• Use the time to learn local plants and animals. Every area has different scenery and wildlife, and it’s fascinating when you realize how many species exist in our world. It’s impossible to learn about all of them in one lifetime. Take pics and look them up later at home. The SEEK app is helpful. Family time camping or hiking is what you make it — intimate family conversations, an outdoor classroom, exercise, or outside entertainment. The experience can also be a time of solitude, a time to reflect and to listen to the distinct sounds of nature. But most importantly, hiking is unadulterated time spent enjoying the purity of our world with benefits galore. Parenting can be tough, especially in these crazy times, but the easiest and most helpful remedy is free and right in front of us in the natural world. A native of the South, Joshua Savage, his wife, and his two daughters sold their possessions and began traveling the world. They are constantly on the hunt for new adventures. He has written novels, children’s books, short stories and the recent travel guide, “100 Things to Do in Bend, Oregon Before You Die.” Follow his family’s adventures on Instagram & Twitter @savageglobetrotters.
20 DeSoto
