Once upon a time, a project caught my fancy. It was called Project 365, and it comprised taking a photo each day for a year. Inspired by Jamie Livingston, an artist who took a polaroid photo each day for 19 years until his death in 1997, I completed my first “365” in 2009-2010, in a time before I owned a cell phone. I took every photo with my Nikon dSLR, and wow did I learn a lot about photography that year. I loved the 365 project so much that I did it two more times. I’m not exaggerating when I say it changed my life – I started my photography business not too long after that.
So, I love a challenge or project. The one that caught my fancy this time is about microadventures. What’s a microadventure? The term seems to have been coined by Alistair Humphreys in 2013 or so. He says,
A microadventure is an adventure that is short, simple, local, cheap – yet still fun, exciting, challenging, refreshing and rewarding. As the world’s population becomes increasingly urbanised, busy, and stuck in front of a screen, microadventures offer a realistic escape to wilderness, simplicity and the great outdoors, without the need to ski to the South Pole or go live in a cabin in Patagonia.
I found another description of microadventures that expanded the description a bit to encompass more than wilderness adventures: “A microadventure still captures the essence of big adventures, the challenge, the fun, the escapism, the learning experiences and the excitement.” I love this idea so much. It ties in with my desire to seek and recognize joy and embrace creativity.
Another reason I love the idea of this project is related to my absolute favourite tarot card: The Fool. I am by nature a worrier and an obsessive planner. I fret and worry about consequences. I need more of the Fool’s mantra in my life: Seek adventures! Leap, and the Universe will catch you. So for me, microadventures are about leaning into the Fool’s energy of fresh ideas and breaking routines.
Why microadventures?
For the purposes of my project, a microadventure has three objectives:
- Expand my horizons
- Occasionally nudge me out of my comfort zone
- Bring me joy
And it has the bonus goal of getting me to engage my physical body more and move away from screens. Not every adventure will satisfy all of these objectives, but they will serve as the general parameters of the project.
I thought about coming up with a pre-populated or partially populated list of microadventures, and then I realized that planning for microadventures is sort of the opposite of the sort of freedom that the project wants. I’ve made a list-in-progress of ideas (see below) for inspiration, but I don’t want a set of tickey-boxes for this one. (And oh how I love my tickey-boxes!) Instead of making a list and following it, I’ll keep a running list of suggestions that I can draw from, but I want to leave room for new ideas too. And then to satisfy my deep love of tickey-boxes, I’ll document the microadventures here and/or on Instagram as I complete them.
Summer 2025 Microadventure Challenge
For the purposes of my project, I’ll define “summer 2025” as May 1 through September 30. That’s just over 21 weeks. In that time, I aim to complete and document at least 20 unique microadventures. The definition of microadventure will be forgiving, but this is the gist of it: all of my microadventures should incorporate some combination of exploration, creativity, novelty, outdoors and/or joyfulness. Where possible, microadventures should also be intentional, but because I also love whimsy and serendipity, I’ll not hold too fast to this ideal. And “documenting” can be as grand as a blog or instagram post, or as simple as adding it to the list. Photos are encouraged but not mandatory.
Want to join me? You can embark on your own Summer 2025 Microadventure Challenge – I’ve made us a hashtag so we can follow each others’ adventures: #Summer2025Microadventures. Or if you’re local, I’d love to share a microadventure with you!
Here are some speculative parameters. I like to go kayaking at least once a week, so I might include the first time kayaking in a new place, or even the first time in a season returning to a favourite place, as a microadventure. But I would not consider each regular kayaking jaunt on the Rideau River out of Manotick as a microadventure. There has to be a component of novelty, too. A patio lunch at a new restaurant might be a microadventure, but pizza from the regular place would not count. Unless we took it on a picnic to a new place! The project is meant to be inspirational, not didactic, so all “rules” are subject to interpretation and the potential to be ignored or overruled.
Also, feel free to take inspiration from my list of suggested microadventures, but make your list your own. Riding a bike somewhere is a big deal for me because I only ride mine a couple of times a year, but getting out on the water is an everyday occurrence. Tailor your microadventures so they help stretch your boundaries.
Ideas for microadventures
My intention is to find 20 microadventures in 21 weeks, so here’s a starter list of more than 20 ideas for inspiration. I’m sure most of my final list will come from ideas and inspirations not even on this list, but it wasn’t hard to come up with these ones speculatively.
- Go for a picnic
- Go for a hike on a new trail
- Beachcomb for treasures on a new section of waterfront
- Learn to identify a native tree or plant and go looking for it
- Cook a meal over a campfire
- Order something new from a familiar restaurant or cafe
- Hike or ride your bike to a spot with a spectacular vista
- Park the car and walk in a new neighbourhood
- Take a day trip to explore a new town or village
- Watch a meteor shower or aurora borealis display
- Rent or borrow a scooter or e-bike (and helmet) for an urban adventure
- Visit an art gallery or museum
- Use your bike for transportation instead of the car
- Take a class or workshop (hey, did I mention I do crafting workshops, right in your own home?) 😉
- Watch a live performance (whether a busker on a streetcorner or a play at the GCTC)
- Take a walk at night by moonlight
- Go to a farmer’s market and buy something you don’t usually purchase
- Take an unplanned detour to follow an interesting roadside sign invitation
- Watch the sunrise or sunset over water
- Volunteer for a cause
- Try a new technique or teach yourself a new skill from a book or online videos
- Buy food from a new street vendor or truck
- Paddle or boat or swim to an island that can’t be reached by car. Explore it!
- Camp out, whether in your backyard or at a campsite
- Make something ephemeral in nature, like a sandcastle or a wreath woven from branches, and leave it in nature
- Go to an outdoor concert
- Learn to find the planets and observe how they move against the constellations
Let me if you have any ideas to add to the list, or if you’d like to join me on your own version of the Summer 2025 Microadventure Project. Maybe you’re only up for 5? That’s still amazing. Five is more than none, and we all need a little bit more adventure in our lives.
Let’s do it!
The microadventures master list:
#1 – Exploring the disappearing highway near the Lost Villages of the St Lawrence Seaway
#2 – Kayaking Steven’s Creek
#3 – Gathering treasures at McHaffie’s flea market
#4 – Rock and mineral collecting at the beryl pit mine near Quadville