elizabethadventuresblogHave you ever wanted to adventure travel but just don’t know where to begin? I’m going to share my top adventure travel tips and everything yo uneed to know to plan for yourself. I often get asked “how do you plan your trips?” Sometimes very little goes into planning day hikes or camping trips. Often I either already know the areas well or I’ve hiked/camped so much I can take off easily. I spend a lot of time researching, planning and preparing for all my trips and I’m going to share my travel planning process with you!
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First Step to Adventure Travel: Where Are You Going?
Whether you’re doing a day hike or a week long road trip, you have to have a destination. I find my inspiration for the destination part of my trips through multiple outlets. Instagram and Pinterest are big influences in finding a specific region or country I want to visit. I’ll use these apps to help me narrow down a specific country, state or city.
How To Research A Destination
Step 1:
Once I am set on a destination I use blogs, Instagram, AllTrails, Google Maps and Pinterest to help me plan my potential hikes and towns I want to see. Let’s say I know I want to spend a weekend camping near Mt. Hood. I’ll go to Google and type in things like “best hikes near Mt. Hood” or “must see spots Mt. Hood.” Once the results pop up I do quick scans of the top few articles and blogs. I’ll jot down my list based on what I think I would want to see and do. I will do the same for Pinterest to see if anything new pops up. These tools are so helpful for adventure travel planning.
Step 2:
After I’ve gone through the blogs and social media platforms, I like to use AllTrails to help me find other hikes or gain more information on the hikes I already have listed. Once you get onto the AllTrails app, you can start searching trails by name. Try clicking on the map icon in the top right corner and searching the map itself in the area(s) your traveling.
If I’m going to be camping near Mt. Hood, I’m going to move the map to that specific area. I’ll then search through the green icons near Mt. Hood. You can click on the green icons at each trailhead, read about the hikes, view photos others have uploaded and see reviews to determine if it’s one you want to do.
Another nice option is using the filter located on the top right to narrow down the hikes. You can edit the distance, ratings, elevation, etc and even find more specific like “waterfall” or “dog friendly” hikes. As you find hikes you are interested in doing, save them to a specific folder. If I’m going to Sedona, I will save all my Sedona hikes in a folder labeled “Sedona.”
Step 3:
Once I have a list of potential places, I use Google to search each specific place, especially for a road trip. I want to know where exactly they are located so I can create a mental map and create a rough travel route. I also like to search through photos so I get a feel for the areas before I get to them. I’m very much a “have a list, but be flexible” kind of traveler.
I love having plenty of potential places to visit but also being flexible. I know I may not hit them all and even add a random stop if a place looks interesting. It’s extremely important to be willing to be flexible when you travel. That’s part of what makes it adventure travel! Some of the best places aren’t on your list.
Step 4:
Another great resource I use for discovering more off the beaten path places is using Google maps. You can put it on satellite and see if there are any interesting landscape features along your route and research them further. Google maps will also show various landmarks and parks that you may not know about. It is such a great tool to help you discover unique places as you travel!
Creating a list of Travel Plans
If I am doing a road trip I will go create a notes page and list each day I will be gone (Ex. Monday-Thursday). This way I can list each potential activity under each day I could do that hike. First, I will map out my starting location to my first destination. This will let me know how long of a drive I have, what time I should aim to leave and how much time I have to hike that day. If I have a 6 hour drive on day one, that means I will need to calculate that into my adventure time.
I will list any hikes, restaurants, tourists sites I learned about for that area prior under the first day. If I’m going to be in the area on day two, then I know I will have more time to do one of the longer hikes and aim to do them then.
My next step will be to map out between all the upcoming locations and mark the hours it takes to travel. I will have a spot for every day of the trip to mark important information. Below is a photo of a recent trip to Utah I took with my mom. Each day lists where we drove, if we had a drive, and the potential hikes planned.
I often put the distance of a hike so I can quickly identify how long it would take me to complete. It’s important to know how long a stop could be. It’s really up to you what information you will find helpful for you’re notes page.
As I am creating my list, I will place each location under a specific day so I know when we may be stopping at that destination or doing a specific hike. If I’m gone for just a weekend I will have “Friday, Saturday, Sunday” listed with what I have potentially planned for each day. If it’s an entire week, I list all the days we are gone.
This is why researching each specific place is important because you don’t want to drive to one destination hours away only to have to drive back to one you already passed. Researching the locations helps me plan out our driving route and how many days we need to potentially hit everything. Once my flexible schedule is created, I get to start the logistical planning. Adventure travel is flexible, but also requires knowing where thigns are located prior.
Second Step to Adventure Travel: Where are we staying?
Whether you are booking a place to stay or camping, it is important to know the locations ahead of time. If we are going to stay at a home rental, hotel or campground, I will book them ahead of time. Having an itinerary for a road trip is important in letting you know where you will be booking your accommodations each night. If we are car camping and using BLM land, I don’t have to book anything ahead of time and we just drive until we find a place to stay for the night.
Third Step to Adventure Travel: What Do I Need to Bring?
It’s so important to go prepared. This requires researching the areas’ weather not just a week in advance. I will Google the areas’ typical weather for the specific month I’m going, because let’s be honest, the weather can change in the matter of days sometimes. Knowing the weather well helps me plan out the gear I want and clothes.
If its winter and I’m snowshoeing, my gear list will be very different than if I’m headed south where it’s warm and dry. I create my gear list on the same notes page as my travel itinerary that way I can easily find everything I need for a specific trip.
Another important thing to know when creating your packing lists is where are you staying, which is why knowing if you are camping or staying in a hotel/Airbnb ahead of time is important. Both will require different supplies. Sometimes I do both so I plan clothes for town and clothes for camping and hiking. Knowing where we are staying also helps me create a food list for packing. If I’m close to a city, we may plan to eat out once or twice so that’s less food to bring. If we are well outside of a city, I know I need to have all our meals with us.
Knowing what to take hiking and camping when you are newer to both can be confusing and is such a learning experience. Every time you go, you will learn what does and doesn’t work for you specifically. Click here to find a blog post all about my camping gear. You can also click here for information on what I take hiking with me.
Whether you are going on a short trip or a long one, having a rough game plan and lists is so important to make everything flow and relieve any stress while you’re out on the road. The one thing I’ve learned with planning and adventure travel is to be flexible and open to whatever adventure is ahead. I often don’t check off every place I want to see, because lets be honest, how will we ever actually see everything on this Earth?!?
Having a flexible list to pull from makes life so much easier on the road. If we are feeling tired we can pick a short hike or low-key activity instead of a more strenuous one and still see things we want to see. At the end of the day, I just want to be out exploring and traveling so I am always happy on the open road with new adventures ahead! Hopefully this will help you find a way to easily plan out your next trip and find new ways to see all the amazing places you want to see.
Frequently Asked Questions About Adventure Travel
I am asked a lot of questions on Instagram about how I plan trips, where I stay, what to eat and packing tips. Below are some frequently asked questions and how I navigate each situation.
“How Do You Incorporate Creature Comforts?”
What are creature comforts you ask? Creature comforts are things in our everyday life like showers, morning coffee or a night time routine that can often be hard to do on the road. Finding time or even places to do these basic everyday comforts isn’t always easy on the road, but totally doable!
When And Where to Shower
Let’s start with showers. Obviously staying at a hotel or Airbnb on your road trips takes this out of the equation, you’ll have shower access daily. So what if you’re camping or staying in a car/van? This is usually how we travel and we do two things. I will book us a camp site at an RV site every 4-5 days if it’s a longer road trip depending on access to one and the location (dirty desert vs alpine mountains).
The other thing I do is use a portable shower! I will dispersed camp so I have plenty of privacy. All you have to do is boil up some water and mix it with regular temp water to make it a comfortable temperature. Then voila, shower like you would normally, only you’re out in nature. I have the Sea To Summit shower. It’s compact and can be taken backpacking if I ever go on a long hike and want it.
Morning and Evening Routines
How to enjoy your morning and evening routines like a warm cup of coffee or night time care? To start, I’m not a coffee drinker therefore I usually don’t take time out of the day for it. My husband loves a cup of coffee on the road so he will always use the stove or jetboil to quickly boil up some water and make a cup while I’m packing up. I have Yeti mugs that way he can just drink it on the road.
If I have an early morning hike planned, he will either make a cup when we return to the car or pack in supplies in his backpack to make it on the hike. I love taking things with me on the hike. There’s just something about enjoying the views with a cup of hot cocoa or fresh packed pastries.
If you have a morning or night time routine, it’s really up to you how you allocate your time. I always take time at the end of the day to wash my face and body of the caked on dirt. Then I will moisturize and put on anything else I choose to pack that specific trip. Being in the sun all day, I love being able to rehydrate my skin overnight. Most mornings though I am go-go-go. Evenings are my time to slow down and enjoy a campfire or take care of our bodies.
“How Often and For How Long Do Your Stop?”
Honestly there is no real answer to this one. It truly depends on the trip and the sights I want to see. It also depends on how you like to travel. Some people like to just stop at one or two places within a week. This allows people to really immerse themselves in those places. If thats the case for you, you won’t be stopping a ton or driving too far.
I tend to be the opposite. I love to see as much as I can on a trip. Chances are I’ll go back to explore more some day if I love it so I love getting a larger taste of the area. I prefer to cover more ground so I can see if it’s a place I truly want to come back to. So what does that look like for me?
How I calculate my “stop” times
When I travel I calculate the hike times so I know how long each place needs. If it’s a 4 mile hike, I give myself 30 minutes per mile. This makes it so I’m not rushed, can take plenty of photos and even relax at the top. Knowing your personal hiking time helps you know how much time to allot. I am also super flexible. If I am driving and see something interesting, I will stop and adjust the schedule to fit it in.
Determining how often you stop really just depends on your list and how much you want to see. Using what I mentioned above should help you come up with a list. Knowing your hike times will help you map out your days better too. I highly recommend being flexible and allow for some spontaneity.
“What Websites Do You Use For Affordable Stays”
I rarely stay in an actual building because one, I am frugal and two, I have all the gear to camp. I’d rather spend my money on the actual travel than the accommodations. But that’s not to say I don’t love to splurge and stay at fun places every so often! So when I do I’m usually looking for a good deal and a beautiful or unique place. I will searched hotels websites like hotels.com or princeline.com. I will then search Google maps. Simply search “local hotels” to see if I can find a better deal or place before booking a hotel.
Adventure Travel Unique Stays
If I am looking for a more unique stay like a canvas tent or boutique hotel I like to find those types of place through Instagram, Google or blogs. You can type in a location in the search engine on Instagram. Look through photos of that area to see if you notice any unique looking places. I use phrases like “unique accommodations in _____” or “Rentals near_____” in the Google search engine and see what pops up. Once I find a few places, I search them to see if they have any promotions or discounts being offered. You can also find a lot of unique places to stay through blog posts. Sometimes I’ll find places people share about just by researching the area itself on Google.
Adventure Travel Camping Stays
If I am camping I will search for campgrounds on Google maps. I will also search things like “best campgrounds near ___” or “blm campgrounds near___” to help me narrow down campsites. I will book a site ahead of time if it’s a national park or place I know is hard to get. It’s important to have a back up plan if you don’t book. Sometimes blm land can be difficult to navigate or a campsite could fill up. I try and have two potential spots to sleep ready for each night.
At the end of the day the most important thing is to get out there and explore. Whether that be a quick weekend trip camping or a week long road trip. There is no right or wrong way to adventure travel, just do it. I’m definitely a frugal traveler who will disperse camp to save some pennies for other adventures. That doesn’t mean renting a camper van or booking a luxury hotel isn’t the way to go for you. Those types of trips are so much fun too! The more you adventure travel the more you will find a rhythm and little hacks that work for you. Hopefully showing you my steps will help you figure out what steps you can take yourself to make adventure travel easier.
To learn more about how to get into backpacking, check out my “Backpacking for Beginners” guide.
Happy Travels,
Elizabeth
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