In this day and age of technological breakthroughs, everyone would agree that it has its impact. One of the activities that people who go through this detox can engage in is exploring the great outdoors like hiking, mountain climbing, or trekking. But, what are the other things that these activities bring into the community?

Oso Adventure Meals Co-Founder Felipe Vieyra delves into bringing people from different colors together through going outdoor activities and adventures complemented with delicious adventure meals.

Their mission is to provide outdoor food and beverage with uniquely delicious dehydrated meals They are actively working to create an outdoor culture in which BIPOC feels included, safe, and engaged. As a Black and Latino-owned business, Oso Adventure Meals is dedicated to creating a more just, equitable, and sustainable America.

To learn more about what they do, listen to this podcast on Actions Antidote!
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Listen to the podcast here:

Bringing the Community Together Through Outdoor Adventures with Felipe Vieyra
Welcome to Action’s Antidotes, your antidote to the mindset that keeps you settling for less. Today, we're going to talk about the intersection of culture, adventure, and close encounters with wildlife with Oso Adventure Meals founder, Felipe Vierya.

 
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Felipe, welcome to the program.

 

Thank you for having me, Stephen. Really excited to dive into this conversation.

 

Definitely. Now, these are some very interesting topics and one thing that I love to always identify out here in this podcast is ways to think outside the box and ways to think about things a little bit differently. And so, you were on a backpacking trip of sorts when you came up with the idea for Oso Adventure Meals.

 

That's right. That's right. It was two years ago, right outside of Leadville, Colorado, and I had gotten into backpacking so it wasn’t my first time out in the backcountry but it was the first time for one of my best friends, he had never gone backpacking but he loved the outdoors. We decided to go backpacking and we did Jasper Lake Trail, I believe it's called, and so it was super fun. It was definitely a journey that set us up for an even longer journey of entrepreneurship and food and culture and all the things that you named.

 

Yeah, for sure, and so most people go on backpacking trips, especially, it's your first time, it sounds like it wasn't your first time but it was your friend's first time and you're just really focused on some of the basic necessities of life that we often take for granted, like you have to pump the water to get fresh water, you have to set up the tent in every spot to get your shelter and make sure that you get in before the thunderstorms happen, depending on what time of year it is. At the time, though, you were coming up with ideas for a whole new business.

 

It's funny, though, because it was few mishaps. First off, it was like later in the summer too so it was a little — or in the fall, I mean. It was a little like it was a bit of a gamble getting out there and we also started on the trail late, we ended up going to Leadville and stopping for a beer, had —

 

Oh, wow. 

 

I forgot the brewery and we ended up stopping for beer and stayed there a little too long and so we got on the trail a little late. It was also a very steep trail. At some point, I remember grabbing my headlamp and my extra one, me putting one on and handing the other one to my friend because we were hiking in the middle of the night. 

 

Oh, wow. 

 

Yeah, trying to make it to the top and it was his first time so he was like a little anxious. He's like, “Oh, there's gonna be a mountain lion right around the corner. This is never ending,” and so it was definitely an adventurous experience, but I feel like that's what life is about. We finally make it to the top, we pitch our tents, and we're both exhausted and hungry.