Planning your first weekend hike or a backpacking trip? Want to know what it's like to experience free fall from 13,000ft? Interested in swapping beta on some of the best bouldering locations across the US? Check out our Trip Reports for recent articles from our Featured Bloggers. Whether you’re venturing outdoors alone or with your family or friends, you’ll find something that matches your interests! We also tackle complex topics like racism, colorism, transphobia and queerphobia in outdoor recreation.
But ask a New England surfer about the changing seasons. It’s more likely they’ll mark this same passage of time by the thickness of their neoprene wetsuit. They surf year-round, making the most of the sometimes harsh and unforgiving winters. New England surfers simply add millimeters of neoprene the way hikers add base layers. For a lifelong Californian born and raised in “sunny San Diego,” my first winter in Rhode Island was eye opening.
Read MoreWe even had a group hang out where we just aired all of the ignorant things that other people had said to us. At first we were angry, but anger turned to action and we ended up practicing how to de-escalate and redirect with one another, as we each took turns being the aggressor.
Read MoreDear Black men, when was the last time you went hiking? A week ago? Last summer? Never? Of the many hobbies people pick up, hiking is not always well-received in African American communities. I would like to change that. Some will say, “Does being Black matter?” Yes, without a doubt.
Read MoreEight outdoorsy Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) share their mental health stories.
Read MoreIt’s so hard to find an opening to talk about mental health and our mental well-being. Maybe it goes along with the pronouns: “I’m Amy, my pronouns are she/her and I have anxiety and depression.”
Read More“Dealing with mental health issues and having to constantly put on a mask and code switch to survive in a place that’s outside of my culture—all while being one of a handful of Black people in my field—has been stressful.”
Read More“Then it was bad. It’s very normal for people with bipolar to be misdiagnosed with severe depression and to be put on antidepressants, but because the medication doesn’t address the mania, it can be really harmful.”
Read More“For most of my life, [bipolar disorder] always felt like a dark, shameful secret, like a big flaw. Then I hit my mid-thirties and was like, screw it, I’m done. I don’t want to pretend any more.”
Read More“I wish the outdoors were more accessible to people of color,” said Thando. “We definitely experience mental health issues at a higher rate because of our experience living in this country.”
Read MoreThe media loves to portray people like me—people experiencing psychotic breaks and those with severe mental illness as violent and predatory. As people who should be locked away.
Read MoreIt’s been just two weeks since the March 16, 2021 Atlanta shootings, where eight people were killed—six of whom were Asian women, four of whom shared my Korean heritage
Read MoreCreating balance in your life can be tricky. Here are some reflections on my experience creating an amazing balance in my own life—one that takes into consideration work, play, and especially rest—as well as the work it took to get there.
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