There are few things that excite me more than the prospect of exploring somewhere new. But for a number of reasons we’ve been staying closer to home these days.
It may not be as grand as hopping on a plane to an entirely new country, but there’s still plenty of adventure and magic to be had in our own backyard.
Even one night of camping under the stars, exploring a new trail, or getting lost on a dirt road often provides the exact shift in perspective that I need. And while it does require a bit of planning, the effort is usually minimal.
So with the weather warming up we got the van cleaned up and escaped to The Painted Hills for a quick overnight to soak in some sun and recharge our spirits.
I threw what we had in our fridge into the cooler, ½ a container of yogurt, the bottom of a bag of granola, blueberries, chopped carrots, cheese sticks, a bag of arugula, some premade lentils, a jar of salad dressing, and some peanut butter and honey to fill in the gaps. Then filled a small duffle with a change of clothes, pajamas and a few extra layers for each of us, some maps (yes actual paper ones), a few books, and within 2 hours we were walking around an entirely different landscape.
Staycations or vacationing in or near your own town have always been a thing, but the British adventurer Alastair Humphreys popularized the idea of “microadventures” back in 2012, when his series of mini-expeditions earned him the title of National Geographic Adventurer of the Year.
After nearly two decades spent chasing big adventures around the globe; trekking 1,000 miles across the Arabian Peninsula, rowing across the Atlantic Ocean, and a worldwide bike trip, it was his series on exploring his own backyard that got the most attention.
“I hoped to see things I would not ordinarily come across. I decided to treat everything as interesting.” Alastair Humphreys
In a 2015 interview with The New York Times, Humphreys said, “a lot of people use working from 9 to 5 as an obstacle. But instead, look at the opportunity. After 5 p.m., you have 16 hours that are all yours. So you can ride your bike or take the train out of town, sleep outside somewhere and come back to work, maybe a bit rumpled but feeling great.”
Really good advice that we’ve been trying to take more of.
I’ve been compiling a list of daytrips and easy overnights that we want to make happen this year. I like to add things like how far the drive is, fun trails to explore, the best time of year to visit, and interesting stops or places to eat along the way. No hard and fast itineraries, just a little bit of planning beforehand to make spontaneous trips feel a whole lot more possible.
We’ve been revisiting the 7 Wonders of Oregon and discovering some seriously underrated spots; carnivorous plant gardens, obscure roadside attractions, hidden waterfalls, white sand deserts, remote fire lookouts, random festivals, lot’s of hot springs, and looking forward to many more Monday mornings of waking up “a bit rumpled but feeling great.”
Where are you traveling this Summer?