Camping on the Sonoma Coast with her wife and friends, they were in an altered state, soaking in the stunning sunset. Later, back at camp—and very stoned—they realized they were locked out of the rig… with four animals inside. A wobbly table, some teamwork, and a heroic climb saved the day.

On a family camping trip, he’s feeling the distance growing with his now-teenage daughter Jenny. After a tense moment over whether she’d go whale watching, they end up on the boat. When a humpback suddenly breaches, he sees Jenny’s face light up—and in that moment, he’s taken back to when she was three, realizing he hasn’t lost her after all.

On a family camping trip, he’s feeling the distance growing with his now-teenage daughter Jenny. After a tense moment over whether she’d go whale watching, they end up on the boat. When a humpback suddenly breaches, he sees Jenny’s face light up—and in that moment, he’s taken back to when she was three, realizing he hasn’t lost her after all.

After college, while in the Peace Corps, she came down with malaria and woke up to find her underwear on her forehead—to cool her down. She and her brother had one wild day on a moped before catching a bus to find a doctor.

New to camping, he and his wife joined their kids’ school trip with families of all experience levels—including the expert “Actuallys.” After one of their kids pelted him with a balloon, he impulsively fired it back, knocking the kid flat. He never confessed… but it felt oddly satisfying.

In 1969, he and a friend camped in Ensenada with another vet fresh from Vietnam. When nearby demolition work shook the ground all night, no one slept—but in the morning, the vet smiled and said, “That was great!”

While snorkeling with her family, they got caught in a current and drifted out of sight of their boat. As she calmly reached for her kids, unsure what would happen next, another boat appeared and rescued them. She reflects: parenting is staying calm and afloat, even when the current pulls you off course.

Thirty years and forty pounds ago, he fell in love with mountain climbing. Even after getting struck by lightning once, he kept going. On another climb, a friend’s bathroom break delayed their descent—leaving them racing down as lightning struck all around.

After finding a leftover classroom pet crayfish named Crusty, she tried to return him to nature—only to witness a brutal crawdad attack. Feeling guilty, she made a flower wreath and held a small farewell for Crusty.

On his Maui honeymoon, he reflects on marriage while taking in the island’s natural beauty—from rainy skies to stargazing and standing at the edge of a volcano. Nature helps him see the big picture.