Enjoy Nature Anywhere: Find Feelings of Wilderness Close to Town

Why do you hike? When your motivation for hiking is to spend time with your friends, or to get in a bit of exercise, trails near town are often perfect. But what about when you’re looking for solitude and a chance to reconnect with nature? It can feel like a challenge to connect with that wild feeling close to town—but it’s not impossible.

Look at these two images. Pretend you're standing on the trails. Do you know which one is urban? (See the answer below.) Photos by Erika Haugen-Goodman.

I recently had the popular Mailbox Peak Trail to myself for more than 2 hours by starting a midweek hike at 5:30 a.m. I am not naturally an early riser, but I made it happen because I needed those 2 hours of walking through the woods and listening to birdsong as the world woke up around me. I held the satisfaction of that wild feeling all through the workday.

Unplugging close to home

There are tried-and-true tricks to unplugging without a 3-hour drive to a remote, capital ”W” wilderness. Look for underused trails near town to explore. Or try carving out time when you can get a popular local trail to yourself: Start out early, get out on a foggy day or spend a vacation day to visit mid-week.

Mind tricks

Besides hiking in the rain or getting a dawn start, there are other ways to find that sense of solitude closer to town. They’re more of a mind trick than a trip-planning strategy.

On a walk around your neighborhood, find a tree you like. Stop and look up. Imagine yourself in the middle of the woods and watch the branches blow for 5 minutes; it will feel like an eternity.

Look up and let the trees help chill you out. Photo by Gabor Gardonyi

Even better, find a nearby trail in a park or green space. The first time you find yourself alone (even for 5 or 10 minutes), take a minute or two to try and forget where you are. It’s better if you can get near a stream or river, which can effectively mask urban sounds.

Take a deep breath.

Smell the soil. Look around for signs of wildlife. And in the forgetting, you can remember why you love to hike in the first place.

Image Answer: Left, Point Defiance Park in Tacoma. Right, Rattlesnake Ledge, off I-90.