Outdoor Recreation Course Level 1 2013

Another series of Outdoor Recreation Course to be participate. Open to all outdoor recreation enthusiast who are looking for the next level in understanding the knowledge of outdoor recreation. Conducted by experienced certified coaches and their assistants, this course can be an introductory as you wish to upgrade your certification until Level 3.

Let's check it out as details below:

Course: Outdoor Recreation Course Level 1
Date: 3-5 May 2013
Venue: UTM Johor Bahru Campus
Fee: RM188 per person
Organizer: UTM in collaboration with Jabatan Belia & Sukan Johor

This course including:

• camp craft
• night jungle exploration
• basic navigation
• rope & knots 
• wilderness first aid
• search & rescue simulation
• kayak
• lecture: Outdoor Program Management

May the course will benefits all.

For more details & registration:
email me: miha5123@gmail.com
facebook: Blackopoulos Johor

The right to make a copy for personal use is part of most existing publishing agreements. This right is recognised as an important right for the author. Because the right is attached to the author and in most cases well defined, personal use won’t harm the publisher.

Why Travel Light?

I often travel either as solo traveler or in group, either with the bicycle, motorcycle, bus, train and even a flight. As a traveler, I love to carry the essentials gear and equipment together. There is no 'biawak' in my backpack or haversack or my army sack.

Of all the travel skills you might acquire, travelling light is the one most likely to result in enjoyable, productive, stress-free travel experiences. For two thousand years, seasoned travelers have written of its many important benefits, including 

Security

With a much reduced need to hand your belongings over to the care of others, you are less likely to lose them to theft, damage, or misrouting. Similarly, you foil those who would enlist your unsuspecting aid as a conveyor of contraband goods. Attaining peace of mind is rarely this easy!

Economy

You can laugh at checked baggage fees. You don't have to pay porters and others to carry and store stuff for you. You are more able to take public transportation (even from airports, like flight crews and airport personnel do), rather than limos, shuttles, and (often scam-prone) taxis. You can even walk. All of which also bring you into more intimate (hence rewarding) contact with the people and places that you have come to visit.

Navigability

Less stuff means greater mobility, thus more navigational choices. With no checked or awkward-to-manage luggage to limit your travel options, you can better cope with delayed transportation, missed connections, and unexpected opportunities. You can switch to earlier flights when space is available. You needn't arrive at airports as early, and will be among the first to leave (despite the head start given those in first class), while the mobs wait at baggage carousels and long inspection queues. You can board trains, trams, and coaches with alacrity. You won't feel compelled to take the first hotel room offered: you can comfortably walk down the street should the ambience be unsuitable or the price unreasonable. You can sell your airplane seat (by volunteering to be "bumped") on full flights. You can travel as an air courier. You can be more spontaneous. Ultimately, you can enjoy an unfettered freedom that is forever denied to those who remain chained to their luggage. 

Serenity

If there is a bottom line, it's that travelling light is simply a more stress-and-hassle-free way to go. You have more time, because packing takes little. You waste less energy hauling stuff. You know what you have, where everything is, and that it's sufficient. We've all seen those hapless folks at the airport, with too much baggage and anxious expressions, concerned that they have lost track of something, or left it behind. Foreign travel in particular can be challenging because it is unfamiliar and unpredictable, but the one-bag traveller copes by operating from a solid, familiar, well-considered foundation, with fewer unnecessary things to worry about.

Ecology

All of the above are concerned with short-term benefits to you. But travelling light also yields long-term benefits to the planet. Less stuff to manufacture. Less use of vehicles and other equipment to move you and your things about. Less fuel for the vehicles that do move you. Less greenhouse gas production. Less damage to our celestial home. Greater likelihood of upcoming generations being around and able to do some travelling of their own. (It's not often that the most convenient option is also the most environmentally responsible.) 

As a bottom line, learning to travel light simply makes a good SENSE (Security, Economy, Navigability, Serenity, Ecology).

The right to make a copy for personal use is part of most existing publishing agreements. This right is recognised as an important right for the author. Because the right is attached to the author and in most cases well defined, personal use won’t harm the publisher.

Who Are You as Backpacker?

Whether you’re a 'otai' backpacker or preparing for your first timer, the world awaits. Backpacking provides incredible experiences and opportunities for travelers of many varieties. Check out these types tour backpackers you might encounter on your next trip and ponder about which group you fit into.

Spiritual Travelers

Looking to find themselves and serve others, these travelers often flock to Asia. After purchasing missionary insurance in case of any needed medical treatment, spiritual pilgrims set off in search of inner peace. Many spiritual backpackers visit religious sites or work for charitable causes during their travels. As Muslim, I can say going to Mecca & Madinah are considered in this category. 

Hippie Trippers

Developing countries attract hippie travelers who eat local and use local transportation. They often sport dreadlocks and avoid average tourist destinations.

Gap Year Adventurers

The year between high school and college finds gap year travelers exploring the world and seeing the sights without the responsibility of educational or work pursuits. Particularly in Asia and Australia, they often stick to the beaten path.

Party Packers

A drink in hand identifies this group. Primarily congregating in party destinations like Barcelona, Prague, Thailand and Amsterdam, these backpackers are loud and fun.

The Couple

Worldwide, couples seek to escape the routine and spend time reconnecting with each other. Older travelers tend to avoid the party scene while younger couples actively seek out the party crowds.

Flashpacker

Identify these travelers by their attachment to electronic devices. Found worldwide wherever they can find Internet access, flashpackers usually don’t pinch pennies or sleep under the stars.

Nostalgic Travelers

Long-time travelers fall into this category. They’ve been everywhere and often return to their favorite locations. Filled with stories of the good old days, they may spend time reminiscing on how the best sites were better back in the day.

Tour Types

As you backpack, you will encounter travelers from one or more of the above categories. Perhaps they are journeying solo or in a guided tour. Find out more about the tour types that attract backpackers from around the world.

With the variety of tours available, you can find the trip that meets your needs. Whether you spend a few months exploring the beaten path or tour local sights for a day, find a backpacking experience that meets your style. You’ll be glad you took time to discover the adventures that await.

• Guided group Tours – Backpackers on a guided tour simply show up and follow the qualified guide on pre-arranged sightseeing tours. The cost typically includes housing, transportation and activities.

• Independent Tours – Individual backpackers arrange the details on this personalized tour option. You decide everything from what to see to how long you stay.

• Active or Adventure Tours – Exercise your need for adventure as you participate in mountain climbing, hiking or biking.

• Hop On/Hop Off Tours – Travelers on a budget appreciate this tour type. Reserve a seat on the bus for the tour then hop off the bus to explore a location or relax. Jump on the next bus when you’re ready to continue the tour.

• Day Tours – Some travelers can’t escape reality for weeks or months at a time. Often designed for sightseeing rather than adventure, day tours provide travelers with a taste of the backpacking experience.

• Trekking – Multi-day hikes allow travelers to enjoy the great outdoors while exploring rugged locations.

Deciding where to begin your backpacking adventure isn’t the first or hardest decision you’ll ever have to make. Deciding what type of backpacker you are will help make the rest of the choices part of the fun!

The right to make a copy for personal use is part of most existing publishing agreements. This right is recognised as an important right for the author. Because the right is attached to the author and in most cases well defined, personal use won’t harm the publisher.

What is Hammock Camping?

One of the best ways to camp in the jungle is by using a hammock with a tarp over. The hammock keeps you off the ground, away from the wetness of the rain and creepy crawlies. Personally, it is by far the single type of shelter that is practical and jungle friendly.

The biggest challenge in using the conventional ground tents in the jungle is space. In the dense tropical jungle of Malaysia, finding a suitable ground space that is big and flat enough for a tent is almost impossible. Every inhabitant in the jungle is always competing for a piece of the ground. Plants grow on every patch of ground available and animals like ants and centipedes swarm the jungle floor for food at all time.

The hammock approach solves many of the challenges in trying to use a tent in the jungle. All that is needed are two good size tree, strong enough to hold your weight and spaced just right for the length of the hammock. The two trees act as the main ‘posts’ for the hammock and the flysheet that will later go over it. One can even setup this type of shelter at uneven ground and there is no need to chop or clear ground bush unnecessarily.

The 'guys' I brought for Fitness Adventure Challenge at Mount Ledang

My 'home'

The tired knotted back muscles relax extremely well sleeping in hammock curve, and after getting used to it, you will prefer it. You can elevate your feet above your body, it helps to reduce the swelling that sometimes happens overnight after a good hard day of hiking. Besides supporting you back, relaxing your body, and reducing foot swelling, there is the gentle rocking that can lull you to sleep, as well as the lack of mystery bumps like rocks and roots that you think are not there until you lay down to sleep like there is sleeping on the ground.

Hammocks are actually some of the lowest impact hiking systems out there. Instead of grooming a flat spot or compacting earth, a hammock keeps you above all that. Tree bark can be protected by either flat straps or by using a rope system that uses multiple wraps to distribute the load that keeps the rope from digging into the trees.

The benefits to hammock camping besides comfort and low impact are quite a few. The main ones for me are site selection, weight,  and flexibility.

The number of camp sites when you use a tent or tarp are limited to the places where you have flat ground, no pooling of water, clear of bush, clear of rocks and roots, and many other little things to make your sleep enjoyable as well as just supporting the structure. Many times you must either crowd into a limited number of spots with others, go to designated sites, create a site (increasing impact to environment), or take a less than perfect site. With a hammock, it's almost all good.

Enjoying every moment inside 'the home'

Feel asleep while the dinner served

When you have a hammock, your campsites are limited by imagination. All you need is a couple of trees the right distance apart. What is under you may not matter at all. I have personally can set the hammock and slept on the side of a mountain. There are things that make better camps than others, and some safety things to consider, but unless you are camping where there are no trees, then the hammock will increase your camp sites.

I also say weight because I select hammocks that are lightweight. There are some hammock models out there that weight a lot more, but that is your choice as what to carry. But the absolute lightest camping hammock with bug protection and rain fly is less than a pound, the absolute lightest tent that gives bug protection weighs twice that.

And as for flexibility, well my hammock serves as, chair, lounge, gear loft, solo tent, and of course - a hammock. A tent is always a tent.

The right to make a copy for personal use is part of most existing publishing agreements. This right is recognised as an important right for the author. Because the right is attached to the author and in most cases well defined, personal use won’t harm the publisher.

Outdoor Recreation Course Level 1

This is another consequences from previous effort I put since 2007 to organize this course. Let's check it out as details below:

Course: Outdoor Recreation Course Level 1
Date: 20-22 April 2012
Venue: UTM Johor Bahru Campus
Fee: RM180 per person
Organizer: UTM in collaboration with Jabatan Belia & Sukan Johor

This course including:

• camp craft
• night jungle exploration
• basic navigation
• knots & abseiling set-up
• wilderness first aid
• water confident & maneuvers
• kayak
• lecture: Outdoor Program Management

This year I involved in this course as external consultant to helps the students tackling the tricky aspect of organizing the event. As I no more serve as government servant, this effort I considered as my public responsibility while without thinking about the payment get.

May the course will benefits all.

For more details & registration:
email me: miha5123@gmail.com
facebook: Blackopoulos Johor