Go Fast ...
The Monticello Motor Club’s raceway, nestled in the wooded foothills of the Catskill mountains, is about a two-hour drive from Manhattan. Sign up for the Taste of the Track package when it reopens to the general public in June, and you can spend the day whipping one of their Minis or BMWs—steam cleaned and sanitized before your arrival—around the 4.1-mile track. You’ll also get instruction from a driving coach over an in-helmet radio. For more practice, try a few laps on the club’s .6-mile go-kart track. From $1,700 per day.
… Or Off-Road
In the hilly, forested Tennessee-North Carolina borderlands, a section of US 219, called the “Tail of the Dragon,” is infamous for packing 318 curves into 11 miles. Sign on for a one-day Off-Road Foundations class or a two-day Adventure Bike Skills Class with the BMW U.S. Rider Academy in Spartanburg, S.C., and you’ll get to ride the dragon, as well as receive expert instruction in how to handle mud, gravel, and every other gnarly terrain the mountains can throw at you. You need a motorcycle license but not a bike; BMW will give you the pick of the litter for the day. From $795 for the one-day off-road class.
Go Conquer Your Fear of Heights
Almost everyone has, at some point in life, climbed a tree—or at least thinks they have. But if you’ve ever seen an arborist scale a redwood (or a neighborhood maple) with ropes and harnesses the way a rock climber tackles a cliff face, you know there’s a whole other level of scaling. With half- and full-day introductory classes, St. Louis-based Vertical Voyages makes the world of ascending and exploring nature’s giants accessible to everyone. Book one of its “Canopy Campouts,” in which you can go up a 100-year-old oak outside the city and spend the night perched 30 to 50 feet above the ground, safely harnessed in a Treeboat hammock. From $300 per person for 2 people.
Go Float Down the River
Staying in one of the 18 cottages or six cabins at 5,200-acre Blackberry Mountain in Walland, Tenn., provides an object lesson in just how refined the rural life can be. The sister property to foodie paradise Blackberry Farm offers a summer camp’s worth of outdoor activities, from hiking and yoga to mountain biking and rock climbing. Families can sign on for a two-hour guided paddle on the Little River aboard their choice of canoe, kayak, or stand-up paddleboard. From $250 for four guests.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.