With busy lifestyles, full-time jobs, no more public holidays for a while, the microadventure concept can be a lifesaver. The idea behind a microadventure was made common by British adventurer and author Alastair Humphreys and is defined as an overnight outdoor adventure that is "small and achievable, for normal people with real lives".
When planning a microadventure, key points to keep in mind is that it's short, simple, local, cheap – yet still fun, exciting, challenging, refreshing and rewarding. All of us here at Cactus are pretty good at microadventures - and with winter here, they become even more important to keeping us all happy (and sane).
A microadventure could be anything from meeting your best mates for a picnic up your local hill one evening after work, a short mountain bike ride to a new secret camping spot through to a short overnight mission to a nearby DOC hut. If you have some sort of floating vessel (packraft, dinghy, SUP) you have even more options.
Microadventures are an awesome and super easy thing to organise with a few mates but also just as ideal for the family. The kids will love it.
CACTUS MICROADVENTURE #1
It was almost a little far away to be called a microadventure as the West Coast is a 3-hour drive from ChCh, but last weekend the Cactus Marketing department (just me (there's only one of us)) and 3 mates grabbed our tramping packs and headed for Hokitika. That's where the good weather was and we all LOVE the coast.
We filled our packs with yummy food and a pack of cards and took a short 3-hour walk up to a tiny, four-bed hut (luckily we also took a tent) for the night. We found a magic spot sheltered from the wind, shot the breeze while eating chips watching the incredible West Coast sunset. It was bliss. The following day we walked out, grabbed some mandatory fish & chips to eat on the beach before driving home.
The walk up through the stunning West Coast bush. The Miklat is the perfect microadventure pack.
The tops...
Our magic spot in the sunshine.
Better than TV.
The hut which we had to ourselves for the morning.
We nailed it. Thanks to Mike, Amanda & Paul.
We'll try and share more microadventures here on the Cactus blog. If you have had a good microadventure and feel like sharing, get in touch. Email me here.
