u/Tree_tri_tops

I’ve been an outdoorsy person since I was a child, and the moments when I feel happiest and most like myself are when I’m outdoors.

I’m predominantly a hiker and every time I’m out in the hills I feel a sense of awe looking at the landscape. My mind goes quiet, any worries disappear, and I feel genuinely peaceful. I can happily sit on a mountain eating a sandwich with an incredible view and feel like I need nothing else.

The contrast is that, during the week, I work in a fairly typical office-based corporate role in an unrelated industry. I also have some charity sector experience around art education. It pays the bills, but I feel disconnected from what energises me. At the same time, I don’t think I’d be happy doing a physically demanding outdoor job full-time either. I need something that’s a balance between desk work and something physical.

I’m looking for a life where nature isn’t just something I squeeze into weekends. I’d love to live somewhere quieter, spend much more time outdoors, and ideally have a career that’s connected to the environment but still uses my strengths in planning, organising, projects.

Has anyone here built a life like that?

- What do you do for work?
- What were you doing beforehand?
- How did you make the transition?
- Did you have any related qualifications prior?
- Was there a particular job or lifestyle change that made the biggest difference?

I’m not necessarily looking for “quit your job and become a mountain leader” answers. I’m more interested in hearing from people who’ve found a balance between meaningful work, financial stability and spending much more of their life connected to nature.

I’d love to hear your stories.

I’ve been outdoorsy since I was a child, and the moments when I feel happiest and most like myself are when I’m outdoors.

I’m predominantly a hiker and every time I’m out in the hills I feel a sense of awe looking at the landscape. My mind goes quiet, any worries disappear, and I feel genuinely peaceful. I can happily sit on a mountain eating a sandwich with an incredible view and feel like I need nothing else.

The contrast is that, during the week, I work in a fairly typical office-based corporate role in an unrelated industry. I also have some charity sector experience around art education. It pays the bills, but I feel disconnected from what energises me. At the same time, I don’t think I’d be happy doing a physically demanding outdoor job full-time either. I need something that’s a balance between desk work and something physical.

I’m looking for a life where nature isn’t just something I squeeze into weekends. I’d love to live somewhere quieter, spend much more time outdoors, and ideally have a career that’s connected to the environment but still uses my strengths in planning, organising, projects.

Has anyone here built a life like that?

- What do you do for work?
- What were you doing beforehand?
- How did you make the transition?
- Did you have any related qualifications prior?
- Was there a particular job or lifestyle change that made the biggest difference?

I’m not necessarily looking for “quit your job and become a mountain leader” answers. I’m more interested in hearing from people who’ve found a balance between meaningful work, financial stability and spending much more of their life connected to nature.

I’d love to hear your stories.

I’ve been an outdoorsy person since I was a child, and the moments when I feel happiest and most like myself are when I’m outdoors.

I’m predominantly a hiker and every time I’m out in the hills I feel a sense of awe looking at the landscape. My mind goes quiet, any worries disappear, and I feel genuinely peaceful. I can happily sit on a mountain eating a sandwich with an incredible view and feel like I need nothing else.

The contrast is that, during the week, I work in a fairly typical office-based corporate role in an unrelated industry. I also have some charity sector experience around art education. It pays the bills, but I feel disconnected from what energises me. At the same time, I don’t think I’d be happy doing a physically demanding outdoor job full-time either. I need something that’s a balance between desk work and something physical.

I’m looking for a life where nature isn’t just something I squeeze into weekends. I’d love to live somewhere quieter, spend much more time outdoors, and ideally have a career that’s connected to the environment but still uses my strengths in planning, organising, projects.

Has anyone here built a life like that?

- What do you do for work?
- What were you doing beforehand?
- How did you make the transition?
- Did you have any related qualifications prior?
- Was there a particular job or lifestyle change that made the biggest difference?

I’m not necessarily looking for “quit your job and become a mountain leader” answers. I’m more interested in hearing from people who’ve found a balance between meaningful work, financial stability and spending much more of their life connected to nature.

I’d love to hear your stories.

I’ve been an outdoorsy person since I was a child, and the moments when I feel happiest and most like myself are when I’m outdoors.

I’m predominantly a hiker and every time I’m out in the hills I feel a sense of awe looking at the landscape. My mind goes quiet, any worries disappear, and I feel genuinely peaceful. I can happily sit on a mountain eating a sandwich with an incredible view and feel like I need nothing else.

The contrast is that, during the week, I work in a fairly typical office-based corporate role in an unrelated industry. I also have some charity sector experience around art education. It pays the bills, but I feel disconnected from what energises me. At the same time, I don’t think I’d be happy doing a physically demanding outdoor job full-time either. I need something that’s a balance between desk work and something physical.

I’m looking for a life where nature isn’t just something I squeeze into weekends. I’d love to live somewhere quieter, spend much more time outdoors, and ideally have a career that’s connected to the environment but still uses my strengths in planning, organising, projects.

Has anyone here built a life like that?

- What do you do for work?
- What were you doing beforehand?
- How did you make the transition?
- Did you have any related qualifications prior?
- Was there a particular job or lifestyle change that made the biggest difference?

I’m not necessarily looking for “quit your job and become a mountain leader” answers. I’m more interested in hearing from people who’ve found a balance between meaningful work, financial stability and spending much more of their life connected to nature.

I’d love to hear your stories.

I’m trying to find a way to live alone as I’ve lived in house shares for about 8 years. It’s just proving expensive to live alone and I feel like I’ve exhausted all the obvious options, so I’m hoping people might have some ideas I’ve not considered.

My situation:
- I don’t have a car, so I need somewhere with reasonable public transport links.
- I’m looking at areas in North Wales and Cheshire.
- My budget is around £650 per month including bills if possible.
- I’m under 55.
- I have something savings.

So far I’ve looked at:
- Rightmove
- OpenRent
- SpareRoom
- Residential park homes (many seem to be age-restricted)
- Static caravans
- Tiny homes / prefabs

I’m absolutely exhausted having to continue sharing as I feel like I never get any peace. Has anyone found a way to live alone in this area on a similar budget, or are there any options I should be researching?

I’m open to unconventional ideas if they’re legal and practical.