Better Than Sex

Long distance hiking.

CNN has just discovered what we backpackers have known for years: The natural high one gets from hiking or climbing can produce a flood of endorphins that matches or even surpasses those experienced during sex.

Of course, according to the article, some people experience the same rush from shoe shopping, sky diving, or public speaking. But I'd argue that those activities don't possess the same built-in readiness for sexy, sexy metaphors:

"Hiking and climbing mountains is better than sex," says Ramani Durvasula, a professor at California State University Los Angeles who discovered the sport last year after reaching a big weight loss goal.

"When you pull yourself up onto a summit -- and climax, so to speak, particularly as a woman -- the sheer physicality, beauty and endurance are like no other feeling on earth," she explains.