Outdoor Gear Repair Cafe + Workshops

Join us for the first-ever Outdoor Gear Repair Café!  In the spirit of stewardship and circularity, this event is designed to keep your favorite gear in the field and out of the landfill. Whether it’s a torn tent, a stuck zipper on a sleeping bag, a backpack needing a stitch, a camping stove needing maintenance, and more, our "fixers" are here to help.  Light refreshments provided.  Co-hosts: TBay Repair Café, Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Tourism (ORPT) department, & LU Office of Sustainability. 

 To register an item to be repaired: 

• Registration is open Feb 5 - Feb 27 at 8pm
• Register item at tbayrepaircafe.org 

Workshops (no registration needed)

• Leather Boot Care: Learn how to maintain and restore leather boots and other items
  • 10:30 – 11:00
• Sustainable Layering: Explore synthetic and natural materials for your layering system
  • 11:00 – 11:30 am
• Bike Chain Maintenance: Discover how to prepare your bike chain for smooth pedalling
  • 11:30 am – 12:00 pm
• Maintaining your MSR Camp Stove: Learn how to disassemble, clean, and restore your MSR whisperlite camp stove
  • 12:00 – 12:30 pm
• Re-Waterproofing Outerwear: Learn how inspect and reseal the waterproof coating on your rain gear
  • 12:30 pm & 1:00 pm 

Drop-In Anytime 10:00 am – 2:00 pm

• Creative Patching for Beginners: Hands-on instruction on how to mend and patch a variety of fabrics.
• Repairing Cracked Plastic Gear: Demonstration of steps to patch cracked plastic such as pulks (sleds) with epoxy and fibreglass.
• Adjust Your Backpack Fit: Bring your backpack to have our experts help adjust your pack for a more comfortable fit.