5 articles
Geocaching, archery, tree-top trails, horse riding and more outdoor activities for all ages.
Not everyone dreams of long-distance walks. For plenty of people, the outdoors means an afternoon with the family, a challenge among friends, or an activity tried one Sunday and never dropped since. This section brings together pastimes you can often enjoy close to home, without much kit, and which give everyone a good reason to get outside. Disc golf, kite flying and canicross with your dog have their place here too.
For each activity, we explain how to get started: what a first session looks like, where to find information, what to bring and when it starts to make sense to buy your own kit. We also tell you what to look for when choosing a club or a provider. Geocaching has its etiquette, from staying discreet while you search to putting the cache back exactly where you found it. Archery is best discovered at a club, with the safety rules of the shooting line, before moving on to field or woodland courses. High ropes courses and pony trekking are chosen to suit each person’s age and experience.
These activities often share the same places with other people, and the rules matter: private land, protected sites, bridleways shared by walkers, riders and cyclists, and dogs kept on leads where required. We quote them from the official texts or from governing bodies, with a box for Scotland, England and Wales, Northern Ireland or Ireland when the rules differ. The common mistakes get their turn too: a cache hidden somewhere it has no business being, a field gate left open, an outing too long for a child’s legs. And, of course, the kite that ends up in the only tree on the beach.
As elsewhere on Outfarer, the guides are practical and sourced, and useful figures, such as a bow’s draw weight or the minimum age for a ropes course, are explained rather than tossed in. Kit is compared on the specifications its manufacturers publish, and an activity described in these pages is always told by the person who actually took part. The section is for families looking for a weekend idea as much as for regulars who want to progress.
ActivitiesPractical guide
You don’t need a horse of your own to ride for two days or a week: guided trips provide the horse and the guide, as long as you are at ease at walk, trot and canter outdoors. Here are the formats, the French federation’s level benchmarks, a typical day, overnight stops, the season, prices, and what changes in the UK, Germany, Austria and the US.
Arnaud Couderc··15 min
Hiring a pack donkey in France: what it carries, its 3 to 4 km/h pace, the Stevenson Trail, children, prices checked in October 2026 and the welfare charters.
Arnaud Couderc··14 min
Taster sessions, membership and insurance, recurve, compound, barebow and longbow, distances from 18 to 70 m, 3D courses and shooting-line safety rules.
Arnaud Couderc··13 min
Geocaching explained: finding your first cache with the app, the types of cache, the rules for hiding one, and the precautions to take in French forests.
Guillaume Hoarau··7 min
Starting canicross: harness, waist belt and bungee line, your dog’s age, the first runs, the heat, French race rules and why a club is the best start.
Nolwenn Bastide··9 min
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