Wow Tim, love this thread. Brought back so many memories of my son & I getting out in the bush, hunting, fishing, camping, canoeing, scouting, shed hunting, etc.
He will be 24 in June and has accomplished so much in his short life that has involved the outdoors that I couldn't be more pleased or proud of.
Most of the early photos I have of him and us are not digital, so not able to post here. But picture this.....(back 2 decades) he's 4 years old, dressed in a very small set of camo fleece that Mom made for him, a little bit of camo face paint, got his water bottle and he's all ready to go hunting with Dad. Off we go to hunt some mule deer, now I'm not expecting too much to happen, remember that being quiet is not a 4 years olds strength, but low & behold we get into them. Now...my little guy is doing a really good job to be as quiet as he can, cause ya know...this is serious stuff we're doing... Anyway, the shot opportunity doesn't quite happen so we start heading back to the truck. Remember though, this whole time, almost a 1/2 hour he has been pretty much silent as a mouse. We're walking along and I get this tug on my pant leg and he looks up at me and says in this very hushed whisper..."Dad, can we talk loud now?".... Sorta chokes a guy right up...!!
He's been my best friend and hunting partner for 20 years now. I spent the time with him when he was young and he'll get to take me hunting when I'm older.
You can never go wrong with getting kids outdoors. What's the saying..."take a kid hunting & fishing, and they're not out mugging old ladies".