Some of the best memories are the ones made sitting around a campfire. Whether with good friends, family, or simply alone, campfires provide a welcoming warmth to all who gaze into their hypnotic flames. A camping location becomes home when the campfire is stoked into life.
During a recent return overnight backpacking trip into Mammoth Cave NP, another such campfire provided moments of warmth during a cold evening and even colder morning. Please enjoy...Campfire Moments
It was a more innocent time of my youth played out in a location where fond memories and important life experiences served to move me along the path to becoming an adult. Southeastern Oklahoma is where I grew up in the 1950's and 1960's. The Mayberry-like little town of Wister harbors a great deal of my youthful exuberances and life experiences. I suppose that is why I enjoy watching reruns of old television shows like The Andy Griffith Show and even The Waltons. There are so many parallels to growing up in Wister to those shows, it is almost uncanny.
I do remember one strange event that happened in that little town and to this day, I have been unable to come up with a logical explanation. I must have been ten maybe eleven years old. It was during the long dog days of summer and the early days of America's space program were moving toward its maturity, but it was during that time when just getting something up there was problematic at best. I was absolutely fascinated with the subject of space exploration including the stars and planets and the night sky. Back then the night skies of Southeastern Oklahoma were clear and unhindered by haze and light pollution. One evening late, well after sundown, I stood in the vacant field next to my grandparents home. That field covered maybe an acre or so and was lined with trees on two sides. It offered a clear and unobstructed view of the night sky.
No moon was out so the sky seemed filled with crisp stars and I distinctly remember how bright they were that evening with the Milky Way haze arching across its breadth. I stood not quite in the middle of that field looking up at the brilliant heavenly arena. To my right, toward the south, high in the sky a very bright star hovered in the blackness, alone with no other stars nearby or at least within some distance from it. It appeared as an isolated beacon and I suspected it was the planet Jupiter because it carried the same kind of characteristic brightness. A few moments later to the east a much dimmer point of light began to arch across the sky moving toward the west just coming into view over the tops of the trees. At first I figured it was an airplane flying very high, but within a short time I realized it was not for there were no flashing lights. It wasn't unusual even then to be able to see a satellite fly across the night sky as they reflected the sunlight, and I was sure that is what I seeing. It had about the same luminosity as the other typical stars.
As I watched the dim light drift across the darkness, before long it became apparent it was likely to intersect the bright light I had noticed before. I really wanted to see that as it would have been a rare event indeed to see. Closer and closer it drew to the brighter star. I never took my eyes off the moving light, never blinked for fear of missing the instant it would cross the brighter light. As it came within a few degrees of the brighter light it began to slow down just a little and as it drew alongside...it stopped. I blinked...took another look and sure enough there were now two lights hovering high above one next to the other. I wished I had a pair of binoculars for a closer look, but had to rely on my eyesight alone.
I stood there stunned thinking I had somehow lost sight of it, but no, it was still there just a few degrees from the brighter light. Where there was once one bright light isolated against the background, now there were two, one bright and one somewhat dimmer right next to it. I remember saying to myself "Wow!"...What is that?" A few moments went by and my excitement began to stir even more as I kept looking trying to see if I had simply lost sight of the moving light. To my astonishment, as I was looking at the bright point of light...it began to move...in the opposite direction toward the east at a much faster pace. I watched it sail across the sky much faster than a high flying airplane and within moments, its movement took it where the trees on the east side of the field obscured my sight of it. The other dimmer light remained where it was.
I was so excited not knowing what I had just seen, I ran into the the house and started jabbering about the incident. The reaction I received from my parents and grandparents was..."That's nice...time to stay in now." No amount of excitement or explanation on my part swayed them to asked any questions so I shelved the incident into the recesses of my memories. Even so, as strange as it was, I know what I saw, and the description noted in this post is true and as accurate as I remember it being, even if it did occur a long time ago to a young boy. Being that the space program was in its infancy at the time, its seems unlikely to have been something NASA or the military could have pulled off.
Fast forward a few years to 1967 and my family lived in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. my friend Rocky and I lived a mile or so apart so it was not uncommon for us to walk back and forth between each others houses. The shortcut took us down a dusty old alley. One summer evening, he and I were walking from our house to his and were horsing around walking down that alley. It was getting pretty dark, but the ambient light of the town provided enough illumination so we could see. About half way down that alley, we both looked up and saw something floating low across the sky just above the trees in front of us, some distance away but still close enough we could make out some details. It appeared to be three different colored lights forming a soft triangle surrounds a central light. It hovered in silence slowly drifting in the sky. We started laughing about it jokingly popping off, "Hey look...there's a UFO...ha ha."
Within a few seconds our laughter turned silent as we looked at each other, then the object again. "Wow...what is that?" and we started running toward his house. By the time we got there, the object was hovering just behind his house, with some trees and an old multi-storied apartment building blocking our view, so we ran around to the other side of it and I caught a glimpse of it through the trees before losing sight of it. When we broke into the open on the other side of the apartment building, it was gone.
We buzzed all evening about it wondering what we had just seen. Later when I went home, I told my dad about it. His response was typical, "Oh...okay."
Some years later I mentioned the incident to Rocky and he looked at me like I was crazy. "What are you talking about?" "What do you mean, what am I talking about....you don't remember that night?"
'Not a clue what you are talking about."
I could not believe my ears, because, well frankly...we did see it and I definitely remember that night.
I've never been one to put much credibility into hauntings and tend to take them with a grain of salt. However...I would not so readily write off a series of incidents that occured...to me...back in the mid-1990's.
I had taken a new temporary contract job in Denver, Colorado. The pay was good but it meant I had to be away from home for extended periods of time. I stayed in a small studio apartment in Aurora. It was indeed small consisting of a single main room, small kitchen, walk thru closet, and a small bathroom. It did have a fireplace though which was nice, and a sliding glass door to the outside as it was on the ground floor.
Over time I began to notice odd things were happening while I lived there. Between the main room and the kitchen was a see through mantel area where I kept a small box where I placed my keys and wallet and loose change. I remember getting up early one morning to get ready for work and as was customary I reached for my keys and wallet in the box. The wallet was there, but open, but the keys were not. I looked all over the place, bathroom, pants pockets, laundry basket, kitchen, between the cushions on my small fold out couch and bed combo, they were nowhere to be found. Eventually, I rummaged through this cheap cardboard two level dresser thing where I kept clean socks and other things and found the keys buried down deep inside the top drawer.
I could not image how they got there. I didn't put them there. I always placed them in that box on the mantel. Anyway, I shrugged it off and headed out to work. Odd events like that continued to happen. I would wake up in the middle of the night and discover the kitchen light or the bathroom light was on. I know I did not turn them on or leave them on. Again I would shrug off the incident and go back to sleep. The lost key thing continued to occur from time to time and before long when I could not find my keys, I would always discover them in the top drawer of that cardboard dresser. It was becoming comical...almost.
This kind of thing carried on at random over several months, then took another somewhat stranger turn. One evening, late while I was asleep, I was awakened with a start. It felt like someone had shook my shoulder trying to wake me up. When I jolted upright, noone or anything was there. I shook it off as an odd dream...until one night as I lay suspended between half awake and half asleep, I experienced a strange sensation that someone was hovering or standing over me. I rolled upright, and for an instant thought I saw a dark figure standing at the foot of my fold out couch/bed. In an instant it was gone. That one shook me up...a little...and I did not sleep well that night. The rough thing about it was, that was not the only time it ever happened.
Other little things happened as well. One evening while I was watching a football game, a small picture I had placed on top of the small mantel over the fireplace suddenly flew off the shelf. It didn't just slide off and fall to the ground, it flew off several feet as though someone or something had flipped it over.
One of the oddest occurrence happened in broad daylight. It was a Saturday morning and I was preparing to go on a hike up in the Rocky Mountain National Park. The little television/VCR combination set I used had two ways to turn it on or off; the switch on the set or via the remote control. If the set was on and the power went off, when the power came back on the set would not turn itself back on. You had to manually turn it on again. As I was finishing up in the bathroom, the TV was on and playing in the background when it suddenly shut off. My first thought was the power had gone out, but I still had lights on in the bathroom. While I stood there trying to make sense of what had happened, a few seconds later the TV came back on, then... a few seconds after that, it went off again and it came back on a few seconds later. This occurred several times over the next several minutes. I checked the remote control to see if it maybe had been wedged between something that was pressing on the on/off button. It was just sitting there. Eventually, I left for my trip and came back that evening...to discover the TV was...on.
I never did ask the management if something bad had ever happened in that apartment. All I know is, some strange and odd things did occur from time to time during my stay there.
In more recent times I experienced another odd phenomena. I was on a fall season two night three day backpacking trip into the backcountry of Mammoth Cave National Park. On the first day I sort of accidentally missed my turnoff to my first nights campsite and ended up discovering an old cemetery. At first discovery I of course thought it was of some interest as the numerous headstones appeared to be quite old, but I did not take a closer look at that time. My immediate problem though was what to do about getting back on the correct trail. By this time I had already hiked a ways and was tired and the thought of backtracking and continuing my hike just was not very appealing. I decided I would just camp in the woods next to the cemetery.
I chose a very good place to set up camp and went about my normal chores of doing so. By the time I had finished it well into the afternoon and because I wanted to capture some photographs I set about exploring the area. While I was setting up camp and during the exploring I made, I kept hearing what sounded like a child or children laughing off in the distance. My first thought was someone with kids was hiking down the trail. The laughing was random and subtle, almost to the point of being barely audible at times but was definitely something I kept hearing. Everytime I heard it, I would look and search the area visually in the direction from which it came. I never saw anyone, just kept hearing the soft sound of a child's laughter. As I explored the area, did also find what appeared to be the rock foundation of an old cabin. No structure remained, but the squared off rocks were stacked in a neat series of rows...like for an foundation of an old home.
As the day closed in toward the evening, I stepped into the cemetery for a closer look. There over 40 weathered and gray headstones of various sizes many with no inscriptions, just a small field stone placed to mark a grave. However many of the others did retain crude inscriptions...and many of them were of...children. Some of the children's headstones include the name, date of birth, and date of death. Sadly, some of them were only a few years old with a several only a couple of months old. The realization there were so many children buried in this ancient cemetery sent a chill down my back. Was I hearing echoes of children laughing from times past...or was it just the wind. You can watch the full Youtube video episode at: https://youtu.be/DL6reEx6qqg
I have a few other tales of such things, like the Legend of Skull Bluff chronicled in this blog and on my YouTube site:
https://beyondthecampfirebykeith.blogspot.com/2023/06/the-legend-of-skull-bluff-true-story.html
but I will reserve them for another time or allow you to explore the story of how the Spirit of Skull Bluff wreaked havoc on me during a canoe float trip on Arkansas' Buffalo River.
I hope you enjoyed this post about strange and odd events I've experienced through the years.
The words stuff and lure are actually appropriate for most of it...as most of it is purposely designed to catch the unwary shopper and does little to improve your outdoor experience. Even so, the majority of the outdoor gear I now use was at one time...new, and even though now old, still functional and useful.
Let's start with my Old Town canoe. As of this post it is almost 20 years old and has developed numerous scars, dents, dings, and gouges, yet it is still a highly functional vessel. It weighs in at around 59 pounds, perhaps a bit heavy to portage over a long distance, but still light enough to be lifted and carried across my shoulders without too much effort. Near the front and toward the stern there are signs of wear and tear, but with a little Marine JB Weld application, the deep scars have been sealed and re-enforced.
Once a year for the past several years I have removed and refinished the wooden thwarts applying a bit extra varnish to the ends to create a waterproof seal at the most vulnerable places. All the fittings are then securely tightened upon reassembly. There are newer, lighter weight canoes available today, however I doubt they are any more functional than my 20 year old canoe, and I do believe my old one retains the classic lines of a traditional canoe the newer ones seemed to lack. The newer ones are also quite a bit more expensive.I also use wooden paddles. I love the look and feel of a wooden paddle. The newer fiberglass or light weight aluminum or carbon fibre paddles with plastic blades just don't do it for me. I'm a traditionalist at heart and even though the newer ones are functional, they just don't stand the test of time when compared to a wooden paddle.
Last year I took two old inexpensive Feather Brand wooden paddles and combined them into a single, double bladed paddle. It was an experiment actually, just to see if it might work and to recycle two old paddles I no longer used. Turns out this new recycled double paddle works great and has become my favorite paddle to use on long haul canoe trips. As a bonus it retains the classic look and feel of wood. Someday I will do a Youtube video on how I made that paddle.
Backpacking is an activity I have jump started back to life after some sporadic attempts spaced apart through the years. Although I had done enough to feel like I was at least somewhat seasoned as a backpacker, the gear I use is and was old school stuff. As a result it was/is also heavy. I needed to reduce the weight I carried. I started with eliminating things I really did not need and did purchase a new lightweight cook stove that saved me several pounds of weight. I also used a packer tent that was just too small and with the supplied poles, too heavy. I did two things that reduced my carry weight with the tent. I eliminated the poles, and then also started using a small tarp in place of a tent. There are times a tent is preferable, but it needs poles to stand up correctly so I simply cut some when I use it. The tarp option is certainly lighter in weight, but the tarp I used was simply too small and provided only a superficial covering.
That was okay in dry, warm weather, but in cooler and/or damp weather it would not work. That is when I remember having an old Coleman 8 person tent I did not use anymore in my attic. It came with a rainfly, so I extracted it from the case and discovered the rainfly was almost three times the size of the tarp I had been using and only weighed slightly more. It is a perfect example of recycling old gear toward a newer use. The larger tarp can be rigged several ways to provide a safe and secure covering for any kind of outing.
Hiking boots are a vital piece of gear when it comes to backpacking. Mine are probably 15 years or more old, however, the soles are still in good shape as are the uppers with one exception. On one of the boots part of the seam/rim has separated from the upper just slightly, enough though to warrant some kind of repair action. After a good cleaning, I judicially applied ample amounts of ShoeGoo, a kind of shoe glue. After allowing it to season for a day or two, the boot was almost good as new and ready for several more seasons of hiking. A tube of ShoeGoo was a lot cheaper than a new pair of hiking boots or even paying a shoe repairman for a fix.
As a photographer, I will from time to time think of ways I can recycle old gear to enhance my attempts at capturing nature. Sometimes you get caught out in wet weather. Even though most camera gear is weather-proof to some degree, most camera gear do not do well in wet weather. I needed something to cover my camera and large 50-500 lens to protect it from wet conditions. Stuffed underneath some of my old outdoor gear was an old set of rain gear I did not use anymore. It had a camo pattern to it so I got the idea to cut off a leg from the pants to fit as a sleeve over the lens that also extended around the camera body. Worked like a charm. Cost me nothing, and weighs virtually nothing and provides a good waterproof solution.
Sewing has become a standard and necessary skill for me. Many of my outdoor clothes through wear and tear develop threadbare abrasions, rips, and other assorted holes if not addressed will continue to grow into something more destructive. I've gotten pretty good at patching up such things. As I already stated I've made simple bags and other containers, but I am far from being able to sew any kind of clothing. I have also added extra tie down loops to my tarps to make securing and hanging them easier and more efficient. My old sleeping bag was becoming threadbare along the inside top portion and had developed a significant rip in the ripstop nylon causing some of the stuffing to come out. I took an old flannel sheet and cut a portion of it to shape, then using the sewing machine stitched in the flannel material across the ripped out section...Good as new adding extended life to my old sleeping bag. With the remainder of that old flannel sheet, I folded it lengthwise and stitched it across the bottom and about 3/4 the way up one side to make a soft, warm, sleeping bag liner. My cost...$0.00...New store bought liner...$30.00 to $60.00.
If I thought about it long enough, I could come up with other recycling solutions for old outdoor gear, but you are by now probably getting the idea of where I am going with this post. Extending the life of the outdoor gear you already have is certainly cheaper than buying new stuff. With a little creative thinking, new useful solutions for gear that has been sitting in the garage for a while can provide you with many more months or even years of service.
The previous BTC post reviewed the importance of staying motivated and provided a few tips and pointers on how to start a physical conditioning routine as an older outdoor photographer. As part two of this series I'd like to offer a few more tips that helps to sustain your motivation to get out and explore the outdoors.
Tip One: Start simple..and discover outdoor opportunities close to home. I'd love to spend time in Yellowstone NP, or Yosemite NP, and maybe take my canoe to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota for a week of backcountry canoeing. I'd even love getting back to the Tallgrass Prairie region in Oklahoma or the Buffalo National River in Arkansas. However, right now those desires are simply not possible for me to fulfill. Once I determined that being able to make those trips anytime soon were not likely to occur, my outdoor options became a lot simpler. I started looking more earnestly for opportunities closer to home and discovered just how abundant those opportunities were. I asked myself, If not those exotic adventures, what then can I do close to home? Since that time I have discovered the joys of canoe camping on Barren River Lake which is about a thirty to forty-five minute drive from my house.
I can experience pretty much the same kind of outings I'd find in the Boundary Waters area, it's just a matter of perspective. I also discovered numerous backpacking opportunities in the backcountry of Mammoth Cave NP, about a 45 minute drive north of my home. It's a near wilderness adventure with ample miles of trails and primitive camping locations. I also spend time in the woodlands and cornfields behind my house watching and photographing the local deer population. These and other opportunities await me almost everyday virtually right outside my backdoor. It just requires a mindset shift to accept the idea of making the most of what I do have available close to home.
Tip Two: Slow down and Be In The Moment. Photographing nature requires a degree of patience well beyond other types of photography. Sometimes, maybe even most times, wildlife and nature in general simply do not cooperate. That is when you need to slow your mind down, and start looking for the other intrinsic values of being outdoors. When I do, I begin to hear more clearly the birds singing and see with renewed interest the graceful soaring of a hawk across a blue sky. I hear the wind searching through the trees, and feel the relaxed sense nature provides for taking time to simply be there. There is more to outdoor photography than taking pictures.
Enjoy the process. Empower the moment. Allow what you do to find its own path. There will be times nature will present herself to you in all of her glory, and there will be times when she tells you to wait until next time. Even when that happens, there is always something to gain from the experience, so slow down and allow yourself to simply be in the moment.
Tip Three: Keep a Journal of your activities. I recently discovered an old journal I had kept well over twenty years ago. In that journal was written many of the hunting and fishing and camping stories I experienced with my good friends Rocky, Curtis, and the now late Mr. Ralph. Rereading those simple entries brought many vivid memories back to life. It was as though I could feel the cold wind in my face again as we faced freezing temperatures and spitting sleet during a duck hunting episode. I recalled with delight the sites and sound of several thousand snow geese as they winged their way overhead at first light on a bitterly cold January day. When that huge largemouth bass broke free of the surface right next to Ralphs old Grumman canoe and snapped the line, well it was all captured in that journal. Those and other entries were special moments captured in simple prose when the memory was fresh. None of them were particularly well versed, just simple entries of what happened when and where. In more recent times, I've once again began to journal about my outdoor activities and have thoroughly enjoyed the process.
Back in 2010, I started this blog to chronicle the outdoor photography stories I experience and share some of the events and photography concepts I've used and learned about over the years. Sometimes, I go back and reread some of those early entries and almost always finish with a smile on my face. I've also started to create video productions about my outings. Doing so has taught me a great deal about just how much there is to learn about attempting such things, but I still enjoy the process. Those productions are visual journals...extensions really from those simple first entries I made so many years ago and are not intended to replace my outdoor journal entries, but to expand on leaving a legacies of stories for family and friends to share.
Tip Four: Try New Things, Avoid Falling Into A Rut. I floated along in my canoe last summer hugging a long, curving, ridge lined with rocky bluffs, and discovered an amazingly beautiful location on Barren River Lake. It was the kind of place easily overlooked, but by simply slowing down and allowing myself to explore a new location (for me) I was rewarded for my efforts. I tried something new that day just to see what was there. Not everyone can take off in a canoe. I've been doing it for close to fifty years now so I've gained through experience a sense of confidence in my ability to handle the situation.
The idea here is to not allow yourself get locked into doing the same ole thing the same ole way all the time. It is a easy habit to get trapped into, and yes...that was me for a very long time. But a few years ago I began to realize because of career related obligations, just how many years, and months, and days, and how many thousands of hours had gotten away from me. Somewhere along that timeline, I all but lost my identity. That is when I made a conscious effort to backup and rediscover who I was...and it became a revealing and rewarding path that lead into a new and refreshing timeline of discovery.
Tip Five: Seek Out Small Pleasures. 'It's when the cool air of morning hovers over the quiet hours is when I feel most at home, most in tune with where I am. Before the rays of daylight evaporate the darkness, while the last remnants of pre-dawn cling to life and fatigue continues to invade my eyes is when I realize just how important are moments such as these...' Those few words are the beginning of a Beyond the Campfire post I made way back in 2010 (The Gift of Small Pleasures). They rang true then...maybe even more so today...and remind me of how important it is to simply commune with nature at its simplest level. Sustaining your motivation as an older outdoor photographer can often become diffused and subdued as life's challenges take their toll. But, when you begin to seek out the small pleasures of life, well sometimes and maybe even most times, those challenges begin to take a backseat to how you face adversity.
Slowing down, reducing the busyness of your life, making time to step away from the routine and explore new adventures close to home or a ways off...well, a great many of life's rough edges can be smoothed over. It is not always the big things that matter the most or produce the most lasting impact. What really matters most are the small personal moments of our lives.
Watching a sunset reflect across the mirrored surface of a lake, listening to the voice of a stream as it chases its path over, through, and around the stones along its course, sitting in front of a campfire and feeling its warmth on a chilly fall evening...well, these are the kinds of small pleasures where infinite value is placed mostly upon the experience. Seek them out in your own life, and you will discover where they lie.
I hope these simple tips encourages you as an older outdoor photographer, or maybe even if you are still relatively young, to make time and experience a quality of life that enhances your desire to get out. Hope to see you out there...!
Dewitt Jones, a former National Geographic photographer, emphasized the importance of being willing to place yourself at the point of greatest potential. That often means you must recognize the potential of a location based on time of year, time of day, and most importantly, the potential quality of the light. Getting into position to capture the best light often requires some physical exertion.
When I started 'Beyond The Campfire', it's intent was to combine outdoor activities with photography. Over the years as the site has matured, I realize more clearly now just how important Dewitt's words are. The problem is, as you grow older, physical demands grow larger and more difficult to maintain. Because of that, it is important to sustain a level of physical activity over a long period of time. That alone requires an elevated degree of motivation. So, allow me to review what I do to remain as fit as my body will allow, and to share a few motivational tips with you.
First of all, Know your limitations: At 60, 70, or even 80, you are not going to keep up with younger people. It's a simple fact of life. The trick is to proceed at your own pace. Slow down and enjoy the moment, and do not push yourself to exhaustion. Most importantly, what goes without really saying it, consult your doctor before heading out into the wilds and make sure there are no underlying issues that might cause problems.
Gym or home based workouts? The gym provides a good number of benefits and equipment to help you improve your overall fitness level. Having a gym membership often provides a degree of motivation as well, as you will often make new friends of like mind and age, and can also learn from them various techniques and skills to build strength and endurance. A membership can be costly though, so to avoid such costs you might consider to do your own workout in your garage or in your home. I used a gym for a good number of years and gained a lot of benefits from doing so, however in more recent times I've switch to a home based workout routine. I call it my 'Car Battery' workout. I keep it simple by doing pushups and using an old car battery as a type of dumbbell. It weighs about 35 to 40 lbs and I do arm curls, bent over rows, and squats with it. It works my biceps, triceps, back and shoulders, and legs including the glutes. Pushups are a good all around strength builder hitting your back and shoulders, chest, arms, and even your legs to some degree. My routine consists of cranking out 100 pushups done in 5 sets of 20 reps, plus 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 12 reps with the car battery working arm curls, bent over rows and squats three days a week. Simple and effective. In the near future I will be making a YouTube video on my 'Car Battery' workout routine.
Not everyone will be able to start the same way, so begin with what you are able to do and over time you will build strength and endurance. Start light at first with fewer reps and slowly build up. Simple push ups or modified push ups (bracing your knees on the ground) are a good starting place. If you can only do one or two sets of two or three reps, start there, then gradually increase the number of reps and sets as you get stronger.
Walk or Run? I used to run (and swim and bike) a lot, but can no longer do so. I do have a bothersome hip that slows me down, but I do walk quite a bit and the more I walk, the stronger the hip becomes. My intent over the next year is to average around 80 to 100 miles of walking per month or 1000 miles over the next year. I may not attain those numbers, but even if I only make half that much, that will be an accomplishment. I walk carrying a few extra pounds of weight in a small pack I sling over my shoulder so to stress myself a little more and I do include several long and in some cases shorter steeper hills. Walking builds leg strength and cardiovascular endurance and helps to keep the joints limber. Just starting out, walk a half mile or so and over time you will be able to build up endurance and strength to easily walk several miles. The idea is not so much distance, but time and to keep moving.
Diet and Eating Habits: Losing weight: So much has been written about diets and there are so many diet videos and commercials floating around I get tire of seeing them. Frankly, I do not diet. Diets almost never work long term. What is more effective is a lifestyle change that includes a fitness routine and a moderation of the number of calories you intake. Losing weight is a matter of burning more calories than you consume. I eat pretty much what I want to eat. I just do it in moderation. I include green leafy veggies, some fruits, fish and chicken, some red meat and potatoes, along with a few deserts from time to time. The key is to limit refined sugar intake, and to lower the volume of food intake stopping when you feel full and not over stuffing yourself. Fasting also provides a lot of health benefits. Too complex of a concept to cover here, but investigate the benefits of fasting to determine how it might apply to your situation.
Supplements: I also take a few supplements which includes Omega-3 fish oil, Turmeric, a Garlic capsule, Vitamin D and C, along with a daily vitamin. I'm sold on the Garlic capsule. Garlic I've learned, has natural antibacterial and antiviral properties. It strengthens your immune system and when combined with the other antioxidant properties of vitamin D and C, well lets just say I sailed through the Covid thing without any shots and never got sick. Have not been sick in over three years and the last time I suffered with anything it was a very mild sinus infection from which I recovered in a few days.
Summary: In the past few years I've been doing a lot more canoe camping and backpacking along with day trips employing both canoe and hiking. I almost always take along my camera gear which adds a few pounds of extra weight to the effort. Staying in shape both aerobically and in physical strength is important so I can more easily explore these rewarding avenues of outdoor photography.
As important as being in shape is, the most important element as an older outdoor photographer is to remain motivated. A positive state of mind is vital to sustaining motivation beyond the occasional excursion into the outdoors. It is true; You are only as old as your mind says you are. My doctor recently told me after looking at my physical exam numbers, "These are excellent. I have patients in their 30's that do not have numbers as good as yours...I'm a doctor, and my numbers are not as good as yours." Those words alone are a strong motivation to stay with it.
Staying motivated is the key here. Success builds on itself and enhances your motivation to keep at it. Stay active. Develop a fitness routine but change it up ever so often. Make a fitness schedule and stay with it. Do what you can and are able to do at your own pace. The idea is to enjoy getting out and not struggle with the physical aspects of being an outdoor photographer. Stay with it...see ya out there...!
Where has this year gone? Seems the older I grow the faster time gets away from me. I no longer think of time within the context of days or weeks, or even years, but in decades. Speaking of that, where has the last decade gone? It was thirteen years ago when I started the Beyond The Campfire blog. Five hundred plus outdoor/photography articles later here I am about to wrap up another season and what a season it has been!
Over the past months we explored photography from a variety of angles including nostalgic reflections, seasonal changes, a variety projects from Ansel Adams style to Being in the Moment to Woodlands photography. We also explored in more depth Wildlife photography concentrating on the deer populations near my home. Along the way we spent time exploring with my Old Town Canoe making both day trips and overnight adventures, plus we managed a few backpacking excursions into the backcountry of Mammoth Cave National Park. Perhaps the most revealing project was indeed the Ansel Adams Project where I purposely made photographic attempts in the Ansel Adams style and created a solid portfolio of black and white landscape images.
A good many short day trips and simple walkabouts became a large part of the outdoor experiences and I was able to create several YouTube video productions employing the images and video footage from many of those outings along with the overnighters. Video productions included photographing Kentucky Whitetail deer, Photographing Sandhill Cranes, A Shanty Hollow series, Chasing the Sun, and Exploring the Narrows on Kentucky's Barren River Lake. Along with those several videos were produced that chronicled overnight canoe camping and backpacking. All of these and others can be viewed on my YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@BeyondTheCampfireByKeith/videos
It truly has been an eventful year...but, What's instore for 2024?
Next season I will be exploring many of the same kinds of photographic challenges, but I plan on focusing more on the videography side of that challenge. I plan on encompassing more 'behind the scenes' kind of videos where I explain in some detail the processes, the thoughts and techniques I placed into making the program. I'll detail to some degree the physical challenges I faced to obtain a specific photograph or to accomplish a canoe trip or backpacking trip. I will also explore the equipment I used and how I prepare for an overnight or multi-day canoe or backpacking trip. These will include insights on what the challenges are from an older person's perspective and what is required physically, emotionally, and training to be able to pursue an outdoor challenge such as these.
One specific canoe trip I plan on is an end-to-end multi-day canoe trip on Barren River Lake. This will be somewhere around a 40 + mile trip spread over several days employing primitive camping at isolated locations along the route. Most likely that will happen sometime in the latter days of spring or early summer. I also plan on making several multi-day backpacking trips and will include sessions on preparations and expectations on making such a trip.
Photography projects have not been defined yet. Most of the time they simply come to life as a spur of the moment insight. So we'll see what ideas and insights come to mind as we travel through 2024, but photography will be a large part of those multi-day and long day trips I have planned for next year.
I also want to do more night sky photography next season. Night Sky photography has been something I have pursued over the years but in recent seasons I have neglected to keep pace with it. It is a fascinating style of photography and I plan on making another video on the processes and techniques I use to capture night sky photographs.
Okay, so there it is at least at a high level. As 2024 plays out I will adjust to the situations and will most likely add to or alter plans as necessary. I hope you join me...Beyond The Campfire...as we continue to explore the magic of the outdoors. Bring your camera along and lets see what happens.
Although I do a great deal of nature style of photography, I also take other styles of photographs which includes using speedlights or remotely fired flash units. A few years ago I managed to capture one of my favorite images employing the use of four speedlights, but in a unique way.
Bowling Green's Aviation Heritage Park is a spectacular park featuring several vintage military airplanes all of which have a connection to Bowling Green. My favorite is the F4 Phantom which was flown by Brigadier General Dan Cherry over Vietnam. This aircraft has a unique history for the pilot as well as the Vietnamese pilot he encountered while on a mission over North Vietnam. The story is chronicled in the book My Enemy, My Friend by Dan Cherry.
I love the styling of this aircraft and wanted to capture it in a unique way not with a simple snap shot, but with a style and flare that accents the power and dynamic nature of this amazing historical aircraft. To accomplish this, I photographed it after dark using four speedlights and red gels. The idea was to illuminate the tarmac beneath the airplane and catch the reflections generated by the light bouncing off the ground.
Phabulous Phantom is a powerful image of a classic aircraft and stands as one of my favorite images of all time. It took two separate images blended together to make this photo, the process of blending multiple zones of light is explained in the attached video I made a few years ago.
Fall in Kentucky seems to hover in time until all at once, it descends upon the landscape in one sudden rush. That held true this season in 2023. Along with the color change came a change in weather with temperatures dropping to near winter-like levels...at least for the better part of the last few days of October and into the first few days of November.
I've been wanting to make a cold weather backpacking trip and the conditions were just right for doing so. I headed off once again into the backcountry of Mammoth Cave National Park for a relatively simple overnight outing. My destination was once again "The Bluffs" area...my favorite location in the park.
I made a concerted effort to reduce the weight of my backpack and managed to eliminate enough excess weight to drop it from around 35 pounds to 27 pounds. What a difference just those few pounds made. With a few more upgrades and refinements, I hope to drop even move to at least 25 pounds, but for now, I'll take the 27 over the 35 anyday.
Beautiful weather greeted me. Daytime highs were forecast for upper 40's with nigh time lows in the mid-20's. The sky was blue and the sun bright as I head off down the trail....
Please enjoy...this newest video on Backpacking Mammoth Cave N.P.
It is important to locate an uncluttered area when making woodland images. I look for places with an openness and length to it along with a measure of depth and purpose to its layout. Sometimes, maybe even most times, finding such a location takes time and patience. But when you do find one and catch it in morning light, well, the results will justify the effort. Framing an effective composition is so subjective, it is near impossible to suggest any kind of how-to advise. My best advice would be to simply allow your eye to wonder both physically and imaginatively. When the right framing, the right light, the right moment appears...you will know it.
The most important trick is to possess a willingness to be there...I call it 'The Art of Being There'. Doing so is not always comfortable, often time consuming, and many times frustrating. It requires an educated eye, an instinctive sense of potential, an awareness of place, and a preparedness to endure what most try to avoid.
You will discover just how many rewards can be absorbed by simply taking an early morning walk through the woods . The satisfaction gained when it all comes together, well, it is quite difficult to place a value on such things. I suppose the allure of morning light is what draws me toward such things and allows my often tired body and mind to push past what I might otherwise think I am capable of achieving. When those moments of light present themselves, all the uncomfortable efforts leading up to them suddenly not seem so bad after all.
Early October in Kentucky can often be some of the most pleasant of seasons. Fall teases the landscape with a touch of color and cooler temperatures, you know, not quite fully fall, but not ready to let go of summer just yet. I was on an overnight canoe trip once again on Kentucky’s Barren River Lake and exploring the area north of what is known as ‘The Narrows’. In previous weeks I had made a couple of day trips into this location and discovered a very nice and somewhat secluded camping spot. The canoe trip into this new camping area required a leisurely and unhurried paddle. It turned out to once again be a marvelous overnight adventure.
Please enjoy this newest of BTC videos:
The afternoon drifted along about as slow as the lazy clouds moved across the late October sky. The deer herd I wanted to photograph were slow to appear and never really came close enough to offer any kind of decent photo op. As the light began to fade, I slowly made my way along the outer edge of the cornstubble field heading back home. Across the way, the sun dipped below the treeline that stretch across a good portion of the west end of the field and I paused for a moment to see if a sunset might develop. It just wasn't working as the light turned into mostly a diffused and muted gray. Sometimes, most times actually, I would just simply pack up and keep on going. On this trip I employed a technique I learned many years before; I turned around and looked in the opposite direction.
To my pleasant surprise, a few slivers of clouds were being highlighted by the last remnants of the sun's rays and cast a pale pinkish orange glow across the sky. The remainder of the clouds reflected a bluish and contrasty tint. I framed a few images, then captured a series of overlapping vertical images that were used to create a panoramic photo. That composite turned out so subtly dramatic, I used it to create a mirror image...and the rest is history.
The Blue Hour most often occurs just before sunrise or just after sunset, however it can occur at other times as well. Overcast or rainy days and shady locations, can provide very natural bluish light. My favorite is the early and late light opportunities.
Indian Summer it is often called when the mornings are crisp and vibrant yet elements of summer linger throughout the day, providing the kind of contrasts that teases us toward more refreshing days of fall. A leisurely stroll through the woods and along the edge of the cornfields behind where I live often reveals those first signs of fall-like color. It may only be a single leaf, but a leaf adorned in its full fall color splendor suspended within a shield of late summer greenery provides that single photographic moment. Sometimes and entire branch has already turned color and waves at the morning with the slightest of breeze. A short hike to a nearby pond will often reveal reflections of color amongst the random driftings of fallen leaves.
In a few weeks, more and more color will gradually appear, yet here in Kentucky it almost always seems like the full blown fall outbreak lingers. You see it coming, a little here, some there, and you believe it will never arrive, then suddenly overnight you step outside and the world is filled with the vibrancy of a New England fall. The color simply explodes across the landscape and before long, it is all too soon gone.
The wildlife appear to understand a change of seasons is almost upon us. The deer will spend a great deal of time meandering across the fields with their now months old fawns following close behind. A migratory songbirds begin to appear in and amongst the trees adding a newer song to the already syphonic interlude that is Indian Summer. Sometimes I will find a place to just sit for a while to listen to the sounds of the approaching new season. Change is in the air, a change not only visible, but one where the feeling is obvious.
The contrasts of an Indian Summer and the promise it holds for what is to come, well...it is perhaps one of my favorite times of year to get out with my camera or to drift across the still waters of a local lake and absorb the first vestiges of change in the air.
Took about a month off to refresh and regroup. Guess I needed the time away as it seems I am always more enthusiastic about sharing some of my outings afterwards.
The weather forecast called for light and variable winds with sunny skies filtered through some high and hazy thin clouds with temperatures peaking out about 80 degrees. It was time to once again load up 'Camper' and head over to Barren River Lake. This time around, my destination was an area known as 'The Narrows'. Located sort of toward the upper end of the lake where a meandering arm of the lake snakes its way through the landscape. Characterized by tall rocky bluffs and tree lines ridges, the location provides some of the most scenic views on the lake. The Narrows is a long peninsula that pinches into a very narrow section with the lake visible on both sides before it widens somewhat before ending in the water. A popular campground and marina are located at the far end.
Not the first time I've been to The Narrows, but the first time to put my canoe in there and explore what it had to offer. Some of the best big sky photographs I've ever taken were captured in this area on the lake. With the early fall season showing signs of color changes in the trees, I anticipated new opportunities would present themselves. My plan; simply paddle and follow the bluffs until after mid-day, then retrace my route back to the put in, and take photographs along the way to document the day hoping that at least one image might be daring enough to define the moment. As it turned out, this is exactly what happened.
The day progressed as planned mostly uneventful and I took several rest stops and checked out several potential camping locations. The hazy skies began to burn off by early afternoon and as I made my way back I did manage to capture a few big sky images.
Oddly enough I collected a couple of stowaways inside my canoe. One was some kind of butterfly, black and blue with white spots along the outer edge of his wings. He was struggling on the water, so I plucked him from his watery tomb and placed him on top of my lunch box to dry out...and yes he did eventually fly away. Later on as I was unloading my gear I found what looked like a gecko inside my canoe. He was about four inches long, sort of gray in color with splayed out fingers and large head. Turned out to be what is called a Tropical House Gecko...a non-native species to Kentucky.
I ended up paddling right at 10 miles, a good day on the water. I will return in a few weeks as the fall colors progress, but this day turned out to be a delightful day afield. Come join me...I do believe you will enjoy the moment.
