Free delivery on orders over £80How To Prepare For An After-work Adventure
Photos: Andy Hughes
It’s all too easy to fall into a routine of work, home, food, Netflix, sleep, repeat - leading to weeks flashing by with only what happened in the final series of Line Of Duty as an enduring memory. An after-work adventure could be the antidote to this ho-hum weekday existence, adding spice and excitement.
Now you’ve decided to give a weekday adventure a go, it’s vital that you maximise the free time you have, enabling you to have the biggest and best adventures possible. One of the best ways to make the most of your time is to make sure that you’re prepped and ready to walk out the door as soon as it’s 5:00 pm.
Here are some of our favourite tips for being adventure ready:
Keep A Bag Ready
Avoid the excuses and the procrastinations and pack a bag the night before with everything you may need for the coming day’s adventure. Not only will this save you time but it should ensure you don’t forget anything in the rush to get out the door.
If you have a spare backpack, keep it loaded up with all the essentials for an overnight wild camp – sleeping bag, tent, sleeping mat, waterproofs, food, stove, torch, compass etc. This way, you’re ready to go as the desire takes you.
Another good tip is to write down all the bits you need for each type of adventure (on different post-it notes). Then you simply tick off the gear as you put it in your pack making it idiot-proof after a hard day’s work.
Decide On A Destination
Know where you want to go. It’s relatively easy to decide you want to get out for a post-work hike but not having a destination can soon become something a tired brain wants to shy away from.
Try to have a few pre-researched destinations within 30 minutes drive of your house which incorporate a hill or two so you can get in some good exercises and enjoy a sunset.
Buddy Up
Sometimes it's great to head out on your own but having an adventure buddy is most likely going to enhance the experience or at worst they can help you carry supplies. When you want to ‘buddy up’ select your pal carefully and ensure they are as keen and able to make time for the adventure as you are for a harmonious trip.
If you’ve not got too many friends that are interested in the outdoors there are lots of hiking and adventure groups on Facebook or Meetup.
Improve Your General Fitness
The beauty of an after-work adventure is that it can be as small or as big as you want depending on your mood, energy levels, schedule and a mulititude of other factors - meaning everyone can go and get an adventure experience tomorrow.
Increasing your stamina and all-round fitness with a few simple exercises at home is going to expand the variety of adventures you can do in an evening and make the experience that much more enjoyable.
Improve Your Confidence
One obstacle to adventures is a lack of confidence in the hills – we all have to start somewhere and enrolling on a navigation course may just be the best thing you ever do to kick start your adventures.
This autumn we’ve teamed up with Sidetracked Adventures to offer day and night time navigation courses in Manchester and London.
