Your Out of Town Adventure Can Wait
This is a weird time. I’m writing a blog asking people not to visit my area when all I ever do is tell people how great it is and to come see for themselves. I promise, I want everyone to experience the Eastern Sierra magic. But not right now. Let’s break down the health care available in Mono County. Mammoth Hospital is the only hospital in our county with a total of 17 beds and a whopping 3 ventilators. We’ve already had one death. Our little tourist town is simply not equipped for any extra people, and I’m sorry for that. I wish we weren’t in this position, but we are. If we can all collectively make sacrifices now then we can play in the mountains again soon.
Okay the big question is… so how do we stay sane in a time without unlimited access to outdoor adventures? Here’s some examples on how I’m trying to stay sane.
Watch some outdoor films
Nature Films
National Parks Adventure | Wild Yellowstone | America’s National Parks | Into the Grand Canyon | Ken Burns: The National Parks | Great Migrations
Climbing Films
The Dawn Wall | Mountain | Free Solo | Valley Uprising
Ski Films
Few Words | This is Home | The Collective | The Sammy C Project | The Art of Flight
plan future trips
This is one of my favorite things to do, and to each their own, because not everyone loves planning. But if you do, now is a great time to comply all the information you need for your next trip after all this craziness is over! I had a road trip planned for the end of April through most of May for a desert themed road trip. Here are some useful websites I use to help plan out my trip. I will do a more in-depth blog post on road trips soon.
Camping / Sleeping
Free Campsites | HipCamp | Airbnb
Finding Hikes / Point of Interests
All Trails | Roadtrippers | The Hiking Project | I also join Facebook hiking groups in the area I’m planning on traveling, example
Mapping Out Your Trip
My Google Maps | Roadtrippers | Gaia Maps
organize your gear
This is one was long overdue for me and with all this extra time, I really had no excuse for putting it off any longer. Plus, by putting everything in it’s place, I am ready for adventure as soon as things settle back down! I browsed the Subreddit r/CampingGear for inspiration different ways to organize my gear. The end result was pretty satisfying - here’s a little stop motion I made of the process.
Backpacking/Hiking Gear
Fishing Gear in the corner
Ski/Outdoor Jackets + miscellaneous outdoor items
local outdoor activity
AND lastly… of course we don’t need to confined to our home 24/7. I specifically made the title “Your OUT OF TOWN Adventure Can Wait”, because you can still find adventure in your own community in some form whether it’s a neighborhood walk or nearby hike. A safe, local adventure would be any activity that can follow these guidelines below - I’ve created some general guidelines based off of what’s allowed in my state (California) under the Stay-At-Home Order.
STAY IN YOUR COMMUNITY / AREA : This is important, because if you head into other areas/counties, you are now putting more strain on another area’s health care system if you get sick or spread anything to someone who lives there. This is especially true for small tourist towns that simply don’t have the room for one more patient. Staying local will keep small towns safe in this fragile situation.
KEEP YOUR TOUCH COUNT AT ZERO : Think about everything you touch when you go travel somewhere. Out of town gas stations, rest stops, restaurants, hotels, and many more places you don’t even realize you touch - racking up a high touch count. Instead, you should be able to drive somewhere local to adventure and only touch your car door handle to prevent any possible spread.
BE PREPARED TO TURN AROUND OR GO SOMEWHERE : This one is especially important, because in the beginning of this mess, people weren’t going somewhere else when they saw a crowded parking lot and then caused unsafe conditions. This caused California state parks & even some National Parks to shut down most or all of their facilities. If you see a large group of people or cars, try another local spot or try again at a different time of the day.
GO ALONE OR WITH YOUR ROOMMATE / STAY 6 FEET APART OF ANYONE : This is pretty straightforward; to prevent any spread, you should only be around people you live with. I know this may feel really isolating and lonely, but there are many ways to still connect with friends without physically being around them. If you are going on a hike with a friend (outside of your household), you could meet them at the trail and stay the recommended 6 feet apart on the trail to still abide by the safety guidelines.
BE CAUTIOUS / SMART : Circling back to our fragile health care system right now… they really can’t afford any extra patients of any kind. So be extra safe about any outdoor activity you participate in, high risk activities are strongly discouraged at the time.
PIN THIS for later!
Thanks for reading my latest adventure!
Tiare Kirkland
Hi! My name is Tiare, but you can just call me ‘T’. I’m a California based hiker and I spend most of my free time taking photos and videos of some of my favorite hikes. You can usually find me ‘Out Hiking’ in the Sierra Nevada mountain range or road-tripping to new areas. Read more about me here and follow along with my adventures by subscribing below!