Skip to content
The holiday season is finally winding down giving us some time to reflect on 2017 and it's impact on our brand.
From our inception, our goal has been to encourage ourselves and others to be a little more adventurous each and every day. Sharing that excitement for adventure with others has helped us grow a culture of weekend warriors and adrenaline enthusiasts.
Reflecting on 2017, we were fortunate to receive a great deal of support from our community, customers and strangers alike. From our adventures throughout the country and the people we have met along the way, we could not be more appreciative of the support we have received for Compas.
We still have much to accomplish as we continue to grow, but looking back at this past year helps us to see how far we've come! With 2018 just a few days away, we decided to compile the highlights and lessons of our adventures from this past year.
Adventure Club Trips
004//Abandoned Enchantment
In February of 2017, we embarked on our first Compas road trip throughout the vast expanse of New Mexico. The sprawling desert landscape made for a very liberating experience. We covered a ton of ground in the short amount of time we were passing through. There was plenty to see when venturing down the long, dusty highways of New Mexico. Below, we listed a few highlights worth noting for your next road trip:
- the eerie abandonment of the countless ghost towns like White Oaks that are scattered throughout the state
- the breathtaking landscapes of White Sands and Bottomless Lake near Roswell.
- if caves are your thing, Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a can't miss opportunity with hundreds of caves that expand for miles below the desert surface.
- If you want the best chili cheese burger around stop in at Buckhorn Burgers.
005//Northern Exposure
In October, we geared up and headed north into the Adirondacks to share some of our local culture. The outdoor culture of Upstate New York is engrained in the Adirondack Park. Being so close to something as incredible as these natural landscapes can sometimes be taken for granted. The Adirondack region is ripe with adventure as it encompasses all sorts of outdoor recreation among its many acres of uninterrupted wilderness.
There are countless online resources for the outdoors community and with the wide array of activities, we would recommend consulting the experts. A few good resources can be found here: Adirondack.Net , ADK 46ers, and Adirondack Park.
As we ventured through the vast stretches of wilderness, It was important for us to stop by some of the mountain towns a long the way. Some of our favorites along the High Peaks Byway were Keene Valley and Lake Placid. It's always best to get the low down on where to explore from locals and fellow travelers in the area. Our first stop was at a great local shop SubAlpine Coffee in Keene Valley. From there we were recommended to head over to Cascade Lake and then onto the trail head of Mount Marcy for a hike over to the Marcy Damn. When the snow thaws in the Spring, we'll be sure to finish our hike!
Local Adventures & Activities
In April, we teamed up with the ladies who run the The Albany Barn to organize a community clean up in our studio's neighborhood. The Barn is a community beacon in Arbor Hill, which is why we thought it would be great to do an urban Earth Day clean up with the Barn team. Our group of volunteers covered over 4 blocks and a community park in just a few hours!
ADK Summer Tubing Adventure
In September, we plunged into the waters of the Upper Hudson River for our annual Adirondack Adventure Tubing Trip. We had a great group of friends come along, but we all agreed the September air was little too cold for our liking. We braved the river anyway and had a great afternoon. We even picked up a few new friends this year on the trip! Hopefully, in 2018, we will make this adventure bigger than ever!
Unique CAMP
One memorable highlight of 2017 was the opportunity for some of our team to experience CAMP in Big Bear Lake, CA. Compas was invited to take part in the unique experience and join two hundred other campers on an adventure put on by the folks over at Unique. We surrendered our phones and shut ourselves off from the rest of the world for four days. We spent our days outdoors among new friends and our nights under the stars by bonfire.
Retail Partners
One of the biggest accomplishments of 2017 was our opportunities to partner up with some amazing stockists. We have a very fortunate and wonderful opportunity to spread brand awareness by opening up distribution partnerships with local retailers across the country.
Some of our newest partners include:
Citizen Supply : Atlanta, GA
Peak Your Interest : Lake Placid, NY
Cabin Fever : Rhinebeck, NY