Behind the Boil Time: Delivering an Experiential Press Trip
By: Katie Richter
An Afternoon on the Allagash
More than six months of careful planning had led to this single paddle stroke. I watched the blade slip through the tannin-tinted water of Long Lake, and felt the unseasonably strong October sun warm the back of my PFD.
The hundreds of hours spent distilling client goals, shaping itineraries, sending invitations, sourcing gear, planning meals, booking flights, obsessing over the minutiae, losing sleep over the what-ifs, and adapting to last-minute route changes (and communicating them) felt distant now, like I had a clone still stuck behind a computer screen.
With my eyes on the horizon, I paused to take it all in–the spruce fir forest, the wide lolling lake, the occasional glimpse of aquatic plants swaying over river rock. We had come so far. Not just in the physical sense (the 60-mile journey down Great North Woods logging roads made that clear), but in the experience we had built.
Our mission was simple: bring together four talented media professionals for a canoe-camping trip, put Jetboil’s unreleased stove systems to the test, and watch what unfolds when a meticulous plan leaves just enough room for a little press trip magic. ✨
I turned my face up to the sun and silently laughed to myself. Allagash Wilderness Waterway was never the original plan—it was our plan B all along.
Why Experiential PR
Building on the success of Jetboil’s Flash 1.0L launch, our team approached the 2025/26 PR strategy through an experiential lens, treating limited sample availability less as a limitation and more as an opportunity to boost coverage immediately post-launch and hit our coverage volume KPI.
In an increasingly competitive media landscape, experiential PR offers something difficult to replicate in a spec sheet, press release, or email exchange. It provides a space for products to be used, tested, and interpreted firsthand, building credibility through a shared lived experience.
The goal was to create an environment where key media could test the camp stoves in a real-world setting with changing variables, spend time with the people behind the product, and gain firsthand insight into the product specs and R&D process from Jetboil’s principal engineer.
This was especially important for Jetboil’s newest collection, TrailCook. Moving beyond Jetboil’s signature “boil water fast” positioning, the collection introduces regulated heat control for a more versatile cooking experience, a notable departure from what Jetboil is best known for. As a result, in-field testing would prove crucial for understanding the product’s performance and target user.
Building the Experience
The key to curating the right media activation is understanding who the product is for.
There were two clear narratives behind the 2026 collection: group cooking and cooking versatility. Each collection featured designs with a larger capacity for groups of 2-4, making canoe camping a natural fit.
We intentionally designed the experience to let each camp stove shine. Lightweight and packable, we tucked the stoves into our drybags and forgot about them until dinner. We were relieved by the Flash 1.8L’s rapid boil, serving up hot cocoa to cold hands after a windy day on the river. And the versatility of the TrailCook 2.0L’s dutch oven-inspired design made homey recipes like apple crisp possible at camp.
Maine became the obvious destination choice, given Jetboil’s connection with Old Town Watercraft and the brand’s New England-based personnel. I had a lot of help from Marketing Director Ryan Lilly (a Mainer himself), who provided invaluable recommendations based on seasonality, logistics, budget, water levels, and overall vibe. Together, we brainstormed potential rivers and routes across the Pine Tree state and landed on the Saint Croix—a scenic river that forms a border between Maine and New Brunswick.
With a location set and a clear vision of how the camp stoves would be highlighted, we strategized our media invitations in tandem.
Media Strategy: Who I Invited and Why
After aligning on specific goals with Jetboil and honing my trip itinerary and invitation, I aimed to host a diverse group of media partners to maximize reach across target audiences and increase the likelihood of meaningful coverage in support of the launch.
Our goal was to confirm 3-5 participants, a sweet spot that keeps things close-knit and personal, but not too intimate. When researching and vetting potential invitees, I ask myself questions like: Are camp stoves and/or gear on their beat? What about multi-day adventures…is that something they would potentially write about and enjoy? Are they easy to communicate with, and do we have a positive working relationship? Do they pass the vibe check, and can I count on them to be respectful and kind within a group dynamic? I think about this last point a lot. A trip is only as great as the people who are a part of it.
Inviting media is arguably the most difficult part of the event planning process. On one hand, there are expectations from the client, who is investing a considerable amount of time and resources to make the experience possible. On the other, we know the media landscape is shifting. Asking a freelancer or editor to step away from other assignments (and in our case, go completely off-grid) for several days is a significant commitment, especially in a world where coverage is never guaranteed, and editorial priorities are constantly evolving. This means that when I show up to media partners with an invitation to a brand-hosted press trip, I better be ready to prove its value.
In the end, it was GearJunkie Editor-in-Chief Adam Ruggeiro, Terradrift Co-founder and Freelancer Writer Alisha McDarris, Field Mag Gear Editor Bob Myaing, and Trails Magazine Founding Editor Ryan Wichelns who accompanied me in the Great North Woods.
When Plan B Becomes Plan A
There’s never a dull moment with event planning. Right when our itinerary was dialed, invitations had been sent and accepted, and travel and lodging had been booked, Mother Nature decided NOT to rain on our parade. In August and September of 2025, 60% of Maine faced severe drought. It was the 6th driest summer on record.
This meant that the Saint Croix River was at a historic low and was unnavigable. Just two weeks before we were to set out on our voyage, I was frantically on the phone with our guide, Dave Conely of Canoe the Wild, and texting updates to Adam, Alisha, Bob, and Ryan. Dave advised us that the Allagash Wilderness Waterway would be our best backup plan. This last-minute pivot meant a longer drive and a farther distance to the put-in than originally planned, but thankfully, our crew was flexible and ready for the adventure.
Naturally, the rain did come, tapping on our rainflys at night and drizzling in grey sheets during the day. We couldn’t be upset, Maine was in a drought after all. We just kept paddling forward, our perseverance rewarded by an adolescent bull moose sighting and one of the most spectacular rainbows I’ve ever seen.
When we reached Round Pond on Day 2, Plan B no longer felt like a compromise. What started as a logistical pivot became a more dynamic, immersive experience, shaped by unpredictability.
In my opinion, that’s experiential PR at its best. I’ve accepted that I’ll never be able to control every variable of a press trip. The secret is in creating the right conditions to let these unscripted, scrappy moments take shape, and trusting they’ll tell a better story than anything you could have planned.