Honestly, I get the worry completely. It totally depends on the vibe of your team. If you all already grab drinks or chat about non-work stuff, a hike could be a nice change of pace. But if it's just going to be another meeting but on a trail, then yeah, it feels like a chore. The optional part is key, like others said. No one should feel pressured to show up for "fun.

Right? Like the old way was basically a treasure hunt where the prize was just finding the blown fuse lmao.

Remember my buddy who always overcomplicates things? He spent twenty minutes last week trying to rig a bungee cord through a handle, like @hall.alex mentioned, while his hose was just dragging on the ground. I finally just walked over, looped the hose end around the spigot valve like you said, and gave it a tug. The look on his face was pure shock, like I'd done magic. He'd been doing it the hard way for years.