Hello fellow travellers. This post marks the start of our first adventure. So, grab a warm drink, get cozy, and join me as we breakdown this first adventure.
Picture this: It’s September 2024. Your social media feed is a never-ending stream of van life adventures, dreamy road trips, and breathtaking landscapes. The urge to escape hits hard. You must explore.
That’s exactly what happened to me.
So, like any spontaneous traveller, I threw caution to the wind (and way too much stuff into my car). Snacks? Packed. More snacks? Also packed. Back seats folded down into a ridiculously cozy bed, layered with enough blankets and pillows to survive a polar expedition. Genius, right? Why had I never thought of this before?!
Then came the real packing:
- Extra clothes, a first-aid kit, and a bunch of “just in case” items.
- A cool bag bursting with ice packs and cold drinks (hydration is key, traveller).
- A flask for hot drinks (because caffeine is survival).
- A backpack overflowing with snacks (because what if I get snack-mergency level hungry?).
- Oh, and a whole separate hiking bag also full of snacks.
Did I overpack for a simple overnight adventure? Oh, 100%. Was it worth it? Maybe not this time… but hey, at least I was prepared for a zombie apocalypse.
So, dear traveller, if you’re thinking about your own little road trip escape—maybe pack a little lighter… or don’t. After all, adventure favours the prepared!
Now, onto the real adventure. After an hour’s drive filled with carpool karaoke (because what’s a road trip without a little off-key singing?), I finally arrived at my destination in the Peak District.
I found a quiet spot to park up and took a short wander around, soaking in the breathtaking views as the sun began to set. The sky was painted in soft hues of orange and pink, casting a warm glow over the rolling hills—a perfect welcome. After taking a few deep breaths of crisp evening air, I headed back to my car, made myself a comforting cup of hot chocolate, and started planning my hike for the morning.
With my trusty AllTrails app open, I scrolled through different routes, guesstimating how long the hike would take and what kind of gear I’d need. In reality, I probably spent about 20 minutes aimlessly flicking through options before settling on one (as you do).
Once everything was mapped out and prepped, it was time for dinner. Now, you might be wondering—what kind of gourmet meal can one whip up in the back of a car? Well, remember all those snacks I stocked up on? Turns out, a feast of chicken, cheese, crackers, and an excessive amount of Pepsi was the way forward. Not exactly Michelin-starred, but hey, it did the job.
Having worked as a personal trainer, I’d love to say this was a proud moment for me… but honestly? It was anything but.. Swiftly moving on.
With my makeshift meal sorted, I threw on a movie, cozied up, and settled in for the night—ready for whatever adventure the next day had in store.
Attempt number uno!
Morning arrives and it’s time to get myself ready, I make sure I have everything ready in my backpack. My backpack had an extra pair of socks and pants, waterproof pants, gators, tarp, emergency snacks, a bottle of water, first aid kit. I remember having some other stuff in there, but in all honesty, I’ve forgotten what they were (oops!)
I set off, tracking my time and route on AllTrails. Right from the start, I went way too fast—completely forgetting about conserving energy. I was skipping along, jumping in puddles, running up and down little inclines—basically just being a total muppet. And honestly? It was great! Everything was downhill at first, making it all feel effortless… until the incline hit.
I was keeping an eye on the time since I had work later that day… which, unfortunately, meant cutting my hike short. I know, tragic! But honestly, my cardiovascular fitness was in shambles at this point.
2.27 miles in 57 minutes. Not exactly my finest performance. I had to come back and redeem myself.
THE REMATCH!
Now, back to the start of this post… Same car setup, same gear, same timing, same route—literally everything was identical. The only difference? A new movie for the night!
You’d think I’d have learned my lesson about not setting off too fast. Hah! Nope. Once again, I was skipping along, jumping around like an overexcited muppet. Some things never change.
Except this time we were going to complete the trail.. Believe me traveller, we were going to do it.. maybe.
Anyway, I was cursing myself for messing around so much. Realising I had burned through a good chunk of energy, I decided it was time to pace myself and take it slow. As I continued along the trail, I reached a small fork in the path—left or right. The smart choice would have been to check the map and see which route made the most sense… but did I do that? Nope. I chose adventure!
Off to the right I went, trudging through narrow, slippery, and ridiculously muddy paths. But with the sun shining and birds chirping, life was still pretty great.
At some point, I made friends with a frog, wandered off the trail, and only realized 20 minutes later that I’d gone completely the wrong way. Classic. Eventually, I found where I was supposed to have gone—but thanks to the past week of heavy rain, the trail had basically turned into a mudslide. And now, I had to make my way down.
At first, the steep, muddy descent didn’t seem too bad. I took careful steps, thinking I had it under control… and then—whoosh! Next thing I knew, I was sliding down on my butt, completely at the mercy of gravity. I must’ve slid a solid 20 feet before coming to a stop.
Now I had a choice: get up and try to walk down like a normal person… or fully commit and slide the rest of the way. Obviously, I chose the butt slide. No regrets.
I carried on and eventually found the perfect spot by the reservoir to sit down, refuel with a few snacks, and just soak in the sun and the gentle breeze. It was one of those moments where everything felt peaceful—until I remembered that I still had to hike back.
Remember how I said everything was downhill and easy at the start? Yeah… that part was over. The return journey was all uphill. My quads were on fire, and every step felt like a personal attack.
By the time I made it back to the car, I had clocked in a total of 1 hour and 51 minutes, covering 4.23 miles with an elevation gain of 1,027 feet. Safe to say, I earned that post-hike snack!
I told you we’d make it this time!
Would I change anything if I did it again?
Oh, most definitely. Half the stuff I packed? Completely unnecessary for this little adventure. But hey, at least I was prepared for zombies!
I’d also bring a bag for my muddy hiking boots—because some silly sausage (me) forgot to do that. Twice. And let’s just say, cleaning up afterward was not fun. Speaking of boots, I’d also bring a spare pair of shoes to drive in—something comfy and clean, because driving home in mud-crusted boots is not the move.. it was hard to move!
Finally, smaller, more accessible snacks would be a game-changer. Oh, and maybe some with actual nutritional value—because while snacks are life, they should probably fuel the adventure rather than just be an excuse to eat. Lessons learned!
Well traveller, this brings us to the end of our first adventure. I hope you enjoyed it and I’ll see you on the next one! Safe travels my friend.