It’s Time to Reduce Stress With Virtual Forest Bathing
A walk in the woods can be deeply reassuring . Even if it’s off the beaten path and you keep mosquitoes away, you are in a different place than the houses and buildings you are likely to spend your life in. A hike, hike, or even half an hour of meditation in the park can help you turn off both physically and mentally for a minute.
But here, in quarantine, opportunities have diminished. If you don’t know how to travel and have seen enough of your local park, it might be time to take a virtual dip in the forest.
It is impossible to fully replicate this sense of immersion from home; you will see the forest through your device screen. But you may find that photographs, videos, or guided walks still help you connect with nature.
Forest Bathing Hawaii offers virtual forest walks via Zoom for a fee and is free of charge to “first responders, medical and general workers.”
Broughton Hall Estate UK also offers free sliding scale guided walks for key employees.
The Nature and Forest Therapy Association has a page that brings together virtual walks around the world, including North Carolina, Arizona, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Hawaii and the UK.
Or perhaps you just need a video to put in the background to remind you of the sounds and sights of nature.This morning walk through the woods gives you an hour of tranquil footsteps and views of the babbling streams (and that’s on ASMR if you like it).On this five-hour hike, you will follow a trail in Issaqua, Washington, where you can hear birdsong. This is from the 4K Relaxation Channel, which has a lot of the same, includingthis winter landscape hike – in case you want to escape the summer heat while on a virtual vacation.