People like to complain about the weather, especially this time of year.
You’ll often hear, “It’s too cold outside.” Or “the roads are slippery.” Or “it’s raining, or cloudy, etc.”
But some of my best outdoor memories are from those times when others were inside wishing for 75 degrees and sunny. I love those less-than-perfect days. You’ll find life more interesting and discover good times on those bad days.
I have examples.
If you were here during the winter of 2015, you definitely remember the ice storm that had power down for nearly a week and water (think bathrooms) inoperable for a few days after that.
We sat wrapped in blankets, in front of the fireplace, keeping it stocked with wood, for several days and nights.
We don’t sit around and talk about boring, old normal winter days. We talk about the no electricity, no heat, ice storm days. It was an adventure.
When we lived in Texas, our fly-fishing club had planned to go to Oklahoma one weekend to camp out and fish. At the last minute, everyone canceled because the forecast called for solid rain the whole weekend.
Except a friend and I decided to go anyway. Saturday, during a steady downpour, my cellphone rang ,and I answered. It was another friend back in Dallas, saying, “I guess you decided to cancel, too.”
I was able to reply, “No, I am standing here in the stream, in the pouring rain, with a 15-inch rainbow trout jumping at the end of my line.”
It was true, and I was glad that he called at just the right time. It was a great day of fishing. You should have been there.
Another time, a group of about 12 of us traveled to Big Bend National Park to backpack for three days.
On the second night, we camped at a location in the dessert where we expected a spring with fresh water. But the water was brown and smelled very bad. It as so dirty that our water filters began to clog.
So, we strained it through bandanas, and then through the filters, and drank it. It was our only choice. It tasted terrible, but we all survived with no ill effects. Twenty years later, we still talk about that water and laugh.
On another backpack trip, a bear climbed a tree and took the entire three-day food cache of one of our fellow hikers. We just all shared food for the next few days, and no one went hungry, especially not the bear.
I don’t recall much about the rest of that hike, but that small inconvenience was a big talking point for quite a while.
I remember hiking at the Fort Worth nature center one summer in 105-degree heat, with friends who were visiting from New Jersey. We could have stayed home in the air conditioning, but then we wouldn’t have those memories to talk about when we still get together.
A few winters ago, we had planned to go to the Smokies and drive around Cades Cove one day to look for animals. The temperature was 4 degrees that day, and everyone else stayed home, but we went.
The animals didn’t seem to mind the cold, and we had the clear, cold, beautiful, sunny Cades Cove all to ourselves.
On another cold winter day, four of us went hiking in the snow when most folks were inside staying warm and watching TV. That was the quiet winter day that we crept up on a heard of wild pigs. There might have been pigs on TV, too, but ours were real.
I love to hike in the rain, as long as there is no lightning. Many of you still remember the last few days of September during the 2018 Hiking Marathon when you had to get those final miles completed in the rain.
The 70-degree sunny days are forgotten, but not the soaking wet, boot sloshing, lived-to-talk-about-it day. You’ll remember that day with a smile.
You might recall this past New Year’s Eve, when we had several inches of snow in that evening. At midnight, my wife and I took a mile walk around the neighborhood. And to our surprise, we saw fresh tracks and caught up with another neighbor out that night. What fun.
So, what is the point of all of these stories?
My point is, don’t avoid an adventure just because nature throws you a curve. Some of your best adventures and happiest memories will be in the rain, or the heat, or the mud or the snow.
Those are the times when nature just makes life more interesting.
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Comments, questions or suggestions for future nature articles are welcome at don.hazel@gmail.com
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