WIMS + WOC = a Fundraising Success!

Wyoming Outdoor Council (WOC) is Wyoming's oldest independent conservation organization; headquartered here in Lander, WOC's mission is "to protect Wyoming’s environment and quality of life for future generations." Being the outdoor loving people we are here at Wild Iris, WOC's mission hits close to home.

On Saturday March 12, we held our Spring Fling event to celebrate 26 years of Wild Iris and to host a fundraiser for WOC. We were able to hand WOC a check for $2,100 from our fundraising efforts. Again, we want to thank our sponsors Patagonia & Kuhl, all of our customers & WOC supporters, our staff here at WIMS for working hard to be good hosts, as well as Amy Rathke who made working with WOC seamless & the entire Wyoming Outdoor Council staff- we love working with you guys! Additionally, WIMS was able to apply for and was awarded a grant from Patagonia's 1% for the Planet for WOC- another check for $1,500!

We would also like to thank our following vendors for making contributions to Spring Fling: PrAna- thank you for sponsoring our February Wine Nights used to kick start the momentum for Spring Fling, in addition to Mountain Smith, Three Dog Light Images, Black Diamond, Surf Wyoming, Petzl, Sanuk, Vasque, Mountain Hardwear, Eagles Nest Outfitters, Edelrid, Jetboil, Mountain Khaki, Toad & Co., Teva, White Sierra, and Royal Robbins. All of these companies represent the best outdoor clothing and gear on the market, and are great examples of big companies supporting small communities like us here in Lander.

The WIMS Staff had fun working the event and we are sure that customers had fun too. Mimosas in the morning, beer in the afternoon, food from the Cowfish, and cookies to nourish, plus raffle tickets for top notch prizes, and the prize wheel you can't lose on. We are already looking forward to our Geer & Beer fundraising event in the fall and even next year's Spring Fling!

Thank you Lander!

Congratulations to the following winners from our raffle: Madison Williams, Aileen Brew, Gabi Jackson, Cyndy Simer, Christine Lichtenfels, John Gookin, Pip Coe, Aila Brennan, Austin Chase, Lindsay Yost, Tom Pruett, Tim Hudson, Mike Bostick, Sue Daugherty, Tracy Wendt, Jerald Johnston, Sara Schroeder, & Deb Harris. Here are a few pics of the happy winners.

Get Out More Women's Edition

Backpacker Magazine Announces Launch of Nationwide 2014 Get Out More Women’s Tour

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Boulder, Colo. (April 2014) - Backpacker Magazine announces the launch of the 1st annual Get Out More Women’s Tour, a one-of-a-kind mobile tour that brings BACKPACKER’s authoritative advice to life. The Get Out More Women’s Tour is traveling to over 50 locations across the United States to bring BACKPACKER's skills, gear and trip advice to life for our audience of outdoor enthusiasts.

The 50+ event Get Out More Women’s Tour will feature in-depth retail workshops and presentations designed to inform and inspire active and aspiring outdoor women while covering the unique challenges women face while hiking, camping and backpacking, the specialized equipment designed specifically for women and the current state of fashion in the outdoor industry.

Backpacker Magazine’s mission is to inspire and enable people to enjoy the outdoors by providing the most trusted and engaging information about outdoor adventure in North America. For a complete list of Get Out More Women’s Tour events and locations, please visitwww.backpacker.com/womensedition.

The 2014 sponsor line-up includes Hi-Tec®, Hilleberg, Mountain House, nuun, prAna, Sawyer, Sea To Summit, Sierra Sage and Wrightsock.

Meet the Get Out More Women’s Tour Ambassadors: Rebecca Scholand: Rebecca was born and raised on the east end of Long Island, enjoying an adventurous youth. A beach bum in the summer, hiker in the fall and spring, and skier in the winter, the outdoors was Rebecca’s playground. After attending Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University for Meteorology, she left the flatlands of Florida to return to her native Northeast terrain and climate at the Mount Washington Observatory. Rebecca eventually rose from her role as Intern to assume the position of Weather Observer & Education Specialist. With a passion for the weather and how it influences decision making in the Backcountry Rebecca found her passion, backcountry forecasting. As an avid outdoor enthusiast Rebecca has spent time hiking and backpacking all around New England, the Caribbean, Arizona, and of course the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Samantha Brady: Originally from Boston, Samantha moved to California at the age of 19 with dreams of spending time in the sun. However, the east coast soon called her back, and she developed a love of mountains and the great outdoors through frequent trips to the White Mountains. In 2012 she saw the Mount Washington Observatory's posting for a Summit Museum Attendant, and jumped at the chance to live and work on top of Mount Washington. When the summit museum closed for the season, she joined the Observatory staff as a full-time museum attendant at the Weather Discovery Center, and is thrilled to be back on the summit once again for the 2013 summer season. After the Summer of 2013 ended she then was hired at Eastern Mountain Sports. Where she currently works. The avid, four-season hiker is quickly working her way through New Hampshire's 4,000-footers, and volunteers for a local search and rescue team. She also enjoys skiing, camping, and taking others out on the trail for the first time to share her love of the wilderness. Backpacker Magazine’s mission is to inspire and enable people to enjoy the outdoors by providing the most trusted and engaging information about outdoor adventure in North America.

climbingzine article - International Climber's Festival

http://www.climbingzine.com/international-climbers-festival-2014-in-lander-wyoming/

A nice interview with Mandy, the festival director for the 21st annual International Climber's festival happening July 9-13 2014. Get your tickets http://www.climbersfestival.org/tickets/ !

Be Bear Aware while Climbing and Camping at Wild Iris!

As indicated in this post from BARF, please be bear aware while out climbing and camping at Wild Iris this season. Waffles the Grizzly is a young adult male who ranges in the area, and there have always been black bears in the area.