Belinda Kirk

Founder of Explorers Connect and author of Adventure Revolution

In 2016, explorer and expedition leader Belinda started the Wild Night Out, to inspire more people to get outdoors. Her book about the transformational power of adventure, Adventure Revolution, comes out this summer.

“As a young child I was free to explore the woods around my home. As I grew I ventured into the National Parks to camp, and by the age of 19 I had travelled around East Africa. I adventured with friends but it was the solo adventures that had the deepest and most enduring effect on me, especially as an underconfident young woman eager to discover what I was capable of. Alone you are completely reliant on your own abilities. That’s scary but it’s also empowering.

“Solo challenges in nature changed my life and I know I would have missed something essential had I not continued to face my fears, step by step, and kept on going.

“It’s normal to be scared of going into the wilderness on your own, but that doesn’t mean we should let fear stop us. Sometimes you have to carry on afraid. No-one should be denied this most natural form of freedom, empowerment and joy. Simply camping under the stars alone gives us time to reflect away from the noise of modern life. A chance to watch the stars or listen to the rain on canvas. The sight of the sun rising or the silence broken only by the wind or a calling owl. It’s why I’m there and why I will continue to sleep in the woods or on the moor by myself, from time to time, even if I’m scared and my nights are sleepless. I mustn’t let fear limit how I live.”