Staying active is the best thing we can do for our bodies, but we don’t always notice when we get in a rut. If you have a favorite pastime, something as simple as doing it after dark can shake up your routine and your skills. It requires you to rely more on your other senses and see things from a different perspective. Go ahead—challenge yourself. Try one of these surprising outdoor activities you can do at night, or put your own twist on something.
Bowfishing
If you love to fish, you might already know that there’s good biting between sunset and sunrise. Many species are more active at night when it’s cooler. They emerge from the depths to feed on smaller fish when all the other anglers have gone home. But what makes night-fishing fun can also make bowfishing a real thrill. Bowfishing combines archery with a kind of spear-fishing, and things move fast after dark. Once you’re familiar with the basics, go out with green colored lights that will help you see the fish—without them seeing you. You’ll learn patience waiting for just the right moment, and learn to trust your reflexes and split-second judgment. When you bring home a fish from bowhunting, it feels like you bagged a lion.
Surfing
Is it dangerous? Well, yes. Night surfing is still limited to a community of dedicated wave chasers because there’s just no safety net. There’s low visibility. There’s no lifeguard. And did we mention the sharks? But if riding a monster wave during the day is exhilarating, then night surfing is truly soul-stirring. Paddling out under the stars means that it’s just you and the sea. No elbowing other surfers out of the way, and no distractions as you wait for the big one. With an LED surfboard setting the water aglow, you’ll see the sharks coming. Probably.
Golfing
This is a particularly surprising outdoor activity to do at night, especially if you tend to lose entire sleeves of golf balls every round. You need a well-lit course, and those can be rare. But when you find one, you’ll appreciate your favorite sport’s absolute majesty. While some courses have given up on floodlights because of the expense, Dubai’s Emirates Golf Club is hosting professional tournaments that may revive interest. You can play golf under the lights in about half the states in America—usually 3-par courses better suited to good times than competition. Give it a go, though, and we promise one thing: you’ll never forget it.
