The Field Guide to Responsible Outdoor Recreation

A Practical Guide to Access, Ethics, Stewardship, and Keeping Outdoor Recreation Open
By Del Albright

The Book to Have — If You Care About Public Lands

Access to public lands rarely disappears all at once. It fades. Quietly. One small decision at a time. One bad example at a time.

After more than five decades outdoors — as a recreationist, volunteer leader, wildland fire chief, and land‑use advocate — I wrote this Field Guide to answer one hard question:

How do we keep outdoor recreation open without losing what makes it worth protecting?

No hype. No preaching. Just hard‑earned perspective.

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Who This Field Guide Is For

This book was written for people who actually go outside:

• Four‑wheelers, overlanders, and OHV riders
• Campers who explore beyond crowded campgrounds
• Hunters and anglers who depend on continued access
• Hikers and backcountry travelers who share public lands
• Club leaders, volunteers, and mentors

If you’ve ever wondered:

• Why rules keep changing
• Why access keeps shrinking
• Why one person’s mistake affects everyone
• Why experience alone isn’t enough anymore

You’re exactly who this guide is for.

What Makes This Field Guide Different

This is not a rulebook.

It’s a mindset guide built from real‑world experience.

Inside you’ll find practical, plain‑language guidance on:

• Responsible recreation beyond slogans and stickers
• How access is actually lost — and how it’s protected
• Stewardship that works in forests, deserts, dunes, and backcountry
• Leadership and group dynamics outdoors
• Risk, judgment, and decision‑making when things go sideways
• Working with land managers instead of against them
• Mentorship, example‑setting, and passing it on

No finger‑pointing. No ideology.

Just lessons learned the hard way — and shared so others don’t have to.

Why I Wrote This Book

I’ve watched access disappear — trail by trail, area by area.

Not always because people were reckless. Often because they didn’t understand how their actions were being seen.

I’ve also watched responsible recreation succeed:

• When volunteers showed up
• When leaders stayed calm
• When people chose ownership over shortcuts
• When communities worked with agencies instead of against them

This Field Guide exists to help more of that happen.

Because the future of outdoor recreation depends less on laws…

…and more on how we show up.

A Lifetime of Experience — In One Practical Guide

The perspective in this book comes from:

• 50+ years of outdoor recreation
• Decades of volunteer leadership and land‑use advocacy
• Wildland fire service and emergency response
• Teaching stewardship and leadership nationwide
• Working alongside agencies, clubs, and grassroots volunteers

This guide brings those lessons together — not as doctrine, but as usable guidance.

Get Notified When the Field Guide Is Available

The Field Guide to Responsible Outdoor Recreation is currently in final production and will be available soon in paperback and digital formats.

Sign up below and you’ll be notified when it’s released. You’ll also receive my free PDF with practical tips for keeping trails open and reducing wildfire risk.

To be notified when the Field Guide is released, sign up for my newsletter below.

Access is not guaranteed.
Stewardship is not optional.
Leadership belongs to those willing to carry it.

This Field Guide was written for them.

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