Manufacturing Adventure: The Unimportance of Place
What Bakersfield California taught me about place...
Hey you don't know me, but you don't like me You say you care less how I feel But how many of you that sit and judge me Have ever walked the streets of Bakersfield?
Owens/Yoakum from Streets of Bakersfield
OK, so I'm a sucker for outlaw/real country. Who knew? But this isn't a music review post. However, I love that song. But why I love it is what this blog post is about.
I participate in a LOT of outdoor social media, running the gamut from paid professionals (so jelly, :) ) to people that struggle to find the trailhead that they are seeking. I love them all. Truly. But a common lamentation that I hear especially from newer folks to the outdoors is some form of, 'I live in __________, there's nothing 'here' to do'.
That's the inspiration for this post.
If you're from Bakersfield and you're reading this, I apologize in advance. Bakersfield doesn't have a good reputation. (Editor's Note: understatement) It has oil and country music. That's about it. When I'd tell people in California that I was going to Bakersfield I'd get the stink eye. But after a few trips there and after I'd found a beautiful mountain lake (Lake Isabella), some really cool urban parks, places with trees and shade, I grew to actually, like it... Oh yeah, its not far from Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs also!
Parsing the lyrics, "Hey you don't know me, but you don't like me" gives me perspective about the lack of importance of place while adventuring. What I mean by that is, while don't get me wrong, I DREAM of the Rockies, Alaska, Patagonia, Yosemite, etc., you can create adventure anywhere that you are. Here's some tips on how.
Take the time to LEARN about wherever you are. Unless you live in Alaska, chances are that no matter where you are, there is history there. Learn it. Would you be surprised if I told you that my hometown in rural Alabama (less than 5,000 people) is thought to have once been one of the largest cities in North America! It was! Use Wikipedia, contact your local historical society. Go to museums. Visit EVERY historical marker in your county/region, etc.
If you have kids, or even if you don't give Geocaching a try. There are geocaches literally EVERYWHERE. Yes, even in Iowa. (No offense to Iowa, I love corn. Really)
Unless you live in Florida, chances are you have at least a hill. To create adventure, see how many times you can walk up and down it. Next time, put some weight in your pack. Try and find as many unique viewpoints from all parts of the hill. Climb it from different angles.
Get into photography. Some people like to look at old photographs of places then go to them and take pictures from the same angle and compare. There are barns everywhere, old houses, etc. No trespassing though, kids.
Learn to compete against only yourself. Y'all this is hard. There's so many rad people out there doing so many rad things. But the best amount of rad is real. For real. You're only living your life for yourself and perhaps your immediate family. Try and guard against being concerned about what others are doing. This is hard even for me.
Learn to read old topographical maps. I like https://caltopo.com/map.html because it has all sorts of different map views that you can easily toggle between. Study and pour over the maps. Odds are you can find interesting stuff on them to go visit!
If you're blessed to live where there are mountains, check out listsofjohn.com. It has pretty much every mountain in the United States on it and you can keep up with what you climb through the site.
Wrapping up, please y'all don't let your place determine your amount of adventure. Let me know some cool/random/weird adventures you've gone on in your locales.
