The Meadows were only five miles away from our suburban Massachusetts home, but to my brother Mark and me, these low-lying acres were in a different world. It was here that our passion for the outdoors blossomed. Filled with marsh, fields, ponds and streams, the area held infinite possibilities for two young explorers.

And there was mystery too. The Connecticut River, New England’s largest, flowed silently, forcefully, by the edge of the Meadows, like a living being that commanded respect by its very presence. We knew little about the river; we had never been on it in a boat, never fished it, and never swam in its dark waters. It was simply too big for us. In fact, the widest point on the river’s entire 409-mile length is at the Meadows. To Mark and me it was an ocean–a bit frightening, but a powerful lure nevertheless.

There was one June day in particular that put the Meadows and the river in my heart forever, probably the start of the journey that led me to my quest for a cabin in the woods.

So begins Mike Tougias’ memoir of growing up loving the woods and waters and the fields and fauna of Massachusetts.