Reblogged from THE CAMPSITE:

Packing can be tough, especially if you’ve got limited space and you’re planning to haul your stuff around on your back. During my nine week backpacking trip in Nepal, I quickly found out that I brought items along that I would only need once in a blue moon. These ended up being stashed at a hotel in Kathmandu for the remainder of the trip.
But, which items am I thankful I didn’t leave behind? As a traveller I like to get off the beaten track, but stay connected when I can. I also need to be conscious of …

A piece I wrote for The Campsite about my top picks for items to bring along on outdoor adventure travels.

January/February

30 Day Yoga Challenge – I kicked off my year with a kick in the rear!

February

Launch of The Campsite Blog – A new home to write about inner journeys and the outdoor world.

Joined the team at Highline Magazine as the new Editor.

March

Launched the new meghanjoyward.com.

April

Took a trip to Nunavut, including a 5-day ski touring trip through Auyuittuq National Park (pgs. 20-21) and the Arctic Circle.

June

Launch of the new HighlineOnline.ca - a brand new website for Highline Magazine.

Hanging out with Everest on Gokyo Ri, Nepal.

July

Got to try mountain street luging with CBC – check out the footage!

Had my first cover feature story, an article about ultrarunner Ellie Greenwood for IMPACT Magazine.

Published The State of the Mountains Report with the Alpine Club of Canada – a 27-page report on climate change from the perspectives of Canada’s famous mountaineers and scientists.

August 

Wrote a brand new consumer brochure for Banff National Park.

September

Attended the Social Venture Institute at Hollyhock on Cortes Island, British Columbia.

October-December

Published the Winter 2012 Issue of Highline Magazine – my first as Editor.

Launched the trailer for Mountains in Motion: The Canadian Rockies, a timelapse film for which I am writing the script.

Spent 9 weeks hiking in the Nepal Himalayas and researching the impacts of mountaineering and tourism on the local culture.

Here’s to a wonderful and amazing 2012! 

Some very exciting news about another project I’ve been working on. My husband and freelance photographer, Paul Zizka, was asked to contribute his local knowledge and photography skills to a Rockies timelapse video, directed, produced and perfected by Doug Urquhart of The Upthink Lab (you must check out their work – it’s superb). For over a year, they have been hard at work capturing images throughout the Rockies, and I have joined in from time to time. Doug asked me to assist with the script of the movie. I’ve contributed the text for the trailer and will begin work on the film in the New Year. Enjoy the trailer and if you feel so inclined, help us kickstart this project. Behind the scenes photos can be accessed on the vimeo website.

Mountains in Motion: The Canadian Rockies | Official Trailer from The Upthink Lab on Vimeo.

Hoping I'm not forgetting something...

My final preparations are being made for my 9 weeks in Nepal! With a Monday departure, I’ve finally wrapped up any remaining contracts and started putting items aside to pack. I’ll be trekking in Nepal with my husband and a few friends in a variety of areas, including Mustang, Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Manaslu and Everest (no climbing, though!) I’ve just written a longer post for my blog, The Campsite, if you’re curious to know more.

In addition to trekking, I’ll be conducting some hands-on research into the garbage removal and accumulation at Mt. Everest, the tug-of-war between tourism and tradition for the Sherpa people, and the ongoing environmental issues in Nepal, such as deforestation and over-grazing. No doubt, more stories will emerge as we trek along!

I’m looking forward to having some time to write while I’m there and work on some of my other “projects” – ideas I’ll keep to myself for now, but will no doubt surface in the year to come!

Stay tuned here, to The Campsite, and particularly to my Facebook Page, where I hope to post more frequent updates.

Namaste,

Meghan

I was able to interview Alan Hobson by phone amidst his  busyness traveling throughout North America attending to various speaking engagements. To give you a short intro to this amazing man, here’s the introductory statement to the article:

He may have climbed to the top of Mt. Everest, run two marathons and hang-glided over the Rockies, but the greatest challenge Alan Hobson has faced was beating the 85 per cent chance that cancer would take his life.

You can read the rest of it here!

Well, I’m not quite sure…yet. For one, I’m here wearing a number of different hats. First and foremost, I’m here on behalf of two very forward-thinking clients, who have me doing some ‘research.’ I’m here representing my own freelance writing and marketing business. I’m here as Editor of Highline Magazine. I’m here to learn on behalf of other partners I work with, including a very exciting health and wellness website to be launched by the end of this year. So, depending on whom I’m talking to, I’m here for slightly different reasons.

If I had to spell it out, though, I’m here to be inspired, rejuvenated, to regain hope, narrow my focus and to scope out the possibilities of seeing a similar gathering of like-minded individuals in Alberta.

I’m also here for me. Ah yes, that little person inside just waiting to be spoken to again. “Hello, Meghan, it’s been awhile.” In juggling multiple contracts, writing gigs, editing requests, trying to play outside during the beautiful summertime and planning a nine week trek in Nepal – let alone clearing the decks completely before I depart – I have been so busy I have somewhat lost myself. All (most) of my projects are very fulfilling, but reading The 4-Hour Workweek lately has got me thinking about how much I take on when I really don’t need to. Call me “Yes Woman.”

So, I am here to get some perspective and to “check out” of life for a few days, even if my email inbox is telling me I should do otherwise.

I look forward to sharing my learning with you.

Ciao (for now) from the coast,

Meghan

Katie's interview with me on Adventure-Inspired.

I recently had the chance to “swap blogs” with Katie Levy from Adventure-Inspired. We had the idea of interviewing each other to learn more about why we love to blog about the outdoors, what inspires us and what the rest of our lives really look like!

Check out the Blog Swap here:

My interview with Katie on The Campsite.

• Tell me a bit about yourself. When you’re not posting on Adventure-Inspired, what are you doing?
• When did you start the Adventure-Inspired blog? What led you to start on such a big project?
• The website sometimes says “us” and “we.” Who, apart from yourself, is involved in Adventure-Inspired?
• I particularly enjoy the interviews (with people in the outdoor industry) on Adventure-Inspired. Which interview was your favourite to date?
• What do you hope people ultimately take away from the content on Adventure-Inspired?
• What do you think is in the future for Adventure-Inspired?

Katie’s interview with me on Adventure-Inspired.

• What inspires you to write?
• Where did the idea for The Campsite come from?
• What’s your ultimate goal with The Campsite?
• What advice do you have for women who want to get started in some of the outdoor activities you love, but don’t know where to start?
• Tell me a little about exactly what it is that you do…what’s a typical day in the life?
• Is blogging part of your full time job?
• It’s definitely hard to balance work demands and the day-to-day demands of life with getting outside and doing what you love. How do you find the balance?

But, I hesitated to write this post, wondering if a writer’s website was an inappropriate place to write about such a topic. Then I realized it may be the best place to post it. This may not be where I usually divulge my personal feelings, nor should it really be. But my freelance site is mine to use, a place where I can express my thoughts and hopefully influence positive change in the world. So, I’ll depart briefly from writing about outdoor, adventure and travel and take on a more serious subject.

Jack Layton

On August 22, 2011, I woke up to the news that Jack Layton, the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) here in Canada (and the leader of the opposition in Parliament) had succumbed to cancer. Just a few months ago, Layton led his party to their best election results in history, sweeping the Liberals out of the running in what became known as the “orange crush.” For whatever reason, enough voters changed their allegiance to create a dramatically different outcome from previous elections. What was it? Was it Jack? Was it disenchantment with the way Canadian politics had been going?

Jack Layton had a way of rallying Canadians toward a better, more optimistic future. He reminded us how much we take advantage of our life here in Canada when we lose sight of what it means to be leaders and what it means to set high standards – in solving world issues, our environmental crises (including climate change), and more. In his last letter, he wrote something that took a long ride on the Facebook wave this past week:

My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.

I feel that Canada has experienced a great loss, saying goodbye to Jack Layton much too early. I have been surprised at my sadness, never having really “known” him. But, I’ll take Layton’s final words to heart and maintain hope that Canada can get a bit more radical, or at least different, in her thinking and see  these words come to fruition.

I’ll get off my little soapbox now. But, this isn’t about politics for me anyway. It’s about honouring a man that worked hard to challenge the status quo. In doing so, he ruffled some feathers, brought new awareness to Canadian voters and left a legacy he should be proud of.

The Bow Valley of Alberta is a remarkable place. The scenery, of course, draws millions of tourists each year. Visitors and residents alike flock to this Mountain Mecca, allured by the invigorating fresh air, illustrious peaks and an opportunity to connect with nature in a new way. People come and go like waves on the shore. And while the area is known for its transience – students coming for summer, Aussies coming for winter and weekenders coming for a short holiday – the region is chock-full of inspiring people that are here to stay. Passionate people have emerged from the woodwork and done amazing things as leaders in their communities. (Chandra Crawford and her Fast and Female campaign to empower girls through sport comes to mind.)

There is so much more bubbling beneath the surface. This weekend I’ll be attending Y Leadership, a foundational leadership development program for 18 to 30 year-olds, that intersects leadership and experience-based learning. This program, being offered by local partners, including The YWCA, Reframe Leadership, Pacific Center for Leadership and Corporate Funk, is in its pilot phase and I have the opportunity to learning and growing along with a dozen other attendees. I’ll be there to develop professionally, but I’ve also been asked to come as a writer who can bring the message and learning from this program to others through online and print publications.

One thing I’ll be thinking about is how I, as an outdoor, travel and adventure writer, can be a leader in my community, through the pieces I publish and the research I conduct on a daily basis. How might my own learning as a writer affect the planet?

The program faculty sent us two things to take a look at prior to the course starting on Friday. One was a fascinating article in the Financial Post about how Generation Y Will Evolve Leadership. The second was a TED talk by Derek Sivers about How to Start a Movement. At only 3 minutes, the video is well-worth watching here and now! Plus, it’ll answer any questions you might have about the title of this post.

The program runs this Friday, August 5, to Sunday, August 7th. Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting leadership program in Banff National Park.