Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve found myself listening to way more adventure podcasts in 2020 than ever before. Way more podcasts in general, to be honest. Which might have something to do with two stints of solo lockdown without a TV or Netflix – or indeed furniture for the first one! But that’s another story.
Still, there’s something about adventure podcasts. They tick all the boxes of bringing travel and tales indoors, plus make you feel like you’re experiencing a real conversation, in a way that chatting to your houseplants simply can’t provide (sorry Mariella). It seems like others have felt the same way and there’s been a noticeable spike in outdoor and adventure themed podcasts in 2020.
- Listen to your favourite podcasts on the best running headphones you can buy
- Headphones vs the sounds of nature: which is best?
Here are some suggestions for some new and upcoming shows for you to indulge on.
- Red Bull: How to Be Superhuman Podcast – With a whole host of athletes across extreme sports and expeditions, Red Bull certainly have a fascinating roster of people to interview. The premise of the podcast is simple: find out what it’s like to be at the limits of human endurance – and how they did it.
- The First Mile Podcast – Hosted by Pip Stewart and Ash Bhardwaj, two travel journalists, the First Mile podcast is an “immersive travel podcast”. The episodes swap between adventurer interviews, dispatches from far flung places and insights into making adventures part of your job. Maybe all three in one!
- Dangerous Minds – Ed Stafford hosts a very thoughtful adventure podcast, interviewing adventurers to try to understand why we adventure in the first place. “Is adventure travel an addictive escape or a vessel for self development?” Ed and his guests grapple with these concepts and explore some of the more emotional aspects of taking risks.
- Unpaved Podcast – A new entry in the world of bikepacking, Unpaved is a UK based podcast that seeks out the “riders, route masters, gear designers and creatives that help us get the most out of leaving the tarmac behind”. They mean that literally too: they’re recording on the trails, not in a studio.
- Cicerone Footnotes – Famous guidebook publishers, Cicerone, launched the Footnotes podcast in October 2020. They interview “guidebook authors, team members and other outdoor experts” to help inform about the outdoors and inspire your next adventure.
- Hungry for Adventure – And here’s something a little different! This brand new, entertaining podcast hosted by Alex Mason, a rower and long distance hiker among other things, that focuses entirely on food. She talks to fellow adventurers about what they eat, both normally and on expeditions (and in their dreams!).
