Questions & Contact
Almost everything people write in about is answered below. If yours is not there — or it is about money, or about access you paid for and did not get — the form at the bottom reaches us directly.
Answers
I paid and I still cannot get in.
Access is tied to the email address used at checkout. If you signed in with a different address than the one on your Paddle receipt, the purchase will not appear — sign out and back in with the address on the receipt first.
If it has been more than 30 minutes since the receipt arrived and the address matches, that is a real fault on our side. Use the form below, choose I cannot access something I bought, and include the order number from the receipt. This category always gets a reply.
How do I get a refund?
There is a 30-day money-back guarantee on everything, and you do not have to give a reason. Email the address at the bottom of this page from the account you bought with, and include the order number from your Paddle receipt.
Refunds are approved within 1–2 business days and then processed by Paddle, which typically takes another 5–10 business days to show up depending on your bank. Full terms are on the Refund Policy page.
How do I cancel Permit Agent?
Cancel any time. Billing stops immediately and your access runs to the end of the period you have already paid for — cancelling does not cut you off mid-month.
The fastest route is the Paddle billing portal linked in your receipt email, which does it without waiting on us. If you cannot find the receipt, write in and we will cancel it for you. If a renewal caught you by surprise and you noticed within a few days, say so — see the Refund Policy.
Why is the charge on my statement from Paddle?
Paddle is the Merchant of Record for every purchase, which means they are the party that actually takes the payment, handles sales tax and currency conversion, and issues refunds. A line reading Paddle.com or Paddle.net rather than Outbound California is expected and correct.
What is the difference between the $49 and the $99?
The Guidebook, $49 once — all 30 activity guides across 10 regions, the permit calendar, the planning map, and the AI trip planner for the first year.
All-Access, $99 once — the same, plus Permit Agent for the first year.
After year one the guides, calendar and map stay yours with nothing further to pay. Only the two live services renew, separately and optionally: Permit Agent at $5.99/mo and the trip planner at $29/yr. Letting either lapse does not touch the guidebook. Side-by-side on Pricing.
Can I see anything without paying?
Yes. The permit calendar is free, and every activity guide opens with a sample of its spots before the rest are gated — enough to judge whether the depth is what you need before you decide.
An alert did not arrive, or pointed at the wrong thing.
Availability comes from Recreation.gov, and their records occasionally describe a whole district where you would expect a single campground, which can make a watch look wrong. If a watch is not behaving, use the form and name the campground and the dates — that detail is what makes it fixable, and these reports are genuinely useful.
Something in a guide is out of date or wrong.
Please tell us. Conditions, closures, fees and access roads change faster than any guidebook, and a correction from someone who was just there is worth more than another round of desk research. The form takes these under a correction, or a spot worth adding, and they are read even when they do not get a reply.
Stop emailing me.
Every newsletter has an unsubscribe link at the bottom, which takes effect immediately and needs no account. Permit alerts are separate and are switched off in your account settings. Neither list is ever sold or shared — see the Privacy Policy.
Write to us
Outbound California is made by one person, and this form goes to one inbox. Anything about a refund, a payment, or a purchase you cannot reach always gets an answer, usually within 1–2 business days. Corrections and suggestions are read and acted on, but may not get a reply.
Prefer your own mail client? dave@outboundcalifornia.com reaches the same inbox. For a payment dispute you can also go to Paddle, the Merchant of Record, at paddle.net.