Favorite outdoor memories with grandad

[M.FREEZE]

I remember every summer when I was growing up I would go down to my great grandpas. I would spend a month there and assume the lifestyle. I would get up early and go to bed early. It was a slower pace of life, one I didn't appreciate at the time. Anyway, most mornings we would get in the truck and drive to Montauk State Park and trout fish. The great memories of being in the outdoors with grandad weren't measured by the number of fish we caught. The memories came from the simple things like the wing windows on the truck, to the scenic drive. I can't honestly tell you how many fish I caught there. I can vividly remember driving past a field and grandad telling me that he helped build the barn in the field. The talks we had in the truck were great. The way he talked about his fellow farmers made me feel like I knew them. You could judge by the stories he told that these were good trustworthy people. I miss those days. He was on of the "greatest generation". Drafted when he was 24 in 1944 he served in WWII. It was grandad that introduced me to the idea of knives being used as a tool. He taught me many things that I never knew I was even learning until it came time to use that knowledge. Truly a man that lead by example.

 

[338375]

I have a lot of great memories of my grandad...

He was a logger. Him and his brothers started logging in 1934, and he continued until 1974 when he was almost killed.
When I was about 7 years old, I got to start going up into the woods with him, in the log truck.
I would spend the night at their house, and we would get up around 1 a.m, have breakfast and go to the shop, and get the truck...

It was awesome for a kid of my age to be up in the woods, and being around the logging. When I was about 9, he started teaching me how to drive the log truck. I started driving at the mills, and eventually got to start driving in the woods.
I remember those days like it was yesterday...
The guys he was around were good guys. They worked hard, and liked to go fishing and hunting, on their days off.
Like you mentioned, the men from that era were honest, and trustworthy. They would help anyone that needed help,and expect nothing in return.

I use to go fishing with my grandad, and grama a lot when I was younger, and when I got old enough, I started going hunting with them. There were also a lot of times we went camping at the coast.

He passed away about 7 years ago, the day before his 93rd birthday. I miss him a lot, and think about him every day.
I feel fortunate to have the great memories, of the time I spent with him.

 

[M.FREEZE]

When you mentioned that the men of that era would help anyone and not expect anything in return, it reminded me of something else he did. He always gave away any extra food after he canned what he needed. He would set anything extra out in the gazebo and word of mouth would spread through church. People would come by and fill a few 5 gallon buckets with corn, tomatoes or beans. He never expected anything in return, and I really believe it made him happy to do this for people. That's all he needed. People helping people solved most problems.

 

[338375]

Absolutely. Back in my grandads day, they all went through the depression. They knew what it was like too have very little, and they didn't waste anything.
Helping people was just the way they were. Sadly, so many people today don't have this same thinking. It is all about them...
My son is 15 1/2 and I have tried to instill into him, the way of thinking that the older generations had.

 

[sykes3170]

Parents usually get a lot of the credit for raising kids and for the way they turn out and this is probably right for the most part. As I have gotten older and have kids of my own I can see how much of an impact grand parents have on grand kids. I think back to the time I spent with my grand parents and I can remember how fun and relaxed those times where. Grand parents and grand kids seem to have a bond that is less serious and more comfortable for the most part. I am so glad that my kids and I have been able to have the stellar example and ideas that only grand parents can provide.

 

[comoha]

My Grandpa Hank was the only one in our family to who really loved and understood the outdoors. He introduced me to fishing very early as seen in these pictures from the early 70's.
One of my fondest memories with him was collecting the little grub worm that sometimes holes up in a milkweed pod and using them for ice fishing. He is the first man I knew to carry a
pocketknife and use it. His relaxed demeanor is still something I try to emulate today, though not successfully.

 

[M.FREEZE]

Corey, that's an interesting point. Now that I think of it, grandad never once raised his voice to me. He never questioned me either. He just observed me and he was very laid back. I never heard him say a bad word about anyone either. I wish I could emulate him too.

 

[Grayzer86]

Reading these stories really got me thinking about my own grandfather who passed 5 years ago. I spent so many days with him at a young age that i was fortunate to make many good and lasting memories. He was possibly the hardest working man I have met, and worked two jobs to raise 7 children with my grandmother. He was very interested in the outdoors and was the one who really got me interested in hunting and the tools involved. In the winters when he was a young man, he worked in northern Saskatchewan, driving Cats across the frozen lakes and ice roads taking supplies into remote communities. He told several stories of friends he had lost when a cat would hit a patch of rotten ice and disappear to the bottom of these massive northern lakes. He was the type of man that would stop in a rainstorm to help someone broke down on the road or with a flat tire, even in his best suit, and never expect anything in return. He was the "pay it forward" type. he loved his grandkids more than anything, and had a genuine love for all children and animals, even as a hunter. I never heard him complain about anything ever in my life, and i never heard him raise his voice once. He was a very large, strong man, at about 6'4" and 200+ lbs of muscle and i will never forget seeing him load a deer in the truck, by himself, with the tailgate still up. It looked like he was tossing a coyote in there not a whitetail buck. My uncles tell me that even with the trouble they used to cause he never raised his voice and never said a harsh word to, or about anyone. The only time they ever saw him truly angry was once on a vacation, when they were at a rest stop. A clearly drunk man, was screaming at his son who was about 7-8 they said, and then proceeded to smack the child across face hard enough to knock him to the ground. They didnt give many details, but they said it did not end well for the drunk man who was repeatedly hitting the child in the parking lot. They said in 84 years of his life that was the first and last time anyone could recall that he had ever lost his temper. I try to live by the lessons i learned from him, and i know i dont always succeed, but i hope that i do a good enough job to make him proud.