The Outdoors—ahh

by Alan S. 

A May 2025 Monthly Story Challenge Winner 

The outdoors. The nice sunshine, the smell of flowers, the sound of birds, skin cancer, pollen allergies—wait, that’s not in the script. Anyway, we’re here to talk about nature and how it's fun (trust). 

First, you should go outdoors and play because of how beautiful nature is. Things like the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Death Valley, and more. Yosemite National Park, for example, has many beautiful rock formations and waterfalls. Yosemite has some of the most dangerous cliffs and hikes, but the view is surreal.

The waterfalls in Yosemite are some of the most beautiful and massive. They are like massive water buckets at water parks. But do beware when hiking to places like Half Dome and Taft Point. More than 150 deaths have been reported from 2007 to 2024. But even without hiking, you can still see many beautiful sights. For example, Sentinel Falls, located not very high up, has an amazing view when in front of it. It is very slippery, though, so do be aware and not scroll on your phone while there. 

Camping or renting an RV is also a great way to engage the younger kids. Even if it's just playing around the campsite, gathering firewood, or even just roasting marshmallows in the evening, it gets the younger ones engaged with nature. There are also many streams and quiet rivers that you can raft or swim in. Do be careful as they can be cold and not all of them are slow and shallow. While camping, you can also go out at night and look at the stars since in a forest, you can see the stars super well since there aren’t many lights making them invisible. 

Photo: Kelly Repeza at unsplash