Good Morning! 🌞

Happy Down to Earth Hike Day!The format of today’s newsletter will resemble a choose your own adventure: readers can explore the hike’s Quest Log on Side A, or enjoy some easy reading on Side B. Continue to Side A to participate in the hike’s activities remotely 🧙🏼‍♂️

Can’t stand the FOMO? Skip to Side B ⬇️

If you are joining today’s hike, please begin with Side A below. 

SIDE A: The Mountain’s Approach 🏔️

If you’re reading this, you’re probably on your way up to Cold Spring, New York, where we’ll be embarking on the journey of a lifetime.

You’re mystified by what you see outside the windows of the train cars: in moments, the city’s drab, rough-edged concrete metropolis bursts into the Hudson River Valley, a seaside sprint into the portal to the natural world.

Besides the Bronx, New York City’s boroughs are all located on islands, which can give New Yorkers the impression that we’re all alone in this world. “New York or nowhere,” they say. But the truth is, there’s a whole world above the Bronx, and as you’ll see very soon, it’s can be quite beautiful.

Or, you’re rotting in bed, trying to muster the motivation to get your Sunday going. All is well. Either way, you’re here, and that’s what really matters.

Below, you will find a stack of side quests and challenges to supplement the adeventure.

Below you’ll find some optional challenges to test your side-quest abilities. First one to complete all six receives a lifetime premium subscription to Down to Earth! 

Mountain Quest Log 🪄

I’m pretty sure that any task sounds better when you bill it as a quest.Challenges 🚥

• Take a breathtaking picture 📸

• Hit a tree with a stone from over 15 feet away. Do not mistake your fellow hikers for trees! 🪨

• Pick and eat some wild blueberries 🫐

• Find a unique bunch of moss 🥬

• Enjoy a drink of water from the creek 🌊

• Pick up a piece of trash – your own does not count. 🌯

Writing Exercises 📝

1. Spend five minutes writing down only what you can sense. What do you see, hear, smell, feel, or taste? 

1. Describe the phenomenon in as much detail as possible. Now, think about the sensory stimuli. How do they make you feel?

1. Now, close your eyes for 30 seconds. Listen, sense, and feel. What do you sense now? What are the differences from before?

1. Draw something you see. Make it simple. 

• Now, give it a caption.

Write a Haiku 🌊

A haiku is a traditional Japanese poem with three lines. The first line has 5 syllables, the second line has 7 syllables, and the third line has 5 syllables.

To write a haiku:

Focus on simplicity and capturing a feeling or image. Here’s an example:

Silent Winter Night, (5 syllables)

Snow falls softly on the trees, (7 syllables)

Whispers in the dark. (5 syllables)

Write yours here 📝

Final Prompts + Reflections 💭

• On the train home, or when you are settled back at your place, write down anything that comes to mind. Words, phrases, exclamations – let it all flow. 

• Reflect about the experience. What did you enjoy about today? What challenged you? Think about the times where doubt controlled your decisions. Was it a tricky ledge that stifled you? Perhaps you doubted if you could make it past the initial climb. 

• Reflect about the moments of joy you experienced. Will they make you open to more hikes or outdoor experiences? 

SIDE B 📀

You Missed The Hike. Here’s Why You Should Come On The Next One 🥾

There’s something exciting on the horizon. The Down to Earth Hiking Club will continue through the summer and fall giving all those who missed this hike to join several more. Hiking is a fantastic way to live out the values of the Down to Earth brand — health, happiness and community. 

There’s a reason run clubs are popping up all around urban America — people want a way to engage and network with the backdrop of something active. It’s trendy, sure, but it’s nothing new. Humans have always been moving, talking and sharing experiences. The next step in this evolution is combining these elements into the paradoxical phenomenon of an urban hiking club. 

Hiking is a return to our roots. As humans, we’re naturally wired to walk and explore, an ideal way to boost both our physical and mental health.

Hiking challenges your body in ways that urban life simply can’t, strengthening your muscles, improving cardiovascular health, and helping you connect with the earth in a way that feels grounding and fulfilling. Spending time in nature can reduce stress, enhance mood and wellbeing, and even improve creativity. This will be the superpower of our club’s alliance.

We’re building a community here. Working towards an objective with a common goal with a team of friends is awesome, and you’re about to experience it with us. It’s the sort of challenge that will create core memories as adults. Neuroplasticity! It’s wonderful.

So, if you’re looking to explore, learn, and connect – both with nature and with each other – the Down to Earth Hiking Club is your next great adventure. 

Wholesome August Content 🌅

Stuff that I’m thinking about a lot … 

Now that I’m envisioning the tastes of these fruits and veggies, they really do have an August feeling. I’ll bet there’s some health benefits to eating foods that correspond with the season they’re meant to be harvested in.

Love is kind. Love is true. Love is powerful! Is Love powerful enough to power … everything? I saw this piece on Houston Street in Manhattan, and the timing couldn’t be better. My favoirite line is the last one — it’s that reckless abandon of delusional love that feels the best and most true. I’m embracing it.