Our Mission

The mission of The Natural Resource™ (TNR) is to provide Ohioans and visitors to Ohio who recreate - both avidly and casually - more awareness of and direct access to the vendors, service providers, and resources that can cater to their outdoor recreational needs. The ultimate goal is an increase in responsible stewardship of our natural resources, now and for future generations.

TNR Maps

Mapping is the critical component of The Natural Resource that sets it apart from other search tools. Rather than stabbing at one of four or five random listings in a yellow pages directory or spending precious time searching through the results of a large, general-purpose search engine, even a beginner can use TNR to visually depict the exact physical location of literally thousands of outdoor businesses, service providers, and other resources - all within the borders of Ohio!

Our Goals

There are a handful of objectives that The Natural Resource strives to accomplish to truly make our website The Definitive Link to Ohio's Great Outdoors™. At TNR we will work to:

• Build a vibrant online community for outdoor enthusiasts who live in or visit the state of Ohio in order to help them make full use of Ohio's great natural resources
• Collaborate with agencies, interest groups, associations, and publications serving the overall good of Ohio's outdoors
• Offer a user-friendly site that is logically and straightforwardly organized and FREE to all visitors
• Provide comprehensive, accurate, and relevant information for those who recreate outdoors in Ohio so that they can spend less time searching and more time doing the things they love to do
• Serve as an effective means for outdoor-related businesses to share information about the goods and services they offer to Ohio's outdoor community
• Improve the quality of the outdoor experience in Ohio, both today and in the future

Our Story

My wife often comments - only half jokingly - that until the day we were married, a photo wasn't taken of me without a fish (or two) in my hands. Although I was too young to remember it myself, my parents tell me that I was wading in a couple of inches of water with a fishing rod in my hands practically from the day I could stand. Yes, you could say I'm an avid outdoorsman.

Though I grew up in Ohio, I went away for a few years after high school to attend college in Minnesota. During my time away I came to realize that there are a lot of great outdoor resources in Ohio that either go unnoticed or are underutilized simply because it can be difficult to find reliable information about them.

I'm back in Ohio now. I'm proud of Ohio's great outdoor heritage, and I want to do what I can to help make it more accessible to those who, like me, love spending time outdoors. I hope to encourage outdoor lovers to explore beyond their own familiar fishing holes or hunting grounds. And I plan to share the information necessary to help make that happen.

That's why we've created The Natural Resource. Our team is dedicated to helping to enhance the breadth and quality of your outdoor experience. We believe that if you know more about the resources that are available you'll get out there and explore them more. There may be a canoe outfitter in your area you didn't even know about, or a cycling club in your neighborhood that just formed. We're confident that TNR can help you find these resources.

We also hope to spread the word about the businesses that cater to our outdoor passions. From the corner bait shop to the sporting goods superstore, these are the places that enable us to do what we love to do. With TNR, finding them all is just a map icon and a mouse click away.

Thank you for your interest in The Natural Resource. Please let us know what we can do to better serve the needs of the outdoor community in Ohio. We hope you'll become a regular visitor to the site, and that you'll support the member businesses found here.

Most of all, we hope you enjoy Ohio's great outdoors!

Eric Kraus
Founder, The Natural Resource