 to 8 inches deep at least 200 feet from water, camp, and trails. Cover and disguise the cathole when finished.
Pack out toilet paper and hygiene products.
To wash yourself or your dishes, carry water 200 feet away from streams or lakes and use small amounts of biodegradable soap. Scatter strained dishwater.

Details ( + )

Leave What You Find

Preserve the past: examine, but do not touch, cultural or historic structures and artifacts.
Leave rocks, plants and other natural objects as you find them.
Avoid introducing or transporting non-native species.
Do not build structures, furniture, or dig trenches.

Details ( + )

Minimize Campfire Impacts

Campfires can cause lasting impacts to the backcountry. Use a lightweight stove for cooking and enjoy a candle lantern for light.
Where fires are permitted, use established fire rings, fire pans, or mound fires.
Keep fires small. Only use sticks from the ground that can be broken by hand.
Burn all wood and coals to ash, put out campfires completely, then scatter cool ashes.

Details ( + )

Respect Wildlife

Observe wildlife from a distance. Do not follow or approach them.
Never feed animals. Feeding wildlife damages their health, alters natural behaviors, and exposes them to predators and other dangers.
Protect wildlife and your food by storing rations and trash securely.
Control pets at all times, or leave them at home.
Avoid wildlife during sensitive times: mating, nesting, raising young, or winter.

Details ( + )

Be Considerate of Other Visitors

Respect other visitors and protect the quality of their experience.
Be courteous. Yield to other users on the trail.
Step to the downhill side of the trail when encountering pack stock.
Take breaks and camp away from trails and other visitors.
Let nature's sounds prevail. Avoid loud voices and noises

Details ( + )

Spending Time Outdoors with Your Children

Teach your Children (and yourself) about their World.

Spending time outdoors with your children is as inexpensive as things get --- It's Free!

With a little imagination and planning, great memories may be made and great times will be had by you and your children. After all, what do you children really want more than your time and attention and reality is, they grow up so fast. Soon they will prefer spending time with their friends over spending it with you.........or will they?

Start participating in some great outdoor recreation activities together and the bond you have with your kids will strengthen and last throughout their lifespan. If your kids are still young, they most likely will be very enthusiastic about venturing into the outdoors with you. If they are older, they may initially enjoy the time more if they have a friend along. If your kids are grown and out on their own, imagine their interest when you call and say, "Hey let's get everyone together and go camping".

We here at GITTO are very dedicated to enhancing the family bond. We promote outdoor recreation as a way to enhance that bond by increasing the time families spend together without technological distractions and ultimately - without time limits. We strive to increase not only an individual and family's mental health, but their physical health as well.

We have found that by simply placing outdoor play and activities into the Health and Wellness column of life and not into the Leisure column, people are more likely to plan and go on adventures.

Just Starting Out?
We suggest the following: Begin with what the National Wildlife Federation calls "Green Hour". Essentially dedicating one hour each day to unstructured outdoor recreation and play regardless of age. The NWF promotes this activity for Children, but we think it is a wonderful concept for people of any age. Just try it for a week and see how you feel. For more information: NWF Green Hour.

Got Young Children?
Another easy and fun way that every young child I have ever met enjoys -- is what I call Backyard Safari. Anyone can do this, even if you don't actually have a backyard, you may use the area around your apartment or go to a local park.

How it works: Backyard Safari

Simply purchase a small notebook. Make this your child's outdoor journal. If they are young, sketch things that you see in the book for them. If they are older, encourage them to draw things that they see. Date the top of the page each time you go exploring. Be sure to include things under titles such as "Things we saw today" or "Things we learned today". An example of such an entry is taken from a journal I keep with my three year old neighbor. It reads:

"Things we learned today"

- Bark is the outer layer of a tree. It protects the tree.
- Bark is also called "mulch" when it is cut off of the tree and placed around plants. (We have pine mulch landscaping in our neighborhood).

We then took a small piece of bark off of a tree and a small piece of mulch and glued them into our field journal.

I am always amazed when my young neighbor can recite things that we talked about weeks before.

Older Children may modify the above and sketch, record and collect items of interest for themselves. Heck, you should keep a journal for yourself as well.

Discuss migratory and seasonal behaviors of the animals that live in your "backyard". Monitor the changes that take place in the plants that surround you. The possibilities are as limited as your imagination.

You may be astonished by what you learn!

Friday, September 26, 2008

Active Military -- FREE ONLINE CAMPING GEAR RENTAL, FREE PACKAGES

Visit GoGITTO.com to view our gear.
Active Military ID required.

Today I had a hit on my site from Afghanistan. I surely doubt it was Bin Laden. I can only surmise it may have been a US soldier looking forward to "R & R" relief and it got me thinking.......

Once upon a college credit, I took an ARMY ROTC course, in addition, I joined the ROTC Rangers Program where we focused on "field maneuvers" and "military tactics". We had gone into the field for a weekend of maneuvers with "battle like" practice combat. There are two incidences that changed me... First, on a night patrol, I was assigned the position of "point". For those of you that don't know, the "point" is the lead man. The one in the front. That night, as I led my patrol through the winter woods of central Pennsylvania, signaling our progression with only silent hand signals, I could not fight back the tears as I thought of so many men, and women, that had and will have to take that walk for real. I was in no danger. I was not going to meet a fire fight. I was not going to set off a landmine. I was not going to die. I was going to meander through the winter forest, leading my college coeds. Second, on another trip, I was in a "fire fight" with demo amo or blanks. My M16 jammed while we were being overtaken by our "enemy". Let me tell you, that was gut wrenching, and it was FAKE. Your stomach falls into your boots as you try to clear the rounds in your weapon. If it was real, I'd be dead. Today, many men and women are taking that walk and banging on jammed weapons in real, life threatening situations. Many are waiting to be deployed, fighting overseas, looking at an empty bunk of a fallen comrade, or waking up from a not so nice dream. Military Members - I honor you. Thank you.

So I have decided, be it not prudent for a new business - to set aside a portion of my company's gear in order TO OFFER FREE ONLINE CAMPING GEAR RENTALS FOR ANY ACTIVE MILITARY MEMBERS to say THANK YOU. Thank you for serving our Country and keeping us safe. To offer you a few moments in the outdoors where you may find serenity and peace and see the Beauty of The World. Please call me, so you may enjoy some wonderful moments with friends or family.

I will never forget what a Frenchman once said to me when I was visiting France. "You never think about having a strong military until someone is parachuting into your backyard."

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Up Close and Personal: Midnight Space Shuttle Launch.

*

If you have never seen a Space Shuttle launch this is the way to go.

If you have seen a launch, believe me, you have never seen one like this!

(we will be much closer than this)

Date: Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Level: Intermediate/Moderate
(I don't want to exclude anyone - if you are a beginner and want to go email me)

Location: Canaveral National Seashore

Length of Trip: 24+ hours

Leader: Lisa Beardsley

Cost: Depends on number of participants camping.

Gear: PDF, Flashlight, Whistle, Camping Gear, Food: Dinner Tuesday, Breakfast Wednesday.

Trip Information: Date Changed Once Already...
NASA has announced the next date for the space shuttle launch; October 14th as 22:17. This will be a night launch, so it will be something to see. The sky will light up and we will be right at the base of the launch site - at close as they will let us get - so close you will see and possibly smell the smoke! Due to the time of the launch, participants will HAVE TO CAMPOUT overnight on one of the islands in Mosquito Lagoon. It is possible to paddle back to the put in site the same night, but it will be dangerous due to high boat traffic in the area. I would not recommend it. As kayaks we have access to get much closer than the powerboats so we will not have to worry about them the night of the launch.

We will plan on meeting late morning on Tuesday at the Sports Complex. We will then carpool to the launch site and arrive at the campsite to set up camp. We will have a leisure evening with time for a nap if you wish. We will have dinner and then get ready for our paddle to the launch site viewing area. If you wish you may view the launch from the campsite itself, but you will not "smell the smoke". After the launch we will paddle back to the campsite and call it a night. The next morning we will have breakfast, break camp and return to our put in location.

Wildlife: This place is a great place to see manatees!

About Camping:
If you are new to camping or have never gone camping and you have some concerns; email me.

For those of you that do not know me well - I actually Glamp; or Glamourous Camp, however this is a primitive area, so we will be Modified Glamping for the backcountry. If you have any questions or concerns, email me.

There is a cost for camping, but it will vary depending on how many campers there are. We are going to be camping with members of the Central Florida Sea Kayaking Club, so again it depends on how many people go. Last time we camped out for a launch we paid around $8.00 per person.

Want to go but don't have any camping gear? You have priority access to camping gear rentals from GITTO for this date.

Mission Description:
Space shuttle Atlantis will fly seven astronauts into space for the fifth and final servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope for an 11 day mission. The crew will be repairing and making improvements to the observatory's capabilities.

NASA webpage

Now as we all know - launches are sometime canceled. This trip will follow the re-schedule date should that occur.

Some views of the island Campsite.

Sign up by e-mailing me @ Lisa@GoGITTO.com

See you on the water, and in the light of the Space Shuttle thrusters!

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Counting Phytoplankton. One, Two, Three!

Karena brevis - a Dinoflagellate
A Potentially Toxic Phytoplankton.

GITTO has embarked on a different kind of outdoor adventure; collecting and counting phytoplankton, or plant plankton as part of the Florida Paddling Trail - Trail Keeper Team.

Following the completion of our training by NOAA, we will be participating in the Phytoplankton Monitoring Network assisting a group of researchers at the Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Bimolecular Research and the Hollings Marine Laboratory in Charleston, South Carolina with monitoring Harmful Algae Blooms or HABs, along the US Coast. We will be sampling in the Intracoastal Waterway just south of the St. John's River in Jacksonville, Florida.

The goal of the program is multi fold. Essentially we hope to monitor a specific water area throughout the year to help scientist create a comprehensive list of harmful algal species inhabiting coastal marine waters and help identify trends where HABs are more likely to occur.

Why?
Some algae produce potent toxins which cause morbidity in humans and often mortality in marine life. Often, these blooms have significant economic and sociocultural impacts on the area they affect. The estimated national economic impact exceeds 82 million dollars per year, with the majority of costs occurring in public health and the commercial fisheries industry. Florida is often affected by the organism pictured above which causes respiratory symptoms in many people and results in the death of large numbers of fish.

NOAA's Plankton Monitoring Program hopes to minimize future public health effects, sociocultural impacts, economic losses and costs by improving prediction of blooms and developing methods of controlling the blooms that do occour.

Who Cares?
Almost everyone may be affected by harmful algae blooms. Effects range from the availability and cost of seafood items, to respiratory and sometimes neurological symptoms, to reallocation of governmental resources, to simply just not being able to Get into the Outdoors to enjoy recreational activities.

GITTO hopes that our assistance with this program may aide scientist in their discovery of why these organisms experience periodic blooms and why their dormant toxins become active. Ultimately we hope to increase our governments ability to make accurate predictions of blooms.

The Chemical Structure of Brevitoxin - Floirda's Red Tide

In the near future, GITTO Events hopes to educate children participating in our Safari Mornings programs by letting them assist with the collection and identification of dinoflagellates and diatoms after our official collections and counts are completed. How exciting it will be for them to discover, long before high school biology, microscopic life exists all around them!

Friday, September 5, 2008

Circumnavigate the Florida Peninsula in a Kayak along the Florida Paddling Trail!

Once only a dream, The Florida Circumnavigation Paddling Trail is now a reality. Still in its infancy, campsite and paddling community resources along the trail are being developed by volunteer Trail Keepers. The trail is organized into various sections and is sure to become one of the premier paddling destinations in the United States.

Locals and visitors alike may enjoy various ecological habitats extending from Big Lagoon State Park near Pensacola, down the west coast, around the Keys, and up the east coast to Fort Clinch State Park, located on the St. Mary's River and the border with Georgia. The entire length of the trail is 1,550 miles, not including any side trips that lure paddlers from the trail itself.

Visit the Florida Paddling Trail Association's website which has information on Trail campsites, launches, sights to see and facilities along the trail.

GITTO Gear offers online rental gear specialized for kayak camping. If you are new to camping or if you want to take one of your friends along on a segment of this trail, we have the gear that you need. Check out our Kayak Adventure Series or our complete kayak camping packages.

GITTO is also a proud to announce that we are one of the Trail Keepers for Segment 25 in Jacksonville, Florida. We are currently working on developing, sponsoring and constructing primitive campsites along the trail! In 2009 we will begin to host overnight kayak campouts through our GITTO Events department.

Thursday, September 4, 2008

National Wildlife Federation's - Make Tracks! Family Trail Weekend.

The National Wildlife Federation is a well know national organization that has adopted a mission to connect kids, and all of us, to nature again

Recently, in response to an increasing phenomenon dubbed "Nature Deficit Disorder" (a nature-child disconnect), the NWF has begun to organize events that promote increasing unstructured outdoor play and discovery for our Nation's children. They have developed and promote national events such as the Great American Backyard Campout, where they encourage families to spend one night camping out in their yards or local parks. This year marked the fourth year for the event. They now have embarked on a new event - Make Tracks! Family Trail Weekend! scheduled for the weekend of October 11-13.

The goal of this event is to get families outdoors and out on a trail for one of the three days - be it on a bike, in a stroller, on your own two feet or atop a horse! A secondary goal is to encourage people to explore their community resources and discover nearby green spaces that they may visit more often.

The NWF's website offers a "sign up" sheet so they may keep a tally - for fun! There are also many informative links, and a trail/park finder tool called NatureFind where you just enter your zip code to receive a list of local green spaces.

Be sure to log on to their website and sign up for this event, and more importantly, start making plans to Make Tracks!

This event is part of the the national movement to get kids outside again where the NWF is promoting what they call Green Hour where parents give their kids (and themselves!) a daily dose of the great outdoors.

Watch their promotional video on you tube.

In response to this event, GITTO will be hosting a "refreshment stand" at one of the Lakeside Pavilions in Kathern Abbey Hanna Park in Jacksonville, Florida for hikers and bikers from 9am until 4pm. We will also be having Volley Ball Games and a GITTOGear demo display on site!