My initial reaction upon driving into Nockamixon State Park was the resemblance the road and parking lots had to Island Beach State Park in New Jersey. As I drove further into the park I began to recall coming to see Lake Nockamixon as a child. 
My close friends remain surprised at my seemingly out of nowhere transition to Nature Man. The truth is that while my dedication, focus and work has recently (as in one year) become focused on Ecological issues; I was brought up at places like Nockamixon. 
Growing up, my father took Bucky and I to parks whenever he had a day off. We visited zoos, “reptile lands”, arboretums, gardens, and (of course) parks. I spent the majority of my formative years on day-trips all over Eastern Pennsylvania. 
As it stands, the truth is that I have always been somewhat of a Nature Boy whether I recognized it or not. The trips my father took us on, the crayfish he pulled from under stones in the creek, the sowbugs he collected in the backyard, whatever it was – all of it –
has forever left an imprint on me. 
Today, as a member of the Allentown EAC, a student of Environmental Science at Muhlenberg College and an activist and advocate for the environment in the Lehigh Valley, I realize I owe it to my Dad. 
Thanks Dad.
At Lake Nockamixon
- Andrew Kleiner and his Journeys | Remember
