Adventurer, Alastair Humphrey, has coined the term microadventure in his 2015 book of the same name. Humphrey describes microadventures as a simple, cheap, short, close-to-home, but refreshing adventure. His idea is that adventure does not need to look like a line of people in snowsuits walking up Mt. Everest, or sleeping on rocks while hiking for months, or sailing through rough seas to make it home. The microadventures he refers to do not cost a lot of money or require months of planning. They are simple, practical, challenging, local, but still are creative and inspirational.
(If you have not read Humprey's book it is inspiring, click below to order)
I completely agree with Humphrey on this. My ideas surrounding what defines adventures have changed and morphed in the last decade to what he calls, microadventures and I have started calling bite-sized adventures. My short life story is that after earning my undergraduate degree in Outdoor Education, I worked for a rock climbing guide services and gym on the east coast throughout my 20’s. While working for them, my friends and I would climb anywhere we could drive to, sleeping in cars, poaching campsites, make questionable decisions and rock climb as much as we could. As I got into my 30’s and had a baby, I quit that job to became a stay-at-home dad. And all of the sudden, I found myself no longer having time to plan and go on big adventures last minute with friends. I started having mini adventures with my son; an afternoon of hiking, snow tubing, puddle jumping, rock skipping, or tadpole finding. Anything that would keep us outside in nature as much as possible.
My perspective of what an “adventure” looked like had to change as I changed. My adventures became tiny little adventures. I was beginning to see the adventure through the eyes of my son (but that is for a different blog post). I firmly believe that each of us is able to look for the adventure around us. Your adventure is truly subjective. What is considered an adventure to some, is just a walk up a mountain to another. And with a little creativity, we all can find bite-sized adventures and take time to enjoy our natural surroundings to refresh our minds and bodies.
Let’s take a look at what I feel makes up a tiny trip or bite-sized adventure.
In Nature - I hope this one is self-explanatory. These types of adventures should try to be related to connecting to nature. If it is a simple path around a park, or if your house looks out to the Grand Tetons, get outside and enjoy the natural world. There is so much research that shows a positive and beneficial connection between our health and spending time in nature.
Close to home - Microadventures should be a comfortable distance from home. If you need to sleep in your own bed because you have work/school the next day, then make sure you are home in time for that. If you are able to sleep in a sleeping bag under the stars and still make it to Sunday brunch at your in-laws, then do that too.
Simple - These trips do not need to have extensive planning, gear, logistics, or an expensive guide service. They should be something you already know how to do, like walk or ride a bike; or it should a something you can learn fairly quickly like birdwatching. There is plenty of time to learn hard stuff later, keep your first bite-sized adventures simple.
Inexpensive - The goal is not to spend a lot of money here. Microadventrues are supposed to be cheap, maybe gas money and some lunch. Most trips should not need a second mortgage to accomplish. They are for regular folks, the average person that works all week long, and is looking for family time or personal time in nature on the weekends or after work.
Quick - They do not need to take all day. A tiny trip can be only an hour. Perhaps you have young children and you only have 45 minutes before the bedtime routine to catch fireflies, then great, 45 minutes it is. Maybe if you ride your bike to work it would take 60 minutes and you get to ride a special bike trail that goes through the woods away from the major road. Microadventures can be done overnight, but more than likely they will be done before dinner.
New - Ideally, this style of adventure will show us something new. Someplace new, someone new, something new, or perhaps something new about yourself. I also understand that we can’t always do something new all the time. I have been hiking the same 3 trails near my house since we moved in here 5 years ago. But while I am hiking, I will strive to bring someone that has never been there or take a different path or run it or bike it or look for a new animal or new tree fungus or walk in the snow or rain. Many times we are closed off to new places, ideas, people, or things. I would encourage you to use bite-sized adventures as a way to look for something new.
An adventure’s an adventure, no matter how small.
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