5 Simple & Cheap Activities Every Adventurer Can Fit In A Backpack

As adventurous lovers of the outdoors we're always looking for simple and affordable ways to enhance the outdoor experience in our daily lives. You know, those little things that put a smile on your face and make you feel playful and creative. Here are some of those things that you can bring into your adventures. Even better is that they all fit into a backpack.

Find Two Trees And Slackline All Day

Dominique Harrison, slack line goals

Improve your balance while giving yourself a humbling challenge. Even the most centered yogis have a hard time mastering the slackline. And once you can get across without falling, there's always room to grow. Slacklines cost between $40-75, and they'll last you a super long time. Buy 'em online or at a sporting goods store and throw it in your backpack or car. Slacklines are lightweight and fun whether you have 30 minutes to kill or a lazy day at the park.

Sit, Relax, & Make Macrame Plant Hangers

Have you come across a beautiful macrame plant holder or wall display in a shop, but drag your own ass out of the shop trying not to spend $50 on it? Spend $30 at a crafts store and grab three things: macrame cord, golden rings, and thin 12" wood sticks.

After browsing some knots and patterns on Pinterest and a simple google search (or having gone to Girl Scout camp) you'll learn 2-3 knots and that's all you need to make super rad macrame. This is the perfect activity while lounging in a beach chair or sitting around a campfire. Tip: people love being gifted simple, thoughtful things like this.

Spend An Afternoon In The Backyard With Succulents

Here's an easy way to have a grounding experience in your own backyard. Put on your comfy 'I'm gardening' attire (the weirder, the better) and take a visit to your local nursery. Bring a shoebox to bring the plants home.) If you don't have a local nursery, Home Depot and Lowe's have a plant selection too (they also have people dressed like they stopped at a yard sale en route). Find a few different types of your favorite small succulents. They typically cost $5 or less, and grab a small bag of soil too. Pick out a small planter box, or use something funky like a wooden bucket or tin box.

When you get home, kick off your shoes and put your feet in the grass. Simply touching the soles of your feet to the earth changes the frequencies in your body for those feel-good vibes. Lay down a layer of soil in your plant display. Place in your succulents, throw in a couple of rocks or sea shells you may have collected. Even better, gems and stones you love to admire.

Beach, Camping & Backyard Bocce

Bocce sets are small and compact, and basically any game you can explain in under a minute and play with a drink in your hand is golden. Plot twist: Look for glow in the dark bocce ball, a frustrating and fun challenge after dark. This is a favorite while camping, cracking up laughing as our friend's ball strikes an unforeseen tree trunk and falls into a hole, far from the mark. Don't worry, the balls are built for this.

Meditate And Make A Mandala In Nature

There are endless mandala designs to create that calm us and spark our creative brain. Make mandalas an outdoor experience by selecting stones, plants, driftwood or whatever inspires you while you're already at the beach, forest, or campground. Begin by making piles of similar sizes or colors. Once you have some inventory, use your finds to create a circular pattern on the ground, it can be as big or small as you like.

You'll be surprised and stoked how many people stop by, comment, and engage with your design while you're making it and after it's completed for people to enjoy. Neighbors will even find pieces to contribute, so it often becomes a community experience. If you're camping, start small and build out throughout your trip.