Exploration of Life

Isaac Sargent           

 This is a blog about exploration, but not any ordinary writing about what I like to do.  This is a passion I have had since the day I could stand on my very own two feet.  I have been to many places around the world in 28 years of life- places which have always kept my curiosity on high alert.  These places include: backyards, forested cemeteries, gullies, rivers, train tracks; sandboxes big and small, with the last one being in the middle east; Alaskan mountains and rivers; and the majority of the United States  east of the Mississippi; to the northern lakes of Wisconsin just to name a few.  No matter where I have been, I have always had passion about the variety of different climates, people, places, ecosystems, terrains and wildlife associated with the experience.  Whether my family and I were camping, my uncle and I were fishing in Alaska, my best friend Yuengling and I were exploring different areas in the world while fishing along the way, or traveling the world with the military to try and bring peace to the world.

            Exploration is one of the best hobbies anyone can have because you never know who or what you are going to witness.  I have met some very interesting people, for example, the past superbowl weekend my friend Yuengling and I were staying at a lodge run by a guide named Allen Gahl. Our guide was the most down to earth natural resource conscious person I have ever met.  Since he bought the place just after the Vietnam War ended he has guided Tom Hanks and has met President Carter, and Ted Nugent while guiding up north.  Yuengling and I had coffee the last morning with Al.  The three of us talked forever, but anytime Al would talk we would be quiet as  mice just trying to take in as much information as we could because when someone is full of brilliant knowledge the best thing to do is just be quiet. 

After all the talking was complete, my best friend and I headed home with the most knowledge we have ever comprehended under an hour.  The biggest take home message I could grasp is: if kids are taken fishing, hunting, hiking, or and other outdoor activity they are going to expend energy in positive ways which helps preserve the environment for future generations.  If we are good stewards of nature then everyone can explore nature in different ways whether it is fishing, mountain climbing, hiking, boating, camping in remote areas of the world; viewing glaciers or any other activity.  As a society we need to get off our butts and get out from the confines of home, work, or technology driven activities such as: Nintendo, Xbox, computer games, or any other lethargic activity you can think of. So go forth and enjoy the spirit of the wild- that’s what Ted Nugent would always say.

I really love the idea behind exploration and what I have talked about. Who knows what I’m going to do next? Hopefully fly a plane, so I can live in Alaska and explore the great northwest and final frontier of the United States.