I grew up fishing in public parks and conservation areas with my dad. Most of the time we fished for catfish, crappie, or sunnies, but a few times a year we would make the 2 or 3 hour drive to one of the larger lakes and fish just for bass.
After a 15 year break from fishing, I got back into it again. By then my dad was strictly a bass angler and I met Mr. Bait Monkey, who greeted me with open arms.
These days, depending on the weather and traffic, I might fish locally or make a two hour drive to find bass.