TROUTDALE, Ore. — In this week's Let's Get Out There, we head to the Sandy River to meet up with Portland filmmaker Kenny X Hamlett.
We're checking back in with Hamlett after his outdoor documentary "Black People Don't Do That." This year, he's releasing an episode of his new series each month.
We all have our reasons for getting outside. On a cloudy January morning, Kenny X Hamlett responds to the call of the Sandy River.
“When I was a kid, I used to dream about doing these things, but I never really thought I'd do them,” he said, fishing gear in tow.
“We're going to hook one, it's going to be the best fishing day ever," he added "And if we don't hook one, it's still going to be a great fishing day.”
Hamlett’s been to this spot a handful of times. It was introduced to him by his friend Darin.
“How can we save these spaces and cherish them but share them with others? That's all that he really cares about,” Hamlett said.
His mission on the river was to hook some steelhead. The water was as high as he’s ever seen it.
“I think that's supposed to be a good thing," he said. "I think that means the steelhead are finally here. Steelhead are known as the fish of a thousand casts. Very hard to come by."
Hamlett is into just about everything outdoors, surfing, mountain biking, snowboarding, and now, fishing. He even had his first elk hunt last year. If he’s not enjoying the outdoors, he’s probably documenting those who do, particularly people of color.
“These spaces are for everybody,” he said. “And then you realize there are just so many (more) similarities between people than we think. But because of the way that people are perceived, and we never meet these people, we just have ideas about them.”
Hamlett, who is also a Portland filmmaker, got to combine his two passions last year with his film “Black People Don’t Do That.” Born from a phrase he would say growing up, he turned it around to make space for people of color who might not know how or where to get started.
His new series is called “We The People" is monthly episodic featuring people of color and how they enjoy the outdoors. Darin was his first subject.
“He brought me out here and showed me this space and was like, ‘I'm going to take you to the places I come and fish and catch my fish,’ Darin said. "'I'm going to show you how to cast; I'm going to show you how to splay fish, which is brand new for him.' And then when we were out here, we met another guy that was brand new to steelhead fishing, and this was his first year fishing in general. He gave him some lures that he made … it was the same charity that I had seen openness that I had seen in the outdoors, that I was, like, ‘Dang, I'm so happy that this guy now got to experience that,’ and it was this natural moment that just happened.”
The heart behind Hamlett’s work is to invite, even challenge, people of color to come out of their comfort zones to try something they might be interested in, but don’t know how to get started. It’s not a slight at white people, either, because he’s been welcomed with open arms by everyone he’s come across.
The steelhead eluded him this time, but for Hamlett, the payoff is time sent on the water away from the noise, and he hopes other will take the step into something he's fallen in love with.
You can find "We The People" on Hamlett’s YouTube channel Better Days West.
Let's Get Out there airs once a week on KGW's 4 p.m. newscast and The Good Stuff, which airs Monday-Thursday at 7 p.m. We're including viewer photos for this series. You can text your photos to 503-226-5088 or post them on the KGW Facebook page.