Almost 10 months ago I posted my long-term review of the Garmin Instinct outdoors watch. It is by far the most popular video on my channel. To this day I’m still getting a lot of questions about issues that were not covered in the original video. So in this one, I’m going to answer your most popular and interesting questions.
I have wanted to record an episode about the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) and their work for quite a while now. Their excellent website, with a database where you can report sightings and strandings, was even mentioned in one of my vlogs. So today, it is my pleasure to bring you my conversation with IWDG’s Sightings Officer Pádraig Whooley.
We started with discussing at length IWDG origins and their current work. After that, we dug deep into a whole host of interesting topics related to cetaceans, starting with a discussion about cetacean species that can be observed and encountered in our local waters. That conversation included some interesting facts about how to behave in the presence of a whale and about the rules and regulations around it. We discussed whale watching techniques and the required equipment. We also talked about the unpleasant issue of whale strandings. And of course, I did not forget to discuss cetacean evolution, a personal favourite of mine.
This is an amazing episode and if you have any level of interest in whales or dolphins you will, without a doubt, find it deeply interesting.
Dear readers, listeners, viewers, followers and subscribers! This is the 4th annual housekeeping blog. I summarize the past year and outline my plans for Tommy’s Outdoors for the coming year 2021.
Last year, like those before, was mainly dedicated to the podcast. I published 26 episodes and this year the podcast will remain the core of Tommy’s Outdoors content. One significant change, made late last year, was to switch the category under which the podcast is listed from ‘sports’ to ‘education’. I believe we all feel that this change more accurately reflects the content.
Like many of us, in 2020 I moved almost all my activity on-line. Only 6 out of 26 episodes were recorded face to face, two of those were from the previous year. The explosion of the popularity of Zoom and other online communication platforms made scheduling remote podcasts much easier. As a nice side effect, now all the episodes of my podcast are also available in video on my YouTube channel.
Speaking about my YouTube channel… I hope you have all subscribed by now, but if not, please do it here. The simple act of subscribing helps me a lot. I will continue to experiment with various video genres: podcasts, vlogs, reviews and more. Please don’t forget to let me know in the comments which type of videos you like the most.
Overall, in 2020 Tommy’s Outdoors grew across all platforms 77% compared to the previous year. That’s a significant improvement from the previous annual growth figure of 45%. I am delighted to see that the growth of Tommy’s Outdoors is accelerating and I would like to thank you all for making it happen. After all, it’s you and your interest in my content that is driving this growth!
I wish you all the very best for the year 2021.
I don’t think that anyone who has at least dipped his toes in hunting needs to be convinced of how important it is to be in good physical shape to fully enjoy the experience. Strength and endurance come in handy not only when it comes to walking long miles in search of an animal with a lot of gear on your back but also during the extraction of the carcass. A critical component of keeping yourself fit and strong is correct nutrition. Luckily, a successful hunt itself helps you source healthy, clean, and nutrient-dense food.
And so to explore the topic of hunting and nutrition, our guest today is Alan Kenny who, having spent years hunting in the Canadian wilderness, knows a thing or two about the demands of hunting. And Alan is also a performance nutritionist who heads the science & education area for Optimum Nutrition where he works with athletes. During our chat, we discuss various aspects of hunting in Canada before switching to the subject of nutrition.
Full disclaimer: Optimum Nutrition is not sponsoring this episode, although they should feel completely free to send me a big drum of Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey Powder.
Twitter is by far my favourite social media network. So with the year coming to an end, I put together a list of my top 5 favourite Twitter accounts in 2020. Enjoy and give ‘em a follow.
Climate change, in one way or another, is mentioned in almost every episode of my podcast. But with the exception of episode 38, which was a recorded public talk, I have never dedicated a whole episode to this important issue. But today we’re going to jump right into this subject with Ben Harkin who wrote a book about climate change in the Irish context. Ben is a young man who decided to put to good use the extra time he had available during the lockdown and wrote a book about climate change! Not only that, he also self-published it to avoid any delays with getting his message out. Talk about a good use of time!
I read the book and must say that I’m blown away by it. It is well written and covers a wide spectrum of climate change issues. Ben put a lot of effort into research for the book and all key information and statements are backed up with ample references to scientific papers, press releases, governmental documents and other books. In the book, Ben makes many refreshing observations that I have not heard before. What are they? You need to buy the book and read it for yourself! One thing for sure you won’t regret your purchase. And with the Christmas season around the corner, you just might have an excellent gift idea!
Given all of the above, I was really pleased to be able to sit down with Ben and talk about his book. In this episode, we not only discuss some of the issues he mentions but also his motives and the process of writing the book. I am very happy with this episode and Ben is a great man. Go, listen, and then buy the book!
In this vlog I venture further away from my usual spots in an effort to identify some new and interesting fishing marks. What I’m going to be looking for are marks with access to deeper water. So, come along with me and let’s see what we can find!
In this episode, I had the pleasure to talk once again with scientists from SeaMonitor project. This time our guests were Dr Natasha Phillips and Dr Amy Garbett. Our conversation was focused on Basking Sharks but while at it we discussed a whole range of other subjects as well, like genetic connectivity, biotelemetry and bioinformatics. There is nothing like a conversation with scientists who are genuinely passionate about their work. If you are interested in marine biology, sharks and science you can’t afford to miss this episode!
A vlogdown is a lockdown vlog. Just me with a camera enjoying the coast and bringing you some relaxing footage from the shore.
This is yet another episode of the podcast where we talk about seals. This time I hit you with a healthy dose of unbiased, evidence-based knowledge. Actually, that’s not me doing the hitting but our guest Dr Sam L Cox who is a quantitative ecologist and researcher for the SeaMonitor project. In our conversation, we discuss the behaviour and spatial ecology of harbour seals which are tracked using GPS tags glued to their head. But that’s not all, Sam has done a lot of research studying other, more exotic, species of seals, like elephant seals. So, we discuss that too! We also touch on the anthropogenic impact on seals and mobile marine predators in general. This is one interesting episode. Enjoy!
