Top 5 Local Outdoor Adventures To Do With Your Family

The Pandemic has us all scrambling these days in desperate search of fun activities to do outdoors. Let’s face the reality, it’s been a bad year for us all. However, for the average American teen 2020 has been downright miserable.

Normally a time of self-discovery, social navigation, first tastes of freedom and exploration is replaced with lockdown, altered schedules, and social isolation. Everyone is sad and most have experienced some form of depression due to the pandemic. The following are all exciting ways to get your family outside and enjoying themselves.

• Gamify your activities! Even a simple walk outside can become a challenge when you up the challenge each time even one minute more.
• Local Elevation Challenge – Find the highest elevation in your county, climb it, and then go on to the next one. Work your way up to the highest elevation in your state
• Scavenger Hunt – create a local scavenger hunt for your family finding the various objects
• Take a Quiz and find out what outdoor activity suits your family’s interests
• Create a Wheel of Adventure – add items like Hike, Bike, Raft, Canoe, National Park, and let each family member take turns spinning the wheel of adventure.

Taking a break from technology and getting the family outdoors will work wonders for the depression and sadness of our times. I had no idea how to plan and was in search of The Ultimate Guide To Planning The Best Vacation With Teens and with all of the craziness of lockdowns and postponements of the past year, I was so glad I did. Even beyond COVID-19, the effects that creating new family habits and memories will have are long-lasting. A 2019 study found that kids who spent the least amount of time in green spaces were 55% more likely to develop psychiatric issues, such as anxiety and mood disorders, as adolescents or adults (verywellfamily.com via Engemann, Pedersen, Arge, Tsirogiannis, Mortensen, and Svenning).

Engemann K, Pedersen CB, Arge L, Tsirogiannis C, Mortensen PB, Svenning JC. Residential green space in childhood is associated with lower risk of psychiatric disorders from adolescence into adulthood. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2019;116(11):5188-5193. doi:10.1073/pnas.1807504116