Microadventures: Local Discoveries for Great Escapes

I loved it for all the reasons others have: the book is fun, it's inspiring, it gets my imagination going -- and maybe my courage too. I am edging up to an microadventure that intimidates me a little -- a solo kayak camping outing. One other thing I loved is that Humphreys is a terrific writer -- funny (at his own expense), often succinct, occasionally eloquent. To counter the criticism that this book is all UK-based, it's not the location of the author's microadventure that is important; it's the idea that each of us can make our own. So I've got to do my solo trip THIS YEAR!

I grew up camping, rock climbing, and taking regular spring break and summer outdoor vacations, but the concept of a microadventure that fits into your day to day living is fantastic. I do think this book is centered around microadventures in Great Britain. I lived in SE England for a few years and can relate to many of the microadventures that the author mentions. They are great ideas for that locale. And while many of the author's overall ideas can translate across the globe, I struggle just going out and sleeping on a whim amongst the rattlesnakes, scorpions, badgers, mountain lions, and bears that are local to my area. This book is also less geared towards the needs of families with small children (which is understandable), but changes how feasible it may be to just get out with minimal supplies while towing the whole family along. Overall, the book is great and well written. I've enjoyed it as the kickoff to my 1000 Hours Outside booklist for 2023.

I fell across a podcast with an interview with Alastair Humphreys. This was just at a time I was thinking about going on some "microadventures" (not knowing about the concept), heading out by myself to camp in the woods. I was really happy I heard about Alastair and the concept of microadventures. I got some very good information and it opened my eyes to using a bivvy instead of a tent (this was new to me) and I especially like the concept of packing light. The book was really inspiring and I have now been out on several occasions both close to were I live and also closer to my work (which is close to a beautiful national park which I have often thought about visiting but never gotten around to it) both by foot and with my mountain bike. With the light packing concepts I can fit everything I need into my new 32 liter backpack. Next week I am planning on taking some of my colleagues out on a 9-5 microadventure. I really recommend this book to everyone, it has some great ideas on how to get some adventure into your everyday life, getting closer to nature even if you live in a big city, even if you don't have much time or money.

Not a great page turner but a fantastic and important concept I will use in my 5-9. Good for ideas of microadventures but if you want specifics it's very UK-centric. Still worth a look, I'll probs refer to it later when planning a microadventure!

I love this book! I got it right at the beginning of the summer (perfect timing!) and actually got to try out some of the suggestions in the book as I was reading it! I love that each adventure is only 2 or 3 pages long, so as I'm waiting for water to boil or coffee to brew and I read it and be inspired. Even if you don't end up doing exactly what the book suggests, it's still well written and a great, at time humorous, read.

This book was inspiring and full of ideas! It will cause you to think of going on an everyday adventure close to home. It is a British book so things in there he could do applies more to his country. It still helps yuu think outside the box!

I loved this book and the way it changed how I look at "adventure". I've been fortunate to have traveled, backpacked, and hiked all over the world, all of which were big productions requiring major investments of time, money, and effort. Mr. Humphrey's lovely book has opened my eyes to the possibilities around me which, while not requiring the investments of my other adventures, are not diminished. I've had that same feelings of wonder and discovery on my micro-adventures as on my "macro-adventures" and it has added greatly to the quality of my life. I'm a working single mother, and time and money constraints can feel so limiting sometimes; by making the time and effort to fit wee adventures into my life at regular intervals, I've expanded my life. I highly recommend this book to everyone, and to those with younger children, I say, take them with you - teach them to approach the world with excitement and to create the space in their lives for adventure, discovery and delight.

I keep this book visible on the coffee table. It is inspirational. The idea that you don't have spend years risking your life to enjoy the outdoors in a lovely idea. Also you don't have to be the fastest, go the furthest or be the first one to do it to benefit from your adventures. The idea that with a little clever thinking you can be an adventurer is lovely. Alastair is ray of sunshine, a positive human that helps nudge you out the door. I have had many many conversations with people about the ideas in this book. Fun photos, great ideas, clear writing- that books is not a manual or "how- to" but a "why-do" book, a spark of inspiration.

O livro é muito inspirador, mesmo que às vezes seja meio repetitivo aao demonstrar os benefícios das microaventuraws. Além das histórias sobre as microaventuras, possui dicas muito boas sobre como cada um pode fazer sua própria aventura.

I love this book. It did its job which was to encourage me to start taking small adventures. This book is especially relevant to Japan where it is very easy to travel around and camp just about anywhere.

I come back to this book for ideas to getting outside and the author has inspired us to go on micro adventures we would have otherwise never considered. I would even go so far as to say he has enabled us, because it does take some guts and he is great at dispelling anxieties around adventures. The book has a nice design with lots of pictures for inspiration and is easily browsed through between adventures (or 9-5 workdays). Highly recommended!

I've been following Alastair's adventures for years now, and like to think of myself as fairly adventurous, so I was initially a bit sceptical about whether this book would actually be able to inspire me in to more action. I've cycled the length of Britain and Europe, driven Rickshaws across Indonesia and India, run marathons and Tough Mudders, climbed mountains and travelled, lived and trekked around many parts of the world. The reality is though that this book truly is a book for everyone. It is fantastic! I personally devoured in just a few days, and loved almost every page. It really has given me even more inspiration to make the most of my time, and reminded me that adventure is incredibly easy to find and do, if you just force yourself to close the laptop cover, get out the door and use some imagination (or just pick up this book if you are lacking imagination). It's amazing to think that the adventure that perhaps inspired me the most, and also made me laugh out loud, was one that just involved sleeping in your own garden under the stars (without a tent). So simple, but how many of us have actually done that? My bivvy bag arrives today! The stories of the adventures are great, but the practical tips in the second half of the book really are excellent too, right down to what bivvy bag or sleeping bag to buy, which camera equipment to use, all the way to what constellations to look out for in the night sky. All in all, an absolutely brilliant book. It's well written, beautifully put together with a lot of fantastic photos, and generally very inspiring. Whether you are an adventurer or not, I can pretty much guarantee you it will inspire you to take action in some way or another.

This is a great book to read. I have been following the adventure traveler and author of several books – Alastair Humphreys, Al for short, since 2009. He has written two voluminous books earlier on his bicycle tour of the world. My reviews of his books titled ‘Thunder and Sunshine’ and ‘There will be other Rivers’ are also available on amazon.ca Al has done tremendous job of shifting his focus on micro adventures, considering that most people today don’t have time and/or financial resources to go on long duration adventure travelling. This is a book that he has written for those of us with exactly those constraints – availability of time and of funding. Through his own interesting microadventures of many different kinds in many different environments (forests, hills, rivers, lakes, oceans, highways, neighborhoods, etc.), colorful pictures, and tips in the book, Al has put forth a convincing case for us in that the time and finances are no excuses for not undertaking adventures. If it is not adventure travelling, let it be micro adventures, which to me, he defines as any short duration adventure with at least one overnight sleeping outside of man-built environment (I repeat, this is what my interpretation is of his definition of micro adventuring). The book is written from UK’s perspective, but with adequate measures, it can be applied anywhere in the world where conditions are safe for adventuring. He has also given a hashtag community to link and exchange views with other micro adventurers. This is an excellent, easy to read, and follow book that should inculcate the desire of adventuring in anyone who reads it.