If someone asked you to tell them about your most recent adventure, would you only think to talk about your most recent travel experience? Before this summer, that would’ve been my answer too! But, here I am to pass on my learned wisdom after spending three months in my childhood home: adventure comes from your soul, not necessarily your location.
Spending a summer at home was rather uncharacteristic of me, having spent my last few in various countries and states. But alas, the Chicagoland suburbs spoke to me this year (they said “save your money, Catherine”) and I listened. So I found myself facing a new kind of learning experience and wondering what to do to satisfy my need for adventure and exploration.
In searching for the answer, I discovered that it’s not necessary to drop myself in an unfamiliar location all the time to find that life thrill; there are ways to get it in my own backyard.
Soon, I understood that adventure is something you can harness and apply to your everyday setting, no matter where you are. To get your free spirit flowing, I’ve compiled some ideas to help you expand your mind while keeping those feet firmly grounded.
1. Sleep in a tent
This is the easiest way to feel an infinite sense of freedom! The best is when you don’t put the rain cover on the tent and you get to spend the night watching the stars. If you’re really brave and not scared of skunks or mosquitos, why not just sleep outside? Taking yourself out of your everyday routine in your house is a good way to remind yourself how large life is, and that beautiful nature is everywhere you look.
Also, tent sleeps are some of the best sleeps ever! The cicadas singing and the owls hooting provide a lovely lullaby to fall asleep to. My friend Tessa always says she feels like one night’s sleep outside is equal to two nights of inside sleep in terms of feeling restful. What’s the harm in trying it?
Also, the best part is you don’t have to go anywhere! Your own backyard is the perfect spot to spend the night in a tent. If you don’t have a backyard for my apartment dwellers, often a quick google search about the nearest campground will do the trick. Get cozy and get outside!
2. Sky watch party!!!
The sky performs for us every once in a while, don’t miss it! Stay tuned for the summer meteor showers and eclipses. Every August, around the eighth to the eleventh, the Perseid meteor showers take place.
There are many things to do when it comes to the meteors.
If you’re like me and near a big city, perhaps you could plan a little camping trip to a dark area. My family and I drove to a dark area in Wisconsin, slept in a tent, and saw a good few meteors. There was one that left a big green streak in the sky and it was beautiful.
If you don’t want to leave home, there are ways to remedy all the lights. My family and neighbors sat in a driveway the other night and covered the nearby street lights with big trash cans. I saw five meteors that night!
Watching the sky is also a good reminder that there’s more out there and it’s all bigger than you.
Seeking meteors and chasing bright skies is a perfect way to harness adventure into wherever you are because we’re all under the same sky!
3. Get lost!
I used to do this as a child, and it’s a type of adventure that I’ve loved rediscovering in my adult years.
You can get on a bike, maybe play some of your favorite songs, and just ride into the distance. Turn down streets you’ve never checked out before and go until you get lost. No maps allowed! That way you can have the sense of being somewhere new, right inside your hometown.
In getting lost, chances are you’ll re-explore parts of your hometown you might have missed.
It’s the hardest to pay attention to small details where you’ve spent most of your life because you assume you already know it so well. However, in that assumption, you may be overlooking awesome things! There are small bits of beauty everywhere, sometimes you just have to look closer and harder, rather than farther away.
Check out this TikTok account of a couple near me just exploring the outdoors of where they live! I’ve been following them for a couple of years now and they have yet to run out of new places to see in their hometown.
Get outside and get lost! There’s plenty to do outdoors that will give you a bit of the surge that traveling does. Also, prioritizing spending time outside allows you to have a nice little brain break from technology as well. Away from the screens and into the unknown – adventure is out there, but also right here!
4. Make a friend!
Meeting new people is always the best way to adventure. Inside each person’s mind is a whole new perspective on life, and you can grow by merely having a conversation with someone you would’ve never thought to talk to in your town.
Exploring another person’s thoughts is almost as good as adventuring out into the world. I’ve spoken to two friends who have a fantastic ability to find new people to talk to in public, and they shared with me some adorable stories of making friends with the people in their towns, so read on to be inspired by those tales!
Can you think of a “celebrity” from your town? For example, in Chicago, we have the Hi Guy, a man on a bike that greets the people walking by while holding a sign that says “hi.” I often wonder about his story but haven’t ever stopped to ask. Maybe it’s time to get to know the people we’ve seen forever.
The Pigeon Man
My friend Raina Weinberg shot this in Dublin, where we go to school together. There’s a man who always stands outside of Stephen’s Green, holding and feeding the pigeons. She took the time to ask him questions about himself and his connection to the pigeons, turning it into a documentary.
Raina explained why she felt called to know about the pigeon man, saying:
The Pigeon Man, who shall remain nameless to respect his privacy, has been standing outside Stephan’s Green park on and off for 7 years. I had admired him all of my first year in Dublin and began occasionally joining him to feed pigeons. I am always very inspired seeing people be so authentically themselves and so comfortable alone in public, it’s something I really relate to and I love capturing and learning about others’ solitary adventures.
Raina Weinberg
She went on to say, “I definitely have a better understanding of Dublin after my talks with the pigeon man. Exchanging experiences is what stitches communities together and we can all learn something from each other. Getting to know a city is getting to know its people!”
I agree! Meeting new people is such a beautiful way to find adventure wherever you are, and it’s important to know the people around you! It doesn’t even necessarily have to be a town “celeb” like the Hi Guy or the Pigeon Man. My good friend Tessa Logli befriended an older woman at her public library, and she considers that an adventure too!
Tessa and Annie
Tessa met Annie in the library because they often sat near each other, and one day, they just began talking. I asked Tessa what she learned from Annie and their conversations and Tessa said Annie is the most adventurous person she knows.
She knows almost everyone in Glenview and it’s because she strikes up a conversation as she loves meeting cool, interesting people (as she refers to them). I didn’t realize how much stuff was around my hometown, I just needed to put on my little kid goggles.
Annie and I went on several road trips to explore: we went to Lake Geneva on a hunt for the perfect chocolate chip pancake and ate at a bunch of different diners. Then we went to Galena and came up with fake names and pretended like we were shooting a documentary for PBS and I was her intern. She tried to help me get jobs too and is just a wonderful human.
Tessa Logli
What a lovely relationship! Annie helped inspire adventure in Tessa’s life when she was at home, and it all stemmed from some conversation!
Go out and seek adventure everyone! It’s everywhere, starting at your fingertips, just open the front door and step outside. It’s important to remember that you don’t have to travel somewhere fancy to learn and grow, you only have to open your mind.
