I had prepared for everything: food, snacks, extra clothing (layers), the elements, hydration. Everything but the terrain.
Tag: Hiking
Can’t Stop: Physical Exhaustion and Mental Health
Recently, on a mountain biking Facebook group I’m part of, someone mentioned getting hurt because they didn’t listen to their body on a particular day; they went out and rode when they should have listened to their body and stayed home, taken the day off. I wrote a reply, relating my two broken elbows the…
The Art of Solitude: How to Be Alone in a World Full of People
Too often, we associate being alone with negativity. We associate being alone with loneliness, depression, brooding, etc. There is certainly truth to the fact that isolation can be negative, particularly for those battling addiction, depression or some other mental health-related issue. We also know that socializing with other hoomans is a positive force in terms…
Level II Fun (Part 2): Out of the Pain Cave, Into the Light
If you’re new to this blog and haven’t yet read Level II Fun, Part I, you might want to go back and do so. This post picks up where the last one left off. For those returning to the blog, recall that I had had a very bad day on Mt. Tom, was sunburnt, dehydrated,…
The Magic Bus: Living and Dying on the Stampede Trail
Another hiker has died trying to reach the magic bus, the bus made famous by the 2007 Sean Penn film Into the Wild, starring Emile Hirsch. That’s the headline from two days ago out of Healy, Alaska. If you’re a reader of this blog you’ve almost certainly either read the book or seen the film. …
Level II Fun (Part 1): The Pain Cave
Why do we consciously choose to do things that cause us pain in the moment, only in retrospect to look back and say, “You know what? That was fun.” The outdoors community refers to this as level II fun. Some of the answers may be found here.
How (Not) to Give a Wedding Gift
What does a Nature lover and adventure writer gift to friends for their wedding? It may not be what you think. The next installment in the How (Not) To series is a little funny, a little serious, and all good. Names and deets have been changed to protect the innocent.
How to Build a Home: Taste the Rainbow Part Two
We who are asking to expand these definitions to create a more inclusive atmosphere are not also demanding that the industry eliminate the grandiose; rather, we ask that the humble also be part of what it means to adventure.
In Through the Out Door: How Going Out Into Nature Leads Us In to Our Truest Selves
Why do people go outside? I mean, besides the obvious, like having to go to work or move from the house to some other point in the world. What draws those of us inspired by nature out? Why do some people choose to suffer through freezing rain, sleet, sub-zero temperatures: or risk injuries that range…
Lacing up Your Boots: Picking up the Pieces After Relapse
St. Patrick’s day 2019, a bar in R.I. “Hey, are you doing car bombs tonight?” “Of course”, said the waitress, as I racked up another game of 8-ball for the four of us. “Bring us a round.” For the second time in a week, and in the previous seventeen months, I was drinking, attempting to…
livelifeoutdoors.org 