Resources for Outdoor Enthusiasts During the COVID-19 Pandemic

How to Experience the Outdoors Responsibly:

Do:

Continue to enjoy the outdoors. There’s plenty of great benefits including physical fitness and mental wellbeing.
Maintain social distancing of at least six feet between bodies.
Expect closures of parks or their facilities including restrooms and visitor centers.
Wash hands and practice good hygiene before, during, and after your outdoor activity.
Clean and disinfect all equipment thoroughly after use.

Don’t:

Share water bottles, eating utensils, or snacks.
Sleep in crowded tents or camping shelters.
Enter parks or facilities that are closed.
Go outside if you’re feeling sick or create unnecessary touch points.
Hike during peak hours.

If Your State or Region Has a Shelter-in-Place Order in Effect:

There are still plenty of ways to stay connected with nature during this time, only now we have to get a little creative. OA has compiled a list of suggestions for you and will continue to update it. Beneath the suggestions, find links to great resources and recommendations!

20 Suggestions to Stay Connected with the Outdoors

1. Go for a walk	11. Updated your trip log
2. Enjoy the outdoors responsibly	12. Learn a new outdoor skill
3. Read an outdoor-themed book	13. Plan a future trip
4. Watch an outdoor-themed movie	14. Eat a s’more or other campfire food
5. Watch a nature documentary (including NPS virtual resources)	15. Meditate while listening to nature (in-person or through technology)
6. Listen to an outdoor themed podcast	16. Take an outdoor activity inside
7. Practice knots	17. Have an outdoor yoga session
8. Talk to your plants	18. Spend time outside without technology
9. Make outdoor-inspired craft/art	19. Practice cooking a backcountry recipe
10. Create a gear wishlist	20. Start or continue composting at home

National Parks Virtual Resources

Learn a New Outdoor Skill

OA Staff Movie Recommendations

Free Solo (2018) - Professional rock climber Alex Honnold attempts to conquer the first free solo climb of famed El Capitan's 900-metre vertical rock face at Yosemite National Park.
Almost Alpine (2014) - Mockumentary rock climbing film. Three climbers take on a massive first ascent traverse in WV.
A Walk in the Woods (2015) - After years of living in Britain, celebrated travel writer Bill Bryson returns to New Hampshire. But instead of retiring, the 60-year-old announces he's going to hike over two thousand miles along the Appalachian Trail.
Wild (2014) - Driven to the edge by the loss of her beloved mother, the dissolution of her marriage and a headlong dive into self-destructive behavior, Cheryl Strayed makes a decision to halt her downward spiral and put her life back together again. With no outdoors experience, a heavy backpack and little else to go on but her own will, Cheryl sets out alone to hike the Pacific Crest Trail -- one of the country's longest and toughest through-trails.
Valley Uprising (2014) - Generations of beatniks and madmen drop out of society and take up a life of rock climbing on the massive granite walls of Yosemite National Park.
Mile... Mile and a Half (2013) - Five friends set out to hike California's 211-mile John Muir Trail in 25 days. Inspired by the group's bond and dedication, others join them along the way.
4 Wheel Bob (2016) - An outwardly modest film of immense emotional import, investigating the spirit of a man in a wheelchair, a seasoned California outdoorsman name Bob Coomber, whose goal is to be the first to ascend Kearsarge Pass in the High Sierra under his own steam.
Into the Wild (2007) - Christopher McCandless, son of wealthy parents, graduates from Emory University as a top student and athlete. However, instead of embarking on a prestigious and profitable career, he chooses to give his savings to charity, rid himself of his possessions, and set out on a journey to the Alaskan wilderness.
The Way (2010) - An American father travels to France to retrieve the body of his estranged son, who died while attempting the pilgrimage to Spain's Santiago de Compostela. He resolves to take the journey himself, in an effort to understand both himself and his son.
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013) - Walter Mitty, an employee at Life magazine, spends day after monotonous day developing photos for the publication. To escape the tedium, Walter inhabits a world of exciting daydreams in which he is the undeniable hero. Walter fancies a fellow employee named Cheryl and would love to date her, but he feels unworthy. However, he gets a chance to have a real adventure when Life's new owners send him on a mission to obtain the perfect photo for the final print issue.

OA Staff Book Recommendations

Walden by Henry David Thoreau - The text is a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings. The work is part personal declaration of independence, social experiment, voyage of spiritual discovery, satire, and—to some degree—a manual for self-reliance.
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben - Are trees social beings? In this international bestseller, forester and author Peter Wohlleben convincingly makes the case that, yes, the forest is a social network.
Into the Wild by John Krakauer - Into the Wild is a 1996 non-fiction book written by Jon Krakauer. It is an expansion of a 9,000-word article by Krakauer on Christopher McCandless titled "Death of an Innocent", which appeared in the January 1993 issue of Outside.
Wild by Cheryl Strayed - Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail is a 2012 memoir by American author Cheryl Strayed, describing her 1,100-mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail in 1995 as a journey of self-discovery.
Alive by Piers Paul Read - On October 12, 1972, a Uruguayan Air Force plane carrying a team of rugby players crashed in the remote, snow-peaked Andes Mountains. Ten weeks later, only 16 of the 45 passengers were found alive. This is the story of those ten weeks spent in the shelter of the plane’s fuselage without food and scarcely any hope of a rescue. They survived by protecting and helping one another, and coming to the difficult conclusion that to live meant doing the unimaginable. Confronting nature at its most furious, two brave young men risked their lives to hike through the mountains looking for help—and ultimately found it.
AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David Miller - A 41-year-old engineer quits his job to hike the Appalachian Trail. This is a true account of his hike from Georgia to Maine, bringing to the reader the life of the towns and the people he meets along the way.
The Money Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey - Ex-Green Beret George Hayduke has returned from war to find his beloved southwestern desert threatened by industrial development. Joining with Bronx exile and feminist saboteur Bonnie Abzug, wilderness guide and outcast Mormon Seldom Seen Smith, and libertarian billboard torcher Doc Sarvis, M.D., Hayduke is ready to fight the power, taking on the strip miners, clear-cutters, and the highway, dam, and bridge builders who are threatening the natural habitat.
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell - Island of the Blue Dolphins is a 1960 children's novel by American writer Scott O'Dell, which tells the story of a 12-year-old girl named Karana stranded alone for years on an island off the California coast.
Into Thin Air by John Krakauer - Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster is a 1997 bestselling non-fiction book written by Jon Krakauer. It details Krakauer's experience in the 1996 Mount Everest disaster, in which eight climbers were killed and several others were stranded by a storm.
Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Donn Fendler - Based on the true account of a boy's harrowing journey through the vast wilderness of the Katahdin Mountains, Lost on a Mountain in Maine is a gripping survival story for all ages.

Benefits of Spending 20 Minutes on Your Porch or in Your Yard

Reduces mental fatigue
Reduces anxiety
Increases focus and memory
Increases Vitamin D
Boosts energy
Enhances creativity

Applying

Resources For...

MAJORS & PROGRAMS

ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE

BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

LIVING ON CAMPUS

ACTIVITIES

HEALTH & WELLNESS

AT A GLANCE

MISSION & HISTORY