Our arrival did not disappoint! As soon as we got there Hannah was thrilled that there was a camping display with actual teardrop campers, her latest investment adventure. We were early but the hallway was filled with booths giving out free information and even trinkets. A lot of the booths represented national parks. We started in the vendor section but couldn't stay long because sessions started at 4:30pm. Of course Hannah and I had our backpacks on so we couldn't leave until they checked our bags. We watched three of the four sessions. They were very interesting BUT not necessarily what the descriptions had said.
So for my soapbox: I haven't been going to as many conferences lately because I've been frustrated with the last few I've been to. I go into these sessions based off of what I read in the description and then they talk about something completely different. Even if they are good sessions you go away with an unsatisfactory feeling.
Having presented at other conferences I understand. You are expected to come up with a description months in advance and things change by the time you get to the preparation. You are also too busy to work on revising your abstract or it's too late because the programs had to go to press already.
I don't have a solution to this problem but maybe it's as simple as the presenter starting out the session with a summary of what will be covered so that you don't spend the entire session wondering how he's going to fit in that special topic with the little bit of time left. If you know right from the beginning you can change your expectations and not be disappointed. The session may still be great and you can enjoy it even more.
Below is a quick recap of our sessions. I don't use names because I know how hard it is to present and not sure the sacrifices they made to be here. I really enjoyed all the presentations but my personality likes to analyze.
The Happy Camper - hilarious! BUT didn't leave with any of the information/tips I was expecting.
Colorado River - interesting but jumped around too much kept switching to other presentations throughout the day
Royal Isle Park Ranger - one of top presentations. Stuck to description and very professional. She started with introduction and used recaps as transitions.
Bird one was entertaining and interesting. He was a little hard to hear but I was impressed with his bird call imitations.
Canoeing with your dog was really cute. The guy was really passionate about his dog but seemed like expectations were for him to be an expert on how to teach your dog how to canoe with you. His dog seems to have taken to it without special training so that was a little weird. Had couple good tips.
Standup canoeing guy was engaging. He really seemed to know the whole gamut of the sport including history, important names, and spoke of his own personal experiences. His description was actually his presentation.
Pictures that don't suck was very cool but I thought it would be about taking pictures from your boat. It was more about taking commercial type photos and getting published. Really like some of his tips though. It was the first session I took notes on.
Waves for paddlers followed the description but we got there late trying to get from main building over to the hotel. It was so informative. I really want a wave generator. 😀 These speakers followed the abstract too. The second speaker was a little hard to hear because he spoke softly.
Adventure writing session was about writing to be published too. I thought it would be a little more technical but it still had a lot of really good information. The speaker also engaged with audience to make sure we were satisfied.
Sunday sessions were great! I actually took notes, pictures, and clips of all three sessions I attended.
Exercise session done by Rutabaga staff member. She did a great job. I can't wait to try some of her moves at home.
Professional wildlife photographer had incredible slideshow of animals A-Z of photos he had taken. He was very knowledgeable about each of the animals and entertaining.
Apostle Island author and a NPS ranger did a really nice job of how to kayak the Apostle Islands. I can't wait to try it - def on my bucket list.
My husband attended all of the fishing seminars and had great things to say about all of them! He also won a camping table set at the SundayFun Day drawing. It was donated by TC Teardrops which was Hannah's favorite vendor.
We got a lot of great deals, tons of tips, and had a fantastic time! We definitely plan to attend again next year! Thanks to everyone for their hard work at making it such a great conference! #canoecopia
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