Every year, people do amazing things in the great outdoors. Getting away from society and into the wilderness is always an incredible opportunity to get to know yourself better. It’s also a way to push yourself past your own self-imposed limits. When we go outdoors, we learn two things at once—how small we are in relation to the world, and how we are inextricably a part of it. 

It’s an incredible feeling to be the first recorded person to do something amazing. It’s equally incredible to attempt something difficult, overcome obstacles, and—whether or not you accomplish what you set out to do—find yourself somewhere new and exciting. The most amazing part of this year has been the human stories that emerge from our outdoor culture and the people that make it up. 

Here are a few of those stories, those people outdoors, that we’d like to celebrate in our Outdoors people of the year list as 2023 comes to a close.