…today we present part two of Jason Albert’s the Big Red Island… Outdoor school began. Draped above our tent was an old-growth Tamarind tree. Sporadically we heard jostling in the limbs above. Unzipping the tent, my son gawked up. A group of six sifaka, a striking lemur species with thick white hair and contrasting black face, busied about. My wife and I made loud “shoosh” gestures to prevent...

This week we’ve got a special guest — Jason Albert. Like so many adventures, his family’s work trip to Madagascar started as an inspiring idea, got painfully epic in the process and ended up being the most important journey  in Jason’s life. There is a lot of insight in Jason’s words, but I’ll let him speak for himself.  Please stay tuned for the next two parts later this...

We spent our second night at the most perfect backcountry campsite I’ve ever had. About 30 yards away, the creek rushed over more water-slide slabs and soaking pools. While Abby got dinner started, I pitched the tent on a sheltered flat spot that many previous visitors had cleared of annoying rocks and debris. To top it off, there were several ideal fishing spots nearby with clear casting areas. Normally,...

Serrated granite ridges, punctuated by impossibly thin spires. Snowmelt cascading over polished slabs toward sapphire lakes. The Sawtooth mountains in central Idaho define alpine beauty. My most precious memory from our recent backpacking trip has nothing to do with any of that. No, watching one of my children transform from “client” to “guide” tops all the wilderness beauty. Jennie and I believe that...

It’s official.  Fall has arrived in the northwest.  Not that we didn’t already have signs~ the sun setting earlier, cooler evenings. But today, the cloudless blue sky was quickly covered by a cloudy blanket. The wind whisked the mounting mass of leaves around the backyard in mini tornados. I even contemplated turning the heat on. The arrival of fall means the frenetic pace of the summer and readying the...

“Teamwork, confidence and patience,” my nine-year-old daughter said without hesitation when I asked her for tips on learning how to pee outside. I laughed. She was exactly right though. It has been a long trail towards the mastery of using nature’s facilities. Now, in retrospect, the mishaps are mostly funny. The more nature has become our second home even I’ve improved at using the outdoor facilities....

Denver mom and climber Kira Riedel passed along this photo.  On July 5th, Kira risked attracting the ire of annoyed drivers waiting in line at the busy gas station to capture this image with her son after his first back packing trip. I love it because it is well-composed and honest. We’ve all felt that way — too tired to clear a space and too content to care. Cheers Kira. If you’ve got photos...

It was some ungodly early hour. I could hear the wind howling just outside. I donned a base layer, followed by a second fleece layer, and finally down parka, hat and face protection. I wasn’t really thinking clearly and the mere thought of food made me nauseated. A fresh layer of snow was on the ground making a walk up a short incline more difficult. Just a few short yards to the destination… High camp,...

“If you’re not living on the edge, you’re taking up too much space.” I added this quote to my e-mail signature years ago. Not everyone gets it, but I bet you do because the desire to live on the edge—in whatever way you interpret that—doesn’t disappear when you become a parent. We all live at varying levels of edginess. Your edge may be way beyond mine, especially if you’re one of those rock...

We’re on a grassy bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The wind howls around us. Try as she might, my wife Laura just can’t seem to get her sweatshirt tied around the backpack carrier in a way that will comfort Levi. He screams and pants as if the wind makes it hard for his 7-month-old lungs to get their fill of air. He’s never experienced this kind of wind before and he does not like it....