“Not to be dramatic but I would be dead. If not from a drug overdose I definitely would have killed myself”: The response to a question about where Erica Yaeger would be without the outdoors shows exactly how far she has come and where she wants to lead others. It hasn’t been an easy journey and the destination was seldom certain, but she continues to adventure on.

The phrase “trails saved me” is thrown around often. Usually in regards to the mental or physical benefits of the outdoors. A few days in nature can cure all ills for some but for Yaeger it is more truth than hyperbole. 

High and Low

As a young girl, Yaeger wasn’t overly outdoorsy. Her family moved around a bit in her youth. Upstate New York led to short walks to waterfalls at grandma’s, a stint in Georgia led to playing in the woods by home. At 13 her family moved to the London area where the seeds of exploration may have been planted. “I went to more countries before I was a legal adult than most people do in their lifetime.”

The outdoors were around her but had never taken a full hold, with one exception. “One thing I do remember is always loving climbing. When I was a kid I always wanted to do the climbing walls at the state fair and such. I don't know why but I felt like I was good at it. I really liked it. I think most of my life I felt like I wasn't enough, or good, or anything really. But when I would do those climbing walls I remember feeling a sense of complete joy and excitement. It just clicked for me.” 

Yaeger Hiking in Moab, Utah. She didn’t always have a clear path to the outdoors. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

Living in London was not the fresh start that Yaeger was hoping for. She hated her time there and began having emotional outbursts and running away from home. “Anger was my only sense of solace, it provided me with a release of emotions that I could not understand.” At 16, Yaeger and her family moved back to the states. Before her 17th birthday she was living in a residential treatment center in Utah. “This is when I really got introduced to the outdoors. I went real camping for the first time I think when I was there. I wouldn't say I super fell in love with the outdoors then but it definitely opened the door.” 

For Yaeger, the draw of nature wasn’t quite enough at that time. By 19, addiction began to take hold. “My partner at the time was a heroin addict and I just kinda gave up on myself. I didn't see any other way to exist than joining.” By definition, Yaeger too was a heroin and cocaine addict but it felt a bit different for her. “Underneath that I was addicted to people and their love/acceptance/attention/approval.” Getting clean wasn’t the problem, getting her friends to join her was.

John and Erica exploring the night at Valley of Fire Nevada State Park. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

The Climb

Addicts talk about rock bottom but that bottom was a moving target. An attempted suicide at 16 might have been rock bottom for some or being homeless and addicted to heroin at 21 could have been the bottom. Not yet. Despite losing “dozens” of friends to overdose or suicide in her life, the final bottom didn’t come until after her partner overdosed and passed away. “I was taking handfuls of pills just to numb myself and when I went to his funeral I just stopped. I stopped all the drugs. It was one of those moments where I just decided to live.”

The only way to get off the bottom is to climb and that is what Yaeger did. She climbed. “Rock climbing came in and out of my life over the years — like I said when I was little I had a love for it. Then when I was at the residential treatment center as a kid I went on a rock climbing outing and then it came back again when I was in rehab as an adult. I had some friends that wanted to climb and I went with them. I guess I didn't know that happiness, friendship, all that stuff could exist without substances.” Climbing is also where she met John, who became her partner in adventures and whom she recently married.

Yaeger Climbing in Joshua Tree National Park. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

Yaeger likes to say that she is always evolving and that continues to this day. In 2020 it was time to continue the evolution. John had introduced her to backpacking and Yaeger decided to try a solo trip on the Uinta Highline Trail in Utah. At the time she had only backpacked a few times in her life so this would be another challenge, another evolution. “I think that's when I first really found complete peace. I mean don't get me wrong it was an emotional rollercoaster and I definitely bawled my eyes out … but by day four I felt whole. Like really whole. For the first time in my entire life.”

When asked if she had advice on others who may be struggling in life, Yaeger used that experience in her answer. “Grab your s**t and go outside. I know not everyone is keen on going solo but if you can, and you're in a place where you are safe to be by yourself — mentally and physically — go solo. That doesn't have to mean you go backpacking by yourself. But like go sit outside at the park with your journal. Go for a hike and chill on the summit and meditate. Whatever feels right to you. Get off the couch and go put your feet on the earth.”

Yaeger traversing a rock bridge at Kings Canyon National Park. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

Giving Back

Before the addiction Yaeger had been going to school to be an elementary education teacher. With the addiction came a criminal record for drug-related crimes that left her unable to get a license to teach kids. During her last stint of rehab, Yaeger had started to focus on what she would become now that she was moving on with her life. The news about the teaching license had left her lost. Her therapist worked with her to compile a list of what she enjoyed, teaching people and being outside. She remembered what a powerful impact her recreational therapy had on her and it all clicked. She would become a therapist and be able to teach people from her own history and be outside.

As a recreational therapist Yaeger describes her approach like this: “Instead of sitting down in an office and chatting I utilize leisure and recreation as a modality for treatment. That could be playing a board game, painting pottery, going for a hike, going rock climbing, really anything. It's all about engaging people in experiences and using those metaphors to connect back what needs to be processed. It can be skill based and teaches them how to overcome mental blocks, embrace fear etc. or it can be an experience that taps back into old belief systems that we work on deconstructing.”

Erica and John after summing Mt. Whitney. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

Yaeger has been a licensed recreational therapist since 2016 but as she continues to constantly evolve she has started to transition away and focus more on the business that she started with her husband, John, Adventure On.

Adventure On

Yaeger and her husband could both be considered born again nature lovers. After meeting on a climb they have been exploring the outdoors ever since. From renting a van and traveling all over Japan on a snowboarding trip to hiking the John Muir trail in California, there are no trips too big for the pair. They even got engaged at the Grand Canyon and married on a mountain top.

Erica and John's wedding in Canyonlands National Park. Courtesy John Whiting, Adventure On

What makes Adventure On different is that both Yaeger and John have seen the dark side of the world and know what that is like. They now use nature as a way to share the light. The website offers tips for new adventurers on topics such as Leave No Trace and canyoneering. They also assemble group trips to help those who may not be as familiar with nature and they do trip giveaways so others can experience more adventure. Their motto sums it up: “we started Adventure On, as a way to inspire other day dreamers to get off the couch, drive through the night, and climb the mountains you’ve been dreaming of.”

For Yaeger, Adventure On is just another peak of the climb. A way to provide support and inspiration to a broader audience and a way to stay on top of the hills. Proof that the base of the mountain of life may be wide but a summit is possible when the determination is found. She found determination in the lowest of places and now finds herself on top of the world, pulling others around her up as she goes.