Exploring with Komoot and Meetup

Reading Time: 2 minutesIt’s easy to find a group, and to do the same thing, again, and again, and again. Each year you do the same things in the same order, at the same time. It becomes routine. You get used to that routine. You don’t deviate. That’s where Komoot and Meetup come in.

## Online Exploration

With Komoot you get suggestions of routes to try, whether on foot, by bike or other. You can explore a curated list of things to do at a specific time of year, or in a specific area, or even in a specific town or location.

It’s nice to explore routes via a sharing app like Komoot because it’s not about competing or athleticism. it’s about finding an interesting route, to try something new.

## Ruines D’Oujou

A week or two ago I came across the Ruines D’Oujon and I was curious to experience them so I bookmarked the routes. Because the weather was bad for a week or two I didn’t do anything. I mentioned it to someone else and he organised it, based on my suggestion.

Yesterday we tried the route and it was a good experience. The hike was nice, through the Jura, across a field or two, of cows, before heading back down. On a day with good weather the views would have been good. It was cloudy, with a chance of rain so the views were not as spectacular as they could have been.

## Seasonal

The ruins are probably better to visit when it’s dry rather than at the height of summer, because the ruins were hidden, and less accessible than during a dry summer. If the weather had been better and the weather better I would have probably played with the drone near the ruins.

## Exploring With a Group

In the past I have explored for hiking ideas, and done them alone, but if you have a meetup group, or two, with whom to do things, then you can look for inspiration before giving people the opportunity to join you.

I would have organised yesterday’s hike if someone had not beat me to it after mentioning that I wanted to do it.

## And Finally

Thanks to Komoot and various groups you can avoid the trap of falling into a routine. Hiking every weekend is a routine too, but exploring different places is a healthy routine. It keeps you learning, about new places, and finding new sites to appreciate. It can potentially keep you away from crowds and tourists too.