Solo adventures are something I really want to be able to do. I’ve been out on a few hikes on my own, but nothing too big, no mountains and no multi-days. Back at the start of my outdoor explorations, I had a couple of very steep learning curves around my kit and how I prepared. But since then, I’ve learnt a lot and have quite a bit of experience under my belt, though I still get anxious at the thought of bigger adventures on my own.
What’s holding me back?
- Anxiety – I feel like one of the biggest things holding me back is my anxiety, those constant niggling voices asking what if? My brain seems to jump to all the possible worst case scenarios and I just scare myself out of doing things. I constantly seem to tell myself that I’m not good enough, or that I’m not as capable as the others who are going out and smashing it. With camping, I worry about finding the right spot, the weather or just other people..the list goes on.
- Forgetting Something – I am a huge list writer, but there are no amount of lists I can write to convince myself that I haven’t forgotten something. I think this is something that will come with time though, the more I do it the more confident I’ll get that I have everything I need.
- Enjoyment – It’s still always at the back of my mind that once I’m there, for some reason or another, I may not enjoy it. What if I get sick of my own company? What if I decide I don’t like my book? What if I get scared and anxious about being out on my own? I keep trying to reassure myself about what is the worst that can happen, but my this point I usually seem to have talked myself out of it.
- Running Before I can Walk – I’m a sucker for setting my aims pretty high and the issue with this is I seem to think I can just get straight there without building up to it. For some people, they probably could just back a bag and set out on a wild camp on their own, but for me this is just too overwhelming. This has led to me just not doing things, rather than taking a step back and looking at how I can take small steps to reach the end goal.
What am I’m going to do about it?
Two of the things I really want to achieve this year are a solo long distance/multi day hike and a solo wild camp. After talking with a friend about it, I also think I need to book myself into a campsite on my own for a night, just to get used to doing things by myself, rather than going full out wild camping on my own for my first time. I also then need to go out on a day trip and find my location, so I know exactly where I’m heading before the day of the event.
I have previously completed a navigation course with NavTrek (that I’d highly recommend) and this gave me a lot more confidence getting out hiking on my own, but I have been looking into other courses to help build my skills in other areas (camping/survival/climbing etc). Unfortunately none of the ones I’d found have been on dates that I could do, so these are still a tbc, but I will update as and when I get out there.
I have also been doing some research into group trips away, as I feel this would be a good starting point for pushing myself out of my comfort zone. My knee surgery has pushed back me booking anything though, as I want to make sure I’m well on the road to recovery before committing.
Who’s inspiring me?
Instagram provides of a lot of my inspiration for where to go adventuring, but there are also a whole host of people who inspire me with their solo adventures.
Fitforadventure – Sarah’s posts bring me so much joy. She is so down to earth and her videos of her solo adventures are absolutely hilarious. She is knowledgeable, experienced and shares her adventures in such an inspiring way. Sarah was one of the very first people I followed when I set up my outdoor instagram account and I’m so glad I stumbled upon her. If you haven’t seen her adventures before then I’d highly recommend checking them out, both on instagram and youtube – especially her recent youtube series on the Cape Wrath Trail.
Annablackwell – I have been following Anna for quite some time and was lucky enough to hear her speak about her adventures on Sidetracked magazines’ creators tour in Cornwall. A lot of Anna’s adventures consist of solo trips around Arctic Scandinavia, where she takes some petty incredible photos. I’ve always found Anna to be very open and honest about her adventures, realities of life and also calling out where she’s struggled or made mistakes and learnt from them. As a female adventurer, it’s great to have role models like Anna showing what’s possible and the positives of getting out alone sometimes.
gab.outdoors – I met Gabby on group hiking trip in Snowdonia. I turned up to the airbnb never having met anyone before and we sat in the sun having a drink and it felt like we’d known each other for years. As I’m writing this, Gabby is about half way through her solo coast to coast hike – 182+ miles from one side of the country to the other. I have absolutely loved watching her journey and following ger adventures. She’s a beautiful soul inside and out and has an absolutely cracking sense of humour. You should definitely check out her instagram if you want some of the most ridiculous polls you’ve ever seen!
What’s Next?
I have been doing a lot of work on myself over the last couple of months, part of which is around my self confidence. I’m therefore going to make a conscious effort to keep pushing myself out of my comfort zone and get out on these adventures I keep telling myself I’ll do. I only have 6 weeks left in Cornwall before heading back up North, so a wild camp on Dartmoor is on the list of ‘must do’s’ before I go!
If you want to follow along on my everyday adventures, then check out my instagram – lisa.outdoors
Happy adventuring! x
Lisa Outdoors 