Top 5 Things to Do For the (Extremely) Adventurous

There are plenty of extreme trips out there so those with an adventurous streak don’t need to look far.

Warning: Only for the brave.

Source: Flickr

1. Cageless shark diving

Fiji’s Beqa Lagoon has created a reputation for itself within the diver community as the ultimate nail-biting  experience. Not only are divers surrounded by eight species of sharks (some of which are known to have killed humans) but there isn’t a single cage in sight.

Source: Babil Bahçeleri

2. Base jump into a cave

The Cave of the Swallows is so deep it could engulf a high-rise building. Hidden in the rainforest of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, it attracts adrenalin junkies who are eager to base jump the 980ft-by-390ft hole.  It is just big enough to open a parachute in, without one it would take just 10 seconds to free fall to the bottom. Yikes!

Source: AJHackett

3. Tallest bungee jump

If bungee jumping floats your boat why not have a go jumping off the Macau Tower in China? At 765ft, this is the highest commercial jump in the world. Thrill-seekers stop just 98ft from the ground on a special cord that prevents people frim swinging into the tower itself.

Source: clubofthewaves

4. Surf above the Arctic Circle

Situated on the Lofaten islands in Norway, Unstad Arctic Surf school is the most northerly boarding academy in the world. So if you’re into your surfing, don’t let the cold sea temperature put you off!

Source: Mobal

5. Trek the most remote mountain

If you’re looking to get away from it all, head to Mount Khuiten in Mongolia. The 14,350ft peak is one of the least accessible mountains on earth – there is no mountain rescue and emergency evacuation can take days. Only for the seriously adventurous!

4 Ways to Travel for (Nearly) Free

Ask anyone about travelling and normally they will say: ‘I’d love to travel more but I simply don’t have the money.’ I know because I am guilty of this too. However, we buy tonnes of things that we don’t need every single day.

So cut back, save a little, and get smart with how you travel. With so many different options out there, money shouldn’t hold you back. If you’re willing to open your mind to other ideas and options, you might end up travelling to a country or two and spend very little money in the process.

Here are a few ideas:

1. Sell your time

Now, what does this actually mean? Well, if you give up some of your time to dedicate to a few hours of work each day, in turn you might not have to pay for things like accommodation, food and possibly other benefits. On top of this you will likely be helping a local group or individual in the process. In addition to saving money, this is a chance to get to know the local people and the country you are visiting a little better. Volunteer work exchanges are great for all you adventurous types who are willing to take on something different and seek a deeper knowledge of a destination.

Here are a few volunteer exchanges to think about:

WWOOF

HelpX

Work Away

2. Couch Surfing

Everyone knows about Couchsurfing nowadays. The concept is simple: if you’re too poor for accommodation, you Couchsurf. If you’re in another country and you meet someone through Couchsurfing, it not only makes your travels cheaper but more enjoyable. Making friends also means you get to split things, whether it’s a room, dinner or a taxi. If you’re not into crashing on a couch for the night, you can instead look into house sitting.

Here are a few house sitting websites to check out:

House it World

Trusted House Sitters

3. Teach English abroad

Hundreds of people a year put on their backpacks and take off to schools around the world to teach English. South East Asia and South America are particularly popular destinations for this. Whilst teaching you are almost always guaranteed free accommodation and some organisations even pay a monthly wage for your skills (but beware, don’t expect to be rich!). If you’re hoping to earn money through teaching, why not look into completing a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language)? This could increase your chance of earning a few bob.

4. Freelance

The idea of travelling and writing for a living is what many of us dream about when we wake up every morning to our 9 to 5 office jobs. However, although this may be the stuff of dreams, freelancing could be a way of earning a bit of extra cash whilst you are on your travels. Many travel blogs and websites are always looking for contributors and are willing to pay a small sum for each article. Do some research and see what you can find. You never know, it could also help you work towards living that dream of travelling the world for a living.

Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

As you are welcomed into Sarajevo, you immediately witness the war wounds of a city that has one of the most tragic recent histories of any in Europe. Before the Balkan wars of the nineties, Sarajevo was a cosmopolitan city famous for its mixed population of Serbs, Croats and Bosnians who all co-existed successfully. But on March 2 1992 the barricades went up, leading to a siege that was to last almost four years (the longest any modern capital has ever had to bear).

As you wander the city’s streets, the pavements are dotted with “Sarajevo roses” – gashes carved out by mortar fire that have been painted bright red. Plaques stand on street corners to commemorate the dead, and as you look closely at the surrounding buildings you can catch glimpses of bullet holes within their walls.

In Stari Grad (“Old Town”) is Bascarsjia, the historic and the Ottoman heart of the city. Here you can experience a nugget of Istanbul life that is a product of the 400 years of Turkish rule before the city was occupied by the Austro-Hungarians in the late 19th century. The Bacarsji square is a great place to spend the afternoon people watching and joining in with the clusters of men who sit outside cafes, sipping thimbles of thick, dark coffee. If you’re feeling peckish, a lamb kebab is a must. As our guide declared: ‘you have not been to Sarajevo if you haven’t tried our delicious lamb kebabs’. As you amble through the winding streets of this district it can be easy to forget the horrors that took place here. However, the conflict remains a daily part of local life as shop owners sell vases and other decorative objects made from shell cases and other pieces of artillery, carefully re-cast.

The siege of Sarajevo is everywhere and is an intentional part of the city’s future. The locals want people to know the truth and to understand, but what comes through the most is the Sarajevan’s determination to survive. Almost everyone has a story and yet, the city remains lively and vibrant. The city offers delicious culinary delights from cevpicici (spices sausages on flatbread) to ajvar (a spicy paste on homemade paste). Visitors can also enjoy a bit of retail therapy by visiting the shiny new shopping malls of Novi Grad (“New Town”). It seems Sarajevo is a city in-between the new and the old. A place determined to build on the scars of it’s turbulent past.

Wild Swimming

Going swimming in the UK usually involves a trip to the leisure centre, making sure you have change for the locker, and a mad dash getting dry in the changing room afterwards.

There are, however, a growing number of swimmers who never come close to a chlorine-infested pool. Wild swimming, which involves taking a dip in Britain’s rivers, lakes and waterfalls, is soaring in popularity. Over the past three years, the number of organised outdoor swimming events has increased dramatically. However, apparently the urge to take the plunge into natural water is nothing new. For many of us, it would have been how our grandparents and great-grandparents learnt to swim. There were many little river swimming clubs where locals would go to teach their children to swim and go to swim in the summer.

Thankfully this phenomenon has been ‘refound’. People are realising more and more that getting back out into nature is a fantastic way to de-stress and also to reconnect with something that feels meaningful and a world away from the usual 9-to-5.

Not only is wild swimming good exercise, the cold water is thought to improve your immune system. It’s been shown that people who swim in cold water regularly through the year get far fewer colds. With so many advantages to wild swimming, there is only one thing standing in its way – the British weather.

However, sometimes it’s good to be brave and take the plunge..

5 of the best spots in Britain for wild swimming

1. River Waveney, Outney Common, Suffolk
2. Faerie Pools, Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye
3. River Wharfe, Appletreewick, Yorkshire
4. River Test, Houghton, Hampshire
5. Sharrah Pool, River Dart, Dartmoor, Devon

The End of the Line: A Decade On

Until Charles Clover’s book, The End of the Line, the subject of overfishing was unfamiliar territory. As a child of the 60s and the son of a farmer and founding member of the Soil Association, it is unsurprising Charles Clover has become an environmental campaigner. As author of the 2004 book The End of the Line, Clover was one of the first people to blame the fishing industry for declining fish stocks.

As Clover has claimed: ‘Until the nineties it was regarded as eccentric to say that decreasing fish stocks were caused by irresponsible fishing. What many charities were concerned with back then was the dumping of toxic waste in oceans and how this was affecting specific shoals of fish.’ In Clover’s opinion the issue of overfishing was contributing to one of the greatest environmental crises of our time but few people wanted to hear about it. It would take seven years from his original proposal to publish The End of the Line in 2004.

However the book proved popular and in 2009 it was turned into an award-winning film. The message doesn’t state don’t catch fish, instead it urges us to catch the right numbers and to catch them intelligently. It’s not just about saving the fish but saving the livelihoods of fisherman. As Clover states: ‘no fish means no jobs’.

Clover’s book also identified restaurants and companies who were believed to have sourced fish unethically. Top chefs were also identified by Clover as making money from selling endangered Bluefin tuna and, as a result, many have stopped.

Now, a decade on, has the book achieved its goal of highlighting the dangers of overfishing? Certainly, before the book very few people cared whether their seafood was sustainably sourced. Now, many people do. Brands have made sustainability a key part of their branding.