With some intermittently warm spring days and summer just around the corner, many people in the Bow Valley are taking advantage of the opportunity to explore the beautiful trails and mountains that surround us.  However, there are others who wish they could be more “outdoorsy”, and one of the common complaints I hear is that we’re such an active community it can be intimidating for those who are just getting in to hiking and scrambling to know where to start and who to start with.

Richard Campbell from 10Adventures joined me on the show to share some practical tips for those wanting to spend more time exploring the great outdoors, as well as details on some good starter and family hikes in our area.

Here is some of the advice he broke down during our chat:

    1. Start slowly – for example walking in a park where you live – Maybe change to ‘start with easy walks, even in parks near where you live are a great start’.
    2. Don’t wait for your spouse or friend to want to join you, instead join a group to motivate you to get outside.
    3. Don’t get paralyzed about the options for where to hike, use a site like 10Adventures to find complete route guides for only the best hikes.
    4. Don’t let weather ruin your trip – make sure your adventures are in really nice weather.
    5. Don’t let pain make it suck – baby your feet with quality footwear.
    6. Listen to your body and don’t be afraid to turn back – the hike will be there for you another day.
    7. Set an audacious goal for your summer and build to it, like summiting a local peak, or your first backpacking trip.