“Adventure is just bad planning.”
~Roald Amundsen
Rarely does a Quote interest me enough to comment on, but this one does.
This Explorer is very famous and he knew it could be fatal if you didn’t PLAN for every possibility.
But that was then and this is now!
The past 35 years of my life (I’m proud to say) have had MANY instances of BADDDD! planning!
I wouldn’t trade all those experiences for any amount of money.
What did I learn? I must have been CRAZY!, you idiot! what did you do that for?
You see, I wasn’t headed for the top or bottom of the world. It is not scary going on adventures, it’s a few years later that you realize that maybe I was too stupid to be scared.
I like the TV show Survivor Man because he purposely puts himself into a challenging situation. He does research and planning but all the planning doesn’t fix everything.
I think there are people that only read about adventures, but believe me, you won’t regret making your own adventures.
Doug 
I was guilty of bad planning regarding a Montana fly fishing expedition once upon a time that got short circuited by heavy snow and we ran for Idaho and now I don’t go to Montana as much anymore. Bad planning on my part resulted in a major fly fishing adventure that wasn’t expected. What luck?
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
I don’t want my Guardian Angel(s) to get bored!
Doug
Donchya think that on Survivor Man the camera should be pointed at the real survivor, the cameraman… 
(sry for the mini-highjack)
Wonder what Shackleton thought of that quote?
mcsteff
I watch this and another show like this from time to time and find that although some of the advice is sound much of it is quite questionable. The other day I watched an episode where he was hiking out of a jungle like environment following a stream when he came to a waterfall (about 50 to 100 ft). Rather than skirting it by hiking out into the forrest he decided to climb down the slippery moss covered rocks, because there were too many thorns on the underbrush. You mean he would rather take his chances on broken bones or death with the waterfall as opposed to fighting his way through the thorney underbrush. The waterfall route made for better TV. Another time he was hiking out of the Utah canyon country Following one of its famous narrow gorge creeks when he ran into a log jam that backed the water up into a small deep pool. He decided to take a big breath and see if he could find a way to swim under it rather than to climb over it or back track a ways to climb out of the gulley. Once again good TV but real stupid. I find this stuff funny but hope people don’t use his approach if they find themselves in a similar situation.
He does all his own camera work often traveling 100s of yards back to retrieve his equipment. I do find some of the stuff he does a little stupid but then I am sitting at home in my armchair while he is out there all alone.
Yeah, I “plan” to catch fish but often end up with “adventure”! :roll:
I really like the quote and agree with the concept.
I enjoy the planning and logistics of a trip almost as much as the trip itself. Good planning can mean the difference between a great trip and a disaster.
Friends often tease me about the overkill, but they don’t seem to mind so much when I have the replacement shoe lace or spare rod to lend.
Doug,
:lol:
Makes me recall my 1st ever canoe float fishing trip, meant to be a day from Harpersfield to Vrooman Road on the Grand River here in northeast Ohio. Looked good on the map, BUT the Grand sits in a gorge with VERY few cross roads accessible. Two rookies on a river after dark. My buddy (about 10pm) turned sharply, dumping us & all our untied gear in the river. Luckily, we were able to climb out at about 11pm, & a kindly lady saw us dripping wet idiots & took John to his car, so we made it out ok. She was sent a thank you, a dozen roses, & a nice box of candy. We learned a BIG lesson & proved that your quote is 100% accurate!
Mike
That’s a looooooong trip for the illprepared! You’re fortunate nobody was hurt during that “adventure.” LOL
Joe
Joe,
I figured you would respond…remember, that’s when I was young & stupid!..Now I’m OLD & a little less stupid! You’re right, we were VERY lucky, and I certainly wouldn’t pull a stunt like that now.
Mike
Great post, Doug!
I was going to post something here but cannot. To this day that incident can bring back very bone chilling dreams. All I will say is that it was a peace time military flight that went very, very wrong. All due to poor planing and big ego’s. I’d rather be shot at than go on that flight again. 
Eric,
I’m sorry you have bad memories. I think that having a positive life now helps a person deal with the past.
I could have died twice in my life. The only time I’ll talk about was in 72. I planned to take my brother fishing after I had finished my week at work on graveyard. It was the first time I had ever worked 3rd shift and I was thrilled to get off work friday morning and beat the other fishermen to the fish.
Only ONE problemo! I sort of had NO sleep! 
I was young and sleep wasn’t going to stop me.
We hiked in a rubber raft a few miles to a lake, fished, hauled the wet heavier raft back down the trail, which was exausting.
I was so tired I had to rest in the truck for a while before we drove home.
I should have rested longer because driving home was hard, my eyes kept closing and my brother kept yelling at me to watch the road!
We almost made it home except for this tight corner.
I vividly remember my brother screaming in my ear and my eyes were seeing the truck FLY through the air into the ditch at 45 mph. We made contact with the ground and rolled 3 or 4 times. coming to rest upside down. The thought that posessed me was “GET MY BROTHER OUT!!!” I reached for him in the darkness, grabbed his arm, bashed out the windshield with my HEAD and then we were standing on the side of the road waiting for help that came.
Neither of us had any injuries. If my brother had died that day, it would have devastated me. We are close to this day because of that day.
My statement is prepare, plan and get some feedback about if your adventure is sensible. So what if you have to cancel your plans! there is always later.
Stand up for yourself! If you don’t feel the time is right, don’t go!
Doug
Doug,
We both learned from those mistakes. There may be hope for us yet.
I guess this would be classified as poor planning and an adventure and a half. At least in my book!!!
A friend sent it to me, since I’m originally from Wisconsin.
TWO DUCK HUNTERS FROM WISCONSIN:
ABSOLUTELY A TRUE STORY HEARD ON A WISCONSIN
RADIO STATION REPORTING ON THE INCIDENT.
A guy buys a new Lincoln Navigator for $42,500.00 (with monthly payments of $560.00).
He and a friend go duck hunting in upper Wisconsin It’s mid-winter; and of course all of the lakes are frozen. These two guys go out on the ice with their GUNS, a DOG, and of course the new NAVIGATOR.
They decide they want to make a natural-looking open water for the ducks to focus on, something for the decoys to float in. Now making a hole in the ice large enough to invite a passing duck, is going to take a little more power than the average drill auger can produce. So, out of the back of the new Navigator comes a stick of dynamite with a short 40 second-fuse. Now our two Rocket Scientists, afraid they might slip on the ice while trying to run away after lighting the fuse (and becoming toast, along with the Navigator), decide on the following course of action:
They light the 40 second fuse; then, with a mighty thrust, they throw the stick of dynamite as far away as possible. Remember a couple of paragraphs back when I mentioned the NAVIGATOR, the GUNS, and the DOG…???
Let’s talk about the dog: A highly trained Black Lab used for RETRIEVING; especially things thrown by the owner. You guessed it: The dog takes off across the ice at a high rate of speed and grabs the stick of dynamite, with the burning 40-second fuse, just as it hits the ice.
The two men swallow, blink, start waving their arms and, with veins in their necks swelling to resemble stalks of ruab scream and holler at the dog to stop. The dog, now apparently cheered on by his Master, keeps coming. One hunter panics, grabs the shotgun and shoots the dog. The shotgun is loaded with #8 bird shot, hardly big enough to stop a Black Lab.
The dog stops for a moment, slightly confused, then continues on. Another shot, and this time the dog, still standing, becomes really confused and of course terrified, thinks these two geniuses have gone insane. The dog takes off to find cover, UNDER the brand new Navigator.
The men continue to scream as they run. The red hot exhaust pipe on the truck touches the dog’s rear end, he yelps, drops the dynamite under the truck and takes off after his master.
Then " “” “” “” “” BOOOOOOOOOOOOM “” “” “” “” ! ! !
The truck is blown to bits and sinks to the bottom of the lake, leaving the two idiots standing there with “I can’t believe this just happened” looks on their faces.
The inurance company says that sinking a vehicle in a lake by illegal use of explosives is NOT COVERED by the policy. And he still had yet to make the first of those $560.00 a month payments.
The dog is okay. . .doing fine.
And I thought Rednecks only lived in the South…
The Lab probably has a higher IQ
Doug