Your Guide To Leading A More Exciting Life Outdoors

Why I'm on Substack and what I plan to create here

I’ve been writing about topics like cars, trucks, dogs, and the outdoors for 22 years now. And what I like best about doing that is working for my readers to create real, effective guidance around gear purchases, travel destinations, and outdoor skills. But, as mainstream social media platforms have devolved, I feel like I’ve been doing that in a vacuum. And that’s what I’m trying to fix here on Substack. This project is about you.

There’s going to be three major kinds of content here, all unique to this platform:

• Uncensored journalism: It’s hard to speak truth to power in today’s media environment. As major publications struggle to turn profits, they worry more about the potential to turn readers off than they do about about tuning them in. Independence has become key to authenticity and insight.

• Exciting adventures: I’ll travel to interesting places, do dangerous things, enjoy the hell out of them, then show you all the skills, gear, and places where you can do the same things.

• Expert guidance: I’ll combine my experience with input from experts to bring you the kind of effective information you need to inform purchases of vehicles, technical clothing, and outdoors gear. It’s my aim to do this better than anyone else in any of the spaces I write about.

Within those categories, I think there’s a lot of ground we can cover together.

I intend to keep that content public facing, and free from a paywall. But in order to devote a significant amount of time to this project, I obviously need to create a business around it. For that, I mean it when I say I’m your guide. Paying for a subscription buys access to me. I will help you with your individual pursuits, from finding an epic spot to camp to planning the best possible routes via foot, vehicle, or watercraft, buying the most effective gear, or solving your unique problems. I will turn some of that into content for your fellow subscribers so everyone can benefit (anything you want kept private will be), and provide the really good stuff (including GPS coordinates and similar) to paying subscribers only.

While no, I am not the ultimate expert in every possible topic, I am a seasoned journalist. And that means I have a massive list of existing relationships, plus the ability to simply pick up the phone and get pretty much anyone on the other end. I will use this superpower to help you. And I also want all of my readers to help each other. Hit the “Chat” button at the top of this website and you’ll find a private members club where I participate in conversations between subscribers in real time, and where we can all access each other’s wealth of knowledge and experience.

Any reader can also reach me via email. The address is [my first name] @wessiler.com.

By subscribing:

• I will save subscribers money by helping guide your gear purchases around anything from a new truck or accessory for it to finding you the unique clothing that will best serve your needs under your specific conditions.

• I will help subscribers find the best travel and camping destinations and trips, and share details of the places I visit with you.

• Subscribers will have access to me and my extensive network of subject matter experts.

• I will solve your problems and answer your questions by applying journalism to them.

Are You For Real?

The idea for this project came from conversations I’ve been having with readers for…well decades now. Chatting with everyone takes up a fair bit of my time and is something I really enjoy and derive significant value from, so the thought of creating something a little more formal around it is actually exciting. But don’t take it from me.

“Wes has turned me onto products and brands that I’d never heard of before, and each of his recommendations has been a hit. Right now, I’m wearing Fjallraven Keb Agile pants that I bought after he recommended them to me, and I have a DPx Aculus clipped into one of the pockets, also on his recommendation.” — Al Navarro

“When I needed to buy a new truck for trips to our forest cabin and fire lookout shifts, Wes was the the one person who knew exactly which vehicles and options I should consider. Thanks Wes for helping me find my ideal 4x4!” — Luisa

“Helping you find joy in your little wild place, wherever that might be, is clearly valuable to Wes. One thing that he’s taught me is how to find frontiers beyond crowded national parks. Now I know how to find nature not nearly as far away as I once thought it was. But Wes also helped me plan a family vacation to Glacier National Park too.” — Tim Dutton

FAQ

• How much does a subscription cost?

  • $15/month or $165/year.

• Why that price?

  • It’s my responsibility to my readers to structure an efficient pay scale that will allow me to devote the necessary time to this project. I want to offer significant value to as many people as possible, not create a tiered system that limits members.

• How do I sign up?

  • Here’s a link.

• Who handles transactions?

  • Substack is the publishing platform and Stripe, a major global payment processor, handles all transactions. There’s links there for more information about both companies.

• Can I tip you, or access a higher subscription rate?

  • No. But you can tell your friends about this project by sharing links to stories you find interesting.

• Can I cancel my subscription if you piss me off?

  • Naturally, at any time.

• Do you still write for other publications?

  • Yes. All content is always unique to the publication or platform in question.

• Don’t blow up my spot, bro.

  • That’s gatekeeping, and the outdoors belongs to everyone. I will share places with readers responsibly, and in accordance with requests or customs of that place’s culture or community. By also writing about the responsibilities inherent in visiting those places, we will all hopefully work together to keep them special. In some instances I may share a specific set of coordinates. In others I may only share an area or region in order to help distribute pressure.

• How often will you publish?

  • I’m hesitant to create an exact schedule, simply due to the nature of doing all this stuff. I do take a Starlink portable Internet connection along on vehicle-based trips for the purpose of working from camp. Expect multiple articles per-week, both free and for subscribers.

• How long does it take you to respond to subscribers?

  • For all those same reasons, it will vary. If I’m planning a major outage (as on, say, a two-week pack rafting trip to ANWR), I will post notice. You guys are free to talk amongst yourselves, again in a private community for like-minded people, at any time. I hope you do.