Happy New Year! It’s 2016 – as some have been calling it Sweet 16. As you take a look at what you want to accomplish this year, I encourage you to find your river, find your mountain, or any adventure no matter how big or small.

Driving into work the other morning I heard the song, Find your Mountain, by The Steel Wheels, an Americana roots band from the Blue Ridge Mountains and I heard the lyrics, find your river, find your mountain….and I started thinking….

So much of adventure books and outside adventure is focused around rivers, mountains, lakes, oceans, or other big features in nature. Last year I focused on reading more about these adventures – epic stories of kayaking down entire rivers and thousand mile hikes across mountain ranges – stories of internal struggle and self-discovery and stories of pushing physical bodies through extreme weather and conditions. From the Appalachians to the Seven Summits, there are so many opportunities for grand adventures in this beautiful world.

I love the idea of undertaking a major journey or two or three like this in my life, but my daily reality right now (having a three year old and expecting his little sister in a few months) is not where I’ll be taking a three month quest down a river or trek across a mountain in the next few years.

But, I don’t want to miss out on adventure opportunities. That’s why I love the idea of a microadventure.

Coined by a British explorer, Alastair Humprehys, who has explored all over the world, a microadventure is the concept of getting out to explore close by in an easy, accessible and inexpensive way. One of the best parts of his book I like is the concept of using your 5 – 9 to have an adventure. At first I thought it meant 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., but soon realized in reading his suggestions that he meant 5 in the evening until 9 in the morning. While this may be difficult with work and traffic, I love the concept. Honestly though, even a four hour outside adventure from 5 – 9 p.m. is a great way to have fun during the week and get outside. You could easily get a short hike and picnic at a park and be back home with plenty of time before a late bedtime.

There are so many options for this adventure – some people may like the lake, some are river rats, some are mountain lovers and others like a little walk by a creek. Whatever your favorite place in nature is or your daily reality, for this year I get outside more in big or little ways. Find adventure in your back yard or through life changing journeys across this beautiful world.

Here’s to a wonderfully sweet 2016 of adventure to you all!

Panoramic pics taken by Will Dupuy on our journeys outside to the rivers and mountains.