Sometime last summer I came across this site. I have learned a lot in the last year, but the most important thing came in a weekly email I got shortly after i joined. Â I did not save it, but I can summarize it in one line: Â Get out into the back country as often as you can.
The emphasis of this post was to get out, even if it is just for one night. Â Shortly after that I went out with my son and an exchange student staying with us. Â We had an interesting adventure, details of which are not important. Â We just got out and enjoyed the outside.
While I still went on the monthly scout outings with my son, these impromptu short overnighters ended with that one trip until about a month in a half ago. Â As spring had sprung and yet another drought year embraced Southern California, I knew I needed to get out before the water in the steams was all gone. Â So in this past 7 or so weeks I have been out with my wife and one son, then with another son, and we just got back from a third outing with two of my boys. Â We leave after dinner, get into camp after dark, have a fire and Smores, eat a simple breakfast, go for a day hike, and come home in time for lunch. Â maybe 16 hours total in the back country, but it is just so enjoyable. Â We have discovered places we had only hiked quickly through before, gotten poison oak, wondered if it would rain on us (no tents is the rule on these trips) done some simple trail maintenance, pooped in the woods, fell asleep to the sound of a babbling brook, awoken to the sun shining on us, watched moths end their lives in the fire, talked about politics, gaming, past adventures, etc, and just enjoyed being out there.
Don’t just come here, be sure to get out there, even if is just one night, or even a day hike!!!
Matt
