Armchair adventures: five books to bring the outdoors in

Sometimes, a good book can be as refreshing as a getaway. We mightn’t all have access to wily moors, rolling hills and green forests to explore, but with this collection of books you can certainly live vicariously through these explorers’ travels around the world. We’ve rounded up some of our favourite outdoor adventuring tales, to bring the outdoors in:

1. A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
   One of the world’s best-loved travel writers, Bill Bryson, offers honest and hilarious encounters on the pages of his travel books. Whether you want to explore America, the UK, Australia or beyond, Bill’s tales will have you feeling like you’re on vacation with an old friend. This book has also been made into a film starring Robert Redford.
2. Into the Wild by John Krakauer
   Another true-life-story-turned-film, Into the Wild observes the escapism of exploring nature, and warns against the potential dangers too. When the protagonist, a newly graduated young man, rejects the predictable and consumerist life his parents suggest he follows, he becomes captivated by the idea of entering the great outdoors alone.
3. Green Mountains by Bernard O’Reilly
   When a small aircraft crashes into a dense national park in Australia, in 1937, Bernard O’Reilly becomes determined to use his geographical knowledge of the land to locate the plane and seek out survivors. In a unique first-person encounter of a difficult adventure, Bernard explains the events of his journey into the unexplored and unkind rainforests of Queensland.
4. Wild: A Journey From Lost to Found by Cheryl Strayed
   A memoir that captures the mental and physical agonies of travelling eleven-hundred miles of the west coast of America by foot, Wild: A Journey From Lost to Found sees Cheryl Strayed battle grief, challenge survival and ultimately find redemption. Recently adapted for a big-screen film starring Reese Witherspoon, this story is bound to linger in your mind.
5. Voss by Patrick White
   In nineteenth-century Australia, an explorer and his unlikely crew set out to explore the land beyond Sydney and map out the country’s unique terrain. In wide-open spaces, travelling by horseback, Voss and his fellow travellers face many challenges along the way.

What other books would you recommend for bringing the outdoors in? Comment below!