I am off to Mallorca this week and, as I started looking for fun things to do, it got me thinking about how to bring a little adventure to your beach holiday and how to manage this with your family.

Since I first toyed with the idea of redesigning my life, in fact probably even a little before that, I started to change the way I do things. I have spoken before about how the chance to do the Three Peaks Challenge with some close friends, back in the summer of 2015 was a kind of catalyst in my evolving into the person I am now - happier and healthier in mind and body.

Since that moment I have been trying to find opportunities to get outdoors and to be adventurous in and around work, home life and even on the kind of holidays that, on the face of it, are not so adventurous.

Indeed I have found time to run up hills, walk on windswept open ridges, hike across salt mines, through pine forests, up mountains, around volcanic lakes and climb limestone crags all in locations that would generally be contemplated as seaside destinations.

And this goes to show it is absolutely possible to squeeze in some "wild time" within the confines of what would normally be described as a beach holiday.

This, of course, is without even considering the boundless possibility of adventure the sea itself offers.

My point is that it is not difficult to enjoy and appreciate nature if you choose to look around you or do just a few minutes research before you embark on your one or two weeks in the sun.

I think your family will understand if you take a couple of mornings, or indeed a whole day to find a footpath and discover countryside that is completely different to that which we know at home.

I know mine does.

Perhaps they will even come with you. What is more you will enrich your holiday experience, your health, and even your understanding of other countries.

Its never been easier...

For the weekend walker who is perhaps less confident outside his or her own backyard, smartphones with GPS Apps add an extra layer of security and increased accessibility to foreign trails.

Cicerone, to name but one company, offers guidebooks on many popular holiday islands.
Local tourist information services now abound with trail maps and walking suggestions for all levels.
There are a myriad of local companies (with websites in English) offering help, and guidance (for a fee of course) to enable tourists to engage with the local wilderness.
There is nothing to stop anyone making their beach holiday into more of an adventure.

There is nothing to stop me.

...and here is tip on how to do it.

What I often do is get up early and use the cooler hours of the morning to tramp up a local hill and enjoy not only the silent beauty of the landscape at this time but also the more clement weather. I often get back in time to spend most of the day with my family.

The key is striking a balance. If your family does not share your passion for the outdoors but prefers a good book, a bucket and spade and a sun lounger make sure you do your bit whenever you can (chaps, this is largely aimed at you). It boils down to earning your adventure time or "Adventure Equity" as Gilad Nachmani calls it.

Visit the Destinations page for more inspiration.

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Cleveland Way - Scarborough to High Hawsker

In October 2020, my friend Dave and I walked a section of the Cleveland Way in Yorkshire over a couple of days. We started from Scarborough and walked to Ravenscar (18 km). The next day we walked to High Hawsker (15 km).

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Packrafting the River Tamiš

In July 2020, in a brief respite from the worries of the covid pandemic, I had the good fortune to be able to escape for a little adventure, spending 3 days paddling down the Tamiš river in northern Serbia, in my packraft.

Interview with Emily Woodhouse - Founder of Intrepid Magazine

I recently had the pleasure to interview Emily Woodhouse, someone who is well known and someone who has been somewhat of a pioneer in giving a voice to many women in the adventure / outdoor sports world.

In this interview Emily gives me some insight into her whirlwind entrepreneurial journey and how much there is to learn from diving into a (business) adventure.

Not only has Intrepid Magazine provided something that was missing in the outdoor space but it is doubly satisfying to know it was the vision of someone who cares passionately about the subject matter, saw the importance of it and had the courage to go through with it… although I am not sure Emily herself see it as “courage”. As she says in the interview: “I looked at the hole in the magazine world and thought: I can do that”.

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Three Men in a Boat (to say nothing of the wallaby)

The loch was like a mirror as we set off from Luss on Friday to explore. Having walked to the high point on Inchtavannach to admire the views, and paddled around Inchmoan, watching the deer come down to the water’s edge, we agreed to spend the night on Inchconnachan for no other reason than it appeared absolutely idyllic as the sun began to sink and the evening light bathed the lake in a silvery light.

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Weekend Adventure - From lying in the sun to crying on a plane

I have mentioned a few times that my daughter is neither naturally sporty, particularly active or indeed fearless. She is perhaps the opposite. So I was especially proud that she decided on the Saturday morning, as we dithered whether to have an hour in the water at Buzz Active Cuckmere, that this was indeed the ideal opportunity for her to go solo in a kayak for the first time.

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Canoeing the Wye: Happiness V Social Media [Video]

I had so much fun this weekend that I didn’t tell anyone about it. Imagine that! The moment was way more important to me than broadcasting about it. Yes, I know it should be, but if we are honest with ourselves, it isn’t alway, is it?

I spent Friday and Saturday canoeing down the Wye with my 7 year old daughter, from Hoarwithy to Symonds Yat. It is the first time either of us has done this kind of trip and to share this adventure together was the sort of experience that makes me go all mushy and emotional…

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Wild Night Out 2019: The Whining

Travelling in ultra lightweight style (we only carried four cricket stumps instead of the full compliment of six) Emma and I marched along the coast path, over the dunes and onto the vast sands of our beautiful coast for a perfect Wild Night Out 2019, until the high-pitched whining started…

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30 Days Wild: Suburban Springwatch

One thing I decided to do this year was leave one corner of the garden wild. I don’t know how long it will last as pressure builds from within the family to “do something” with that corner but while it does last it has had a positive effect in terms of wildlife.

Perhaps the best aspect of this experiment is the fact that every night around 9pm we have a fat hedgehog who comes through our front gate, wanders through the garden to this unkempt patch of land and roots around for a couple of hours before waddling off to check out what the neighbours have to offer.

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30 Days Wild: Freshwalks: Networking in the Outdoors

This filthy-wet month, I am trying to spend time outside in nature during my working day as part of the Wildlife Trusts 30 Days Wild. I cannot pretend it has been as easy as last year’s sun-drenched June when gently swaying flower meadows and deserted Norfolk beaches called out to me.

However, recently a client of mine drew my attention to an innovative and inspiring initiative getting business people into the outdoors, for Freshwalks. The benefits of which might surprise a few…

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30 days Wild: Welcome to my office

“Can you repeat that please sir?” I could hear a slightly exasperated tone on the other end of the line.

This morning, a few days into June and woefully short of what I hope to achieve during 30 Days Wild, I ventured out into the meadow to make a few phone calls. I took my office outdoors! The helpful assistant from Barclays Business Banking went off for a few minutes to find out some information, and probably to curse me as my microphone was buffeted by the breeze, that bent the tall flowers surrounding me and repeatedly flicked my hood over my head.

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30 Days Wild: Switch off with Nature

We are just a few days away from June and the start of 30 Days Wild; the Wildlife Trusts amazing initiative to get people outside, enjoying and appreciating nature.

This year, as part of 30 Days Wild I will be focussing on how nature can help alleviate the stresses and strains of work and how to get more of it into the working day.

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Do you want to live more adventurously?

The decision to change my life and live more adventurously was utterly instinctive, borne of exasperation, a last resort. I was burnt out, suffering from anxiety, depressed.

How I got to the point of changing the direction of my life was a couple of years of mental wrangling and torture, until I stumbled across some inspiration.