Nearby Adventure

2020 – what a year, huh? The Hiking Misadventures blog has been quiet for awhile. I spent most of 2019 supporting my mom in her battle with cancer. With my mother’s health on the mend, I was looking forward to picking up my adventures.

As I’m sure many of us did, I had to cancel several hiking trips because of COVID. Honestly, I spent much of the year figuring out what it means for me to get outside and recreating responsibly so I kept myself and others safe.

Stay-at-home orders marked most of spring, which is a festive time when people spend time outdoors if nothing else to take in the cherry blossoms in D.C.. Even after COVID restrictions began to relax, traveling a couple of hours to the nearest mountain felt risky because as a diabetic I’m among those at high risk for contracting COVID. As a result, my time outdoors this year looked and felt very different.

Fortunately for me, there are a range of everyday nature opportunities in local parks and the trails very close to my house. I spent this year discovering all the hidden outdoor gems and the beautiful trails they offer instead of hiking up iconic mountains. I took a lot of short walks in my neighborhood paying attention to the beauty in the outdoors instead of the miles I needed to cover. More so than ever, I cherished every moment I got to spend outside and fell more in love with nature.

My mission with Hiking Misadventures is to demystify the outdoors so that we can diversify who gets outside to enjoy our public lands and open the possibility of outdoor adventures so everyone feels confident and welcome to explore without worrying about doing it the right way.

As I’ve been tackling nearby adventures, I’ve also gained new perspective on what it means to increase access to the outdoors, getting everybody outside and ultimately changing the narrative of who and how we all relate to and spend time in nature.

Despite the challenges this year has thrown at us and whatever disruptions COVID caused in your anticipated plans to adventure in the outdoors, I hope you all have had opportunities to carve out some time outside, discover all the beauties close to home and get into some wonderful nearby adventures!