Michael Neiger lives in Marquette, Michigan, along the south of shore of Lake Superior. Since 1984, he has organized and led 100's of backpacking, canoeing, mountain biking, skiing, snowshoeing, winter-camping, and caving trips and expeditions in the bush between the Upper Great Lakes in Michigan and the Arctic Ocean in Canada.

He has skied solo from the end of the northern-most plowed road in Ontario, Canada to the Arctic Ocean, and has paddled solo from the Lake Superior area to the Arctic Ocean. He has completed at least a half dozen winter expeditions to the Arctic Ocean, and he has helped train and outfit members of two North Pole expeditions. He currently leads monthly trips, primarily backpacking and winter-camping, in the bush between the Upper Great Lakes and the Arctic Ocean. He also teaches two-day wilderness survival classes and two-day wilderness land navigation classes.

Michael was a Det/Sgt with the Michigan State Police for 26 years and currently is the lead investigator with Michigan Backcountry Search and Rescue (MibSAR), a Long Range Special Operations Group (LRSOG) that investigates long-term missing person cases and cold-case murders in the bush between the Upper Great Lakes and the Arctic Ocean. He is also the author of the "Missing-Person Sourcebook: Strategies & Tactics for Finding Your Missing or Murdered Loved One from the World’s Top Experts."

Curt Isaacson is an avid craftsman, trekker and camper from Nebraska. He’s been exploring the outdoors since childhood and developed an early knack for making and modifying his own gear.  He especially enjoys promoting the intersection of the oft-forgotten tools of traditional craft and outdoor travel, especially as they relate to winter.  Curt has fond memories of growing up working alongside his father in the workshop while learning tending the wood stove at the heart of it.  His grandfather Karl immigrated from Kisa, Östergötland County, Sweden, giving Curt a deep appreciation for the culture, tools and lifestyle of Scandinavian peoples.  He recently joined the ambassador team for Hults Bruk Axes of Sweden (also in Östergötland County) helping to produce content for their North American social media platforms.  You can find them both on Instagram @hultsbruk1697 and @4esttrekker. 

Ryan has been on the Winter Camping Symposium Board for the past 10 years. He is a husband, father, and an avid outdoorsman. In the Winter he can usually be found on trail pulling a toboggan, or in a canvas tent, having a staring contest with a wood stove. Ryan has been teaching the Hot Tent 101 course for the past several years as well as a first time toboggan travel class. If you're new to Winter Camping, you don't want to miss these classes. 

Scott loves getting outside--no matter the time of year--to explore, enjoy the wild, and test his outdoor skills. He eagerly works to convince others to join in the fun--in hot or cold weather--as he is thoroughly excited to introduce people to the outdoors and the adventure it holds. No stranger to cold weather camping, Scott earned his first "Zero Hero" more than 25 years ago, sleeping in a quinzhee on a frozen lake. An Eagle Scout, he is currently involved in teaching at the BSA's Winter Camping School and Okpik Cold Weather Leader Program, as well as developing and coordinating other advanced outdoor training programs. Scott is also a Registered Maine Guide, and co-owner of Bull Moose Patrol, an outdoor skills and adventure company. 

Jason Gustafson, founder and owner of Lester River Bushcraft (LBR), born and raised in Minnesota; living in Duluth since 1997.  While LRB is primarily now known for the 100% wool Boreal shirt, it started with a different intent.   I am fascinated with primitive skills and adapting to modern day bushcraft.  I’ve trained with Mors Kohanski in the states and on location via Karamat in Edmonton, Canada.  I continue to work on expanding my skill base and put those skills to use while camping and hiking year round. 

Nick Gordon, Owner of NOW Outdoors, has been helping people gain more skills, knowledge, and confidence outdoors since 2010. In addition to guiding year-round in the Upper Midwest, he also leads adventure seekers around the world to destinations in Nepal, the Peruvian Andes, Canada, and deep into the Amazon Jungle of Colombia. 

Now Outdoors 

Don is the proprietor and owner of the Four Dog Stove Company. He has been designing and building portable wood stoves for the past 23 years. From a 2¼oz titanium back-packing stove to a large steel stoves that can heat a 14’ x 20’ wall tent at -30 below. He is known as the leading innovator in trail stove design and construction. All stoves are hand crafted with his wife, Roxanne on their back 40 acre Minnesota-based workshop/farm, where they enjoy family, friends, raising a large garden, chickens and working their mules. Don’s passion for creating time tested and proven items for use in the harshest wilderness conditions is evident by the testimonials of hunters, trappers, outfitters, guides and adventures throughout the globe.

Four Dog Stoves 

Jim Bishop lives in Spooner, WI. is a long time winter camper whose excursions focuses on lakes with fish.  He has ice fished in Canada, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Montana and Lake Superior.  A board member of FISH - Friends Into Spooner Hatchery - a friends group of the state hatchery, where they put on fishing programs for youth and elderly.  He is retired Public Affairs Manager with the WI- Department of Natural Resources. 

Joe is a lifelong outdoors enthusiast, with a deep interest in the natural world. Camping trips as a child set the stage for countless family trips as an adult. Winter camping started on a whim, as a way to get outside during the cold, and has quickly become a favorite. Over a decade of winter camping with his wife Lori has imparted a wealth of knowledge and experience on what works for them. Joe's approach is pragmatic and practical. A woodworker by trade, Joe's hobbies include boatbuilding, paddling, hiking, biking, and pretty much anything outdoors. 

Empire Wool and Canvas Company

https://empirecanvasworks.com/

Kevin Kinney is the owner of Empire Wool and Canvas Company. He's a pathologically creative outdoor industry veteran who's equally at home

in the mountains, on trail, or on the water. Kevin works from his cottage home in Duluth, MN.

David Hoole’s first WCS was in the rains of 2009, covering winter camping as a tv newsman for KBJR in Duluth. Since then he has jumped ship for Frost River and been a staple among the cast of characters at the Symposium and beyond. 

David has pulled his own toboggan weight on several of the guys wilderness trips, has lived through all so far, and has tales to tell! Many tales will be of what Not to do. First time speaker, longtime listener.

Sparky Stensaas actually started the Winter Camping Symposium waaaay back in 1999 when he was Buyer/Marketing Director at Duluth Pack. He is the founder and executive director of Friends of Sax-Zim Bog (www.SaxZim.org) which has purchased & preserved over 25,000 acres of bog creating a Forever Home for future generations of birds and birders. A birder since age 14, Sparky is also a naturalist, publisher of field guides, wildlife photographer and now YouTuber (really?). He is the author of 6 books on the natural history of the North Woods. Sparky, his wife, Bridget, and two sons, Birk and Bjorn, make their home under the big pines in the Nemadji Valley in northern Minnesota. You can see more of Sparky's images at www.sparkyphotos.com and his bird/wildlife videos on YouTube “Sparky Stensaas” 

We are working parents (and now family travel bloggers) with busy schedules and active young kids who love camping and traveling the world. We believe the world is run by those who show up, and make sure that the four of us show up every day with open minds and open hearts.

Our goal is to inspire other families to travel even when it can feel expensive, time consuming, or unattainable. All it takes is an open mind, some motivation, and at least one individual in the household that can plan!

From Tent to Takeoff