Do you remember when?

highboy4x4

highboy4x4

Rank V
Member

Explorer I

2,045
Naples, FL, USA
First Name
Russ
Last Name
Derr
Member #

32418

Service Branch
Army (ret)
For some, it happened years ago, for others, yesterday. No matter the time or effort, we all started somewhere on a journey towards the “Spirit of the Wild!” Thank you Uncle Ted for reminding us of our roots!

Do you remember what it was like starting out on your journey? These are the campfire stories I like to hear!

For me, after a lifetime of service, I finally got to do my thing! My outlook memories shared something this morning from 3 years ago. Man have I come a long way!!
 

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We did lots of day hikes. Didnt camp much when I was a little kid, though. I think thats where mum drew the line? My father who was in Nam would take us on day hikes in various terrains and teach us what we would need to know when camping. So I've always enjoyed hiking through scenic areas.

In my teens I would camp with friends and have the opportunity to make mistakes without fear of being admonished...like setting up the tent in a wash-out, and only after it rained would we realize the mistake, scamper uphill and set a new camp. One we error wouldn't make again. But SO many mistakes to learn from.

I remember participatin in an archaeological dig and bicycling between the dig site and my camp with a 5o lb pack for weeks and weeks, just to camp alone, even getting rained on sometimes.

Using the old, 3 sticks, their shadows and an hour method of marking cardinal direction on the ground in camp, so everyone could easily reference it even in cloudy rainy days.

Come to think of it, I've camped as much in the rain as not

"Dont forget to bring a towel!"
 
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I love these stories about how and what inspired us to spend as much time surrounded by nature. And no doubt those who do live a much calmer and fulfilled life. Mine definitely was nurtured by my parents and both would be smiling down on me knowing their efforts were not wasted.

Currently surrounded by a UNESCO site enjoying all of the above. PEACE....20250614_140318.jpg20250616_102028.jpg
 
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I was 18 and in San Diego when I got orders to the subase in Groton, CT. I had never been to the New England states before and started driving around and sightseeing on my weekends off. eventually I bought a bunch of backpacking gear and started going off solo backpacking all over the new england states and even venturing into Canada. I really enjoyed it and found it to be therapeutic. I liked being on subs, but after months of being couped up with a bunch of guys with no sunlight or fresh air, getting back on land and experiencing the quietness of remote nature and the nice scent of pine trees made that experience even more enjoyable.

40 years later, I still love remote travel and I have a wife that enjoys the remote outdoors as much as I do. life is good! :grinning:
 
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I remember at about 13 yr. old dragging my buddies out to an old remote farm pond and camping on a weekend. Camping with Boy Scouts and even in the woods near home. That's probably when I started paying more attention to the weather. Remember some camping trips up on the Chattooga River during college years and my first exposure to trout fishing. Then, going to work for a living and dreaming of all the places I would like to see. Luckily I got to travel some along the way and saw some places I wanted to return to. When one lives in the South with the summer heat and humidity the Rockies is a very appealing place to be during July and August!
 
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My family camped and I progressed from Cub Scout through Boy Scout so lots of camping, backpacking, and canoe camping trips. Once married we car camped then eventually bought a used pop-up, upgraded to a 13ft travel trailer, years later a van, back to a travel trailer but 25ft, eventually ending up in our current van. We love vans but may end up in a truck camper since we're no longer full time and dropping the camper makes more sense than driving your second home everywhere...we only have one vehicle and love keeping it that way.
 
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Started early , dad was an outdoors guy, and mom was too. 5 kids and a dog in the back of stationwagon with a very basic camping gear and off we would go fishing in the backend of nowhere in British Columbia. Seems like a 1000 years ago now, I just never stopped.
 
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In high school, I remember many a weekend camping in the Chautauqua Gorge near Lake Erie. Hiking Mount Marcy was the gold standard for this country boy! As I think back, those were the years I got lost trying to find myself. Maybe that’s why I did well in the military? Always in the woods, at peace most of the time and comfortable sleeping in a tent!! Wish I could remember the mil-spec name…..from the 80s..
 

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We were farmers, so, no vacations, except for 9 or 10 livestock shows a season. Basically camped out in the back of a pickup for a week at a time at each show. So, technically I was livestock overlanding at the age of ten. When I was 16 I was going to the shows alone dragging a trailer, and sleeping in the truck bed under a homemade rack covered in a tarp, using a Coleman stove and cooking my own food out of cans and a vintage Coleman cooler. My grandpa taught me well the fine art of using those early Coleman’s.

However, my biggest inspiration comes from a seed that was planted way back in 1963 by my 4th grade teacher. She was a war widow that traveled the US extensively. She visited Arches before Edward Abby was there. She had good camera equipment and treated us all to her slide shows until the 8th grade. She introduced me to the idea that the US was so much more than Ohio and western Pa. So ya- way back when, my curiosity was piqued and I’ve been exploring ever since.
 
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I grew up on a farm in a rural area, so I was no stranger to exploring the woods, but we never camped . When I was 11 years old, our dad took us to Colorado. We roadtripped the state and visited Rocky Mountain National Park. I ran up 12K foot alpine trails in a pair of Keds like it was nothing. I lived at sea level and had no concept of altitude, but it never bothered me.
It took more than 30 years for me to return. I joined a hiking group in 2009 and backpacked the Grand Canyon rim to rim less than a year later. In 2011, I backpacked for 6 nights in Yosemite, saw pika and marmots for the first time, and fell madly in love with the wilderness. For the next 10 years, every vacation was camping, hiking, backpacking. I retired, bought a tiny trailer and now spend 3+ months on the road exploring, with a few overseas jaunts. Happiness begins at 10K feet! (3048 meters for my European friends).
 
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highboy4x4 said:
In high school, I remember many a weekend camping in the Chautauqua Gorge near Lake Erie. Hiking Mount Marcy was the gold standard for this country boy! As I think back, those were the years I got lost trying to find myself. Maybe that’s why I did well in the military? Always in the woods, at peace most of the time and comfortable sleeping in a tent!! Wish I could remember the mil-spec name…..from the 80s..
Click to expand...

We called it a GP-Small.
 
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12C20 said:
highboy4x4 said:
In high school, I remember many a weekend camping in the Chautauqua Gorge near Lake Erie. Hiking Mount Marcy was the gold standard for this country boy! As I think back, those were the years I got lost trying to find myself. Maybe that’s why I did well in the military? Always in the woods, at peace most of the time and comfortable sleeping in a tent!! Wish I could remember the mil-spec name…..from the 80s..
Click to expand...

We called it a GP-Small.
Click to expand...

My memory must be shot to forget that.
 
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highboy4x4 said:
12C20 said:
highboy4x4 said:
In high school, I remember many a weekend camping in the Chautauqua Gorge near Lake Erie. Hiking Mount Marcy was the gold standard for this country boy! As I think back, those were the years I got lost trying to find myself. Maybe that’s why I did well in the military? Always in the woods, at peace most of the time and comfortable sleeping in a tent!! Wish I could remember the mil-spec name…..from the 80s..
Click to expand...

We called it a GP-Small.
Click to expand...

My memory must be shot to forget that.
Click to expand...

Haha! It was only the officers who got those in our unit.

I only know them because I had to set them up!
 
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