We live, for most of our lives, indoors. Whether we are in a car, our house, a friend’s house, or work, we are confined to the space that we are currently in. I’d imagine that many a man has spent almost every penny of his life shielded from the world he lived in, battered safely against the elements.

To most, being outside of that box, outside of the doors that serve as entry into that box, to be “out of doors” is something that is done on purpose. To be outdoors is an intentional act. Most of us here are not accidentally being outdoors.

To that end, is there a greater act of intentionality than camping and hiking? As does not that intentionality breed great rewards? To deliberately go outside, to plan on being outside for a period of time, to force your comforts to reject you and to set your sails to the tune of nature might be the last thing we truly have in common with generations past.

When was the last time you walked to that remote location, that you took a clearing in some distant woods and made it home? When was the last time you were somewhere that you’ve never been before? Some imagine that they can only get this through travel to a foreign country: I argue that you can be in a foreign place in an hour’s time.

So pack up your gear, do some research, and be intentional. Take a break from your life so that you can live more fully. Fish in the streams and be not afraid of the stars that have replaced that same, dull ceiling that you stare at every night before you go to sleep. Chop some firewood, make a meal on a fire, look at some trees, find a ridge and dwell on it.

Nature is calling, the great outdoors beckon you. I typically do not write advice, but I will now: you will not regret camping.