Okay let’s dive straight into how my partner Jamie and I totally pulled off this fitness adventure trip last fall. We were seriously burned out staring at screens all day and just needed something way more active than another boring beach resort, you know?
The Frustration & The Idea Spark
We literally spent weeks bickering about what to do for vacation. Jamie wanted hiking, I wanted something structured like a bootcamp. Felt impossible! Then I saw some blurry Insta story about couples doing kayaking and yoga retreats. Ding! That was it! Fitness plus adventure trips seemed perfect. So yeah, I googled like crazy, but everything either looked fake-Instagram-perfect or cost way too much money. Seriously depressing.
Throwing Plans Together (Chaos Included)
We figured screw the pre-packaged tours, let’s build our own crazy trip. Budget was tight, so we had to be smart. Here’s how it went down:
- Picked the spot: Settled on Colorado Rockies. Mountains for hiking (Jamie’s win), lakes for water stuff, small towns near national forests. Found a slightly sketchy AirBnB cabin that had a wood stove and supposedly good hiking trails right behind it.
- The “Fitness” Part Planning: Instead of a pricey retreat, we dug into local stuff. Found:
- This tiny CrossFit box in the nearest town offering one-week punch cards (score!).
- A community center with cheap early morning yoga classes three days a week.
- Jamie mapped out five different intensity hikes near the cabin using this weirdly old PDF map he downloaded.
- The “Adventure” Part Planning: Total last-minute panic. Emailed local outfitters like mad:
- Booked a half-day white-water rafting trip for one morning (scary!)
- Found a place renting mountain bikes for a full day.
- Reserved kayaks for the giant lake near us one super calm day.
- Gear Disaster: Packing was a nightmare! My hiking boots were from like 2013 and crumbled when I put them on. HUGE fight about who spent what. Ended up renting boots and a mountain bike helmet locally. Budget blown, obviously. Forgot bear spray until the last gas station.
Actually Doing the Damn Thing
We landed, drove to the cabin. It smelled kinda damp, but okay. Here’s how the days rolled:
- Mornings mostly sucked (but were good): Alarm at 6:30 AM. Felt like torture. Dragged ourselves to the 7 AM CrossFit class. The coach was this super intense lady who yelled at us lovingly. Yoga days felt amazing after the hard hikes the day before. Did simple bodyweight circuits a couple mornings right on the cabin porch overlooking nothing but trees. Honestly, the best part.
- Afternoons = Adventure Time (mostly):
- Rafting Day: Scary AF plunging into cold rapids! Got soaked, screamed like idiots, high-fived constantly. Totally exhausting but so much adrenaline. Fell asleep by 8 PM.
- Hiking Days: Jamie picked an “easy” trail first. It kicked my butt. Legs were concrete the next day. Saw a moose from way far off! Packed terrible peanut butter sandwiches that tasted amazing. One hike got rained out hardcore. We just sat in the truck eating gas station nachos feeling grumpy. Win some, lose some.
- Kayaking Day: Pure bliss. Calm water, sunshine, just paddling slowly around the lake, spotting birds. Zero cell service. Perfect.
- Mountain Biking Day: Mine was rented, Jamie’s was his own heavy cheap one. Went on this beginner green trail… still wiped us out! My butt was bruised for days. Totally worth it.
- Evenings = Food & Recovery: Cooked simple pasta or burgers almost every night in the cabin. Didn’t wanna spend on fancy dinners. Stretched on the living room floor while moaning. Hot showers were pure gold. Fell asleep before 10 PM constantly.
The Honest Truth & Why We’re Doing it Again
Listen, it was NOT smooth. Packing fights, forgotten gear, one crap hike, sore muscles for days, the damp cabin smell… absolutely not Instagram perfect.
But here’s the magic stuff:
- We were TOGETHER doing hard things: Struggling up that hike together, laughing our heads off getting soaked rafting, groaning through planks at CrossFit – we pushed each other and celebrated small wins. Way better than just lying side-by-side on sand.
- Felt stupidly accomplished: Finishing a tough hike, paddling across a lake, surviving the coach’s burpees… little victories stacked up and felt amazing.
- Unplugged properly: Crappy cell service forced us to actually talk and just be present. No constant email checking.
- Cheaper than boutique resorts: Even with gear rental mess-up, still miles cheaper than the fancy packages we saw.
We came back exhausted but weirdly energized in our minds. Felt stronger. Stopped arguing about stupid stuff (for a little while!). Already planning the next one – maybe coastal hikes and surf lessons next summer? Point is, just MIX the fitness stuff you like with some wild or new adventure thing. Be scrappy, expect hiccups, don’t overspend on fancy crap you don’t need. Focus on just DOING stuff together outside. That’s the real win. You don’t need a perfect plan, just get started and figure it out.
