I don't normally operate like this, but I am gonna be a little coy about the exactitude of our ultimate destination on this adventure. But, you'll figure out a great option for you and your family with just a bit of research...and this is a great option for the family. The Outer Banks of North Carolina start out way up by Norfolk, Virginia, and meander along these long skinny islands, in some places connected by roads (usually Highway 12) or, if not by road usually by ferry...often free. Just the travel to your destination will be an adventure in and of itself. The highlight, so far as we are concerned, is the Hatteras National Seashore. This beautiful area is spread over different islands and has many recreation opportunities for families. There are campgrounds, beautiful beaches, as well as services provided by the National Park Service like educational ranger talks. There are certainly lodging options available, such as hotels, condos, and other rentals. We opted for one of the campgrounds. Where we went, there was a common sentiment that visitors not over-hype the area with Instagram and Facebook posts. All of these areas would be susceptible to ruin if overcrowded. That is why we will not be providing specifics about exactly where we were. The campground we were in was quite clean and well kept. There were restrooms with running water that were clean. Additionally, cold water showers were absolutely fine after a hot afternoon on the beach. Potable drinking water was available in the campground. The only area we'd give a thumbs down in was the extremely close proximity of the sites. The sites are generally small and crowded together. I chose a site, for reasons I cannot defend, that was on a corner and we were really challenged to find a spot for our tent. That would have been a much bigger bummer if we'd not been spending the majority of out time on the beach, coupled with the beach being absolutely awesome! Out walk to the beach was at most a quarter mile, probably less. Even in the remoter areas, within a short drive you can pick up a few groceries. Other services like gas, ice, restaurants, etc., are available, and we found the costs to be very reasonable. Gas is a little pricey, but that's not a surprise given the transportation costs. The locals are super friendly as long as you are respectful of their beautiful communities. If fishing is your thing, you are gonna love life here. Surf fishing and deep sea fishing are both huge. A big recreational pursuit here, is driving your vehicle on the beaches (permit required) to the fishing spots. If you're just chilling on the beach, you might presume this will be obnoxious, but because everybody is so spread out, it doesn't seem at all noticeable. I assume most people, like us, come to hit the beaches. They are stunning. Do some research up front about the rip tides and adhere to the safety guidelines promoted. There are lifeguard staffed beaches - a great option, especially for families with kids. This is a trip we will repeat - perhaps annually. It's gotta be a family Top Ten!

It's hard to follow a trail embedded under feet of snow when there are not trail markers on trees. GPS, maps, and a compass can be helpful for sure, and I am sure we could have done it. We just did not want to bad enough I guess...and no regrets here. Lake Ann looked like the place to camp when viewed on a map from Missouri. Reading trip reports seemed to validate our decision. It turned out that the snowpack and a couple of other realities changed our ultimate assessment. Here's how things shook out. If you read our Day One Post , you know that though our original goal had been to backpack in the whole way on Day 1, we'd called it early when we were dead tired and came upon a beautiful high mountain meadow in which to camp. After a good night's rest and some breakfast, we decided we'd leave camp where it was for now, and take our daypacks, skis, and snowshoes and go up to Lake Ann and check it out and hopefully have some fun in the snow while we were at it. Wilson, Daniel's awesome Aussie mix dog, had come up lame from the get-go. Did he hurt a paw jumping out of the truck onto a thorn? We didn't know, but he was gimpy at the start, but had recovered some on the way in. By morning, he seemed good to go. Unfortunately, just a short distance in, despite Daniel treating his paw that had developed an abrasion aggressively with a salve designed to protect the paws of dogs sensitive to snow and ice, old Wilson was spilling quite a bit of bright red blood onto the white snow. At Daniel's insistence, David and I forged on trying to follow a route to Lake Ann. The reality is, the valley up was one for which a trail is not really required if you had to get to Lake Ann. We could have hugged the far side all the way up and had little problem finding our way in. The area we were in, despite approaching tree line, was still covered with a healthy pine forest and blanketed in feet of snow. To make matters trickier, a stream deep enough to certainly overtop hiking boots, meandered through the trees, braiding and converging and braiding and converging...all with hidden snow bridges rotten enough to step through into water at any time. It was not long before we decided just doing some short hikes from camp was a great idea. We turned around to meet Daniel back at camp. We retraced our steps, avoiding the pitfalls of a creek dunking, and found Daniel sitting just where we parted ways. After a quick explanation, we all decided that enjoying the scenery in the beautiful spot we found ourselves, was not such a bad idea. We spent a magnificent afternoon dozing in another meadow. I can think of no more of a relaxing way to spend a day. I honestly don't recall how we spent our evening. I do know we all turned in early after a pretty darn good freeze dried dinner. #hiking #camping #coloradocollegiatepeakswilderness

Why in the world would you want to drive all night and then start a slog into the wilderness on no sleep? Seems like a perfect legitimate question to me in hindsight, but it seemed like the right thing to do then, and I would do it again tomorrow without a second of thought! Daniel floated the idea that he had a couple of days he could take off from work and wondered if we'd like to "do something in the mountains." My default answer is, and I hope always will be...YES! That does not mean that I would not say no to something positively crazy, and that is definitely a real possibility when Daniel approaches with an idea. In this case, he seemed like he just wanted to get out. The first issue with which we had to deal, was a crazy snowpack in the mountain ranges we wanted to go to. The Rocky Mountains and the Wind River Ranges were both slammed/blessed with crazy snowpacks, ending in many cases years of extreme deficiencies. Ultimately, we chose an area near Leadville that seemed at least to offer the possibility of being able to hike in, combined with the surrounding area being loaded with cool opportunities. We ended up essentially doing none of them, and still had a great time. Enter David. After driving through the night, we picked up David from Denver International after flying fro Chicago, the nearest flying option to Purdue University where he is a forestry Master's Degree student, After snagging him, we arrived at a rental shop to get snowshoes- a necessity for avoiding postholing through the snow on the trail we'd be heading in on. After some lunch, we off the trailhead about an hour out of Leadville. The conditions were beautiful, powerful and difficult. We are not rookies at this, but loaded up our packs as if we were. Instead of selecting gear based on going into to one or two things, we brought it all...skis, snowshoes, fishing gear, camping gear, and food! Thank God we did not weigh our packs. Off we headed from the 10,000+ elevation trailhead at about two in the afternoon. A high mountain lake, supposedly according to our research six miles in was our goal. The going was TOUGH! Avalanches had swept the trail in so many locations than we could count. The trail had melted down to bare earth in some locations, but the avalanche zones absolutely required "flotation," at least with our crazily heavy packs. The process of putting on and taking off and putting on...of our flotation added mucho time to our slog in. We made it in about 5 miles when we found a gorgeous cathedral of mountains surrounded meadow that was just too tempting to not stop. We were dead tired and completely happy! #collegiatewilderness #hiking #fishing #colorado #wilderness

It's a good thing that my assessment of a quality outdoor experience is not based on catching the biggest fish, climbing the highest mountain, or in this case, killing the biggest deer. You will see that there are exactly zero photos of a dead deer in this blogpost - and it's not in this circumstance because none were harvested. It's because, though we do honor the sacrifice of a beautiful animal's life for our sustenance, I cannot claim that it is this that motivates our endeavor. For the past few years, the opening day deer hunt has been an activity I have shared with my younger son...better said, he has made a significant sacrifice to carry on this yearly tradition though he is now attending a university a five hour drive and two states away. This year worked out really well, as he has no Friday classes or commitments, and even had his Thursday afternoon obligations get cancelled. The upshot was he was home by Thursday night, we had a family dinner, and were on our way to our deer hunting spot in the Missouri Ozarks by mid-morning the next day. We hunt public land. We don't own private land, and have taken pride over the years harvesting fewer deer than our friends who own or lease land where they can manage deer populations and restrict access. Sure, there have been those moments - lots of them to be honest - where the thought of climbing up in a luxuriously and heated deer stand where trail cams had confirmed that we'd get an opportunity at a mature 10-pointer...that sounds at times pretty good. Here's how last weekend went and it was awesome. We arrived and dropped our little trailer in the primitive campground nestled amongst a beautiful grove of shortleaf pines that are so prevalent in this region. We knew where we were headed - a "mountain" where we just started going a couple of years ago after hunting the general area for close to 15 years. It gets little pressure, and there are lots of deer. We go in about a mile, give or take, and hunt from climber stands for the most part. After dropping our trailer, we packed our stands in to where we'd be hunting the next morning. It was cool and a beautiful evening. We like it a lot better when we have gotten our climbers set the night before opening day, as packing them in in the dark of a a 4:30 morning, and the attendant noise scaring off the deer just a short time before legal shooting hours, is a bummer. Opening day was COLD! It was the coldest we could remember, down in the mid teens. After eating instant oatmeal, poptarts, and drinking a huge cup of coffee, we were in the Jeep driving up the mountain road to the parking lot where we'd hike back to our stands we'd set the night before. Other hunters we later spoke with could not remember such a cold one for quite some years. After our hike in, up we went into our stands. It was one of those mornings where if you hunt from a stand with no heat source, you know this feeling; you are struggling to care more about the crunching of leaves or the flicker of brown indicating an approaching deer, and focused more on the whereabouts of a warming sunrise. Time moves very slowly. But, just as the light became sufficient to see a vital area for a broadside shot, a big doe wandered into the chute just below me. She was too far for a good shot, not because of distance but because of poor shooting lanes. She was however, headed just where I wanted her to, when something or someone caught her attention and diverted her path. She disappeared for a few moments, and then I caught sight of her once more. She was headed straight up the steep hill directly to my left, and there was an opening right on her path where a shot would be available. I kept both eyes open with my right one behind the scope gauging when to focus just on the scope and try a shot at just the right moment. Finally, she was just trotting into my line of sight, and as a I slowly squeezed the trigger, something arrested her uphill trot. I missed. A few minutes later, David (my son) radioed over and I had to tell him my bad news. We hung in until about 9:30, and baled to go get in some warming. It turned out, we spent the whole day lounging by the Current River listening to college football on the radio and in all respects, enjoying ourselves immensely. Zero guilt! That afternoon, we rolled back up the mountain to get in an evening hunt. It was so beautiful, and we were warm and ready...though we decided to hunt from the base of our trees and not go back up in the climbers. We figured we'd be there until dark and hunting again the next morning. Instead, within 30 minutes or so after settling in, up the same chute came another big doe, and this time followed the path I'd anticipated. After posing perfectly for a shot, a collapsing mercifully without ever realizing any danger, we'd harvested an opening day deer. In Carter County, where we were hunting, antler points are nor required, so when we got down to "her," I was only mildly surprised when David informed me it was a spike buck. We got him field dressed in about 15 minutes, as I am not the fastest and I could have had my knife a little sharper. The drag out was some good exercise, and we had him down to camp by about 7 pm. David offered to heat up the stew we'd brought, so we were rather disappointed to find it was frozen so solid it would be impossible to get in the camp pot to heat up. We headed in to the closest small town and ate a good dinner in a dive bar. Reubens and fries never tasted so good! We had a relaxing and enjoyable trip back the next morning as David was completely happy to get back a little early to rest before his drive back the next ,morning. We listened to football games and enjoyed the warm drive through beautiful Missouri Ozark country back home. I love these times, and cannot imagine a better was to spend a weekend...not even in a heated tree stand on my own land! #missourideerhunting #familyoutdoors

What you will often hear about Crater Lake is that no matter what the pictures look like, you will not believe how blue the water really is. That’s no lie. This is truly a sight you must behold to believe and appreciate. We visited Crater Lake National Park after first spending a few days in Eugene and then heading down to the Redwoods of Jedediah State Redwoods Park (a joint park with the National Park Service). See our blogpost about the Redwoods. This part of Oregon is quite different from the rainforest like environment where the Redwoods are found. We came into the park in late afternoon and set up camp at the acceptable but unimpressive Mazama Campground. More on that at the end. We really wanted to get up to the lake before dark, which we did pretty quickly. The lake was beautiful in the evening light, and though we did not know it right at the time, it does not yield the deep blue at that time of the day. It really saves its best for the times when the lake is receiving full sun. The next morning, we realized how crazily beautiful the lake is. We spent a lot of time trying to think of how to describe to someone else what it looks like, and concluded it really could never be done satisfactorily. During our time there, we navigated many of the trails along the rim of the lake. We also took some side excursions on trails where wildflowers and waterfalls were stunning. One of our favorite parts of our stay was an excursion across the lake to Wizard Island, an island volcano inside the caldera that forms Crater Lake. The boat ride across and back affords stunning views from a completely different perspective than those from above looking down at the lake. The climb up the Wizard Island volcano is not terribly difficult and if you are in decent shape at all it should be no problem. It can be warm, and is mostly in direct sunlight, so bring plenty of water and sunscreen. The effort is definitely worth it. Save a little energy for when you arrive back at the dock as you still have quite a little work to do climbing backup from the lake to the parking lots. The campground we used, Mazama, is really just a place to pitch your tent and rest. There really are no impressive views and little privacy as trees are sparse. Bring a shade canopy to put over your table if you can. The Mazama store has a pretty good selection of supplies as well as showers and laundry services. Crater Lake was stunning and a real highlight of our trip. Do a little homework before you go to know what all your options are, and remember that things do get going sometimes pretty late in the year as snowpack in the area is epic. #CraterLake #CraterLakeNationalPark #WizardIsland #MazamaCampground

Jedediah Smith State Park is part of the Redwoods National Park system and is the northernmost of them all, located just south of the Oregon border and near the coastal town of Crescent City, California. There is plenty to do for a trip anywhere from overnight to perhaps a week or longer. Jedediah Smith Campground is about as nice a campground as you will find anywhere. The sites are fairly secluded and giant redwoods literally shoot directly into the sky from many of the sites. We did not observe all the sites, but from what we saw there seem to be no bad choices. We were there during a span that went across weekdays and the weekend. Things definitely were more pleasant on a summer weekday as things really got busy over the weekend. The campground accesses the stunningly beautiful Smith River and a footbridge is available during summer months to cross over to the short but incredible Stout Grove Trail. The river is nice for swimming and if you are there to fish, some great opportunities await. A wide variety of wildlife inhabits the are as well. On our first evening we took in the Stout Grove Trail and were left in a state of true wonder. If you have never experienced the splendor of these amazing trees, you just cannot imagine how awe inspiring they are. No pictures can do them justice. The other must do in the area is the Boy Scout Trail, named after one of the behemoth redwoods along the trail named the Boy Scout Tree. We asked a few people about the name and no one seems to know precisely how it acquired its name. After taking in the sites in Jedediah, you cannot go wrong spending some time taking in the vistas along the rugged northern California coastline in and around Crescent City. There are some decent dining options, museums, and also at certain times of the year, whale watching can be enjoyed from high points around town. We flew into Portland and drove a rental car down - not a bad drive - especially if you incorporate Highway 101 along the coast of Oregon and California. We were headed next to Crater Lake National Park in Oregon. Otherwise, flying into San Francisco would also be an attractive alternative. Anyway, if you have not seen this area yet, GO! #redwoodnationalpark #jedediahsmithstatepark #redwoods #northerncalifornia #hiking #boyscouttrail #stoutgrovetrail

When the season ends, some hunters think their work is done until next season. Though if you know and love your deer hunting, you’ll be well aware that the whole deer hunting process is actually a 12-month activity. If you’re sitting around watching your calendar, counting down the days till the season starts again, then you’re missing out big time. Getting things right during the off-season can be the difference between a successful deer hunt and a complete washout. Here are 5 things that you can be doing to best prepare yourself for the start of the season, and ensure that this upcoming deer season is your best yet! Scouting and Shed Hunting Scouting should be high on your to-do list when preparing for the deer hunting season. Scout the land and just generally check out the areas you intend to hunt in to see if there are any obvious signs of recent activity. Some things to look out for are bedding ground, grazing marks, trails and feeding activity. Exercise some caution here though, as you don’t want to be continually snooping around a common deer spot as they’ll move elsewhere. If there is still snowfall on the ground postseason, then you can get a much better idea of what route the deer may take during the season. Shed hunting season also gives you a great idea of the size of the deer potentially present for next season, as well as the location of the antlers to give you a better idea of where to look during the season for the deer. Habitat Management & Feeding Simply put – look after the deer. Depending on who owns the land and whether you have permission to do so, you should be looking to improve the land that the deer use for the upcoming season. This can include planting more trees for cover, cutting some brushes down and clearing some shooting lanes. Create more bedding and suitable land for the deer to sleep and graze on. As well as keeping the land in top shape for the deer, you should look to make sure that you look after the health of the deer also. This is the perfect time to improve food plots and your feeding program. Get all the feeders setup, and ready to go with food as soon as possible. Put your time and money into providing lots of quality minerals and supplements all year round for the deer. Ensuring the quality of the deer ensures the quality of your hunt during the season. Trail Camera Surveying This ties in with the scouting and surveying mentioned above. As stated, one of the obvious problems with you scouting a potential deer area consistently is that you could drive them completely out of the area. One option that reduces the chance of spooking the deer but may require some investment is the use of a good trail camera. Simply attaching to a tree, they offer 24/7 scouting for you and giving you a great insight into deer activity. Note down and keep any findings that could potentially lead you to a big catch. Coyote Hunting Depending on which state you’re in, coyote hunting is a great alternative to keep you sharp and also manage the predatory threat levels for the deer. By shooting some coyote, you’re keeping yourself active and out there on the field. You’ll also be helping the deer numbers for the upcoming season, which ultimately gives you a much better chance of that big catch. If it’s an option for you, then it’s a no-brainer. Gear & Equipment Inspection The last thing you need is for your gear to fail you on the day of your hunt. Offseason is a perfect opportunity to get your guns out and give them a good clean, as well as giving them a quick test out. It also gives you the chance to practice and shake off any offseason rust while you’re at. The offseason is also prime time for checking out the condition of your tree stand and ensures that you don’t have a major problem with your stand during the season. Such problems can require a lot of attention and potentially spook the deer you’re after, especially if you have to adjust things during the actual hunting season. Get things seen to in advance, go out to your tree stand and give it an inspection to make sure it is still safe and secure, replacing any straps, etc. that are a little worse for wear. Check through all your gear and equipment beforehand to make sure everything still works safely and without any issues. It should only take a day or so to go through everything and may end up saving you from making a complete blunder when the season starts. These are just 5 things that you could be doing with your time during the deer hunting offseason, though, in reality, the list is never-ending. The point is that no matter how much preparation you have done, there’s always something that you can do to enhance the health of the deer population further. There’s certainly no reason to be bored or suffer cabin fever during the off-season months. If you’re serious about deer hunting, then you should be serious about your preparation. And please, don’t leave everything until the opening day! #missourideerhunting #scouting #hunting #deer

It's the day after Easter as I write this blogpost. The weather does not look at all Springlike as I look out the windows of our house on a hill in the Eastern Missouri woods. But, I know in two weeks from today, regardless of what surprises the weather sends our way, hunters will be playing hooky from jobs across the state to try their luck hunting wild turkeys. Of course luck does play a part in any hunting or fishing endeavor, but my assumption is that every hunter would like to try to do all he or she can to put the odds in their favor. For public land turkey hunters, this is of paramount importance for not only hunting success, but in doing all we can to insure success. By definition, you will almost certainly sharing the public land you hunt with others. This modifies our actions in terms of tactics and location. In comparison, on highly secured private land (in other words, land where you KNOW you will be the only hunter present), you can feel comfortable hunting any place and using any legal tactic. When hunting public land for turkeys or any other species, sharing the land means modifying tactics. To locate areas to target on your public lands spring turkey hunt, start by identifying the areas you are considering hunting. In Missouri, your choices for public land essentially fall into two categories. First, there are hundreds of Conservation Areas managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Second, Mark Twain National Forest offers huge and unbroken tracts of big woods turkey hunting options. If you need help getting ideas, please visit our Missouri Public Hunting Page. Once you have identified an area, focus on areas that are as far as possible from access points to the area. We like to obtain topos of the area, and begin by first laminating the map, and then using a sharpie to mark out all areas within a quarter of a mile from an entry point, road, or established trail. Just by getting this far from these features, it is surprising how much hunting pressure is reduced. For some smaller Conservation Areas, this does not really work, but especially down in the Ozarks, Conservation Areas are often huge, and then there's Mark Twain. In considering the places you will scout, consider water sources, cover, and acorns. Use crow and owl calls to locate roosting birds at appropriate times. Keep in mind that turkeys follow paths of least resistance and that because of their eyesight being their top means of defense, they greatly avoid dense areas. When you actually start your hunt, get to your spot early. In Missouri, hunting ends in the Spring at 1 PM. Not all hunters will heed this advice, but the wise public land turkey hunter scouts well, gets set up early with a good backrest fully covering the hunters body, and then he or she generally STAYS PUT. Stalking and even more aggressive tactics on public land are risky to the hunter and unwise. Gentle calling tactics seem to work best. Be patient and work turkeys in conservatively. Use clucking and plain yelping to start. Play cat and mouse with your gobbler. Once you have a turkey in range, be amply careful to identify your target and what is behind him. Many turkey hunting accidents occur when one caller brings in a hunter following his or her call. Turkey hunting is one of our favorite times of the year. Weather is often perfect, and there is something special about hunting hard in the morning, knocking off at 1PM (required in Missouri), and lounging the afternoon away. We hope you will find this season equally enjoyable and do so safely. #publiclands #turkeyhunting #missourihunting

This is 110% a car camping behemoth of bulk and weight! Let me say it a little more clearly...this tent is of no use at all for any purpose besides a campsite that is within a pretty short distance of where you park your vehicle. Big Agnes is a domestic outdoor supplier located in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. That gives them a leg up on any foreign competition in our book anyhow. But even without this advantage, from what we have seen so far, their gear is made to work well and we think to last. We've now put our Big House through the paces on a few Summer and Fall trips. On our first trip to Michigan, we had not bought the vestibule (see below). The tent was rock solid through a couple of serious wind and rain storms. Additionally, by virtue of the guy lines on the sides and back, plus an awning on the back that can be propped open by a velcro brace, ventilation is quite good. What we did not like in this configuration, is that entry and exit in rain is nearly impossible without water penetrating the interior. The awning you see with the fly helps some, but if there's any wind driving the rain in the direction of the door, some dampness will incur the interior of the tent. So, we went ahead and ordered the vestibule for our next expedition (along with the footprint, though the tarp we had used first was okay). The photos below show this configuration. One negative review I had read on the vestibule was that it was difficult to erect and attach. I am not sure how one could come to that conclusion. It really could not be easier. There are zipper entries on both sides of the vestibules which can be left open during hot weather. The vestibule is large enough for two camp chairs if one needed to sit out a spell of wet weather. One thing to consider is that this is not a big 4 person tent. We have had three adults and their gear in the tent, and while we certainly could fit a fourth, we'd have had to do some arranging. So, if you are after a reasonably priced car camping tent that just works, is relatively easy to set up, and will likely last you quite some time, you may wish to give this one a look. #camping #tent #campinggear

The federal government owns 47% of the land in the West. There's pressure to lower that percentage, not just in the West, but nationwide. At one time, the federal government owned essentially 100% of all of this land. Over time, the percentage has been whittled down through homesteading, transfer to states, and a myriad of other reasons. East of the Mississippi, only 4% of lands are owned by the feds. Why? Well, in a nutshell, the land is better, and the typical tracts of lands offered through homesteading was sufficient for a hardworking family to make a go of it. In the West, 40 acres in some places might not be sufficient to graze one head of livestock. People still homesteaded, but they then grazed their herds across vast stretches of unclaimed government land. And of course, if you have even a passing knowledge of the history of the West, you are aware that this haphazard arrangement resulted in chaos - even small scale wars. Settlers tried fencing off lands they did not own, or in other ways tried to kind of apply squatter's rights to the land they required to survive in the harsh environments they found themselves. Federal lands were not the only targets of their transgressions. So were lands promised to the Native tribes of the West. Public lands in modern America must serve multiple stakeholders. Much of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands are available to be leased for grazing, mining, as well as extraction of fossil fuels like oil and gas. But, the leases come come with strings attached. The outlaws who occupied the wildlife refuge in Oregon got their start fighting with the BLM in Nevada. It was permissible to lease the lands that they needed to graze cattle, but the leases required some hoop jumping to protect am endangered species of tortoise. For a crusty old rancher like Cliven Bundy, it's probably safe to assume that a turtle represents nothing more than a highway hazard to your tires. Western states have joined the efforts to wrest control of public lands from the feds, yet studies have indicated that in the long run this might be a less than prudent move for them. Feds typically compensate states for the loss of tax revenue on federal lands (this fact is often left out of the debate by proponents of transfer of federal lands to states). Further, there are, or at least should be fairly significant administrative costs that states would assume when they came into possession of the federal lands. On balance, these studies show that states would incur a net loss by assuming ownership of the lands. This fact leads many to believe that ultimately, these lands will be sold off to private ownership. A 2012 study indicated that if Utah were to receive the lands it wanted from the feds, they would incur over $200 million in additional costs. All of this together, is what starts getting the sportsmen, conservationist, and environmental movements concerned. With federal ownership, at least prior to the current regime, rules of the road were fairly well established. Sure, there were tussles over individual areas like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, but we all pretty well understood that there was common agreement on issues like access. As this new landscape has emerged under Trump, there is little confidence that individuals and families will continue to enjoy access to favorite hunting and fishing areas. There are concerns that hikers will lose access to the trail systems in the West and other regions. The public worries that what remains of public lands post Trump, will be a damaged and reduced version of what existed when he took office. So, what to do? It may seem fruitless, but direct contact from constituents to legislators and other elected leaders is imperative. Citizens must let both state and federal leaders know that we do not want federal lands transferred to state or private ownership. If you are like me, you wake up many days and wonder how did we get to where we are? I guess it is pretty straight forward. Normal and sensible citizens have not adequately participated in our democracy. Let us all make certain that we make our voices heard that we will not accept radical changes to this nation's great and unparalleled public lands that we all own together!

When we started this website in 2008, one of my sons was 15 and the other 18. They were still kids, and the way I thought of the role of the outdoors in the life of our family was a little different than it is now. Our kids are 24 and going on 27 now, the older one is married...still no grandchildren. But, as you can imagine, the dynamic where mom and dad plan trips and outings, with perhaps a pinch of input from kids, is long past. Another big difference is that in many cases, the whole clan cannot be together due to some scheduling conflict on the part of one or another of us. Our last gathering was a trip to Colorado. This was a gathering that almost did not happen. My recollection is that the initial idea for the trip was hatched by Daniel (oldest son). He asked me about it and I was all in... Not long after setting a tentative date, Daniel hit some roadblocks in his planning and it looked like he and Courtney were not going to be able to make it. I had never really planned that David (youngest son) would be available as he is a grad student doing forestry research, and summer is pretty much when that gets done. But first, David said to me he really wanted to go. Then, the next thing I hear...Daniel and Courtney ARE going. So, this trip to climb one or more Colorado 14ers went from a vague plan in Daniel's mind...to maybe just a trip where I went by myself, back to an almost fully family affair. The trip was in the end awesome. The logistics were that I went out on a Wednesday (leave home 5 AM and arrive at camping area at 6:30 PM) and established camp, and bringing all of David, Daniel, and Courtney's gear out with me. So this arrangement made it possible for them to walk onto a plane in St. Louis on a Friday evening...no carryons or luggage...easy. On Frontier, with no extras, the RT fare was under $200 each. In the end, that was really the only costs they had, as I picked them up at the airport and transported them to our camp at 11,200+ feet...and all meals were in camp. (For more on the trip, see "Family Mountaineering" in related posts) The point is that even though things can get messier due to competing schedules and family challenges, these times of sharing the outdoors as a family can continue. The effort level will increase as kids mature and get jobs and get married and have their own kids... It may even be...actually almost certainly will be true...that the frequency of these gatherings will decrease. That is ok, to be expected, and normal. But, this dynamic will, or at least can, make the times you do get together all the more special. We do tend to value the things in the world that are more scarce. So, as you move to this phase of family life, make certain that you do not miss chances and that when you do get together, you use that time to be special... #camping #familyoutdoors #kidsintheoutdoors #fishing #hiking #family

A week ago yesterday, I made my way West to Colorado to transport gear and get a jumpstart on acclimatization at 11,300 feet. I knew those two or three days before Daniel, David, and Courtney (Daniel's wife) joined me would be critical in me being able to remotely keep pace with them. Grays Peak is rated as one of the five easiest 14ers in Colorado. It is also close to Denver - a double edged sword - it made it easy for Daniel, Courtney, and David to fly into Denver and then be on the mountain within a couple of hours. It also makes it easy for throngs of Denverites to access the area, making a weekend climb pretty crowded. Regardless of the level of difficulty of Grays, there is no getting around the fact that its elevation is 14,200'+. For someone who finds himself spending life at 600' of elevation in Missouri, regardless of physical preparation, that altitude is going to play a role in the ascent. I have spent the last several months very slowly getting in better shape. I live in a very hilly region of the state (Missouri River Hills) where I am blessed by the fact that a 5 mile walk/hike includes multiple hills that are a quarter mile in length and 12-20% in grade. I had endeavored to get in 25-30 miles of these hikes per week along with 4,000'-5,000' in elevation gain. I had done this for over two months leading up to the trip. If you are middle aged and not in the best shape of your life, I suggest at a minimum such a routine. I arrived on Wednesday night at about 6:30 PM Mountain Time after leaving Missouri at about 5 AM Central Time. Sterling (one of our dogs...he accompanied me) and I were thrilled to be off the road and in the midst of this incredible environment. I set up camp with both the tent that I (and eventually David) would occupy, as well as the tent Daniel and Courtney had sent for their use. I wanted to get everything established so that until the rest of the crew arrived, I could spend my time hiking in the mountains and getting acclimatized. Thursday morning I got up and on the trail by about 7:30 am (late by mountain standards) with the idea that I'd just put in come ascent time and get as far as I felt comfortable going. I ended up getting to approximately 13,000', which I felt pretty good about. The scenery was so beautiful that I literally found myself feeling adrenaline course through my body from its grandeur. Being a Thursday, not a weekend, while there were certainly people out on the trail, it was not overly crowded. Friday morning was a completely different story. I knew I had a pretty limited time to get on the mountain before I needed to drive into Denver to pick up the "kids" at the airport. Even knowing this, I did not get on the trail until 8:30 or 9:00 AM. I was feeling very good that I was suffering none of the typical altitude related ailments that can afflict people. I was staying well hydrated, a huge factor in acclimatization, as well as sleeping lower than where I was "climbing." I did not get quite as far, but did go some distance up the Kelso Ridge Trail, if for no other reason than to get away from the larger number of people on the trail this day. After a stress free trip to the airport, but a decidedly bad night's sleep, we got a decently early start on our day where we would have one chance to summit Grays, and if everything went right, also summit Torrey's Peak, which is connected to Grays by a saddle ridge. We awoke to an absolutely perfect day, but quite a crowd. In our party there were varying levels of ability to deal with the effects of altitude. But, for those who needed to go slower as a result, I will say that their toughness to keep putting one foot in front of the other was impressive! As a team, we all made it to the summit, and were rewarded with incredible beauty on the way up, as well as a summit vista as beautiful as any I have ever experienced. Though we did not get over to Torrey's, I was left with no sense of regret...only happiness to experience this scene with three incredible people! The descent was successful but challenging. Camp that evening was that joyful mix of exhaustion and satisfaction with accomplishment. It was one of those days that I will include as a highlight of my life. The opportunity to experience such beauty with people I love, and to feel that the preparation I had done was effective, left me with a true sense of peace. Creating challenges for myself and experiencing adventure with family is something I'd not trade. #colorado #grayspeak #mountains #mountaineering