Part 1: What America Looks Like Out Here – Freedom, Access, & The American Tradition
As America approaches 250 years as a nation, I’ve found myself thinking less about politics and more about people. The people who built this country. The same ones who defended it, explored it, protected it, and passed it forward one generation at a time.
For me, America has never been just a place on a map. It’s something I’ve experienced “out here” for most of my life — on trails, around campfires, in small towns, deserts, mountains, forests, and on the public lands that still give ordinary Americans room to breathe. Out here is where I’ve seen freedom lived. Not the kind argued about on television, but the real kind.
The freedom to explore a back road just because it’s there. The freedom to teach a grandkid how to catch nightcrawlers and go fishing. The freedom to gather around a campfire with friends and family. The freedom to hunt, hike, ride, wheel, camp, wander, and discover this country firsthand. That kind of freedom didn’t happen by accident. It was built through sacrifice, hard work, service, and generations of Americans who believed this country — and these public lands — were worth protecting.
Read my take on Catching Nightcrawlers with Grandpa.
As a combat veteran, I probably feel that a little deeper than most. I’ve seen firsthand what sacrifice looks like. I’ve watched young Americans carry responsibilities far beyond their years. And over time, I’ve come to believe that patriotism isn’t just something we say — it’s something we do.
Sometimes patriotism looks like military service. Sometimes it looks like volunteer trail work, including actions like:
* Mentoring younger folks.
* Packing out trash.
* Helping keep trails open.
* Teaching responsible recreation.
* Showing respect for the land and for each other.
Sometimes patriotism simply looks like caring enough to leave things better than we found them. That’s one reason I care so deeply about stewardship and responsible outdoor recreation. America’s public lands are one of the greatest gifts we’ve inherited. Deserts. Forests. Mountains. Dunes. Backroads. Rivers. Places where families still reconnect, veterans still find peace, kids still discover adventure, and Americans still experience freedom in a very real and personal way.
When I look back over the decades — from my younger years learning lessons outdoors, to military service, to the fire service, to trail work and advocacy — one thing keeps standing out to me: America happens out here.
It happens on volunteer workdays.
On dusty trails.
At desert camps.
At small-town events.
In Jeeps and pickups headed into the backcountry before sunrise.
In conversations around folding tables at land-use meetings.
In veterans reconnecting with peace and purpose outdoors.
In grandparents teaching kids how to respect the land.
That’s the America I know. She’s not perfect, and never has been. But America is always striving forward. And maybe that’s part of what these 250 years really mean.
Passing on 250 Years of Passion – Passing it Forward
As we move toward this 250-year milestone, I hope more people reconnect with the outdoors, stewardship, service, and each other. I hope we:
Mentor more younger folks.
Volunteer more.
Teach responsibility without preaching.
Protect access through stewardship.
And I hope we remember that freedom and responsibility have always traveled together. Because in the end, what we love about America doesn’t survive automatically. It survives because ordinary people care enough to protect it, defend it, and pass it forward one generation at a time.
And out here, on America’s public lands, we still have the chance to do exactly that.
Read about Volunteering as the Heart of Stewardship here.
Final Thought
Don’t forget to JOIN and SUPPORT those groups that make sense to what you believe in and enjoy doing.
— Del Albright
Catching Nightcrawlers with Grandpa – learning about the outdoors
