Whether you are a discerning shopper who loves to find unique items or a "green" gift-giver who wants to think outside the compact fluorescent bulb, you have an option that doesn't involve internet shopping. The General Store at Sundance is packed with products that are either locally handcrafted, made with organix or reclaimed materials, or promote environmental or social awareness in other ways.

In the past, I have always bypassed the General Store on my visits to Sundance because I imagined it contained things that I didn't particularly need at the time, such as sunscreen, hats, ski jackets, etc. During my last visit to Sundance, what I found when I stepped inside the store was a treasure trove of things to love, not only because they were beautiful but because, even better, they were environmentally friendly. It made my eco-conscious heart happy to see such a variety of products and gifts, all with a purpose.

"We try to stock products with a story behind them," said Suzanne Ruhlman, general manager of the store. "We make every effort to purchase items that are organic, created from reclaimed or recycled materials, or whose organizations donate money from each purchase towards a cause."

She told me about a jewelry maker who plants trees for each piece of jewelry purchased, and a printer of stationery who not only uses recycled paper but recycled ink, as well.

One of Ruhlman's favorite products that the store carries is a line of T-shirts that sport vintage designs from various charitable organizations, such as the Special Olympics or the Red Cross. "A portion of the profit from each sale goes directly back to the organization on the T-shirt," she said.

I had a hard time choosing a favorite product. With gorgeous handmade jewelry, clothing, lotions, stationery, wooden toys, books, shoes and art pieces, there is something to appeal to just about everyone.

And if you are someone who loses sleep over the amount of plastic and packaging you contribute to the landfills, you can breathe a little easier shopping here.

"We make every possible effort to reduce, reuse and recycle the packaging that is involved in the delivery of our products to the store," said Ruhlman. "We challenge our vendors to use more environmentally friendly packaging, such as cornstarch peanuts instead of Styrofoam.

"One of our T-shirt distributors used to wrap each individual T-shirt in paper and its own plastic bag," she said. "We asked them to leave out the paper and plastic, and now they just pack the shirts in a box and send them on their way."

The store re-uses all the boxes that come through to ship purchases to customers. They also pass any extra packaging on to the Art Shack, which ships pottery and other art pieces after the art students have gone home.

"The boxes don't look pretty, but we let our customers know why we ship things that way," Ruhlman said. "We're really trying to be better citizens, is what it boils down to," she said.

Even if you're not in the mood to shop, it's worth popping in just to see some of the one-of-a-kind artwork on display and for sale. A favorite piece to see is a map of the United States made entirely from recycled license plates from each state, mounted on reclaimed wood.

The General Store is open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. For more information on Sundance Resort, visit www.sundanceresort.com.

Joanna Cornejo has a love of the outdoors and a true passion for the environment. She often makes picking up litter part of her adventures, whether in the wilderness or a city park. Read more of her stories on impacting the Earth for good at www.UtahAdventurer.com.

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Julie Chapman

www.UtahAdventurer.com¬ ¬ 

National Trails Day is an annual event during which organizations across the country set up service projects for the public to participate in to give back to the places -- parks, rivers, trails, beaches -- where we love to go for recreation. National Trails Day is the first Saturday every June.

In celebration of this, my family and I (even the 16-month-old), along with more than 50 other volunteers, joined staff from REI Sandy, the U.S. Forest Service, Sandy City Parks Department, and the Cottonwood Canyons Foundation for four hours of trail maintenance and cleanup along the Quail Hollow Trail.

The organizers led groups of volunteers to specific parts of the trail to do work suited to each ability level.¬ Some were using pick-axes to de-rock sections of trail, pulling up boulders the size of basketballs; others were cutting into a hillside to widen the trail and then contouring it.¬ There were a range of projects, all the way down to our group -- the kid group -- who labored to pull out invasive species of plants from the hillsides along the trail.

I expected to go and work hard, which we did.

I expected to be able to provide an opportunity to teach my children both the value of hard work and the value of providing service to their community, in this case, to our "outdoor community," which I did.

What I wasn't entirely prepared for was the joy that everyone seemed to feel and the fun we all had.¬ Every adult and child gave all their energy for four hours.¬ Every person was exhausted, dirty and hot by the time we were done.¬ Every person was constantly grinning and encouraging those around them.¬ No one ever complained -- not even our baby.¬ My youngest gave it her best shot to pull weeds up alongside her sister and brothers, helped put weeds into bags and bumbled around the trail, playing and squealing with joy.

Unfortunately, National Trails Day and the events planned for it, only come once a year.¬  From speaking with representatives from the Cottonwood Canyons Foundation, the U.S. Forest Service, and REI, here are their two top suggestions for what outdoor enthusiasts can do to give back to the places and communities in which they play all year round:

1. If you see something that doesn't belong (litter, lost gear) pack it out, and be careful to never leave your own things behind for someone else to have to deal with -- leave your space more natural than you found it.

2. Check with organizations like REI, the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, city parks departments, state parks, etc. for information on work projects they may have planned throughout the year -- cleanup and maintenance don't get done in four hours, once a year, and chances are they would love more volunteers.

IF YOU GO:

Go hike the Quail Hollow Trail and check out our handy work.¬ It is an easy trail that skirts the bank of a stream, moderately steep in some sections, but fairly short -- a great place for a hike with children or dogs.

Directions: From Provo, take I-15 North. Exit at 10600 South (exit 293), turning right off the exit, heading east on 10600 South. Left on State Street.¬ Right on 9400 South, heading east (keep right where it forks and seems to go straight into the shopping center with Lowe's). Left on Quail Hollow Drive (a residential street), following it around a few bends.¬ Right on Durban Road, follow it through the gates and park in the nicely sized gravel lot at the trail head.¬ Head up the dirt road in the northeast corner of the lot, and it will lead you to the trail.

For more information on volunteer opportunities check out the following:

The volunteer section of the Cottonwood Canyons Foundation Web site, www.cottonwoodcanyons.org/volunteer/.

The "Get Involved" section of the Utah State Parks Web site, stateparks.utah.gov/volunteer.

The volunteer section of the Bureau of Land Management, Utah, Web site, www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/res/volunteer.3.html.

The volunteer section of the U.S. Forest Service, Intermountain Region, Web site, www.fs.fed.us/r4/volunteer/.