Cooped Up? Get Uncooped.

I ask because it seems like a lot of the people I know who are crazy about the outdoors were introduced to hiking, paddling, camping, etc. by their families. (I met a woman whose parents brought her on a Boundary Waters wilderness canoe trip when she was a month old!) As for me, well- my grandma, bless her, pitched a fit when she found out I was going on a Boundary Waters canoe trip with a teen wilderness adventure camp.

 "There are bears out there," she said.

In a rare display of on-the-spot wit, I deadpanned, "Don't worry, Grandma. They're going to teach us how to fend them off with our paddles."

The other members of my family were only slightly more enthusiastic about the prospect of me heading out into the woods than my grandma was. In the end, though, I went, came back alive, and that was that. I was hooked. Now my family is used to my outdoor exploits. They still have zero interest in trying them, though.

How did you get into the outdoors? 

My mom has a thing for seagulls, so this picture reminds me of her. Stinson Beach, CA

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