Kissing a cod and other inspiring adventures from our readers’ bucket lists

Last week, we asked you to tell us what’s on your bucket list. Whether you dream of international adventures, personal challenges, or simply continuing to do what you love, your responses were inspiring, heartfelt, and incredibly diverse (to say the least).

Here’s what you shared—in your own words:

For the love of travel

Barbara La Brash says these places are at the top of her travel bucket list:
“1. Petra, Jordan 2. Madagascar 3. Indonesia 4. Transylvania, Romania”

Matt Day has big dreams that combine sea, history, and ancient wonders: “A bucket list desire is to experience a Mediterranean cruise of the Greek Isles, Southern Italy, and Malta, then heading south to Egypt for a visit to the Great Pyramids.”

Herman Vogt is focused on an important travel list, too:
“1. Drive the entire Trans-Canada highway coast to coast (we have done parts of it)
2. Glacier Express Train ride in Switzerland
3. Stay in the Disney Vacation Club in Hawaii
4. Visit my family’s home in Germany
5. Visit my wife’s family home in Scotland.”

Linda Pohle is looking to cool down in a spectacular way: “I have always lived in South Florida. I would like to see the Northern Lights and a polar bear in the wild.”

And Riley Burgess painted a vivid (and funny) picture of a truly Canadian bucket list moment: “My wife and I really want to visit Newfoundland, just northwest of St. John’s, in May or early June to watch the icebergs drift by just off shore. While there, we hope to participate in a tradition in becoming an honorary Newfoundlander, by getting screeched on the local rum and then kissing the cod, all while under the watchful eye and sponsorship of a local native.”

Road trips and RV adventures

Kevin Coughlin has a goal tailor-made for history buffs and road warriors alike:
“Visiting every state and provincial capital building. Visiting all presidential libraries and their homes (birthplace, etc.).”

Tim Buckley and his travel crew have been checking off destinations and adding more every year: “We have completed a couple items from our bucket list over the past couple years (overwater bungalow in the Maldives, trekking to Everest Base Camp this coming October), but my list grows every time I come across a great article! We just visited National Park #30 in our quest to visit all the U.S. National Parks, and #31 is in just two days (Pinnacles NP)! Bucket list items still include:

• A glass dome stay in a Scandinavian country to see the Northern Lights
• A trip to Machu Picchu, and the Galápagos Islands
• An African safari
• A trip to Patagonia and the Antarctic
• Driving our RV up to Alaska for a couple of months

“While we cross off one of our big items every year or two, we still have plenty of room to add new adventures, so keep the inspiration coming!”

Adventure and adrenaline

Terri Readdy is chasing both music and sky-high thrills: “Current bucket list includes cruise Alaska, the aurora borealis and catching every ’80s band still out on tour (have landed quite a few with AC/DC, Metallica, Paul Simon and Blue Oyster Cult tickets currently in my cache for the next few months after enjoying B52’s to the Rolling Stones and everyone in between). Physical bucket list includes: hang gliding, glider plane and riding a hot air balloon after jumping from a plane this past January from 18000 feet. 🙂 ”

And Linda Ward is going back for round two on a ride most people wouldn’t dare try even once: “The next item on my bucket list is to ride the Cloudscraper Zip Line at the Royal Gorge in Colorado… again. And this will be in a matter of weeks now, hopefully. I previously rode it in 2016 (ZipRider back then) and loved it, and now at 80 years old, I want to do it again.”

Personal challenges and lifelong goals

Neal Davis offered a beautiful reminder that not every bucket list item needs a travel itinerary: “No, no bucket list. I do want to rebuild the center of the barn Daddy and my little brother built in 1978, learn to grade our 1/2-mile-long driveway well enough to never let it get wash-boarded or gullied by heavy rains, and get good enough at running a chainsaw to never get it bound while cutting up a fallen tree. Just simple stuff. I don’t need to ‘see something,’ or ‘be somewhere.’ Having too many ‘must-dos’ seems to get in my way of living.”

Catherine Rubin shared a poignant and powerful wish for her next chapter: “For decades I’ve traveled, camped, bicycled, and hiked all around the USA and Canada with my husband. Now he’s gone. My bucket list only has one thing: to continue doing as much as my 70-year-old body can do, with a person I love being with, who enjoys the outdoors and outdoor activities as much as I do.”

Mel Hartman keeps it simple, honest, and a little humorous: “My bucket list is to win the lottery. Then buy a place in Hawaii. I used to laugh at my father-in-law cause he would quite often say ‘dear Jesus help me win the lottery’ but one time he did win $1,000… Praise God lol.”

Deborah Mason has high hopes—on the agility course: “A ‘small’ bucket list item: I want to compete with my dog, Marley, in the Rally National Championships at the highest level. I want to still be competing in agility with my dog (whichever dog I have) into my 80s, even my 90s.”

Kelly Foster shared one last big hike: “I would like to hike part of the Appalachian Trail before I’m done with my adventures.”

And Sheila Berman laid out a multi-part plan for a life well-traveled and action-packed: “Visit all 50 states (47 so far). Visit all 7 continents (5 so far). Visit Pig Island, Bahamas. Attend the Rose Bowl Parade. Go paragliding. Visit Monkey Island, Dominican Republic. And Jetski.”

A life of travel well lived—and still going

Ann Palmer shared one of the most detailed travel logs—past and future:
“#1 – Visit Australia and New Zealand (have reservation in Nov. 2025 with Road Scholar to do this)
#2 – See Alaska’s inside passage from a boat
#3 – Visit the UK, Ireland, etc.
#4 – Visit various European cities and river cruises

“I’ve been RVing for 17 years and have covered most of the U.S. In 2023, I spent the summer on the road in Alaska. Bucket List item. In 2024, I traveled around the U.S. from WA state, to AZ, across the country, North Carolina (daughter lives there), up the East Coast where I was born, then to the Midwest where I grew up. The focus was on visiting friends and family along the way. Before I got my first RV, I traveled to Ecuador, Galapagos, the Amazon, Nicaragua, and Italy.

“Now my focus is on non-RV travel to see more of the world. I’m 78 and healthy, so I’m going to do as much as I can. I’ll still do some RVing. This May/June, I’m traveling with some RV friends to explore the Ice Age Floods from Montana to WA state. This will be our second Ice Age Flood adventure.”

Wow, what an adventure!

Thank you to everyone who shared your goals, wishes, and adventurous spirits. Whether it’s skydiving, rebuilding a barn, or kissing a cod, you’ve reminded us that a bucket list isn’t just about where you go—it’s about how fully you live.

So, what’s on your bucket list? Drop us a note and keep the inspiration going.

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