Hiking, why you should go to the mountains even if it's not your thing

Hello steemians... A few days ago a friend and I went to the mountains... I enjoyed the trip so much I want to share with you these five reasons to go hiking even if it's not your cup of tea!

Fresh air

Many health conscious people focus on the diet and forget about almost everything else. The air you breathe is probably the number one source of pollutants, since you consume it nearly every second of the day. If you're living in the city, your best bet is that the air you breathe is not the best you can get. So go get the highest quality source of oxygen on the planet - mountain air. Since winds regularly blow everything out up there, it might be a good idea to hit the mountain road and stop for a breathe-only session.

Mushrooms

I bet that on the nearest mountain to you, there are some valuable edible/medicinal mushrooms. It's just that you can't identify them... So get some mushroom books, find some steemit mushroom freaks, join some facebook groups and last but the best - find yourself a mushroom guru. Mushrooms are a thing many people can get ignited for, but some bite and never leave them alone again... These people might be the best source of mushroom knowledge for the rest of us... My dad's like this and I'm incredibly lucky for that! He has put a few things in my head about mushrooms to make sure both me and the mushroom are safe. I already knew deep inside, but he has made it crystal clear. These are actually common sense and can be applied to any foraging activity...

• never pick or eat a mushroom unless you're 100% sure what it is, or if it is old, moldy, rotten or it has worms
• always leave some mushrooms to let them release spores

PS. I'll make a separate post for the mushroom foraging we done, stay tuned!

Below, an unidentified mushroom, picture taken for identification (gills visible)

Animals

You might have a unique encounter with forest fauna, take some interesting pictures or just enjoy the sight of a free being. If you're not so lucky to see an animal, you can just listen to the birds. Bird meditation is actually a thing... Just sit comfortably with your eyes closed and listen. If your forest is abundant with wild animals, please don't hunt them, they're sentient just like us and not the best food for you! Hunting an animal is not something to boast about, it's a sad story both for the soul of the animal and the human.

View

If you live in an apartment in a tall building, I think you should still agree with me that nothing can compare to a mountain view. There's just something about standing on top of a hill and looking down in the valley. One way to improve your eyesight is to regularly look to a far distance... Sadly, you can't do this in most places today, everything is littered with huge skyscrapers... So climb a mountain and release your hawk's eye!

Below, the city seems really far away.

Fun

You might have the best time of your lives with your friends up there. Just don't get lost and carry everything you need... In my country many inexperienced tourists get lost or die in the mountains because they weren't prepared. If you don't have a clue what you need, try contacting a local hiker's club for information... Always get some information about a terrain before taking off.

Whenever I do not know if something is worth doing, I ask myself three questions:

1. Does it satisfy my social needs?
2. Will it help me financially?
3. Is it ecologically sustainable?

If all three are checked, there's no reason not to do it, except for crippling laziness. :D

You all be healthy and happy (only if you want to haha), follow up if you haven't already... I love reading articles on steemit, care to leave a comment if we have similar interests?