Understanding Recreation: Types & Outdoor Activities

• Recreare means to be refreshed.
• Recreation involves activities that refresh the mind or body after work through play, amusement, or relaxation.

Types of Recreation

• Active recreation involves activities requiring significant energy and movement, like basketball, volleyball, soccer, or skateboarding.
• Passive recreation involves activities with limited physical exertion, for example, reading, fishing, photography, or painting.

Outdoor Recreation

• Outdoor recreation refers to organized activities in which individuals can participate during their free time.
• Outdoor recreation has three parts: existence time, subsistence time, and free time.
• Existence time is time allocated to maintaining biological and physiological needs.
• Subsistence time is time spent on schoolwork, chores and work.
• Free time is time an individual has after fulfilling existence and subsistence needs.

Experiential Education

• Experiential education engages students in outdoor activities to produce meaningful learning activities.

Characteristics of Experiential Education

• Hands-on learning involves students learning through activities and tasks promoting participation.
• Reflective practice encourages students to think about their experiences to understand what they have learned, which is essential to grasp the meaning and significance of their experiences.
• Real-world application means experiential education provides real-life experiences to help students apply what they have learned, such as conducting a field study in an environmental science class.
• Collaborative learning means students work together to solve problems and achieve goals, making collaboration and cooperation crucial.
• Interdisciplinary approach includes activities in experiential education that cover various disciplines, allowing students to see connections between different fields of study.

Benefits of Outdoor Activities

• Physical health includes an active lifestyle which is more beneficial than a sedentary life, as time spent outdoors engages people in walking, climbing, running, and cycling.
• Psychological and emotional benefits mean recreational activities act as "de-stressors" and boost self-esteem, morale, and creativity.
• Social benefits include engaging in outdoor activities as a way to bond with family and loved ones, allowing opportunities for bonding through shared interests in outdoor recreational activities.
• Economic sector benefits include a relaxed body and mind increasing workplace productivity and efficiency.
• Ecotourism has created job opportunities and economic activities.
• Spiritual well-being includes outdoor recreation enhancing spiritual values and calming a person.

"Leave No Trace" Principles

• Plan ahead and prepare before visiting a place, which means ensuring compliance with the rules, guidelines, concerns, and safety procedures for the area.

Components of Planning Ahead

• Research the area you plan to visit to learn about regulations, rules, and weather conditions.
• Prepare sufficient equipment, including appropriate clothing, food, and gear.
• Train and ready yourself for potential situations, such as weather changes or emergencies.

"Leave No Trace" Principles

• Avoid leaving trash by bringing containers for waste and ensuring no traces are left behind.
• Know alternative routes and plan backup routes in case of unforeseen obstacles.
• Travel and camp on durable surfaces like rocks, gravel, and dry grasses.

Components of Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces

• Use established trails and campsites to avoid damaging vegetation and causing soil erosion.
• Camp on durable surfaces, such as rock, gravel, sand, or dry grass.
• Disperse use in pristine areas, which means if camping in an undisturbed area, spread out tents and equipment to prevent creating new trails or campsites.
• Dispose of waste properly by following the principle "pack it in, pack it out," where wastes such as leftover food or wrappers are not left behind.
• Leave what you find and follow the principle to "take only pictures and leave only footprints.”

Components of Leaving What You Find

• Avoid removing natural objects, as collecting items can deplete natural resources.
• Preserve historical and cultural sites, which means not disturbing or removing historical artifacts.
• Minimize impact on the environment, such as avoiding carving into trees or creating new trails.
• Focus on observation and enjoyment by taking photographs to make memories of cultural features as one found them.
• Minimize campfire impacts by using a lightweight stove for cooking and a candle lantern for light.

Components of Minimizing Campfire Impacts

• Use established fire rings to minimize disturbance to the ground.
• Keep fires small by using only small sticks broken by hand to reduce the amount of wood used.
• Use lightweight stoves instead of a campfire for cooking due to their reduced impact.
• Burn only local firewood to prevent the spread of invasive species.
• Burn all wood to ash then scatter cool ashes over a large area, away from campsites and water sources.
• Fully extinguish fires before leaving by dousing with water, stirring the ashes, and dousing again until they are cold to the touch.
• Show respect by enjoying wildlife observation from a distance and avoiding approaching wildlife.
• Be considerate of others by being polite to fellow travelers.

Explore recreation as a means of refreshment through play and relaxation. Discover the differences between active and passive recreation, including examples like basketball and reading. Understand how outdoor recreation relates to existence, subsistence, and free time.