On Sunday we'll be looking at 20 companies and park services that owe their existence to outdoor recreation. We asked them what they are doing to reduce their impact on the environment. The story relays what they told us.

So, what can you do to reduce your impact on the environment on your next camping trip?

Here are 20 suggestions:

1. Stay on the trail when you hike – even if that means walking through mud puddles. Cutting from one part of the trail to another on a switchback causes erosion that can damage plants. Walking off trail to get around puddles also damages plants.
2. Don’t use soap when washing dishes in a creek or lake. Wash dishes with a reusable cotton towel rather than disposable wipes.
3. Camp only in established sites. Cook over the fire rather than using a stove.
4. Use rechargeable batteries for all of your backcountry electronics. Solio (solio.com) sells universal solar chargers that work on cell phones and iPods.
5. Don’t use disposable dishes and utensils.
6. Bring your own firewood or collect only fallen branches. Check to make sure collecting fallen wood is allowed at your campground.
7. Reuse zip-lock bags and recycle empty stove fuel canisters.
8. Take bulk foods like trail mix rather than individually wrapped items like energy bars.
9. Turn off all your lights and appliances (other than the fridge, of course) before you leave the house.
10. Check your campsite for any litter before you leave. Then double check.
11. When nature calls be kind to the environment. Dig a hole to bury your business. (Note: This doesn’t work on snow. The snow melts leaving summer trouble.) Either wipe with something natural like moss, leaves or snow or pack out your toilet paper.
12. Buy a down sleeping bag and leather hiking boots instead of a bag and boots made of synthetics.
13. Print your maps at home and use one large sealable bag to keep them dry rather than laminating each map.
14. Buy a hybrid car or at least carpool and don’t over pack your ride with gear.
15. Boil your drinking water instead of chemically treating it.
16. Borrow or rent gear rather then buying new.
17. Ride your bike to the grocery store.
18. Stay in a tent rather than a cabin or hotel.
19. Don’t wash your car after your trip.
20. Be creative. I have a buddy that used his vasectomy sperm sample jar (he says he never used it that way) as a reusable mini peanut butter container. You likely have many things around your house that have multiple uses.

If you read our story on Personal Locator Beacons last month, you are aware of the benefits and concerns of carrying one of these $700 devices. Here's a PLB story with a happy ending. This is a press release from PLB manufacturer ACR of Florida.

­Search and Rescue (SAR) crews saved solo hiker Nate Freund, 27, on Tuesday, January 22 in the San Bernardino Mountains, east of Los Angeles. A week prior, another hiker went missing in nearby mountains and was never found.

=> Read more!

Anglers will learn about salmon run sizes for 2008 when the state Department of Fish and Wildlife holds its annual forecast meeting on March 4. Those run numbers will help shape coastal, Puget Sound and river fishing seasons for the coming year.

Kicking off the annual salmon season-setting process, the department will present initial forecasts – compiled by state and tribal biologists – of 2008 salmon returns. The meeting is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the General Administration Building Auditorium, at 11th Ave. and Columbia St. on the Capitol Campus in Olympia.

This meeting marks the start of the annual “North of Falcon” season-setting process. Throughout March and early April, state, tribal and federal fisheries managers will meet to establish salmon seasons for Puget Sound, the Columbia River and Washington coastal areas.