Every week we’ll be choosing a new winner of our Share Your Adventure photo contest! Simply submit your digital photo (JPG or TIFF) with an official entry form before midnight on Wednesday (for details and entry forms visit the contest homepage). On Friday, we’ll choose that week’s winner. Winning photos will be featured on Sierra Blogging Post and possibly even in a future Sierra Trading Post Dealflyer email! Combined with the $50 gift card, winners will receive both fame and fortune!

So find your very best adventure photo(s) and send it to us at iscreamsocial@sierratradingpost.com – you’ll have a new chance to win every week. Who knows – maybe you’ll be seeing your adventure shot right here on Sierra Blogging Post this Friday!

Submit your photo and entry form to us at iscreamsocial@sierratradingpost.com. Minimum image size is 300 by 650 pixels at 72 dpi. Images should be submitted in JPG (at high quality) or TIFF format. File sizes must be less than 500K per image. Digital images will not be returned. By entering the contest, you will automatically be signed up for our DealFlyer email promotions.

The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally one of the best days of the year to shop and save money. Black Friday sales and savings draw thousands of people out of their homes at the crack of dawn to fight long lines for the most coveted deals.

But what if you could do all that Black Friday shopping from the comfort of your own home? And what if you could do all that Black Friday shopping FOR FREE?!

On Free Black Friday at Sierra Trading Post, a handful of lucky winners will. Visit the Free Black Friday homepage for more information on how to enter Free Black Friday using your website, Facebook page or Twitter account.

Enter now for your chance to win a Free Black Friday shopping spree! Now that’s something to be thankful for.

But we don’t just save on outdoor gear, footwear and apparel. We also like to save in other areas.

Because Halloween is right around the corner, and we like affordable Halloween costumes, we’ve got two great tips this week about How To Save: On Halloween Costumes.

1. Visit Goodwill, The Salvation Army or other thrift stores to score cheap Halloween costumes or affordable Halloween costume ingredients like clothing, wigs, shoes, accessories and more.

2. Homemade Halloween costumes can save you money and provide a fun project for you and your family. There are plenty of items around the house you can use – you’d be amazed what you can do with a cardboard box!

Know of any other great ways to save on Halloween costumes? We’re inviting you to leave a comment below (click Read More and scroll down for comments section) with additional savings tips on How To Save on Halloween costumes. We’ll pick one save-savvy winner from the comments section to win a $50 gift card. (Feel free to also send me an email with new topic suggestions.)

Fineprint: Your savings tip must be less than 100 words to be eligible for the $50 gift card. We’ll pick a winner monthly based on creativity, originality, usefulness, and clarity. Sierra Trading Post is the sponsor of the How To Save contest and employees and families are not eligible to win the gift card, but are welcome to submit tips. Please include your email information with your comment so we may contact you. You may also send in suggestions or request a list of winners by mailing it to: Sierra Trading Post, 5025 Campstool Rd. Cheyenne, WY 82007 Attention: Josh Reese. (Of course, we’d rather you just left a comment.) Void where prohibited.

Sierra Trading Post is teaming up with Friendly Planet Travel and Tours.com to offer our customers the chance to win an incredible, exciting vacation to Athens and the Greek Isles!

Enjoy three nights in the city that is known as the birthplace of Western civilization, then sail off into the Greek world of sparkling blue waters, Mediterranean sunshine and ancient islands full of history, myth, and ancient wonders.

Our package includes flights, superior hotel accommodations in Athens for three nights, a Greek Island cruise for four nights, buffet breakfast daily, all meals aboard the cruise, and transfers.

One lucky winner and a friend will enjoy:

* 4 nights aboard the MS Aquamarine of Louis Cruises
* All meals during the cruise
* 3 nights at the First Class Titania Hotel
* Lavish buffet breakfast daily in Athens
* Hotel/Cruise transfers with assistance

Enter now at Sierra Trading Post for your shot at this once-in-a-lifetime getaway vacation. No purchase in necessary and everyone (unless you’re me or you work for STP) is eligible! Contest ends on November 12th, 2009 and the lucky winner will be announced right here on December 1st. Good luck!

“We had an absolutely magnificent trip to Cheyenne Frontier Days! Everybody at Sierra Trading Post gave us first class treatment and we came to discover that the people were as exceptional as the service!

Not only did we have fun with all of the events, our lives were enriched as well. The trip enabled our two daughters (ages 14 and 16) to see the West for the first time in their lives. This was something that we were not able to do in the past due to family finance limitations; the only reason our girls will ever have these wonderful memories to look back on is because of the generosity of Sierra Trading Post.

We thoroughly enjoyed the rodeo, PBR, the concerts, the Thunderbirds, Dave Berry’s ranch, the Pancake Breakfasts (we were flippers for a day), a parade, a trip to the Governor’s mansion and our side trip to Snowy Range. And certainly the shopping spree at Sierra Trading Post, courtesy of a $250 gift card, was a lot of fun; the girls managed to spread it across a couple of days of course.

Not only is your state beautiful, but the people were all very generous and hospitable. We also appreciated a slice of life that is different than what we experience each day in Minnesota. We dressed up in western clothes most days and soaked up as much of the life in Wyoming as we could. We have already told dozens of family members and friends about the trip and the fine people from Sierra Trading Post that made it all possible.

To sum it up: during one of the concert nights, Taylor Swift was clearly and sincerely taken back by the overwhelming response that she received from the great people of Wyoming. We can honestly say that we felt the same way. Thank you!”

With the exception of myself, the rest of the original blog team has moved on to other things. I’m not going anywhere, though – I love the Blogging Post! I’d also love to introduce Josh, Justin and Naomi (in that order) who have all been working hard behind the scenes to bring you your daily dose of Sierra Blogging Post. Couldn’t do it without you guys!

We’ve also gotten much more social, especially in the past year. If you haven’t signed up to be a fan of Sierra Trading Post on Facebook or to follow us on Twitter, you should do so now – we’ve got all sorts of cool stuff happening there.

In honor of the last two years we’d like to welcome you to send us photos of your latest adventures (even better if you’re wearing or using something you bought at Sierra Trading Post). If we choose to post your photo and story on the blog, we’ll send you a $25 gift card to use online. Send your photos, along with a description of your adventure and any STP gear you’re using, to iscreamsocial@sierratradingpost.com. See yesterday’s hike and gear report for a great example of what we’re looking for.

We’d also like to ask what you like, what you don’t like, and what kind of stuff you’d like to see more of on the blog. It’s all for you, after all, so tell us how we can improve. Send your suggestions to iscreamsocial@sierratradingpost.com.

We’re giving away 13 gift cards in all, for a total of $1,000. That’s enough to get you some great outdoor gear, footwear and/or clothing – especially at Sierra Trading Post where all outdoor gear, footwear and apparel, from great brands like Sierra Designs, Gramicci, Asolo, Lowe Alpine, Ex Officio, Mountain Hardwear, Keen and many more, is always 35 – 70% off!

Enjoy the dog days of summer while you can with new camping, cycling, hiking, running, climbing and backyard gear. Or stock up on stylish summer footwear – we’ve got casual and active sandals, sneakers, flip flops, and flats that will take you from trail to town. Maybe you need a new tent for that midsummer camping trip. Or maybe this is the year you want to take up kayaking. Whatever you need, get it for free with a gift card from Sierra Trading Post!

All you have to do to enter The Endless Summer Giveaway is give us your name and email address (so we can notify you if you win) on the official contest registration page. Don’t worry, we won’t share your email address with anyone. Promise.

Enter now for your chance to win. The Endless Summer Giveaway ends on July 31st, so don’t miss your chance to stock up on free gear and apparel! Good luck!

See official rules.

Let me introduce you to Hoopnotica – a new hula hoop workout that tones muscles, increases flexibility, improves coordination and strengthens your cardiovascular system.

According to our friends at Hoopnotica, the hoop workout is used by Hollywood celebrities like Liv Tyler, Marissa Tomei and Beyonce (whose job it is to stay fit) and is described as “part dance, part exercise and ALL fun.”

To help spread the news about how effective a hula hooping workout can be, Hoopnotica is giving away a travel hula hoop and an instructional DVD. Just leave a comment below telling us about your fitness goals and why you’re excited about Hoopnotica and we’ll choose one lucky winner on Monday, July 6th to receive the free goods. (Read More and scroll down to leave a comment.)

UPDATE: We’ve chosen a winner (congratulations, Beverly!) to receive the Hoopnotica travel hula hoop & DVD. It wasn’t an easy choice – you all have wonderful reasons for wanting to hoop. Thanks to all who entered and best of luck achieving your fitness goals!

But we don’t just save on outdoor gear, apparel and footwear. We also like to save in other areas. If you’re reading this, you probably do, too. That’s why we’re introducing a new series of savings tip posts called How to Save.

Because we’d all like to save money on our electric bills, we’ve got two great tips this week on How To Save Electricity:

1. Don’t just turn electronics off at night – unplug them to save electricity. Better yet, put your computer, television, stereo, etc. on a smart power strip that cuts power to devices and turn it off nightly or whenever it’s not in use.

2. Unplug your chargers. Don’t let your cell phone, camera or iPod charger sit in the outlet when not in use. Power is continually drawn through the charger, whether your device is plugged in or not.

Now for the fun part! We’re inviting you to leave a comment below (click Read More) with additional savings tips on How To Save Electricity. We’ll pick one save-savvy winner from the comments section each month to win a $100 gift card. (Feel free to also send me an email with new topic suggestions.)

UPDATE: Thanks to everyone who left a How to Save: Electricity tip! We’ve chosen a winner for the $100 gift card. Congratulations, Corie J!

Take one night a week or month to “go dark” and use no electricity after 8 pm (this came from a global push to have one night of no electric use); what a great way to have your children help you in seeing where you use electricity, and coming together around candles at dinnertime!

Fineprint: Your savings tip must be less than 100 words to be eligible for the $100 gift card. We’ll pick a winner monthly based on creativity, originality, usefulness, and clarity. Sierra Trading Post is the sponsor of the How To Save contest and employees and families are not eligible to win the gift card, but are welcome to submit tips. Please include your email information with your comment so we may contact you. You may also send in suggestions or request a list of winners by mailing it to: Sierra Trading Post, 3050 Campstool Rd. Cheyenne, WY 83005 Attention: Josh Reese. (Of course, we’d rather you just left a comment.) Void where prohibited.

We’re giving away 13 gift cards in all, for a total of $1,000. That’s enough to get you some great gear, footwear and/or clothing – especially at Sierra Trading Post where all outdoor gear, footwear and apparel, from great brands like Sierra Designs, Gramicci, Asolo, Lowe Alpine, Ex Officio, Mountain Hardwear, Keen and many more, is always 35 – 70% off!

Beat the heat with new camping, cycling, paddling, hiking, running, climbing and backyard gear. Or stock up on cool summer clothing – we’ve got easy, breezy tank tops, tees, capris and shorts to fit both your active and casual summer plans. Whatever you need, get it for free with a gift card from Sierra Trading Post!

All you have to do to enter The Heat Is On Giveaway is give us your name and email address (so we can notify you if you win) on the official contest page. Don’t worry, we won’t share your email address with anyone. Promise.

Enter now for your chance to win. The Heat Is On Giveaway ends on June 29th, so don’t miss your chance to stock up on free gear and apparel! Good luck!

Update: The Heat Is On! Giveaway is now closed. Winners will be notified shortly!