Living Adventurously

About Living Adventurously

Living Adventurously, with Alastair Humphreys, is the story of ordinary people choosing to live extraordinary lives. Alastair interviews artists and chefs, students and pensioners, athletes and travellers. He wants to discover what living adventurously means to different people, what universal obstacles stand in the way, and how each of these people took the first step to overcome them and begin their own fascinating journeys.

Publisher

Alastair Humphreys

Category

education · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

27 Nov 2019

Latest episode

1 Jul 2025

Latest episodes

66 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   1 Jul 2025

   Guerrilla Geography, Slow Ways, and Rewilding Cities. Living Adventurously 67

   Dan Raven-Ellison is an explorer of ideas, landscapes, and what’s possible. As the founder of Slow Ways, he’s building a grassroots national walking network to connect every town and city in Britain. Before that, he spearheaded the campaign to make London the world’s first National Park City, challenging how we perceive urban nature. A self-described guerrilla geographer, Dan blends creativity, activism, and deep curiosity to explore big questions: What makes a place wild? Who gets to access it? And how do we make everyday adventure more accessible? This is Dan’s second appearance on the Living Adventurously podcast (check out episode 49 for our first chat). In this conversation, we dive deeper into Dan’s mission to reimagine geography, walking, childhood, and cities. From rewilding Britain to the future of Slow Ways, we cover bold ideas, tough trade-offs, and the power of imagination in driving real change. Whether you're a walker, parent, teacher, or dreamer, there’s something here for you. Topics We Cover in This Episode 1. Big Picture: What’s the Real Mission? What unites Dan’s unconventional and eccentric projects Why he’s called a “guerrilla geographer” — and what he’s rebelling against Times his imagination outpaced reality “Isn’t geography just colouring in?” The weirdest project he’s ever done Walking as activism and creative tool 2. Slow Ways – Do We Really Need This? Why we might need more walking routes, not fewer What makes Slow Ways different from existing maps and platforms Competing with tech giants on a shoestring How walking can reshape how we think about place Connection vs. convenience — what Slow Ways is really for Who’s actually using the network The Right to Roam: field margins, farmers, and fairness 3. Childhoods as Places Seeing childhood as a place, not just a phase The dangers of over-sanitised, safety-first childhoods Designing adventure for urban kids Screens vs. mud: what kids today are missing Why he wants children to get (safely) lost The Exeter Citizens’ Plan — involving kids in civic imagination 4. Rewilding Britain: Wildlife, Housing, and Adventure Can we have more homes and more wildlife? Housing vs. green belt vs. public access — what comes first? Whether we need to rethink the green belt Is rewilding compatible with human life and housing needs? Do people really want to live near wild animals and untidy land? 5. Cities as National Parks – Serious or Symbolic? Is London as a National Park a policy or just a metaphor? Can cities ever be wild in an ecological sense? Do urban nature movements distract from protecting rural wilderness? Who gains — and who doesn’t — from the National Park City label? Is this a branding gimmick — or a mindset shift? Do commuters feel like they’re in a National Park? 6. Slow Ways – The Future Vision Building local networks through schools and charities What a scaled-up version of Slow Ways might look like The challenge of going mainstream without losing charm Can volunteer-driven projects really shift national habits? What wild success looks like — and why it matters Could Slow Ways be part of school curriculums or health systems? ★ Support this podcast ★ (https://ko-fi.com/al_humphreys)

2. 

   22 Apr 2025

   Craig Mod: Adventure, Discipline, and Design. Living Adventurously 66

   In this rich, wide-ranging conversation, Alastair Humphreys chats with Craig Mod about the overlapping worlds of adventure, creativity, and publishing. The two explore their different but kindred approaches to long walks — Craig’s meticulous, high-tech planning versus Alastair’s spontaneous, minimalist style — and how these journeys feed into their creative work. Craig shares the thinking behind his wildly successful newsletters, membership programme, and beautiful, obsessively designed books. They also dive into broader themes like cultural responsibility, self-discipline, nature connection, and why sometimes walking is just the best way to think deeply. 🧭 Topics and Themes Craig's long-distance walks across Japan (Tokaido, Nakasendo, Kumano Kodo) Comparison of walking vs. cycling as immersive travel tools Digital minimalism and “no teleporting” rules during walks High-tech vs low-tech navigation: Apple Watch Ultra vs. paper maps The joy and discipline of documentation: notes, photography, audio, video Daily synthesis as a creative practice while walking Books as tangible artefacts of ephemeral experience Craig’s reasons for walking: presence, routine, deadlines, synthesis Planning vs. spontaneity in adventures The special role of beautiful book design Making creativity sustainable: Craig’s membership model (Special Projects) Emotional and logistical tension between audience growth and creative purity Walk & Talk retreats with Kevin Kelly: structure, goals, dinner conversations Litter and cultural responsibility in Japan vs. the West The role of access in building care for the natural world The value of constraints, caps, and intimacy in building an audience 📚 Books Mentioned Things Become Other Things by Craig Mod (Random House edition) Kissa by Kissa by Craig Mod Rings of Saturn by W.G. Sebald Kevin Kelly’s essay “1000 True Fans” Papyrus: The Invention of Books in the Ancient World by Irene Vallejo (mentioned by Alastair) 💡 Concepts & Quotes “Walking is a platform for other things to happen.” “Teleports” as anything that removes you from presence (phones, news, etc.) “I’ve never thought: I have to do this because my subscribers are expecting it. It’s all selfish.” “The best piece of technology ever invented is the book.” “Snickers bar logic”: why we’re fine carrying snacks, but not their wrappers “Make the ephemeral tangible”: the purpose behind bookmaking “You can’t walk with someone and do the thinking.” 🧾 Links & Recommendations Craig Mod’s website and newsletters (https://craigmod.com/) Special Projects Membership (https://craigmod.com/membership/) Random House edition: Things Become Other Things (https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/709002/things-become-other-things-by-craig-mod) Craig’s essay on British sandwiches 🍞 (https://craigmod.com/) Do Lectures (https://www.thedolectures.com/) Outrage + Optimism podcast (https://www.outrageandoptimism.org/) Kevin Kelly’s “1000 True Fans” (https://kk.org/thetechnium/1000-true-fans/) ★ Support this podcast ★ (https://ko-fi.com/al_humphreys)

3. 

   22 Dec 2020

   500 Years Ago, Adventure was the Manifestation of Privilege. Living Adventurously 65

   !!!The Final Episode of the Podcast!!! Jack Thurston is a cyclist, a food lover, a photographer, a guide-book writer and an early podcast pioneer. We talked about adventures close to home and what the world of 'Adventure' looks like in the 21st Century.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

80 ratings

Contact Living Adventurously

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.