Dave Campbell was born in Saugerties, NY, on the banks of the Hudson near the confluence with the Esopus Creek. The Catskills almost reach the river bank there. It was still an open, inspiring and magical landscape at the time, and it was a wonderful place to develop both art and fishing skills. Dave took full advantage of both opportunities. After a couple false starts at college and a hitch in the U.S. Navy, Dave moved from the ever more crowded Hudson Valley to the Adirondacks where he found the peace and solitude that were rapidly disappearing downstate, finished college, taught college English for a while, remained an active artist, and even did a short stint as a licensed Adirondack guide. The coloring books and the "Beginners Guide to Fishing" seem a natural result of it all.