Now, usually when anyone suggests going for a walk or hike, I’m like a dog who can hear his leash shake two floors away. That hasn’t been the case this summer, a summer underscored by record humidity. In the past week or so, though, with daytime temperatures sometimes not making it out of the 60s, I’ve been all about the passeggiata, and I will be for the next month and a half or so. And so should you.

In the past, I’ve bemoaned the fact that once September rolls around, you really start to notice the sun setting earlier and earlier. Consider the following sunset times for central North Carolina:

• Sept. 4: 7:42 p.m.
• Sept. 15: 7:27 p.m.
• Sept. 30: 7:05 p.m.
• Oct. 15: 6:44 p.m.

And finally, when we go off Daylight Savings Time:

• Nov. 2: 5:22 p.m.

The main reason I’ve bemoaned this rapid advance in the past is that there simply isn’t enough time to get in a decent hike after work, what with the time to get ready and drive to the nearest trailhead. 

There is, however, time to work in a passeggiata, which requires little preparation and starts out your front door. An added benefit, according to Melody Warnick, author of “This is Where You Belong: The Art and Science of Loving the Place You Live” — it will enable you to better get to know your neighborhood and the people in it. Consider these suggestions from Warnick:

• Follow the “1-Mile Solution.” That is, walk everything — shopping, going out to eat, etc. — within a mile of where you live.
• Explore unfamiliar parts of your town without a GPS. Let yourself go and just roam.
• If possible, switch to a walking (or biking) commute.
• Draw a map of your neighborhood and see how many details you can fill in. Not many? See how many you can fill in by walking it regularly.

By walking evenings in your neighborhood you’ll be surprised at what you’ll find. 

‘Explore Your Neighboirhood’

In 2020, I wrote a guidebook called: “Explore Your Neighborhood: A Guide to Discovering the World Immediately Around You.” I wrote it during the pandemic, when we were subject to shelter-in-place guidelines, with the goal of helping readers identify places to explore out their front door. It covers everything from how to use Google Maps to identify potentially interesting places to explore nearby, to what you might see along the way (and what you should avoid), to staying safe, and more.

In short, the book will help you make the most of this two-month window of after-work exploring time that we have. 

Walking after eating has a number of health benefits. In addition to aiding with digestion, it can help regulate your blood sugar, lower your blood pressure, elevate your mood and, of course, burn calories. 

We’re especially motivated by the “elevate your mood” benefit. We all know how we’re affected by our weekend hike. So why not get that benefit throughout the week?

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Resources

“Explore Your Neighborhood,” by Joe Miller. This compact 53-page guide provides the direction and confidence to get you exploring your neighborhood on a gorgeous fall evening. Learn more here.

“This is Where You Belong: The Art and Science of Loving the Place You Live,” Melody Warnick. After moving with her family to Blacksburg, VA, after living in various other locations, Warnick decided to forge a true connection with her new home. She writes about how she made that happen in these nomadic times. Learn more here.

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