One thing I鈥檝e realized from finally having the time to catch up on my media queue is how much of the joy of travel comes from anticipating it, the sweet spot between the moment you find out about a place and decide to start planning a visit听and your actual departure鈥攁ll the dreaming that happens in between. While we collectively retreat and wait out this homestay, these are the travel films, books, podcasts, and other immersions that we鈥檙e turning to for inspiration and escape.
Watch
Hilaree Nelson and Jim Morrison went to Nepal in 2018 to attempt the听first ski descent of the Lhotse Couloir, and their journey is stunningly captured in the short documentary听Lhotse. Want to head听deep into the caves of Haiti from the comfort of your couch? Check out , a 2019 Banff Film Festival finalist, where you鈥檒l follow speleologist Olivier Testa, who鈥檚 been spelunking the听country鈥檚 caves since 2009. Because the Banff Film Festival tour has been suspended this year, organizers are听making some of the best shorts available to .听
For a film about friendship in the mountains, check out the 2019 Telluride Mountainfilm selection听, in which snowboarders Shin Biyajima and Travis Rice explore the steeps of the Japanese Alps. In Camel Finds Water,听a favorite of last year鈥檚 outdoor-film-festival circuit, surfer Trevor Gordon restores an old boat, then sails it on a maiden voyage from Santa Barbara, California, to British Columbia in search of waves. And if you haven鈥檛 seen professional skier Chris Benchetler鈥檚 mind-bending tribute to the Grateful Dead, called听, which came out last year from Teton Gravity Research, it鈥檚 worth a watch, too鈥攚hether you鈥檙e a Dead fan or just a surf or ski enthusiast.听
Read
You can鈥檛 read coronavirus news all day and night. May we suggest a good adventure travel book instead? Frank Wolf鈥檚 听is a collection of stellar travel journalism, ranging from learning听about Viking history while on a canoe trip across Scandinavia to a river expedition in Laos and Cambodia alongside Russian whitewater kayakers. 国产吃瓜黑料r and biologist Caroline Van Hemert鈥檚 award-winning , which chronicles her 4,000-mile, six-month-long expedition from the Pacific rainforest to the Arctic coast, just came out in paperback. And don鈥檛 miss Darcy Gaechter鈥檚 , an account of her harrowing kayaking journey along the Amazon River from source to sea, which was published on听March 3.听
If you鈥檝e decided to postpone your thru-hike until next year, check out , Sarah Kaizar鈥檚 love letter to the AT. , by adventure photographer Corey Rich, is a photo book with captivating backstories, like how Rich got the shot of听famous climber听Tommy Caldwell听on a portaledge between climbs at El Capitan. And if you want to be convinced that you may be better off staying home, 听should听do the trick; this听collection of our favorite tales of misadventures features听Wells Tower鈥檚 hilarious account of a father-son trip to Greenland gone wrong and Henry Shukman鈥檚 bizarre tour of Chernobyl, where he encountered a still radioactive wasteland that had turned into a sanctuary of genetically mutated animals.听
Listen听
There are heaps of good podcasts out there (including, of course, the听国产吃瓜黑料 Podcast), but to hear about the endeavors听of some of the biggest names in the outdoor industry, check out听REI鈥檚听, with听host Shelby Stanger, who interviews folks like snowboarder and Protect Our Winters founder Jeremy Jones and Hike It Baby founder Shanti Hodges; the听, from Mike Powell, a veteran of the ski industry, who speaks to big-name athletes听in action sports; and听 where hosts Jonathan Ronzio and Emily Holland talk to adventure entrepreneurs, filmmakers, athletes, and more.
As the national parks , tune into , recordings from eight parks created by the National Park Service鈥檚听Natural Sounds and Night Skies division. For a travel throwback, is a free collection of radio hours that captures what the travel guru does best鈥攕parking fun conversation with experts and callers that goes beyond the surface of places around the world. And if you鈥檙e feeling a bit disconnected and taking a lot of long walks, download听, hosted by Julia Bainbridge.听While听technically about loneliness, the podcast is听just as much about听solitude and how certain thoughts and feelings take on a different鈥攁nd often more heightened鈥攅ffect when you鈥檙e by yourself. Start with the episode on , who chose to live alone in a tent in central Maine for 27 years.听
Learn
Why not use this time to hone some outdoor skills, consider a new career path, or save up for a future travel? Photographer Chris Burkard leads a听 on how to take better adventure听photos. If you鈥檝e long dreamed of a potential profession in the adventure travel industry, Colorado State University offers an (from $749) that covers everything from how tour operators work with public-land agencies to natural-resources management.听Or, to plan for an upcoming听trip, consider听 on how to save money and see the world.
Immerse听
Take a digital hike with help from听, ranging from Acadia to Zion to Denali. Or check out听 from the Conservation Fund; staffers hiked through over a dozen protected destinations鈥攍ike Lewis and Clark National Historical Park in Oregon and DuPont State Recreational Forest in North Carolina鈥攁nd used Google Maps video technology to capture their wanderings. Then there鈥檚 , an outfitter that leads photography tours in Sweden鈥檚 Abisko National Park, which recently launched a series of virtual tours of the northern lights.听
If you鈥檇 rather join others on their journeys, there are a number of documentaries available on YouTube that allow viewers to follow along on long-distance treks, like , which chronicles the adventures of three Marine Corps vets as they hike along the 96-mile听West Highland Way in Scotland. Or accompany professional mountain biker Sam Seward, photographer Dan Milner, and H+I 国产吃瓜黑料s CEO Euan Wilson听as they through the soaring Himalayan peaks of Bhutan.听
For fans of livestreams, the options are endless, from听YouTube series of thru-hikes and听nature cams that bring the outdoors to you in real time to this soothing 听from the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California to at the Seattle Aquarium.
Connect听
Finally, here are some folks who offer a sense of armchair wanderlust on their social-media channels听in the best way: ultramarathoner , climber听, guide and mountaineer听, skier听, hiker , photographer听, runner and activist听, snowboarder听, filmmaker , and, if you鈥檝e got kids, traveling families like the听 and the听.