Trip Reports are Important

I’ve been thinking about trip reports a bit. I think they’re pretty important. A trip is a big investment. You’re spending the time, of course. And the money. But also a lot of emotions go into it, the preparation for it, the experiencing of it in real time, and the reflecting on it afterwards. If you don’t bother to write it down, how will you remember? How will you share it with others? Will you fully process it without forming your own narrative around the experience?

The older I get, the more I think life is about stories. Most everyone loves stories of some type or another. I think we’re made that way. Every trip has some kind of a story arc—you start somewhere, you go somewhere for some reasons, those reasons are thwarted or accomplished, perhaps there are obstacles. Of course most trips won’t be the start of an epic novel, but there is a story there nonetheless.

I’ve never been the greatest story teller. I don’t have a a knack for holding people’s attention. I want to improve. Trip reports is one way to practice.