With each winter and summer season at Outdoor Project, we round out the Contributor Rewards Program by recognizing folks who have trudged those extra miles, stayed out longer to capture that perfect photograph, and who have generally gone above and beyond in providing invaluable knowledge, blood, sweat and tears to help build Outdoor Project into what it has become - one of the richest and fastest growing platforms for outdoor recreation and discovery.

This past Winter 2015/2016 season was another one for the books at Outdoor Project. Both new and veteran contributors created over 630 adventures ranging from backcountry ski tours and mountaineering ascents to destinations encompassing cozy wintertime retreats and national monuments.

Distilled from that wealth of adventure guides, we're thrilled to announce the Winter '15/'16 Contributor awards and prize winners. Congratulations to the winners and thank you to all who contributed your inspiring media and storytelling!

For those unfamiliar with the Contributor Rewards Program, the majority of content on Outdoor Project has been published by our talented contributor community. These folks are experienced photographers, videographers, storytellers, and passionate outdoor adventurers who have elected to share their expertise to help make Outdoor Project the most intuitive and comprehensive resource for outdoor recreation. In return they take part in the Contributor Rewards Program - a set of incentives that range from an end of the year cash pool distribution and outdoor gear and apparel pro deals to seasonal awards and prizes.

We'd like to extend many thanks to Kelty, Mountainsmith, Mountain House Adventure Meals, Next Adventure, Deviation Ski & Snowboard Works, Northwest Alpine and Sypder Apparel.

MOST ADVENTURE POINTS (AP) EARNED

John Cody (Pro Contributor): 467 AP. PRIZE: Deviation Skis/Snowboard + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $100 Spyder Gift Card + $50 credit at OP Store.
Shaun Hunter (Pro Contributor): 377 AP. PRIZE: $500 Kelty Gift Card+ Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $100 Spyder Gift Card + $50 credit at OP Store.
Denis LeBlanc (Pro Contributor): 351 AP. PRIZE: $450 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $100 Spyder Gift Card + $50 credit at OP Store.
Michael Sawiel (Pro Contributor): 203 AP. PRIZE: $300 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $100 Spyder Gift Card + $50 credit at OP Store.
Daniel Sherman (Pro Contributor): 198 AP. PRIZE: $300 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $100 Spyder Gift Card + $50 credit OP Store.
Eric Adsit (Pro Contributor): 154 AP. PRIZE: $250 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Jessica Beauchemin (Pro Contributor): 113 AP. PRIZE: $200 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Em Wooden (Pro Contributor): 98 AP. PRIZE: $200 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Rini Sugianto (Pro Contributor): 89 AP. PRIZE: $150 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Robyn Anderson (Pro Contributor): 85 AP. PRIZE: $150 Kelty Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Elle Ossello (Pro Contributor): 72 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Forrest Setnor (Pro Contributor): 71 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Anzelina Coodey (Pro Contributor): 69 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Jesse Weber (Pro Contributor): 68 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Jonathan Stull (Pro Contributor): 66 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Patrick Mueller (Pro Contributor): 62 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Matthew King (Pro Contributor): 58 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Shane Kucera (Pro Contributor): 58 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Brent Uhrig (Pro Contributor): 55 AP. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card + Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Matthew Durrant (Sponsored Contributor): 52 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Andrew Stohner (Sponsored Contributor): 52 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Adam Cowcill (Sponsored Contributor): 51 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Benjamin Krause (Sponsored Contributor): 42 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Yelena Sukhanov (Sponsored Contributor): 32 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Reed Youngbar (Sponsored Contributor): 32 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Brcye Jenks (Sponsored Contributor): 28 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Brandon Katcher (Sponsored Contributor): 26 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Jason Mandly (Sponsored Contributor): 26 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.
Race Jones (Sponsored Contributor): 26 AP. PRIZE: Mountain House Essential Assortment Bucket + $50 credit at OP Store.

BEST OVERALL ADVENTURE SUBMISSION

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. For this category all aspects of the adventure and corresponding documentation are considered.

1. Bottom Moose River

By Eric Adsit. PRIZE: $300 Mountainsmith Gift Card.

Regardless of whether or not you're a paddler, Eric's adventure description and exciting photographic coverage of Bottom Moose River is certain to grab your attention. It certainly did ours. Eric's consistently does impressive work, providing thorough write-ups detailing rapids and safety tidbits, along with stellar action-oriented whitewater photography that always appears difficult to capture. Even for Eric, Bottom Moose River stepped it up a notch.

2. Notch Peak Hike

By Matthew Durrant. PRIZE: $200 Mountainsmith gift card.

Mathew's adventure guide for hiking Notch Peak in western Utah's House Range got us itching to experience this remote part of the Great Basin and helped him score high in the Best Overall Adventure category. Perhaps it was the optimally lit image shown above, or the timelapse Matthew captured of the sheer west face, or the description of what it's like to peer over the edge of one of the tallest uninterrupted cliffs in North America. Most likely it was the combination of all the above.

3. Mount Hood South Route: Flying Buttress + Wy'East Ridge Variation

By Brent Uhrig. PRIZE: $150 Mountainsmith gift card.

Being in our backyard, Mount Hood is near and dear to our hearts. So when Brent submitted this variation of the often-climbed southside route, we couldn't help but throw it in the hopper (not to mention anything with "Flying Buttress" in the title is sure to pique interest). Strong photos capturing a demanding activity which typically doesn't lend itself to photographing the details are followed by an even stronger adventure description, which tipped the scale to land this adventure on the podium.

4. Whittier Ridge Trail from Norway Pass

By Andrew Stohner. PRIZE: $100 Mountainsmith gift card.

Ridge scrambling on an unmaintained trail? Check. Unobstructed views of the most recent volcano to explode in the lower 48? Yep. Mountain goats? You guessed it. All in a day's work for Andrew's Whittier Ridge Trail from Norway Pass adventure. Truth be told, he had us at the featured photo (see above), but his combination of stellar action-oriented photography and a well crafted write-up put this one in the ranking.

BEST PHOTO SUBMISSION - ACTION THEME

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. See winning photos in top slide show.

Newton Clark Moraine (Ridge Between) Backcountry Ski by Matthew King. PRIZE: $150 Mountainsmith Gift Card.
Mount Hood South Route - Pearly Gates By Shane Kucera. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Green River Kayaking: Garfield Road to Route 15 by Eric Adsit. PRIZE: $75 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Glacier Point Cross-Country Ski by Corey Moffat. Honorable Mention.

BEST PHOTO SUBMISSION - LANDSCAPE THEME

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. See winning photos in top slide show.

Clair Tapaan Lodge by John Cody. PRIZE: $150 Mountainsmith Gift Card.
John Muir Trail (JMT) by Rini Sugianto. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) by Michael Sawiel. PRIZE: $75 Next Adventure Gift Card.
White Sands National Monument by Daniel Sherman. Honorable Mention.

BEST ADVENTURE DESCRIPTION

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. In addition to requisite eloquent writing, winning adventure descriptions include at least one of the following: historical information or natural history about a place, detailed information on route finding and/or safety tips, and information on local flora and fauna.

Colorado National Monument by Denis LeBlanc. PRIZE: $150 Mountainsmith Gift Card.
Ashord Mine Camp by Shaun Hunter. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Brown Mountain Snowshoe by Jessica Beauchemin. PRIZE: $75 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Arizona Hot Springs by Jesse Weber. Honorable Mention.

MOST UNIQUE ADVENTURE

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. Winners of these uniquely interesting adventures feature a peculiar natural phenomenon, bizarre landmark or quirky tourist destination.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park by Yelena Sukhanov. PRIZE: $150 Mountainsmith Gift Card.
Trona Pinnacles by Shaun Hunter. PRIZE: $100 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Nike Missile Site by Denis LeBlanc. PRIZE: $75 Next Adventure Gift Card.
Scotty's Castle by John Cody. Honorable Mention.

BEST FIRST ADVENTURE

As voted by Outdoor Project Staff. This selection goes to one Contributor each season who knocked it out of the park with their first adventure guide submission.

Mount Diablo Hike via Mitchel Canyon by Corey Moffat. PRIZE: $150 Mountasmith Gift Card.