gccolvin

Well, lets see, Im not much on describing myself, but if your reading my profile you must be ineterested, so I will give it my best shot. First let me explain something, I imagine most of you read my occupation and already have a preconcieved notion about me and my fellow offshore workers, well I will reiterate the fact that most of these notions are derived from inaccurate information, and to be frank, ignorance, if you care to discuss it I am totally open to that, in fact I feel it is part of my responsibility as an employee and as an outdoorsman, but be forewarned, this can become a very lengthy conversation indeed, lol! As for my backpacking/hiking/camping expirience, I find myself at a impasse in describing my background but here is a basic overview; I was born on, and raised on a working cattle ranch in the Texas Hill Country, my family has been ranching on these lands for well over a hundred years, there is a reason my family has been able to do this; stewardship, plain and simple. I grew up riding in the "backcountry" gathering livestock, spending days and weeks at a time on the rivers and creeks of the hill country, of course I thought this was normal, I now realize that I should consider myself extremely lucky, outdoors was not a recreational activity, but a part of everyday life, this has been a tremendous asset as I began to discover the fantastic sport of backpacking. I am now nearing 30, have a son of my own and no longer live on the ranch, but my recent discovery of the national park system, and the sport of backpacking has led to a renewed spirit and interest in remaining close to my roots and the outdoors. This being said, I have a large amount of expirienece in "my" land but very little in the way of backpacking, etc., so most of this is new to me and I am learning with great eagerness, and being able to learn along with and impart thihs newfound knowledge on my son as well is priceless and extremely rewarding! I hope to develop my navigational oreinteering skillset, my mountainous country expirience and knowledge, as well expirience some winter hiking activities, I am an avid skier, making 5-8 trips to the mountains every year, and hope in the coming years to begin to learn the basics of backcountry skiing, although still a challenge the blacks and double blacks of the resorts have become somewhat hum-drum, and of course crowded. Lastly, thanks to all in advance for your advice, sharing your knowledge, and creating a place on the web to discuss the above!