Meet
The Reluctant Explorers
All About The Reluctant Explorers!
What a journey!
Back in 2020, I had a bit of an epiphany. Something that came out of the COVID Pandemic that was a bit unexpected. The Reluctant Explorers.
Lockdown. The word still fills me with a gutful of dread. Being cooped up together as a family with no ability to do what we wanted, when we wanted…. remember that? Life was so tightly controlled that the spark of spontaneity was extinguished, replaced with those ruddy zoom calls, daily government updates and an immense feeling of sadness and fear for the absolute devastation that the world experienced together, on a scale we’d never really experienced in our lifetimes.
Isn’t it weird to think back on that now?
But you know, a remarkable thing happens when you have something that you take for granted whipped away in the blink of an eye doesn’t it? You suddenly feel the joy in normality, like the feeling of just being able to walk further than half a mile from your house. There is nothing quite like a heavy dose of perspective. We STOPPED taking things for granted and for me, that was the freedom to explore.
And so The Reluctant Explorers was created. Little did I know that what started as a tiny glimmer of an idea that I explained to my husband whilst I was drying my hair one morning, would take us to places we never thought possible!
The Howgills. One of my favourite places in the Yorkshire Dales.
Our Journey
Where it all began…
In the Summer of 2020, I set up the social media pages for The Reluctant Explorers on Instagram and Facebook. The aim was to share our experiences of outdoors life, to provide information about Yorkshire Dales attractions and local businesses during the pandemic and to detail our family walks. Amongst all that information, I was keen to also acknowledge the struggles we can all face as parents in attempting to motivate the kids to get away from their screens and just go outside.
If you can remember those local walks of 2020, you’ll appreciate that battle with a then 4 and 6 year old.
The pages proved to be an instant hit, and it was in March of 2021 that the website was born (a definite lockdown project!) Why? Because, as a parent who was then reliant on walks as entertainment, I could find NO inspiration on the internet. Plenty of long walks for adults, but nothing bite-sized that young kids could enjoy.
So I wrote my own.
As a family, we live on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park and have done for nearly 20 years (that’s me - the kids aren’t quite that old yet!) I know these places like the back of my hand, so I channelled that knowledge into my walks! Now all these years later, the website has grown to be a much bigger baby (much like my own!) and it attracts a global audience in their thousands.
What started as a site that shared our pandemic walks, has turned into a directory of family friendly walks across the entirety of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. With over 100 family walks stretching from the Cumbrian Westmorland Dales all the way to Nidderdale National Landscape, this website has been (and continues to be) my third child!
The stunning Loup Scar in Burnsall
The Journey So Far…
But I didn’t stop there, oh NO! Over the last three years I’ve created ‘Visit with Kids Guides’. These area specific guides give you ALL the information you could possibly need as a parent, to plan the perfect day out or holiday in the Yorkshire Dales.
So no family can go on holiday and fail to find the play park, the ice cream, or the best local walk.
I’ve compiled a list of helpful games and activities to reduce the ‘moan factor’ (which let’s face it) we’ve all faced in an effort to get more families outside. I have an entire section of the website dedicated to seasonal events for kids, an outdoors blog reviewing campsites and places to stay, as well as providing families with safety tips on how to get outdoors and hiking safely…. I even have an A-Z directory of the Yorkshire Dales play parks (you know, for that park bribery emergency!)
The l’il proud part
Through that tiny niggling idea that I had one morning, I have worked and continue to work with some incredible organisations including the Yorkshire Dales National Park, the Ordnance Survey (for whom we are champions of the outdoors) the Royal Life Saving Society, The Countryside Code and a huge array of local and small businesses who we’ve supported and worked with through our journey so far.
I have become a walks writer and photographer, contributing to Yorkshire Life Magazine and Live the Dales magazine and I JUST LOVE WHAT I DO!
The Settle Caves walk (it may look like green screen - this was 100% the most epic REAL day out ever!)
And here’s to the future…
This ‘little blog’ has become very much a part of my life and as a Hill and Moorland Leader (in training… nearly there now over 50QMDs and Outdoor First Aid training under my belt - assessment is incoming) I intend to continue to inspire everybody’s Reluctant Explorers to get outdoors.
My kids were at a tender age of 6&4 when I set the Reluctant Explorers up and we’re now at 13 & nearly 11, but I’ve hiked with the kids since before they could actually walk and for far longer than the lifespan of The Reluctant Explorers.
Oh yes. The kids have been outdoors since word dot. I’ve lived the difficulties of the feeding emergencies, the completely irrational toddler tantrums, the ‘pick-me-up’ then ‘put-me-down’ rollercoaster, the sit-down protests, the epic whinge factor. I know that these challenges will continue as the kids grow up, but I am FULLY intending on keeping up the annoyance of my kids through the continued exposure to nature and hiking. OK?
You in?
Sam
Head Reluctant Explorer (and Mum!)
I’m Sam, the brains (kinda, I blame sleep deprivation) behind the Reluctant Explorers.
I have grown up with hiking holidays in the Lake District and moved to Yorkshire in 2002 to study. I qualified as a solicitor, but decided to take a break to focus on family.
I now teach music and work with children from babies to teenagers and of course have become somewhat of a website, marketing and social media nerd!
I love outdoors life! Whether that be hiking, swimming, paddleboarding, picnicking or camping I am passionate about being outside as much as possible!
As a Mum of two, I am TRYING to kindle that love for the outdoors in the kids too, but I know that’s not always very easy, which is why I am constantly thinking of ways to make outdoors fun!
In 2024 I trained to be a Hill and Moorland Leader with a BMC approved course. Since then, I have gained all the experience needed to take my assessment… next year! I am an Ordnance Survey champion and walks write in my spare time!
Edie
Edie is 13 years old and a budding climber!
She has always loved being outdoors (but don’t worry, she regularly forgets about that) and first hiked the highest of the Yorkshire Three Peaks at age 6. Since then, she has competed the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge twice, loves to swim in waterfalls, do gymnastics, sing and play piano, netball and drama and is a bit of an extreme sports enthusiast! She has a passion for climbing inspired by the climbers of the Dales and is on her Level 4 NICAS learning to lead climb.
She regularly shows me up whilst paddleboarding and is an all round kick-ass kid.
Ezra
Ezra is 10 and loves exploring caves.
We always say that he is the most Reluctant Explorer as he is a 100% snack fuelled hiker but is in his element when he’s exploring something ‘cool’. Like ruins, or caves.
I feel like a need to keep that bit. This was him, a LONG time ago. Now, he’s a climber, has completed the Yorkshire Three Peaks challenge twice and will always take a mountain over a ‘boring walk’ (provided there’s plenty of Haribo on offer).
He loves to operate at 100 miles per hour, loves getting wet, extremely muddy and swimming (as long as it’s not too cold!). He is a massive fan of football, a drummer and a musician, but he squeezes in his adventures around games, he’s on his Level 4 prep NICAS and is like a spider monkey up the walls!
Oh and parks. He loves parks!