Author Archives: Craig
Where’s The Buffalo? »
Posted on October 31, 2010This is the beast of Colorado Football, but the picture wasn’t taken in Colorado. The location is out west and continues our theme of state park locations. A famous American General may have marched his troops through this valley. We were able to drive our GMC Jimmy down the dirt road and through the middle of the herd! If you’re needing another clue, you can reach some giant American Presidents just a short drive from here.
We Have Our First Contest Winner! »
Posted on October 31, 2010Doug says: The Colorado State Forest Headquarters and Moose Visitor Center at Gould, Colorado. I love going to the yurts up there. My Jewish men’s group is named The Dancing Moose Minyan for one of the yurts we stayed in.
That’s right Doug! The Colorado State Forest is a hidden jewel in Northern Colorado. It hosts one of the highest moose, bear and elk populations in the state. We’ve gone there for many adventures over the years and started by pulling Alex in on a sled while asleep in his car seat. Unlike Colorado’s famous 10th Mountain Division hut system where you share the huts with others, the State Forest yurts are available for one family rental and are ideal for families with younger children. The Dancing Moose Yurt is pictured below in honor of our first contest winner and the $50 REI gift card.
Adventures with Animal Companions: Utah Hits the Trail »
Posted on September 25, 2010The following clips were shot on our recent trip to the San Juan mountains of Colorado. In them, we tried to capture some of the joys yet challenges of bringing your animal companion on an adventure. Utah has been on a lot of them with us and always adds a special emotional connection for both of us.
If you are planning on taking your animal companion along, the key phrase is, “plan ahead”. On this recent trip for instance, we found out that dogs weren’t allowed on the Durango Narrow Gauge train. While we didn’t want to kennel her, we did find a woman in Durango who would take her in her home and trail run her every day for a couple of miles. On another adventure, this time in Glacier National Park, we were informed of the park’s very rigid dog policies (because of bear problems that summer) when we arrived at the campground. Dogs must be on a leash of under 6 feet at all times, not to be left alone in the campground and not welcome on trails or lake shores! We were envisioning the demise of our adventure on the first night as the ranger spoke. About an hour later, a woman walking with her dog, told us about camping right across the border in Waterton Canada (the north side of Glacier Park) which had dog friendly rules.
The next morning, we drove to the border crossing but were told we needed her papers in order to cross the border. Unfortunately, we didn’t have them because we hadn’t planned on leaving the country. Luckily for us, we got a faint cell signal and I was able to call our vet at home on a Sunday morning). Within 20 minutes, she faxed Utah’s papers to the border station and we were able to cross. Utah was able to run free, swim in the lakes and go on all our adventures with us. Needless to say, we learned an important lesson about making sure her shots are up to date and taking along her papers while adventuring!
Finally, before taking your animal companion on an adventure, make sure they are in the necessary physical shape needed for the conditions you will encounter. Thanks to my wife running her 5 times a week as well as two very successful ACL replacement surgeries (she took out both knees just playing fetch in the yard), Utah was in great shape for our recent hikes. We did, however, realize very quickly that trails with three foot high rock fields are pretty hard on her. While she loves to winter camp and snowshoe with us, we do have to take extra care of her paws and give her plenty of time to clean them out.
Finally, make sure that in addition to your main leash, have an extra 5 foot piece of rope on hand to use as a spare leash just in case. You also have to remember that your animal needs plenty of hydration if you are out in dry climates.
We hope you enjoy these shots and taking your animals on future adventures!
Fire It Up! »
Posted on October 26, 2010Perhaps the most iconic skill of dads camping with their kids is the ability to start a fire. While there are many products you can buy to increase your chances (including old fashioned lighter fluid), it always impresses your kids when you can do it with the wood around you and with just one match.
The key to any good fire is lots and lots of kindling. While it takes time getting it split thin (especially when it’s cold and wet out), it’s a classic example of patience and time spent up front saves you a lot of time in the long run. In this video segment Alex was using wood that was out in the rain for days on end (in this case we bought chopped wood in town as there wasn’t going to be much at the altitude we were camping). Chopping off the wet wood exterior reveals a dryer interior that’s perfect for kindling when split small enough.
As for fire structure, you’ll see a tepee in the middle with a log cabin style around the outside. About a month after filming this, we found an article in the September issue of Men’s Health entitled, “Build The Perfect Campfire”. It shows the tepee/cabin structure as well and has some great illustrations. And just in case it doesn’t work, it’s always a good idea to carry along a fire starter in your camping equipment!
As for your kids, one of the earliest thrills a younger camper can have is lighting the fire. It ranks up there in rites of passage as a child measures themselves against their dad. Once you’ve taught you preschool child a healthy respect for fire (I used to rope off an area around the fire or wood burning stove), you can then teach them how to strike the match and get it going. As they age, let them build the structure and then move on to splitting kindling and eventually chopping the wood.
Carve It Up! »
Posted on October 29, 2010One of the classic family traditions involves the fall harvest and Halloween festivities. Of these, going to the store or the farmer’s field to pick out pumpkins is a child favorite. I have great memories of my Dad taking his 5 kids to pick out the perfect one. Alex and I have had the fortune of going to the same farm for the past 17 years to pick in the fields for our home and for a charity program we run.
For carving, here are a few tips we’ve picked up along the way to make it a little easier and fun. We’ve also attached a video sent in by Nathaniel and his son Devon. This flaming pumpkin goes into the very cool category for pumpkin adventures. He wrote in that his secret is a roll of toilet paper and kerosene. I’d make sure your homeowner’s policy is up to date!
- For bigger cuts, use a drywall saw. It cuts right through and is safer than gutting with a big kitchen knife.
- We like to thin out the inside by scrapping some of the meat out with a sturdy spoon or ice cream scoop. This helps with making more detailed patterns.
- There are great carving kits out there that make the finer cuts a whole lot easier. They also come with a variety of templates for carving and an assortment of designs. Just pin it on and punch holes with a pin through the pattern. If you make a mistake and cut something off, toothpicks work great for reattaching parts.
- For more unique designs, you can make a pattern out of just about any design or picture. Just photocopy it and pin it on. Our favorite designs have been sports logos and mountain scenes. Not to mention a great Darth Maul several years ago.
- For eyes and stars, try drilling a small hole in your pumpkin and putting a marble in it. The candle will send light through it for glowing effects.
- Once finished, try coating the inside cuts with Vaseline if you live in a dryer climate. This will help your design last for several days.
For costume adventures, it’s a whole lot of fun to do a theme with your kids and march around the school parade or neighborhood.
Change It Up! »
Posted on October 19, 2010In a recent comment, Mark wrote a question about what to do now that his adventures with his teen son had become stuck in their father/son dynamics and that old role of being the “expert” father. First of all, you’ll want to change your perspective on this and view it as healthy and extremely important to a teen’s development. This can be hard since one of the greatest joys of being a dad is when your kids are younger and open to your suggestions of how to do things and learn from your wisdom. However, you have to remember that developmentally, all kids need a sense of their own mastery of the world. In the teen years, the need to feel competent, plus the drive to be independent, must guide your thinking when planning an adventure. Here are 6 tips for changing it up and reclaiming your adventures!
1. Try something new.
Start by picking something your teen is interested in and which you have never done before. That way, you can’t be the expert and you are both on an equal playing field, or, your teen is the expert going into it. Be open to your teen’s ideas for what they consider an adventure. Years ago, I remember a dad and his musician son who took a road trip to Seattle for the rock and roll museum. As I recall, they hit many music venues and guitar shops along the way.
2. Invite your teen to plan the adventure and give you tasks.
As you adapt to your teen’s interests, try letting him/her share in or do the bulk of the planning for the adventure. On our recent backpack and hiking trip, Alex planned out all the routes, made the maps, and made sure we had essential equipment. A sense of ownership increases their attachment to the adventure and allows you to enjoy their problem solving and decision- making abilities. Don’t be afraid to let them take the lead.
3. Introduce a touch of anxiety.
Pick a new adventure that introduces a bit of anxiety into the mix for both of you and pushes you to rely on each other. Try scuba, rock climbing, rafting, or skydiving (that may be to anxiety producing for me). It’s amazing how a little anxiety can drop everyone’s power stance and level of defensiveness.
4. Include others in your adventure.
If things are still feeling stuck, you might try introducing other people into your adventures. Take along your teen’s friend for an adventure. They will have an adventure together and your job is to participate and enjoy snippets of connection here and there. You can also introduce an expert into the equation who treats both of you as equals and absorbs the tension between you. Our recent fly-fishing trip with our guide Steve really helped our dynamics (coming soon to AdventureDad.org).
5. Prepare to be overtaken!
Teens, especially males, really enjoy overtaking their dads physically and mentally. The first time I beat my dad at target shooting, billiards, or ping pong were very gratifying experiences for me. On our last scuba adventure in the southern Yucatan, I had to switch to a larger tank just to match my son’s time under water! While you’re doing the activity, you have to resist the urge to correct your teen or coach them on a better way to do it unless they ask for help or emergency safety demands it (as when teaching your teen to drive).
6. Embrace the tension!
Remind yourself to be patient when things are feeling tense with a teen. Their emotional brains are twice as active as your own and those emotions can change on a dime. You learn to bite your tongue a lot and then capture those moments of spontaneous connection when they appear. Then, as my mother use to say, “Etch them into your memory.”
Welcome To AdventureDad.org! »
Posted on September 25, 2010The roots of AdventureDad.org took hold 19 years ago as I dreamed of taking my soon-to-be-born son on adventures with me. As he grew, I was able to create a flexible work schedule that allowed us time for all sorts of adventures. I would frequently hear from other parents, “You do so much cool stuff with Alex, you should write a book about things to do with your kids!”
Today, I find myself with the opportunity to blend our father/son experiences with my 30 years as a child/family therapist and create AdventureDad.org.
The goal of AdventureDad is to help dads build deeper, more meaningful relationships with their kids through time spent together on exciting, fun and unique adventures in the great outdoors and other venues.
Unintentional 4 Wheeling »
Posted on September 25, 2010Our Jimmy has over 165K miles on it and has taken us over many a mountain. In this clip, you’ll see, that the descent down the pass was much more aggressive than the climb up. The camping rack in the hitch made things even trickier and had to be taken off on one occasion. Overall, it was rather unnerving but a great adventure in retrospect. Next time, we will rent a Jeep!