Our most special Wild Places offer more than a pretty view, a place to fish, or critters to hunt. Wilderness represents pure Freedom.
Freedoms are getting more difficult to find. Big cities and populated areas feel less free. Most of your day is being filmed from a battery of security and traffic cameras. Law enforcement is just around the next turn. Limits, rules, restrictions, and scrutiny are everywhere. This is all fine if you go with the flow and do nothing stupid. The problem is that we are human, and we do stupid things. 
Hiking into a high mountain lake allows you to enjoy freedom. Once we leave the truck behind, we begin to enjoy the solitude of being alone. It feels like we just plugged into an energy source and are charging up to full power once again. We become reliant on just our own skills, gear, and planning. Everything good or bad is on our shoulders. Life just became more simple, interesting, and complex at the same time.
No job sucks the life out of you more than Teaching. After nearly 40 years involved with education, it was important to recharge each summer. On the last day of school, my truck would be packed, fueled, and ready to go. It was time to head west.
Montana here we come! 2200 miles later and things started to reverse themselves. More energy, more smiles, and more fun. Everything in life was freer. Less traffic, surveillance, people, stress and anxiety. Once these life suckers were reduced, the energy meter would begin to climb.
Bathing in the rivers washed away the rest. Sunrises and sunsets brightened your disposition. No TV, newspapers, traffic jams, problem solving was easy. Doing things when you wanted not when you were told. The fishing, hiking, canoeing, and the rest were just the excuse to simply relax and recharge.
We all need a wilderness destination to regenerate. It may be a bay, beach, mountain, river, lake, or simply a special place in the back yard that is just yours.
AAAHHHH!!!!
Montana Grant
For more Montana Grant, charge up with him at www.montanagrantfishing.com.
