About Me

Carrying an alligator to a larger pen at the Colorado Gator Farm in Mosca, CO

At the Colorado Gator Farm, I actually got to help move this growing gator to a larger pen.

Hey, I am Nicole! - A day adventurer who loves the outdoors.

After a lovely, but mild childhood of voracious reading and singing competitions, I discovered the adventure junkie life as an adult. All it took was a skydive with a bunch of daredevil coworkers one weekend and the adventure fire was lit.

Though my rabid fear of heights kept me from committing to a new hobby of throwing myself out of perfectly good airplanes, that jump at 10,000 feet was the catalyst that pushed me to start trying new things.

And by trying them, I don’t mean I am necessarily good at them. I just try something because it interests me. Yep, plain ole curiosity is what prompted me to try skydiving, hang gliding, catching alligators, bungee jumping, running 3 Spartan races in 2 days, standup paddlesurfing, and freediving (just to name a few adventures).

Day adventures are my favorite because I can go explore during the day, and then get a hot shower and crash in bed at night.

For every day adventures, I hit the trails. On land, hiking and trail running are my two favs, and you can usually find me on the mountain trails about 4-5x a week. Thankfully, I am blessed to live only about 10 minutes away from the mountains.

In the ocean, I love to surf my standup paddleboard and free dive. I spent 12 years living in Hawai’i prior to moving to New Mexico back in 2022, and I still sneak back there to surf a couple of times a year.

Besides having a ton of fun along the way, my goal with this blog is to share these adventures with you in hopes that they will inspire you to explore the outdoors and find your own adventures.

They can be big. They can be small. But the main thing is to get out there and try something new. After a taste of adventure, I promise you will never be the same!

Standup paddlesurfing on the west side of O'ahu

One of my favorite places to standup paddlesurf…the west side of O’ahu. And no, that isn’t a selfie stick. It’s just my go pro mounted to my paddle.

Other fun facts

Half Native American (Jemez Pueblo & Navajo).
Recipient of the 2023 Everyone Runs Fund award.
Proud member of the Native Women Running Community. To find out more about our mission and the races we are privileged to take part in, check out this 2023 article in Trail Runner Magazine that I was featured in.
PSUPA Certified Standup Paddleboarding (SUP) instructor.
Tacos & Diet Dr Pepper = favorite adventure fuel.
Dog mom to a big, lovable Chocolate Lab named Ziva.
Moved 12 times growing up. Both my parents were in the Marine Corps so I grew up on military bases all over the US.

Gear I Love

Lookin’ for a discount? I got you, fam! Below are some of the brands that I work with, and I am stoked to be able to share a discount code with you. That’s right…Momma said never pay full price!

These are THE BEST body wipes out there. Biodegradable, antibacterial, comes individually wrapped or in a bucket, and smells amazing (no baby wipe scent here).
I use these after every trail run and surfing session and make sure to always pack several of these wipes for all my trips. Cleaning up with these after several hours on the trail or even on a plane helps you feel human again.
Use the link below to get 20% off.
https://www.kleanfreak.com/?rstr=nativegirladventures
A great brand that sells light-up vests for humans and light-up harnesses for dogs. I use my light-up vest for early morning runs and evening dog walks.
All Noxgear vests and dog harnesses are rechargeable so you don’t have to worry about batteries.
While I don’t have a discount code for this brand yet (hope to real soon), you can use the link below to check them out and order your own.
https://www.noxgear.com/ref/AMB_NicoleS
This is the best anti-chafe salve in the business. I should know. I have tried everything from Vaseline to Body Glide. Squirrels Nut Butter (SNB) outperforms them all.
Use code: lubeyourfriends for 15% your purchase.
Just a little note for full transparency…if you use the Klean Freak or Noxgear Links to shop I do get a small commission from the purchase.
But please know, that I am customer first for all these brands. I would not recommend them if I did regularly use and believe in their products.