How far would you go for a new hobby? Would you step off a cliff, dive into the ocean, or fly a canopy high above a mountaintop? If you’ve said “yes” to any of the above, you might be an adventurous Black woman. Daring, playful, curious, and connected to the natural world—we get it!—you are determined to live your life to the fullest.

Adventurous Black women with unusual hobbies are challenging racial and gender stereotypes while taking up space in activities typically dominated by white men. They also serve as a powerful reminder of the diverse interests and talents within the Black community. 

Gabby Shepard 

As Gabby floats weightlessly in the ocean, she feels at peace. Diving is just as calming. Every kick takes her deeper into the world's best aquarium. Surrounded by sea life and colorful coral, she’s at home.

Gabby is a scuba diver who currently lives in Los Angeles, California. Gabby has always been drawn to the ocean. Her first discovery dive was in the Dominican Republic while on vacation. She recalled being terrified and almost getting back on the boat because she’d never been in the open ocean before. Facing her fears was life-changing. After the dive, Gabby spent the next six months researching the steps to become a certified diver.

On her first scuba dive, Gabby was surrounded by divers and instructors of color, but as she traveled more, she realized how rare that experience truly was. Still, over the years, she’s encountered amazing groups that are increasing visibility and representation like Black in Marine Science, DiverSeaFy, and the National Association of Black Scuba Divers. 

Her love of scuba diving made Gabby feel like she’d discovered a haven very few people in her community knew about. It pushed her to organize dive trips to share the magic. Gabby truly believes the ocean empowered her and she knew it would do the same for others! Gabby advises Black women who want to begin scuba diving to ‘do it scared’! She admits it can be intimidating in the beginning but every dive gets easier.

Gabby is also very passionate about marine conservation. So much is needed to achieve the goal of healthier oceans and sometimes that can be discouraging; however, she believes little ripples make big waves—especially when enough people work together. That means doing what you can, when you can.

Gabby encourages everyone to take a second and ask themselves, "How does this decision affect our planet?" That could mean taking a reusable bag to the grocery store instead of plastic; picking up trash on the beach; and sharing your love of the ocean with others.

Lately, she’s doing just that—using her online platform to encourage as many people as she can to try scuba diving. She truly believes those who see the beauty in the ocean will feel empowered to fight for its survival. It’s an influencing campaign on behalf of the natural world. You can follow Gabby’s scuba diving journey on Instagram and TikTok.

Cheyenne Smith

Cheyenne “Chey” Smith is a 25-year-old highliner living in Boulder, Colorado. You can often catch her barefoot and a few hundred feet in the air above Eldorado Canyon, walking along a length of flat webbing as it vibrates and sways in the wind.

Highlining is an extreme sport that takes Chey to new heights—literally. It’s similar to a tightrope except slacklines have a lot less tension. Highliners rig their slacklines high in the mountains or between buildings and skyscrapers. For safety, they typically wear a climbing harness that remains tethered to the line as they move from point to point. Falling is part of the process!

Chey was introduced to slacklining in 2019 while living in Australia. When COVID-19 started, she moved back to the US and began setting up her slackline in the park every day. The challenge and the sense of freedom it provided helped her get through the quarantined months.

Four years later, Chey is now an experienced highliner and rigger. Her biggest obstacle was and is the fear of falling. Still, she has grown as an athlete by pushing her limits while also respecting her boundaries.

One thing she loves about the sport is travel. There are only a handful of Black women highliners worldwide. However, traveling outside of her immediate community has exposed her to other highliners of color, which helps her stay motivated. Travel also helps her expand her technical skills.

While in the Remarkables Mountain Range of New Zealand, Chey established a 150m-long (494 ft) line, making it one of her most memorable moments in the sport. The unforgettable feeling of walking 484m (1,587ft ) above ground created a lot of intense emotions.

Overall, the opportunity to combine her love of travel, highlining, and alpine climbing served as a powerful reminder for Chey of the extraordinary places slacklining can take you and the deep connection it’s given her with the natural world. To learn more, follow Chey’s highlining adventures on Instagram.

Mariam Ahmed

Mariam, 31, is a paraglider. Originally from Somalia, she lived in Damascus, Syria as a refugee before moving to San Diego, California at age 20. Her first introduction to air sports was learning to solo skydive. It made the transition to paragliding much easier. Mariam has since completed 300+ skydives and paraglided in top destinations around the world, including Ölüdeniz, Turkey, Bir Billing, India, and Phetchabun, Thailand.

Paragliding has helped Mariam reconnect with nature. As she runs downhill, wind inflates her canopy and carries her aloft into another realm. In the sky, she follows the flight of birds to rising columns of warm air. Thermal lift helps her canopy soar to new heights, extending her flight time for up to hours. 

It’s a feeling of true freedom that brings new and familiar sensations - warm sunshine, cold air, and the thrill of piloting her canopy hundreds or thousands of feet above coastal cliffs and mountainous terrain. It’s treasured moments like these that help the engineer set aside life’s challenges and embrace a more playful side.

Mariam’s family is very supportive of her paragliding. Her mom prays for her whenever she travels, which Mariam believes helps keep her safe. She’s working to get her tandem license so she can take family and friends for introductory flights and share her love of paragliding with other women of color. 

Her advice to women who want to begin paragliding is to find their local community and reach out to others. Networking within the community can reduce the cost of equipment and training. You may even find a mentor to help guide you along the way.  

Make sure to follow Mariam on Instagram to learn more about her paragliding journey!

Cover graphic image credit: Eric Arce, Luke Coley and Dennis Sattler