We were focused on our streamers when the wind kicked up. In a few seconds the rain stung our faces like fire ants, blowing in sideways across the river. The spring thunderstorm exploded in the clouds above us and the lightning smashed into cottonwoods all around our small boat. The battering wind slammed us helplesslyContinue reading "Pissing in the Wind"
Campground – Chapman Group
Book this place with a huge group. Do it now! The long drive is so worth it. Total privacy and totally kick ass. We took a very large group of coworkers up here for a long weekend in July last year. There were probably forty of us, and we could have fit a lot more,Continue reading "Campground – Chapman Group"
Dispersed Camping – Half Moon Creek, CO
Oh Colorado. Where else can you drive down a dusty forest road among fourteen thousand foot peaks and pristine mountain streams just to camp next to hipsters, hunters, hikers, millennials, rednecks, Midwesterners, Texans, and other assorted douche bags? I just had an epiphany. What if we rounded up all the politicians, threw them into aContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Half Moon Creek, CO"
Dispersed Camping – Twin Lakes, CO
If you've never driven through the Arkansas River valley in Colorado, you are a complete jackass and living like a hermit. The highest mountains in the US Rocky Mountains tower high above the river and the cool little towns that dot the valley are all worth spending a few days in. This mountain range makesContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Twin Lakes, CO"
Dispersed Camping – Upper Williams Fork, CO
This area is scenic, but not the highest ranking on our list. That said, there are several dispersed camping spots in the area, excellent fishing, and an abundance of wildlife. The trail to Lake Evelyn. Good for all levels of hikers. The first time we camped here was many years ago. The one thing thatContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Upper Williams Fork, CO"
Dispersed Camping – Geneva Creek, CO
Most of the time, scanning Google Earth is relaxing and fun but not very telling of an actual place on the real earth. Whether it be the undulating Rocky Mountains or even your own neighborhood there is no way to get the feel of a space until you actually set foot on its soil. ThisContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Geneva Creek, CO"
Dispersed Camping – East Fork Arapahoe Creek Near Walden, CO
This place had been on my list for at least a couple of years. I'd been staring at Google Earth dreaming about what this wilderness flanking Steamboat valley and Rocky Mountain National Park would hold. We knew it would be a long drive so we decided to put in a much longer weekend so weContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – East Fork Arapahoe Creek Near Walden, CO"
Campground – Meadows Group
Spring had come! Our luck would have it that over the winter we had made fast friends with several families in our new neighborhood and were invited to go on a huge group camping trip with lots of people, kids, and mutts. As long as they didn't find the bodies buried in our back yard,Continue reading "Campground – Meadows Group"
Dispersed Camping – Dunn Ditch Leadville, CO
Last year was the second year in a row we made the trip up the mountain for the Leadville Heavy Half marathon, and despite buying trail running shoes I didn't attempt the brutality that is this race. Running up a mountain with my newly acquired plantar fasciitis feeling like nails being driven into my heelContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Dunn Ditch Leadville, CO"
Hands
His palms were crisscrossed with deep weathered lines like the cow trails leading to water. These gnarled hands of my grandfather. Scarred, wrinkled, and thick. Sparse grey hairs here and there. The palms calloused from opening and closing cedar post gates for seven decades. Smooth from the lasso that streaked through them like lightning whenContinue reading "Hands"
Jesus and Tarpon
Every time my better half and I finally tuck our three girls into their sleeping bags for the night, we step out of the tent with a sigh and pour ourselves a whiskey cocktail then drop exhausted into our camp chairs. We gaze up at the stars struggling against the fading light in the west. Continue reading "Jesus and Tarpon"
Dispersed Camping – Lost Creek Wilderness
This is us beginning to give away all of the free dispersed campsites. Hesitant as I am, it is no secret that camping in Colorado and elsewhere in the Rockies can be achieved for free if you don't mind leaving early, getting lost, pooping in the woods, and amazing rewards. Rainbow after an afternoon stormContinue reading "Dispersed Camping – Lost Creek Wilderness"
Silver Creek
The old lady pulled up next to me in her shiny BMW as I sauntered down the neighborhood street fully wadered and 5 weight poking out behind me like a magpie's tail feathers. "Hey there!" she said as she idled to a stop. "Howdy", said I. "You catch any fish today?" I nodded and repliedContinue reading "Silver Creek"
A-Hole on the River
We had been hydrating with Coors Light all morning. To save money on boats, we had crammed four of us into a three-man drift boat coordinating back casts to avoid getting tangled. It mostly worked but we were cramped. The sun was out over Montana's famed Bighorn River and we were rowing our Cottonwood CampContinue reading "A-Hole on the River"
The Arsenal
The alarm at 4:40 a.m. was not warranted. I was already awake, and had been for an hour so I turned it off before it could wake sleeping beauty. For some reason sleep is hard to come by the night before a fishing excursion and I knew I'd pay for it that afternoon. But thereContinue reading "The Arsenal"
Living Simply, Simply Living
"We, all of us, are what happens when a primordial mixture of hydrogen and helium evolves for so long that it begins to ask where it came from." Dr. Jill Tarter quoted this pearl of intergalactic wisdom and it is something that pops into my head every time I read the news or get lostContinue reading "Living Simply, Simply Living"
Hip Shots
Escaping boredom in a tiny town, population 26, was a battle fought every day as a youngster. When the wind blew relentlessly across the open plains, shooting hoops in the driveway felt like the equivalent of casting a size 26 Adams behind a jet engine during takeoff. I remember yelling at the wind as ifContinue reading "Hip Shots"
The Confluence of Mistakes
Two tents, a tepee, three dudes, and a dispersed campsite positioned about ten rugged miles up into a mountain range outside of Kremmling, Colorado might have made this three-amigo maiden fly fishing trip a success. Or we'd die trying. Davis Ellis Tepee overlooking the Colorado River valley. The fact that Brandon snores and Cory hadContinue reading "The Confluence of Mistakes"
Buck Fever
From time to time my actions (and especially my thoughts) have walked a crooked line between right and wrong. I don’t remember who taught me when it was acceptable to bend the rules, but I admit it has happened once or twice. My parents were not saints and there were times growing up when IContinue reading "Buck Fever"
Dove and Buffalo
A remote-controlled fireplace. I ponder, what level of human laziness guides intuition or initiative to achieve such an invention? Did I contribute to this weakened evolution of man, or mankind, if you will? Or, did I miss an inventive opportunity?… Deep thoughts of a father of three young girls and husband to an always-just spouseContinue reading "Dove and Buffalo"
The Confluences 