Sometimes, adventure happens where and with whom you choose to make it happen. This month my wife’s family had a reunion in the Ozark Mountains of northwest Arkansas near Buffalo National River. We stayed in the old family homestead, played cards until late in the night, cooked over a fire by the big red barn, and listened to the roosters across the creek. The mornings were cold and the water was, too. Great for the Smallmouth Bass for both their comfort and making us hesitant to wade. My 3-year-old son didn’t care. He was having an adventure! “Dad, I want to watch you catch a fish!”

And just like that, my boy and I broke away from the group to see what nature had to offer. A few casts found a handsome little bass. We were equally excited to fight and pull it in. That moment offered a learning experience for my son. “I wanna touch it!” “She’s so spiky…” After years of seeing fish and still enjoying them, it was nice to see such a level of intrigue in my son. We quickly studied our new friend and released her back into the creek. Of course, I must now relinquish control of the pole to the boy. It wasn’t without hiccups, but he was pretty quick to pick up on casting and reeling. He didn’t catch any fish. But we had so much fun.

I had hopes of finding and capturing River Otter, Least Weasel, and a few other animal poops. While this weekend didn’t present any scatological photo ops, it didn’t disappoint in the beauty department.

Stay tuned for updates from my adventures and check out the shop to see how you can share the gift of humor, prank a friend, or enjoy a new perspective on nature with a postcard, calendar, or book.