Can A Expedition Be A Holiday?

Last week a fellow #paddlepickup team mate asked me......

Do you ever go on holiday, or just expeditions?

Expeditions are heavenly!

This got me thinking, expeditions to me are the most heavenly holidays! You get to spend your well learnt time off in the most beautiful, remote and wild places. They take you 100% away from the stresses of real life, and immerse you into a simple way of living surrounded by nature. Even allowing me to ditch the phone, and truly live in the moment.

Many of us are now looking to fill our precious time off with adventures and experiences instead of poolside loungers and busy hotels. So here is why I believe that expeditions are the best holidays.

1. Nature

Whether this is watching a family of otters fishing at dawn in the bay just outside your tent, or being able to sit on the shore and only hear running water, bird song, and the breeze in the trees. Nature is scientifically proven to improve health, it is peaceful, ever-changing and rich. Expeditions are just an excuse to spend extended amounts of time living in nature. Escaping the hustle and bustle of our increasingly hectic lives, and taking time to clear our heads, and surround ourselves with the soothing effects of nature. We also get to experience the power of nature and it's mood swings, from calm seas to lightning storms. It's both humbling and exhilarating.

Expedition allow you to access remote and beautiful places.

2. Challenge

Expeditions are usually designed around a goal. Maybe to circumnavigate an island or climb a mountain. A challenge where the outcome is often unknown. Aiming to do something just outside your comfort zone will provide you with a perfect platform to build confidence, learn new skills and a heap about yourself you didn't already know. Challenge gives you a focus, a reason to go around the next corner and push forwards when you feel tired. It resets your ideas of what you are truly capable of achieving. I've often set out on a expedition with a goal I really wasn't sure I would achieve. I've surprised myself over and over again, and had to reconsider my real capabilities and have learnt to believe in myself two fold.

Often surprising yourself with what you are capable of achieving.

3. Friendship

I can put my hand on my heart and say that some of my richest friendships have formed on expedition. This may be because your in a team of like minded individuals and you can't help but get to know one another on expedition. You spend so much time with team mates that you often talk about subjects you may never had discussed with others before. You'll have endless amounts of hilarious jokes which you'd never be able to explain to people who weren't there. Inevitably at some point on a big expedition you will have a down day, and your team mates with out question, will be there for you to help lift your mood. These people are the people you end up sharing both failure and success, and bags of moments you'll never forget. After all you are all there for the same reason, with the same end goal.

Making rich friendships with like minded people.

4. Exploration

Every expedition I've been on, I have seen a place or country in a way that your average tourist may not. Often visiting the most beautiful beaches without a sole on, or interacting with local people who live completely off the beaten track. You get to experience culture, wildlife, geography, geology, all from such a unique perspective. Expeditions allow you to explore to your hearts content. Often being self sufficient and independent, you can choose where you go, how fast you get there, and where you want to set up camp that night. Best of all, it can often feel like you are the first and only people to have visited the place you've chosen to explore.

Exploring places your average tourists don't go.

Ok so the word expedition may initially make your holiday sound like hard work and extremely exciting. Your friends will ooo and ahhh when you tell them about your mission, but it is also relaxing, challenging, rewarding and so much more! I'm hoping this blog may persuade you that for your next holiday you go wild, and opt for an expedition over a 'holiday'. I promise you it'll be difficult to to go back!

If your in need of some expedition inspiration then have a flick through our website www.evokeadventure.com we provide real expeditions for real people. With many exciting new adventures in the pipeline.