There’s a very specific kind of dread that creeps up on me during the Thursday and Friday of a plan-less weekend. I seem to swing between two extremes: feeling burnt out and broke with a diary full of dinners, drinks and events, or staring down a weekend with absolutely nothing to look forward to.
One such Thursday evening found me scrolling through my phone contacts, trying to entice someone, anyone, into a low-effort, low-cost dinner at mine. I tapped on the number of my friend Joseph (who insists I call him by his nickname, Face). He, like everyone else, let me know he was busy. My heart sank a little, the probability of a silent, solo Saturday rapidly increasing.
“I’m doing a hike on Saturday with Overnyte, though, if you wanna come through,” he added, just as we were wrapping up the call.
“Uhh, will it be hard? Will I know anyone?” I asked.
“No and no,” he replied. “Have a think and let me know.”
Face and I met in sixth form, and while we’re no longer in each other’s day-to-day, we keep the friendship alive through story replies, birthday drinks and bi-annual FaceTimes that last just long enough to feel like we still know each other. In the years since school, Face has poured himself into building community, fusing his love of music and fitness. With his friend Moses, he started training outdoors in Covid using little more than park equipment, old tyres and stray logs. Over time, other people joined. And from there, Overnyte was born.
In an interview with Men’s Health magazine, Face said that the Overnyte training sessions are, “the top two things I look forward to every week because of the camaraderie and accountability… I think it being accessible and free helps because it allows the community to grow in a very organic way.”
Now, I wouldn’t call myself socially anxious, but the idea of rocking up to hike with my semi-estranged friend and a bunch of people who bonded over burpees and pullups had me well and truly fretting. I’m not particularly fit, I’ve never been hiking, and I didn’t know what I’d have in common with anyone. I journalled for a few hours, weighing up whether to stay in my comfort zone (and probably feel a bit sorry for myself) or throw myself into the unknown.
Sorry, but Savasana isn’t your cue to slip out.
Eventually, I made a deal with myself. I’d buy new yoga pants to justify the hike, and if no one spoke to me, I’d turn the whole thing into a “life fail” TikTok and hopefully pick up a few new followers in the process.
After a restless night filled with dreams of getting stranded on a mountain, I cycled to Charing Cross for the 8:30am meet. I spotted Face chatting with a group and hovered behind him like a toddler behind their mum’s skirt. He introduced me to a few people, and I struck up a conversation with a girl whose friend had bailed on her last-minute. As it turned out, most people were in the same boat, knowing a handful of people at most, if anyone at all.
On the train down, Face brought the carriage to life with stories and introductions that melted any awkwardness. Watching him create a sense of belonging in real time reminded me why we’d gravitated towards each other so much all those years ago.
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I asked Face why he’d decided to introduce the hikes, dubbed the Globetrotter Series, to the Overnyte calendar, and he said he wanted to create an “opportunity to disconnect from the day-to-day and challenge ourselves to low-impact activity with company and scenery.”
Not long after we arrived, I noticed a guy taking photos on film. I made a comment about his camera, and our chat quickly spiralled into a deep dive on photography, life stories, and what led us both here. We walked and talked for over an hour. As the day unfolded, I found myself falling into more and more of these spontaneous conversations: about people’s jobs, relationships, creative projects, and the connections that drew them in.
Feeling lonely? You're not alone.
I started chatting to Jacob, who’d moved to London from Surrey after a break-up and was struggling to find community. “Stumbling across the Overnyte gym group in Burgess Park was a game changer,” he told me. “It’s become a pillar in my London life.” He now creates animations and posters for Overnyte and its affiliated collectives, and told me he’s just putting the finishing touches on a documentary exploring how other people find their feet, and their people, after moving to the city.
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Even when I wasn’t talking to anyone, I didn’t feel alone. I watched water trickle from streams into rivers, moved beneath the dappled sunshine of tree-lined paths, and let myself just breathe and exist in the moment. It was a welcome break to just be present, to stop letting my anxious mind pull me back into the past or fling me forward into imagined futures. I didn’t need a big epiphany or a carefully planned vlog about healing through nature. Just the joy of being quietly part of something.
It reminded me of an episode of The Midnight Gospel, a Netflix animated podcast series I come back to when I’m overwhelmed. In it, one of the characters talks about starting a community because she simply felt lonely. “I was all alone,” she says, “and I thought, other people must feel this way too, so I thought, let’s get together.” Another character responds, “When we set an intention, somehow the world comes magically to meet us.” That line has always stuck with me, and honestly, it’s exactly what this Saturday felt like. Just by showing up, by saying yes to a thing I almost talked myself out of, I’d somehow landed in the kind of space I didn’t realise I was craving: open, warm, unpretentious connection.
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That Saturday, I found both movement and stillness, introspection and connection. I didn’t film a polished vlog. I filmed a few raw, beautiful moments that asked to be remembered. I came home sore, sun-warmed, and full, not just from the snacks I packed and a well-deserved pint at the pub post-hike, but from a feeling of real connection.
Saying yes to a hike might not seem like much. But sometimes, that’s all it takes to crack open the door between being alone and feeling less lonely.
Overnyte runs every Thursday from 5:45pm and every Saturday from 10am in Burgess Park, The Globetrotter Hike Series is bi-monthly, more details are available on @overnyte.c.
