It hit Danny Stull during the summer of 2005. He was spending the warm months that year as a river guide in Northern California, pursuing the passion he had long-harbored for nature. But having this job even further "amplified" his comprehension of the outdoors' power, Stull says.

"During that summer, I would see amazing things happen," he says. "Daughters would hug their dads for the first time in years. A lot of it was the environment we were in. The participants had taken time to separate themselves from their busy lifestyles to go out into creation. There's something to that."

From there, Stull developed the idea behind Venturepax.com, a website launched in 2009 that allows users to check in at outdoor sites they visit, receive points for doing so and connect with other outdoorsy people. "We built a technology that allows people to be awarded for being active," Stull says. He says he also wants the site to be a resource for those looking for something to do: Instead of always resorting to day trips to a mall or a movie theater, people could find a free venue in which to be active and appreciate nature, he says.

Additionally, the site contains a database of places to go across the country. This way, hikers can help each other out when planning routes. As much has already been discovered and shared, there are always different ways to go. "People can build upon [the database] using a specific hike or path taken," Stull says.

As the site builds up its databases, Stull is still looking to expand the number of users, he says. (Venturepax has approximately 1,000 users at this time, according to Stull.) In the spirit of this progression, the site also partners with a few outdoor retailers nationwide to provide discounts to Venturepax users with certain amounts of points through the "Bring 'em Back" program, Stull says.

Through his leadership of Venturepax, Stull continues to be motivated by the original spark that urged him to create the web application in the first place, he says. It's a feeling, he says, he wants to share with others. "Something happens when you're outside where you can communicate and connect," Stull says. "That's what has been driving me."

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