junior tagged posts

Sally

As an only child of two very active and outdoorsy parents, I was probably a disappointment. Rather than kayaking the Finger Lakes with my mom, I wanted to go to the mall.  Instead of training for a bike race with my dad, I went to dance lessons.  Fishing, now that was the biggest long shot, except for the yearly family vacations on Lake Champlain.

Every year we got the same house; a family reunion outdoor utopia, between the Green and Adirondack Mountains on the island of North Hero, Vermont.  With limited cell service and no cable, the dock and rickety paddle-boat served as our family’s personal waterpark, and fishing poles and some bait were the ultimate ride...

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.”

– Aristotle

Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell met with five young outdoor enthusiasts last week to discuss America’s public lands and outdoor heritage.

The five were selected from across the nation as winners of the Sportsmen for Responsible Energy Development’s essay contest on “The Importance of Public Lands to Me”. The winners were Jarred Kay, 17, Flagstaff, Ariz.; Haley Powell, 17, Rock Springs, Wyo.; Matthew Reilly, 18, Palmyra, Va.; Rebecca Brown, 17, Conrad, Mont.; and Noah Davis, 18, Greensburg, Pa.

Haley, the winner from Wyoming, opened her essay “Public Lands and Me” with the above Aristotle quote. She is the youth membership chairwoman for Trout Unlimited in Wyoming and says people care about our nation’...

The Hunt of a Lifetime

Amy Lawry

I drew a mule deer buck tag and hunted during the juniors-only weekend in October. My dad and I decided to go camp out at a site in the southern Bitterroot Mountains of western Montana. On the first day of the hunt we walked three miles but no bucks, only does. We did “glass” staring at the hills to try to spot any movement.   

Later that day, we took another drive to a second area. My dad said, “I wish a big buck would just run across the road.”   Next thing you, know a big buck runs across the road. My dad stopped the truck and I got out. My dad and I walked over to where the buck ran. Right there, the big buck stood staring at me. I could only see his head. My heart was beating faster than a flying bullet...