MicroAdventure Archives

Walk to a Friend’s House For Dinner

Our experience of life can become humdrum if we allow it. To interrupt the monotony of life, I propose you call a friend, invite yourself to dinner and then, wait for it, walk to their house.

How our dinner party became a reality

“Hey Jon, can we come for dinner at your house on Saturday night? We want to walk to your house over the river and through the woods.”
“Sure-are you serious?”
-Undaunted Courage dinner party

Our route became a combination of US Forest Service roads and off-trail bushwacking.

As the crow flies, Jon lives twenty-miles away, which made for the perfect adventure. We dubbed our party Undaunted Courage in honor of Stephen Ambrose’s book about the explorers Lewis and Clark. No doubt, our cross country trek of a few hours wasn’t comparable, but our explorer’s spirit lacked none of the potency of uncertainty.

Map, compass, trekking poles, and willing hearts were our equipment to help us create a permanent narrative of exploration, adventure, and intimacy. Even something as simple as dinner can become an adventure.

Reject the humdrum. Go big. Live on purpose.

Keep going,

Aaron

Our Undaunted Courage dinner party. We were few, but mighty.

An explorer’s spirit starts with curiosity about what’s out around the next corner.

Make a Cup of Coffee Outside

Understand one thing, your backyard is the best place to play. Years ago, I started firing up my small backpacking stove outside to brew up a cup of coffee. After a run, during a work day in the parking lot or on a short lunchtime walk, my little stove became my excuse to play.

I’ve won many suburbanites over to start brewing outside after they experience my fifteen minutes of tailgate bliss. Now I regularly receive emails, pictures and text stories about curbside adventures, coffee on the roof, brews made in the local park and java recipes in Alaska.

According to a recent snippet I received from Brene’ Brown’s book, Dare to Lead, “What’s more, according to Brown’s research, play shapes our brain, fosters empathy, helps us navigate social groups, and is at the core of creativity and innovation.” So the next time you are stumped on a work challenge, a relational situation or need a fifteen-minute reboot, fire up a cup of coffee or hot drink outside.

Here are a few stoves that will simplify your brew.

MSR PocketRocket 2 Mini Stove Kit

This little ball of flame is simple, cheap and lightweight. This is my go-to stove for urban adventures and short overnights. REI sells the kit for under $80.

Another popular stove option is the Jetboil Flash Cooking System. Made for climbers hanging on the side of big walls originally, now suburban adventurers like us benefit from this all-in-one cook system. Selling for $99 for the whole cook system kit at REI.

image-bleed — Old Trusty fired up for a winter walk to warm the body and soul with a coffee and snack.

Jake having a cup of joe on the roof before work-enjoying a simple slow beginning to his day. Go Jake.

Inaugural trunk side brew fest. Thanks Chad for the pic!

Dispatch: Saving Ferris Bueller & Eliot Ness in Downtown Chicago

Last fall, I flew to#Chicago for a quick business day trip to and between meetings decided to visit scene locations from the movies #ferrisbuellersdayoff and #theuntouchableschicago . I used my new @gopro #hero5 for this photo essay. Instead of sitting at the airport or answering email in a coffee shop, I dreamed up this little urban adventure. I found the scene locations for both movies using these websites Ferris Bueller’s Day Off film locations and The Untouchables. The scene locations I visited are close to one another and within a two-mile radius. Adventure is available anywhere you chose to find it.

“Ferris Bueller my hero!”

I started at The Art Institute of Chicago where Ferris Bueller, Cameron and Sloan played hooky visiting famous paintings. Refresh your memory by watching the scene.

Eliot Ness and The Untouchables

Through prohibition, Eliot Ness, leading the charge of catching Al Capone and bringing him to justice. The classic cast included Kevin Costner, Robert De Niro and Sean Connery.

Deleted scenes

Here are a few extra shots that I had fun shooting.

Chase the Sun To Fight Off Winter’s Frost

Colorado’s winter is short compared to Minnesota, but in our city, Colorado Springs, we still chase the sun to fight off winter’s frost. Here are a few local spots I’ve found to boost your vitamin D and internal happy meter.

Fuel before adventuring out

Loyal Coffee disrupts Colorado Springs in a Pacific Northwest way. (Photo credit Loyal Coffee)

Stay in your warm bed and lazily start your chasing the sun mini-adventure with Loyal Coffee’s artisan peppermint mocha. Expect a passionate riff from one of the six hipster barista-owners. Loyal is at the top of the pyramid of great coffee shops, and they love to evangelize their passion for excellence in coffee and their investment in our local community. Loyal’s aficionado roasted beans will arouse your taste buds attention from a potent swallow of espresso to a Spanish-originated Cortada-warm milk and espresso.

Don’t skimp-go for the soft boiled egg on toast and a sausage Po’ Boy. Bust your Palio diet and go carbs with breakfast grits to continuous fuel your winter outing.
408 S. Nevada Ave. Colorado Springs, CO.80903 (719) 235-5477

Cheyenne Mountain State Park

The trick to staying warm on a cold Colorado winter day is to stay in the sun. Cheyenne Mountain State Park serves up 21 miles of low elevation trails between open-prairie and lightly forested single-track trails for of hiking and biking. Pick your line by setting out from Limekiln trailhead parking lot and aim towards the sun along the 2.6-mile Talon loop to the 3.3 mile Sundance loop trail. Leave the pooch at home, no dogs are allowed on the trails.

Directions: Take the South Academy Exit off I-25, just south of Colorado Springs, head west on S. Academy to Hwy 115. Make a left on 115, follow the signs to the park.

Open year round 9 am to 4 pm. 410 JL Ranch Heights Rd, Colorado Springs, CO 80926

Bygone Era Flavors by the barrel

Shake off the crisp air at Distillery 291 Whiskey tasting room with a flight of Wild West Whiskey. For $10 sip one of five distinctive whiskey’s replicas inspired by taste and stories from owner Michael Myers. Growing up in the heart of Tennessee whiskey country with nearby legends Jack Daniels and George Dickel serves up flight tastings of each spirit Wed-Saturday from 5 pm to 11 pm.

1647 South Tejon Street, Colorado Springs, CO 80905 (719) 323-8010

MicroAdventure: 105℉ July Summer Heat in Plano, TX

Texas hot is no joke. Between wedding events, we had two-hours to kill. Perfect micro-adventure window. My son and I agreed that our two options were going to see a movie (lame and predictable) or find the weirdest pool we can locate. Google found this small neighborhood pool, Texas Pool on the Creek, in the shape of Texas. Perfect match.

Photo credit: Texas Pool on the Creek in Plano

Get weird

I always think of Jim Carrey from Yes Man visiting a chicken factory in Nebraska. Adventure is everywhere you look.

Neither of us had proper swim trunks. We improvised. No towels. We air dried. $10 each and thirty minutes of cool soaking. The point is that if we can find a small adventure in the middle of summer in Plano, TX…you can too.

Here are a few ideas to get you thinking

Where would you take guests visiting from another country, the most unique, the most local, outside of their normal?
What have you always said you’d do, but haven’t?
If you treated every day like a mini-adventure, what would you go investigate and explore?

Dispatch: Perfect NYC Business Travel MicroAdventure Brooklyn Pumptrack

The winter chill rolled up the East River as Nik leaned into turn number two at Brooklyn’s Pumptrack. Just before close, I met Nik, pumptrack watchman for the day. I told him how we Coloradans heard about the park and I wanted to share the story with you readers. He was down and gave us a quick couple laps on his BMX for some GoPro Be a Hero pics.

Nik on turn number two on Brooklyn's pumptrack — Nik on turn number two on Brooklyn’s pumptrack

I saw a blurb from Outside Magazine on this adventure hub near Brooklyn’s Williamsburg Bridge. On a recent trip, my wife and I walked a dozen blocks to scout this microadventure friendly urban bike and skate park. I loved this little gem. The pumptrack is a postage stamp of industrial dirt carved out between turn of the century Brooklyn workingman brick towers.

Break free of the NYC business meetings, cocktail dinners and Times Square. Catch a train over to Brooklyn and rent a bike, board and protective gear for $20-$30 and pretend you’re twelve years old again.

Good luck not giggling as you bank big city turns and flow the whoop de doos at Brooklyn Bike Park. It’s easy. It’s cheap. It’s accessable. Super kid and beginner friendly. Stunning Manhattan views More details on Pumptrack Brooklyn Facebook page.

Nik posing for a pic with me at the pumptrack

Directions: Brooklyn Pump Track is located at 318 Kent Ave Brooklyn, NY 11249 between South 3rd and 4th streets. Open 11 am to 7 pm.

By Train: Subway stops are the L at Bedford Ave or the J, M, Z at Marcy Ave.

Williamsburg bridge Brooklyn chalk art on the pumptrack

Nik and I closing out the day at the pumptrack

Hike South Dakota’s Highest Peak

I found this gem of a peak in an obscure mention in Outside or National Geographic Adventure. I knew it would make for a perfect MicroAdventure to hike South Dakota’s highest peak, Harney Peak. I tore out this adventure blurb for our Men’s Town Road Trip. Harney Peak is South Dakota’s highest point at an elevation of 7,244 feet above sea level. Located in the Black Hills only a few miles from Mount Rushmore’s National Memorial, this peak pays a huge summit dividend.

The history of Harney Peak's fire lookout tower built in 1929 — The history of Harney Peak’s fire lookout tower built in 1939

The reward on top of Harney Peak is the three-story 360-degree fire tower lookout built in 1939. Built during America’s New Deal era, this is one of the most beautiful architectural creations I’ve ever witnessed in the wilderness.

The Story of Black Elk

According to Outside, Black Elk, an Oglala Sioux medicine man who fought in the battle of the Little Bighorn, climbed Harney Peak on a vision quest when he was only 9 years old. When he came down, he called the mountain-not far from the precise geographic center of the United States-the “center of the universe.

Trailhead: Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park

41 miles south of Rapid City, SD, we hiked the 7-mile round trip route from Sylvan Lake to Harney Peak. The trail is very well marked and climbs a moderate contour around crazy valleys to Harney’s granite monolith summit home. Bring your own water and plan on a full day to enjoy the hike and summit vistas. Make sure you poke around and investigate the fire lookout tower and water pump-house below the summit. You will be amazed at the engineering involved in making this outpost fully sustainable for mountain fire forecasting. If any weather rolls in, shelter up in the fire tower.

Side Trips from Harney Peak

Hike a portion of the Lewis & Clark Trail
Go deep into Wind Cave on a guided National Park Service adventure
Visit Mount Rushmore at Sunset
Go where the buffalo roam and explore Custer State Park

Resources for hiking Harney Peak

Here is a downloadable map for Custer State Park-Harney Peak.

MicroAdventure Hike Hanging Lake, Colorado

Hanging Lake is a must-see magical place perfect for a MicroAdventure hike. Hanging Lake reminds me of Peter Pan’s Mermaid Lagoon from the 1953 Disney. It’s so beautiful it doesn’t seem real. Located just seven miles outside of Glenwood Springs, CO Hanging Lake is a very popular destination. Normally, I would advise you to stay off the well-worn paths and find a less popular trail. Hanging Lake is so special; it’s worth sharing the adventure with other people.

Getting to your MicroAdventure Hike Hanging Lake

Trailhead: Dead Horse Creek
Trail conditions: Moderately difficult 1.2-mile long climb up a rocky drainage.
Best seasons to visit: Spring, summer and fall.
Time required: Plan on two to three hours.
Parking: This can be a challenge as the parking lot fills up in the summer. Located immediately off I-70 in Glenwood Canyon, start early and you should be able to find a parking spot.
Who can go? I’d take little kids, but be ready to carry them. I wouldn’t take aging parents or grandparents that have trouble getting around. The trail is very rocky.
The stuff you can’t do: No dogs. No Swimming.

MicroAdventure resources to Hike Hanging Lake

White River National Forest
Information including trail conditions and closure updates. Downloadable PDF here.
White River National Forest
900 Grand Avenue
Glenwood Springs, CO 81601
970-945-2521

Hanging Lake on Wikipedia
If you’re a big planner, you might enjoy reading details about the history and geology of Hanging Lake.

City of Glenwood Springs: Hanging Lake
Great photos, trail description and details on what to carry in your pack.

Off Script: Basecamp Hotels

Just like a Boy Scout camp out -South Lake Tahoe Hotel Basecamp

I found a fun boutique hotel that is tall on Adventure, Basecamp Hotels. Adventure pinpointed in California, South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe City and now in Boulder, CO. Check out their Instagram feed to get a good feel on the hotel experience.

Here is their story from their website

“At Basecamp Hotels, we want to bring the spirit of exploration back to your hotel stay. Our mission is to take under-appreciated buildings in great destinations and infuse them with soul, so you can have an alternative to the cookie cutter hotel experience. We love to connect with the people who stay here and to connect them with the place they stay.”