7 Frugal Outdoor Activities For You and Your Family

When the spring starts shining outside and the cold weather is gone, it's a great moment to think about outdoor activities that can keep you all healthy, happy and more energized. And I am not talking about Hawaii trips that will cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars. There are plenty of frugal activities that are just as good as the expensive trips, sometimes even better.Here are seven good and all time green ideas for frugal outdoor activities:Picnic
Going to picnic is one of the simplest things you can do. Just pack few backs, get into the car (or be green and use the bus) and go to a natural place near you - a forest, a small hill or just into the park.There are very little costs involved in a picnic - just for transportation and food. And I would even exclude the food costs from the calculation because you will anyway have to eat - even if you don't go on picnic.Just one picnic weekly or monthly is enough to refresh yourself and your entire family for a lot of time ahead.Hiking
If you are more active and prefer to experience some reasonable physical loading, go to the closest mountain and do few hours of hiking. You don't need to climb peaks, just walk on broken ground for few hours and the mountain will recharge you in a way that nothing else can do.You don't need special equipment - just make sure you have comfortable shoes,a raincoat and a working cell phone. Don't go into areas that are not appropriate for tourists, don't overestimate your skills and walk with the speed of the slowest in the group. Family hiking should be fun - don't turn it into competition. Make sure to bring enough food and water with you.Having no mountain near your place is no excuse - you can hike on smooth ground too. It's not that exciting, but it's much better than staying in front of the TV. And is a pretty cheap activity too.Backyard Games
If you have a backyard, it's not hard to install a basketball basket, a volleyball net or a small door for soccer. Playing sports in the backyard is good for your and your kids health and helps the family spend more time together. It's also very frugal activity - once you install the net, basket or door and buy the needed balls you basically need nothing else.Paintball
Paintball is not cheap if you want to buy all the needed equipment and play in the backyard. But there are many places where you and your family can play paintball paying only a hourly based fees that usually aren't high.The kids and teens tend to like paintball a lot so it's a great idea to take yours on such venture. It can be even more fun if you take your neigbor's family and form bigger teams.Jogging
Want something even cheaper? Then try jogging - you can do it in the nearest park and need nothing except comfortable shoes and light clothes (assuming the weather is warm). Jogging is great for groups of 1-3 people, but even if you have a large family it's OK to go all and run together.Just like with hiking some people turn jogging into competition and pain. Don't do it - you are there to have fun and keep your family united.Biking
Biking is even more fun than jogging and is believed to be just as good for your health. Going out with bicycles can also turn into small expedition, because you can check places that are 10 - 20 or more km. away from you.Biking requires bigger investment in the beginning, but once you buy bicycles for everyone, they can be used for years with very small ongoing costs (much smaller than your car requires).Outdoor Swinging
A lazy but still active way to have fun outdoor is to swing in the backyard. Installing a family swing set requires some money at the beginning but there is almost no maintenance after that. And you can use the outdoor swing for more than ten years (depending on its type and quality).Just make sure that the swing set has enough seats for everyone (at least for the kids) so it don't cause wrangles between them. Remember, having fun is most important in everything you do.