The ‘call of the wild’ is a familiar mantra for many adventurers. The appeal of getting out into nature and experiencing it in an untamed and elemental way.
Yellowstone National Park is certainly an ultimate destination for discovering the awe of the natural world at every turn. And, during the shoulder season months it offers a solitude that is truly magical with snow-covered peaks, bison and elk foraging for food, and thermal features steaming in the distance. The northern Lamar Valley of Yellowstone is also likely the best place in the world to observe and learn about gray wolves. After many decades of controversy, the 1995 reintroduction of the animals and their ability to thrive in the greater Yellowstone ecosystem is one of the greatest success stories of the national park system.
This theme of this success has again inspired us to celebrate the call of the wild via our third annual Call of the Wild Getaway Giveaway! In collaboration with a variety of terrific partners, we are able to offer a dynamic prize package—including a spot on the Yellowstone Wolf Watching Fall Vacation—and continue to highlight and celebrate the awesome wonder of a positive cascading effect on the ecosystem and the recovery of a species.
This year’s prize collaboration is a mix of small businesses whose gumption for doing what they do with outstanding passion and serving a greater good is evident, and they are a great match for the call of the wild celebration.
The Call of the Wild Prize Partners & Their Products
Travel Montana is one of three travel brands under the Zephyr United Collection. We are a small company headquartered in Red Lodge, Montana, with 25 years of experience creating unforgettable vacations for adventurous travelers. We are a private tour company that provides multi-day, all-inclusive, guided vacations to Montana and Yellowstone, for groups as small as four, or via a number of public, fixed-date vacations each year. A guided tour allows you to be present in all the fun instead of managing it. Your guide will be savvy in navigating the varying interests and expectations of your group. They’ll be there to encourage everyone so you all can make the most of your time together. We are the Montana experts—we’ll share our knowledge about the local culture, environment, and history—so you can have the most meaningful and rewarding vacation in Montana via our expertise. We have chosen to remain a small operation so that our staff and outstanding local guides can provide you with exceptional service, from your first email or phone call to our follow up after you return home. We are simply your best source for small-group, guided vacations!
FEATURED PRIZE: Yellowstone Wolf Watching Vacation | One spot on the October 13 – 17, 2023 tour | Shared lodging | $3000+ value | Transportation to the tour not included
On this small group experience, you’ll be joined by wolf biologist Jon Trapp as well as other wolf experts and scientists as we spend our days as “wolf watchers” in Yellowstone’s Lamar Valley (the best place on Earth to observe wolves). We’ll hike to the acclimation pen, where the wolves lived for their first few months in 1995, or to the historic former den of Wolf #9. We’ll hear stories and learn about wolf ecology, predator-prey relationships, wolf reproduction, wolf tracking, and more.
This company’s mission is to create the most delicious meals, using clean ingredients, to be enjoyed wherever your adventures take you. They were the first backpacking food brand to offer truly healthy options to the broader outdoor market with the specific purpose of changing how people eat on-the-go. Chef Jennifer Scism—a professional chef for over two decades—thoughtfully crafts meals that not only taste great but are truly good for you. The meals are handmade in Maine—a perfect setting for making Good To-Go’s lightweight dehydrated gourmet meals—taking inspiration from the wilderness and craftsmanship that the state is known for. Whether you’ve hiked all day for that summit view, rose with an alpine start to earn those backcountry turns, or are simply looking for an easy-to-make option at home, all you need is boiling water and in minutes you’ll have a delicious meal. Their products are gluten-free, low in sodium, made with no preservatives, and offer a variety of vegan and vegetarian options.
FEATURED PRIZE: Resupply Food Kit Retail value $173
With this resupply food kit, hiker hunger has met its match. The kit includes one dozen of the very best meals, each in double servings. Great for a thru hiker resupply, but also perfect to have on hand for emergency preparedness, quick dinners at home, or for a larger group of hungry backpackers. The 12 Entrées (x 2 servings) include 3 Thai Curry, 3 Chicken Pho, 3 Mexican Quinoa Bowl, and 3 Cuban Rice Bow.
Oboz Footwear is a hiking footwear company out of Bozeman, Montana (outside + Bozeman = Oboz). Since the company began in 2007, they have planted a tree for every pair of footwear sold. It’s because of this passion for the planet and the people upon it, that they embody a benefit mindset across the entire business. This also means they are always exploring—and acting on—ways to better the environment, nurture communities, empower people, and prepare for the amazing adventures ahead. The company’s fit philosophy is ‘It’s on the inside that counts’ which is built around the O FIT System™, which draws inspiration from collective decades of industry experience and the countless miles logged on their favorite trails. With foot-forming comfort, durability, breathability, and the right tread for the trail, the synergy of these features is what makes Oboz Footwear fit flawlessly.
FEATURED PRIZE: Oboz wants you to find your own flawless footwear fit with one pair of Oboz footwear up to $200 in value. Winner will receive a single-use code to redeem on obozfootwear.com
Most hotels are only interested in your experience inside their own walls. At The LARK, they wanted to do something different, and are proud of the space they’ve designed (to go along with being very proud of Bozeman, and their great state of Montana). At The LARK, they want you to love your modern, one-of-a-kind Bozeman hotel room, but their real goal is to help you get out and adventure. To this end, they have built a Map Room, and have a crew of people who are genuinely excited to share the best-kept-secrets with you. The hotel space has a colorful history in the heart of downtown Bozeman. Formerly an Imperial 400 Motel, and before that a series of auto shops. The lot sat vacant for four years until a local architectural firm saw an opportunity to breathe new life into the property. And so the story of The LARK began, along with the sister properties—The FINCH in downtown Walla Walla, WA, The Wren in downtown Missoula, and The Sparrow in downtown Boise, ID (coming soon!). These hotels, affectionately known as the birds, were resurrected and repurposed from old, abandoned buildings and feature essentialism while remaining true to, and genuinely inspired by, their surroundings.
FEATURED PRIZE: 1-night stay in a LARK King with 236 square feet, one king-size bed, and space for storing your gear!
Born in the mountains of Bozeman, Montana, Treeline Coffee Roasters believes that coffee should fuel you to do the things you love. They’ve been fearlessly roasting since 2013 and it is their mission to provide a unique and excellent coffee experience. Enjoy a damn fine cup of coffee, gear up with their top of the line brewing equipment, or style your next quest with their custom swag. Wherever life’s adventures take you, Treeline has you covered.
FEATURED PRIZE: Three coffee essentials from Treeline Coffee Roasters, including a 6-pack of the Blackbeard Instant Coffee, 12 oz of the Force of Nature Blend, and a 12 oz Coffee Mug. The Treeline Instant Coffee is the same high-quality coffee you expect from Treeline, available in an instant! Just add 8 oz of your choice of liquid (hot water, cold water, milk, chai…the list goes on and on) and you’ve got yourself a bevvy! Because after all, on-the-go adventurers deserve great coffee too.The Force of Nature Blend has one mission: to Inspire Adventure and Elevate Women, via the newest Treeline collaboration! 10% of every bag sold goes directly to Cairn The Cairn Project which aims to expand outdoor access by supporting community-based wilderness and outdoor education groups around the country through small grants.
Sauce was founded by Shayla Swanson, a former Canadian national team cross country skier, as a way to support her ski racing. Shayla set out to create functional, stylish and comfortable products that met the needs of elite athletes and outdoor enthusiasts alike.She began selling Swift Toques to teams and clubs who wanted a custom item for their group, and soon saw the additions of the Swift Headband, Ventilator Headband, and the fleece-lined Chill Toque. After several exciting seasons of ski racing full-time and an Olympic team near miss in 2010, Shayla decided to jump into Sauce full time, putting 100% of her enthusiasm and effort into the entrepreneurial venture. At Sauce they believe in creating beautiful, high quality and thoughtful products that help people maintain healthy lifestyles. Fit and function are as important as the variety of patterns and color options, with original prints embodying our ‘Saucy’ sophisticated style. Many products boast unique features specifically designed for athletic endeavors. Sauce wants you to find a product that helps get you out and moving. Sauce. Every wear for everywhere.
FEATURED PRIZE: Sauce Warm-noggin 3-pack! Select three headwear items from the current stock. Mix and match styles and colors to achieve the just-right combo of winter headwear—from headbands to toques to fleece—you’ll stay warm and active with lots of versatility.
Crazy Creek® also got their start in Red Lodge, Montana—at the foot of the Beartooth Mountains—a backdrop that not only served as inspiration for their products, but as testing ground for their legendary chairs. Since 1987 they’ve been working to produce lasting outdoor products with a singular focus – to perfect “just sit there” no matter what terrain “there” might include. Crazy Creek’s founder, Rob Hart, was leading a group of Outward Bound students and wondered why there wasn’t something better to sit on when camping, other than a fallen log or tree stump, and hence the first ‘Original’ Chair was created. Crazy Creek chairs have traveled around the globe—from the backcountry in Northern Alaska, to backyards in Southern Florida—people have enjoyed the quality craftsmanship and attention to the small details that make the simple to use designs so versatile.Before your next hike, climb, high school football game, canoe or camping trip – perfect your own “just sit there” in a Crazy Creek chair!
FEATURED PRIZE: Any Crazy Creek Chair of your choice! Perfecting “Just sit there” since 1987 with comfortable outdoor chairs, you’ll have plenty of great options for wherever outdoor adventure takes you.
California-based Nomadix launched in 2015 with The Only Towel You Need®— a multi-purpose towel that performs for any activity, including travel, yoga, hiking, and at the beach. As part of its ethos to “Own Less, Do More,” Nomadix is committed to creating durable, multi-purpose, responsibly manufactured solutions that create less waste and leave the planet better than it was found. Nomadix is a member of 1% for the Planet, Climate Neutral Certified, and repurposes post-consumer recycled materials for all of their products.
FEATURED PRIZE: $200 Gift Card for Nomadix—Go anywhere travel towels, ponchos, and blankets. Their towels are super absorbent, quick-drying, odor-resistant, packs small, lightweight, and sand-resistant.Their ponchos are part poncho, part towel, part beach blanket, and some are great for helping you change! Combine the utility of a sleeping bag with an outdoor blanket and you get a Nomadix Puffer Blanket—made with post-consumer recycled materials, you get go anywhere, do anything, versatile warmth.
Enter to Win!
That all sounds like an awesome way to get geared up to go on a Call of the Wild Getaway, right?
Enter for a chance to win a 5-day active vacation with Travel Montana and go exploring to find and watch the famed wolf packs in America’s favorite national park, and go outfitted with these prizes from the outstanding partners! Giveaway starts at 12:01 AM Mountain Time on April 3, 2023 and ends at 11:59 PM Mountain Time on April 14, 2023
