“Off the Screen and Into the Stream”Reclaiming Our Kids Through Adventure

*By Don Owens & Danae Owens

"How to Build an Adventurous Family"®

Not long ago it seems, I stood at the edge of a cold mountain stream in Colorado watching a small trout break the surface. My son was with me, silent, fly rod in hand, eyes focused, breathing slow. No beeps. No scrolling. No urgent calls to “level up.” Just the sound of water and the wind whispering through pine. In that moment, I realized something simple yet critical for modern fathers: The antidote to digital distraction is not a tighter grip—it’s a better invitation.

We’re not going to shout our kids off the couch. We won’t parent them out of screens with lectures. But we can lead them out—by offering something richer, wilder, and more meaningful than a glowing rectangle ever could.

The Drift

Let’s be honest: our kids are drowning in screens. Whether it’s a phone, a controller, or a tablet, there’s always a new distraction. These games are designed to hijack attention and reward passivity. And it works. We’re losing afternoons, weekends, even entire summers to pixels.

It’s easy to throw up our hands, blame “this generation,” or long for the “good old days” when bikes and creeks beat out consoles and Wi-Fi. But this isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about calling boys and girls—and maybe ourselves—back to a better life.

Screens numb. Nature awakens.

Digital life offers amusement. Wilderness offers wonder.

Games build kingdoms of illusion. Trails build character.

So how do we call them out?

Step One: Lead, Don’t Lecture

One of the themes I return to often in Ancient Friendship for Modern Men is that a man leads not by demands but by direction. The same is true for fathers. If you want your child off the screen, go first. Don’t just suggest they go outside—take them. Be the guide. Be the spark.

It starts with something as simple as this:

“Hey buddy, we’re heading to the lake this Saturday. You’re coming with me.”

Not optional. Not aggressive. But decisive. Spoken with a grin, maybe while loading up the gear or tossing snacks in a dry bag.

Children follow confidence. Especially when it’s paired with love and a sense of purpose.

If your kids are hesitant, don’t be discouraged. Expect resistance. After all, they’re leaving behind a world designed to reward instant pleasure. But hold fast. You’re offering something better: a taste of the real world—with all its mud, wind, challenge, and glory.

Step Two: Make It a Ritual, Not a One-Off

One hike won’t change a kid. But a rhythm of adventure will.

Start a weekly walk, a Saturday paddle, a monthly sunrise hike. Give it a name if you want—“Adventure Saturdays” or “Campfire Club.” Kids love tradition, especially when it includes gear, snacks, and stories. Make a big deal out of the small things. Let them help plan. Let them carry the map. Teach them to make fire, cast a line, pitch a tent. Give them ownership.

We don't need to compete with video games in their flash—we need to exceed them in meaning. Unlike a game, real life has stakes. It also has reward. Let your kids feel the burn in their legs after a climb. Let them catch their breath under a red sunset. Let them sleep under stars with dirt under their fingernails.

That kind of experience? It imprints something no screen ever could.

Step Three: Speak the Language of the Heart

Sometimes we forget that the deepest need in a child’s heart isn’t amusement—it’s connection.

They want to be seen. To be heard. To be known. A trail, a river, a long drive to a trailhead… those moments strip away distraction and make room for conversation. That’s when you ask the big questions. Or just listen. Or sit in the silence of shared experience.

Outdoors, you are not just a parent. You become a companion. And when your children see that, they’ll trade their screens for your presence.

Why the Outdoors Works

Beyond the relational benefits, there are measurable advantages to outdoor life:

• Mental Health: Time outside lowers anxiety and depression, especially in teens.

• Physical Health: Hiking, paddling, climbing—all of it builds stamina, strength, and resilience.

• Attention Span: Nature helps recalibrate the brain, improving focus and patience.

• Problem Solving: From figuring out how to cross a creek to navigating a map, kids build real-world competence.

• Gratitude: When you feel small standing under a canyon wall or beside a crashing sea, you remember how big and generous the world really is.

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But maybe the greatest gift of outdoor life is perspective. The kind that reorients your soul. That tunes your heart to the rhythms of God’s creation. That makes a boy or girl feel part of something vast, beautiful, and sacred.

As it says in Job 12:7–10:

“But ask the beasts, and they will teach you;the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you;or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you;and the fish of the sea will declare to you.Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this?”

This world is not just an alternative to the screen—it is a gift from God for the forming of souls.

A Final Word to Fathers

You are not powerless against the screen. You are not outmatched. You hold the compass. You set the rhythm. You cast the vision.

Start small. Pick a trail. Load a cooler. Grab a paddle. Invite them along. Don’t wait for them to want it. They don’t know what they’re missing yet.

But once they’ve seen the mist rise off the water at dawn…Once they’ve heard coyotes cry under a desert moon…Once they’ve felt the pull of the current as they paddle past cypress knees…

They’ll begin to understand.

And one day, they’ll look up from a campfire, smile at you, and say, “When are we doing this again?”

That’s when you’ll know:

The screen has lost.The wild has won.And a child is becoming a man.