10 Unexpected (and Downright Strange) Places Outside 365 Has Taken Me
Cal Cheak Suspension Bridge, Whistler, BC
Somehow I've managed to turn my passion for exploring mountain biking and hiking trails around the world into a full-time career. It's a decent way to pay the bills, but even with a hundred or a thousand lifetimes' worth of exploration, there will still be more corners of the planet than I could ever lay eyes on.
My Outside 365 project has unexpectedly taken me to dozens of unusual places that I would never have visited otherwise, even considering my penchant for wandering. The addition of a daily walk, or forcing myself to get out the door and just do something, has helped me experience a whole host of incredible and strange places that completely took me by surprise.
This list rounds up 10 of the most unexpected or downright weird places I've found myself during my Outside 365 project. Not only that, but each and every one of these unexpected discoveries is a direct result of having to get outside and be active every single day. So, you won't find any epic mountain bike rides or adventures deep into the backcountry on this list. I would have probably gone on those adventures anyway. But these ten places... I wouldn't have seen any of these sights if it wasn't for Outside 365.
Grounds of the Munich Airport
For globe trotters, long fly days are one of the greatest logistical challenges of all if you’re trying to get outside and active every single day. If you’re stringing together multiple flights around the globe, it’s easy to spend over 24 hours in planes and airports without a break in sight. It takes careful planning to schedule time outside on both days. While my preferred method is to get outside before my departing flight, sometimes I’ve even been able to work in a walk during a layover.
On one trip, I had a lengthy layover scheduled in Munich. Unlike most North American airports, many European airports require you to leave the secured area between gates and then pass through a second security checkpoint before reaching your departing gate. When I noticed that not only would I leave security, but I even got to walk outside between gates at the Munich airport, I decided to take some additional time to explore a bit.
On my one-mile walk, I discovered some beautiful gardens on the grounds of the airport. The hedges were perfectly trimmed and manicured into rectangular hedges, with long gravel paths running between them in a maze-like configuration. I’m not sure how many people ever get to enjoy these gardens, but I did immensely!
2. Historic Jacksonville Cemetery
I began walking from the grocery store in downtown Jacksonville, Oregon, and my feet took me to the edge of town and up a small hill. At the top, I stumbled on a beautiful historic cemetery, with the oldest tombstones dating back to the mid-1800s. In comparison to the East Coast Europe, these graves aren’t all that old, but for the Western USA they’re downright ancient.
While it felt strange to wander among the graves, I marveled at the quiet, peace, and beauty of this small historic cemetery.
3. Scrambling in the Desert near Capitol Reef
I frequently use Green River, Utah, as a road trip motel stop when I’m crisscrossing the Western USA. Whether it’s a south-to-north route or an east-to-west route, I often find myself stopping at a cheap, somewhat divey Knights Inn in Green River. On one particular trip, I arrived and checked into the motel in the early afternoon, with plenty of daylight left to go exploring. I looked up a possible hike and headed out in search of adventure.
Unfortunately, my route to the trailhead was obstructed by a full-sized RV pulling a long enclosed trailer that had gotten itself stuck in a ditch in the desert. I was forced to change plans, and just decided to start wandering through the desert. My wanderings took me to an exposed rock outcropping that I decided to scramble to the top of, yielding incredible views of Capitol Reef!
3. Lake Oglalla, Nebraska
On yet another cross country road trip, I searched for a spot to stop and log my mile for the day. After quickly perusing an app, I picked what looked like a decent trail a little ways off the interstate. Despite an almost 20-minute detour each way, getting off the interstate led me to the unexpectedly-beautiful Lake Oglalla. Never in my life would I have planned a dedicated trip to Nebraska’s Lake Oglalla, but the need to hike at least a mile (it ended up being about two and a half) led me to a gorgeous spot in the Great Plains! There’s beauty to be discovered in every corner of the planet.
5. Graffiti and the Spree River in Berlin, Germany
While working out of FATMAP’s main office in Berlin, I took a break over my lunch hour to get my mile in and just started wandering towards a nearby river. This walk ended up taking me to a surprisingly-beautiful view of the Spree River in Berlin, with a healthy dose of local graffiti and Berlin vibes along the way. Having spent most of my life in tiny rural towns in North America, the grit of Berlin felt shocking. But I began to appreciate the gritty perspective of Berlin, as many tourists might never get to experience this side of the cities they visit. If all you do is visit the classic tourist sites, ride tour buses, and eat at the most famous restaurants, you tend to get a whitewashed view of the cities or destinations you’re in.
There are a few different ways to combat this phenomenon, and I employed both of my favorites here:
Don’t just visit a city—live there and work there, whether it’s for a week or a few months. While this stop in Berlin was only a week, I’ve had many similar experiences all around the world. My 5-week stay in Barcelona was an especially formative experience for me and has cemented my belief in this live-and-work strategy.
Wander off the beaten path, with no specific aim in mind. Sure, take the time to visit some of the best tourist stops, but dedicate a day or two (more, ideally) to walking aimlessly through lesser-known quarters of the city. While this might be challenging to coordinate if you’re on the standard tourist trail, if you’re actually living and working in the city and are walking near your lodging or place of work, you’ll gain a dramatically different perspective.
For more on this, see Vagabonding by Rolf Potts.
6. Ravine Trails and Lighthouse, Milwaukee, WI
Similarly, while living and working in Milwaukee, I dropped a pin in a green space on Google Maps that seemed to have some trails in it and drove on over. After hoofing it up a short, steep hill, I stumbled upon a beautiful park on top of a flat mesa, and in this park, I found an idyllic, historic lighthouse! It was completely unexpected but a truly delightful surprise.
7. Scrambling up a Canyon Wall in Moab, UT
While also living and working (and camping) in Moab for a couple of weeks, I decided to take a rest day off the bike and instead, go for a little walk. My little walk from my campsite turned into following a faint trail up the side of a cliff, scrambling up a rocky cliffside to this stunning overlook of the Colorado River and Arches National Park in the distance. If there’s one sport I’d love to integrate into my life more, it’s scrambling!
8. Nevada State Capitol Grounds, Carson City
During a brief one-night stay in downtown Carson City, I headed out the door of the hotel for a quick walk. I had specifically chosen a hotel close to the downtown area, so I started wandering toward the state capitol building. It turned out that the state capitol was a gorgeous old stone building with verdant grounds and gardens! Who knew?! It would have been so easy to miss this by just staying in the hotel, heading to a restaurant for dinner, and then straight back to the hotel room, but Outside 365 prompted me to dive a little bit deeper in my exploration.
9. Cal Cheak Suspension Bridge, Whistler, BC
My first two-week stay in Whistler was packed with epic mountain bike rides and adventures of all shapes and sizes. I was expecting this—I drove over 24 hours to British Columbia in search of gnarly trails and rugged mountains, and Whistler (and Squamish) delivered! The epic mountain biking was expected, but on one rest day, I had to get my mile in, so I walked from my campground down a nearby trail. I had heard there was a suspension bridge crossing the river at some point, and so I set out to find it.
Lo and behold, I did manage to locate this narrow suspension bridge crossing the raging torrent of a river! What stunned me was how far out in the middle of nowhere this bridge was. My campground wasn’t close to much of anything, and this hike led even further into the forest. Impressive and most unexpected!
10. Kite Festival, Bali, Indonesia
Perhaps one of my most unexpected Outside 365 walks was spent wandering through a kite festival in Bali. One of the AirBNBs my friends and I stayed at in Bali was close to the coast, bordering an uninhabited field. But little did we know that this field played host to a weekly festival, where teams of locals would fly massive kites of varying sizes (from simply large to truly gigantic) in the consistent wind blowing in off the ocean.
Not satisfied to simply observe the festival from the AirBNB, I decided to walk around and get a close-up view of the teams working the lines and the general festivities. I also partook of the local food stand cuisine, earning myself an unfortunate case of Bali Belly.
Travel and exploration are often challenging, but at least it’s never boring!
These are just 10 of the many dozens of unexpected and beautiful experiences I’ve had as a direct result of the Outside 365 project. Where could Outside 365 take you?
