Top Outdoor Activities Manga Recommendations

Vagabond

Also known as Vagabond.

Status: Hiatus
Genres: Action , Adventure , Drama

At seventeen years of age, Miyamoto Musashi--still known by his childhood name, Shinmen Takezo--was a wild young brute just setting out along the way of the sword.

In the aftermath of the epic Battle of Sekigahara, Takezo finds himself a fugitive survivor on the losing side of the war. Takezo's vicious nature has made him an outcast even in his own village, and he is hunted down like an animal. At this crucial crossroads in Takezo's life, an eccentric monk and a childhood friend are the only ones who can help him find his way.



Tags: Swordplay , Seinen , Samurai , Historical , Philosophy , Travel , Coming of Age , Male Protagonist , Martial Arts , Tragedy , Survival , Cultivation , Biographical , Gore , Rural , Heterosexual , War , Outdoor Activities , Ghost , Agriculture , Classic Literature , Fugitive , Language Barrier , Nudity , Afterlife ,

JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Steel Ball Run

Also known as JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 7–Steel Ball Run.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Drama , Mystery , Supernatural

Originally presented as an unrelated story, this series was later officially declared a part of the JoJo storyline. The series stars Gyro Zeppeli, who uses a set of steel balls that spin incredibly fast, and Johnny Joestar (Jonathan Joestar), a former hot-shot jockey who was crippled by an ambusher and lost his fame and fortune. They race, along with others, in a mad-dash across America for 50 million dollars, reminiscent of The Cannonball Run.



Tags: Travel , Male Protagonist , Super Power , Cowboys , Seinen , Conspiracy , Primarily Adult Cast , Disability , Foreign , Alternate Universe , Tragedy , Environmental , Philosophy , Ensemble Cast , Historical , Outdoor Activities , Terrorism , Gore , Primarily Male Cast , Crossdressing , Desert , Guns , Coming of Age , Body Horror , Nun , Trains , Espionage , Acting , Dinosaurs , Time Manipulation , Gambling , Nudity , Delinquents , Shapeshifting , Curses

Supyeongseon

Also known as The Horizon.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Psychological

A world where everything has been lost. A boy and a girl alone together. A spark of hope kindled between them. All they can do is move forward. But against broken adults and devastating despair, how long will they be able to keep going...?



Tags: Survival , Post-Apocalyptic , Philosophy , War , Tragedy , Coming of Age , Primarily Child Cast , Crime , Travel , Religion , Time Skip , Male Protagonist , Rehabilitation , Orphan , Guns , Gore , Suicide , Cannibalism , Language Barrier , Outdoor Activities

Kokou no Hito

Also known as The Climber.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Psychological , Sports

On his first day of transferring to a new high school, a loner named Mori Buntarou, is cajoled by a classmate into climbing the school building. Despite knowing that one misstep could send him spiraling to his death, he moves forward, and upon finally reaching the top, Mori experiences a sense of fulfillment. That feeling, which seems to be telling him, "You're alive!" gives birth to an adrenaline for rock-climbing.

Tags: Outdoor Activities , Coming of Age , Seinen , Tragedy , Travel , Mountaineering , Male Protagonist , Primarily Male Cast , Primarily Adult Cast , Survival , Hikikomori , Wilderness , Time Skip , Fitness , Suicide , Anti-Hero , Dissociative Identities , Foreign , Delinquents , School , Nudity , School Club

Yofukashi no Uta

Also known as Call of the Night.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Psychological , Romance , Slice of Life , Supernatural

One sleepless night, Ko slips out to walk the streets. Life after dark is a revelation! When flirtatious Nazuna invites Ko to spend the night at her place in an abandoned building, he’s stoked! But then he awakens to kisses on his neck with a little too much bite to them... Is it just the delicious taste of his blood that makes her meet him night after night for late-night adventures, conversation and...naps? Or something else? Then, when a cute girl from Ko’s past shows up and competes for his attention, his budding relationship with the undead is put to the test!



Notes:
-Seventh place of Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category.
-First place of Daruma 2023 Award (France) in the new manga category (released in 2022 in France).

Tags: Vampire , Urban Fantasy , Male Protagonist , Monster Girl , Age Gap , Tragedy , Coming of Age , Surreal Comedy , Heterosexual , Outdoor Activities , Shounen , Monster Boy , Hikikomori , Female Protagonist , Urban , Detective , Primarily Teen Cast , Philosophy , Maids , Gore , Suicide , Yandere , LGBTQ+ Themes , Gyaru , Iyashikei , Femboy

Fumetsu no Anata e

Also known as To Your Eternity.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Fantasy , Psychological , Supernatural

A lonely boy wandering the Arctic regions of North America meets a wolf, and the two become fast friends, depending on each other to survive the harsh environment. But the boy has a history, and the wolf is more than meets the eye as well …



Tags: Tragedy , Shapeshifting , Philosophy , Coming of Age , Time Skip , Outdoor Activities , Ensemble Cast , Dissociative Identities , Survival , Urban Fantasy , Ghost , Cosmic Horror , Denpa , Shounen , Agender , Travel , Gore , Yandere , Bullying , Suicide , Urban , Age Regression , Male Protagonist , Language Barrier , Animals , Nudity , Dystopian , Indigenous Cultures , Historical , Cyberpunk , Female Protagonist

Golden Kamuy

Also known as Golden Kamuy.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Drama

In the early twentieth century, Russo-Japanese War veteran Saichi “Immortal” Sugimoto scratches out a meager existence during the postwar gold rush in the wilderness of Hokkaido. When he stumbles across a map to a fortune in hidden Ainu gold, he sets off on a treacherous quest to find it. But Sugimoto is not the only interested party, and everyone who knows about the gold will kill to possess it! Faced with the harsh conditions of the northern wilderness, ruthless criminals and rogue Japanese soldiers, Sugimoto will need all his skills and luck—and the help of an Ainu girl named Asirpa—to survive.



Note: Won the 9th Manga Taisho Award in 2016 and the 22nd Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize in 2018. Nominated for the 20th and 21st Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize and the 40th Kodansha Manga Awards in 2016.

Tags: Historical , Conspiracy , Military , Outdoor Activities , Seinen , Politics , Ensemble Cast , Educational , Surreal Comedy , Food , Travel , Found Family , Gore , Primarily Male Cast , Primarily Adult Cast , Survival , Guns , Revenge , LGBTQ+ Themes , Language Barrier , Anti-Hero , Cute Boys Doing Cute Things , Slapstick , Crime , Male Harem , Snowscape , Trains , Prison , Animals , Indigenous Cultures , Male Protagonist , Nudity , Swordplay , Disability , Archery , Suicide , Tanned Skin , Transgender , Twins , Cannibalism , Zoophilia , Heterosexual , Yakuza , Time Skip , Dissociative Identities , Crossdressing , Wilderness , Gender Bending

Imawa no Kuni no Alice

Also known as Alice in Borderland.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Horror , Psychological , Supernatural , Thriller

Eighteen-year-old Ryohei Arisu is sick of his life. School sucks, his love life is a joke, and his future feels like impending doom. As he struggles to exist in a world that can’t be bothered with him, Ryohei feels like everything would be better if he were anywhere else. When a strange fireworks show transports him and his friends to a parallel world, Ryohei thinks all his wishes have come true. But this new world isn’t an empty paradise, it’s a vicious game. And the only way to survive is to play.

Note: Chapter count includes 22 side story chapters.

Tags: Tragedy , Death Game , Survival , Philosophy , Battle Royale , Amnesia , Gore , Urban , Male Protagonist , Afterlife , Gambling , Alternate Universe , Anti-Hero , Shounen , Isekai , Dystopian , Primarily Adult Cast , Revenge , Guns , Heterosexual , Transgender , LGBTQ+ Themes , Martial Arts , Gods , Drugs , Parkour , Mahjong , Nudity , Outdoor Activities

Kimi wa Houkago Insomnia

Also known as Insomniacs After School.

Status: Finished
Genres: Romance , Slice of Life

Nakami is a studious but cranky and antisocial high schooler who gets on his classmates' nerves. However, his bad attitude comes from the fact that he has a sleeping disorder, and frequently spends nights on end without a single minute of sleep. During the preparations for the school festival, he is begrudgingly sent to the school's astronomy observatory to gather cardboard boxes, a place which is said to be haunted by the dire happenings of the now defunct Astronomy Club. He finds the isolated place a haven ripe for him to sleep, but while rummaging around, he stumbles upon his classmate Magari Isaki sleeping inside a toppled-over locker.

Isaki, unlike him, is a personable and popular girl at class, but who also hides her own problems with insomnia. Looking for a middle ground, they find that there's comfort and ease in sleeping together, so they resort to make the observatory their own private cubby to sleep... Have they found the comfort they're looking for?

Note: Nominated for the Tsugimanga 2020 Award in the Manga Category.

Tags: Coming of Age , Astronomy , Iyashikei , Heterosexual , School , School Club , Photography , Seinen , Male Protagonist , Disability , Female Protagonist , Outdoor Activities , Camping , Time Skip , Tomboy

Summer Time Render

Also known as Summertime Rendering.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Drama , Mystery , Supernatural , Thriller

A tragic incident calls a young man named Shinpei back to his hometown on the remote island of Higotoshima, Japan. But something sinister awaits upon his return, and a chilling sequence of events unfolds that will have dire consequences for Shinpei, for Japan, and for the entire world!



Tags: Time Manipulation , Rural , Shounen , Male Protagonist , Ensemble Cast , Body Swapping , Time Loop , Urban Fantasy , Demons , Survival , Shapeshifting , Aliens , Reincarnation , Gore , Tanned Skin , Dissociative Identities , Mythology , Crime , Cosmic Horror , Tragedy , Suicide , Gods , Denpa , Religion , Love Triangle , Outdoor Activities , Amnesia , Nudity , Historical , Heterosexual , Unrequited Love

Yaiteru Futari

Also known as How to Grill Our Love.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Romance , Slice of Life

Dating can be tough when you nerd out over barbecue. Kenta, a practical pitmaster, looks for a grill-friend in Chihiro, an aloof and faultless business babe…or is she? Scared of being rejected for who they really are, the two of them find comfort in food and each other…and all is well until Kenta must transfer away. With their developing relationship at steak, Chihiro proposes they tie the knot and they marry for better or wurst. Winging a long-distance marriage is one thing, but here's the rub—they barely know each other! It's a rare marriage where all the awkwardness of dating meets a sizzling passion for grilling!



Tags: Food , Primarily Adult Cast , Male Protagonist , Seinen , Family Life , Female Protagonist , Heterosexual , Outdoor Activities , Rural , Educational , Office Lady , Iyashikei

Natsume Yuujinchou

Also known as Natsume's Book of Friends.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Drama , Supernatural

When Reiko was Takashi's age, she bound the names of demons and spirits in her Book of Friends, enslaving them to her capricious whim. Now Takashi is the owner of the book, and the creatures will do anything to get their names back.



Tags: Adoption , Youkai , Iyashikei , Male Protagonist , Rural , Episodic , Shoujo , Outdoor Activities , Primarily Teen Cast , Estranged Family , Rehabilitation , Primarily Male Cast , Found Family , Shapeshifting , Orphan , School , Exorcism , Gender Bending

Yuru Camp△

Also known as Laid-Back Camp.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Comedy , Slice of Life

Setting up a tent, starting a fire, and eating noodles with Mt. Fuji in view...Rin and Nadeshiko absolutely love to camp! Enjoy their zest for travel and maybe even pick up a tip or two about roughing it in the great outdoors. You might just want to go camping yourself!



Tags: Outdoor Activities , Cute Girls Doing Cute Things , Primarily Female Cast , Iyashikei , Travel , Camping , Rural , Educational , School Club , Food , Seinen , Primarily Teen Cast , Female Protagonist , Mopeds , Environmental , Wilderness

Amigara Dansou no Kai

Also known as The Enigma of Amigara Fault.

Status: Finished
Genres: Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Supernatural

A short horror manga story by Junji Ito, printed as a bonus one-shot alongside his fish-zombie-apocalypse manga Gyo. A boy named Oowaki, and a girl, Yoshida, meet on Amigara Mountain, where an unsettling discovery has been made. Human shaped holes are scattered across the mountain, and it soon becomes clear that the holes are "calling" to the people they are shaped like. So what happens when they enter the hole? Well, you can be sure that massive amounts of claustrophobia and Nightmare Fuel are involved.

Tags: Tragedy , Body Horror , Outdoor Activities , Seinen , Cosmic Horror , Male Protagonist , Rural , Primarily Adult Cast , Lost Civilization , Gore , Heterosexual

7SEEDS

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Horror , Mystery , Psychological , Romance , Sci-Fi

Scientists had predicted this disaster, and in response, the leaders of every country met to develop a plan for human survival before the meteor hit. The Seven Seeds project was developed out of this meeting. Each country froze a number of young healthy people, which allowed them to survive the meteor. After the computer determined that Earth was once again safe for human life, it released them into the world.

The Japanese government created five groups of survivors: Winter group, Spring group, Summer group A, Summer group B, and Fall group. Each group consisted of seven members and one guide. The guide carried small tubes of poison on their necks to allow them to end their lives if their situation became unbearable. The Japanese government prepared seven "Fuji" as refuges for the groups. In each Fuji, the group would find seeds and numerous books instructing them on survival in the wilderness.

Notes:
- Winner of the 52th Shogakukan Manga Award in the shoujo category in 2006.

Tags: Ensemble Cast , Female Protagonist , Survival , Josei , Post-Apocalyptic , Time Skip , Anti-Hero , Tragedy , Primarily Teen Cast , Travel , Wilderness , Heterosexual , Outdoor Activities , Coming of Age , Orphan , Guns , Gore , Love Triangle , Lost Civilization , Mountaineering , Robots , Natural Disaster , Eco-Horror , Shrine Maiden , Desert , Nudity , Baseball , Aviation , Tsundere , Suicide , Achronological Order , Revenge

Kamigami no Itadaki

Also known as The Summit of the Gods.

Status: Finished
Genres: Adventure , Drama , Mystery , Psychological , Sports

In a small Nepalese shop, Makoto Fukamachi, photographer for a Japanese expedition to conquer Mt. Everest, stumbles across a camera which may well be that of George Mallory, the celebrated mountain climber who was the first to attempt conquering Everest.

Mallory disappeared along with Andrew Irvine during the course of their ascent in 1924, without leaving any indication of whether they reached the summit or not. So, what if it was only on their return trip that they had their fatal accident?

Tags: Seinen , Male Protagonist , Philosophy , Mountaineering , Outdoor Activities , Primarily Adult Cast , Historical , Primarily Male Cast , Tragedy , Non-fiction , Fitness

Gon

Also known as Gon.

Status: Finished
Genres: Action , Adventure , Comedy , Drama , Slice of Life

Long before the dawn of man, savage dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Now, only one remains — the smallest, wildest of them all! GON marches across the wilderness defending the friendly and furry from the mean and hungry. Told entirely without words, these stories highlight the amazingly detailed art and visual storytelling genius of creator Masashi Tanaka.

Note: Got an additional chapter in Afternoon 2013-11 (to promote the CGI show), and a spin-off in 2006 called "Gon-chan" in Comic BonBon that lasted until 2007.

Tags: Animals , No Dialogue , Seinen , Episodic , Dinosaurs , Outdoor Activities , Surreal Comedy , Primarily Animal Cast , Historical

Hokuhokusei ni Kumo to Ike

Also known as Go with the Clouds, North-by-Northwest.

Status: Releasing
Genres: Adventure , Mystery , Slice of Life

The story takes place in Iceland, at land’s end, 64°N.
Kei Miyama is a 17-year-old with three secrets: he can talk to cars, he can’t handle pretty girls, and he works as a private investigator. One case has him searching for a beloved dog, another involves reuniting a woman with a man she fell for at first sight. And then comes a case that strikes close to home—searching for his own little brother.
Tag along as this globe-spanning journey unfolds…



Note: Nominated for the 12th Manga Taisho Award in 2019.

Tags: Detective , Outdoor Activities , Seinen , Foreign , Urban Fantasy , Iyashikei , Male Protagonist , Travel , Super Power , Gore , Nudity , Tsundere , LGBTQ+ Themes , Suicide , Educational

Watashi no Kobushi wo Uketomete!

Also known as Catch These Hands!.

Status: Finished
Genres: Comedy , Romance , Slice of Life

From back alley brawls to bashful bonds, two former-delinquents face their next fight: long-term relationships. During her high school years, Takebe was the top dog at her school. But with her old friends now living as happy adults, Takebe was faced with an impending sense of crisis. Takebe convinced herself to quit delinquency, but then she runs into her old rival, Soramori. After losing another fist-fight against Soramori, for some reason or other they reconciled by becoming a dating couple. What kind of relationship did the two of them have back in high school? And will Takebe ever manage to graduate from delinquency...!? Note: Chapter 2 is presented in two parts, and four volume-bonus chapters are included in the total chapter count.

Tags: Delinquents , Primarily Female Cast , Female Protagonist , Yuri , Primarily Adult Cast , LGBTQ+ Themes , Tsundere , Seinen , Asexual , Fishing , Outdoor Activities , Urban , Unrequited Love

Yeol-Ahobseumulhana

Status: Finished
Genres: Romance , Slice of Life

Yun-I is a girl who is carrying a huge emotional scar in her heart. Due to an accident, she lost 2 precious years of her life, the time period between 19 and 21 years old. Her life is empty. She is miserable, but still attending a preparatory school in an attempt to catch up with all the time she has lost. Suddenly, one day on her way to feed some stray cats, she comes across a young man who seems to have what she has lost... the period between 19 and 21 years old.

Note: this work is originally a webcomic, made available in print form.

Tags: Coming of Age , Heterosexual , Full Color , Female Protagonist , Primarily Adult Cast , Animals , Iyashikei , Outdoor Activities , Rehabilitation , Philosophy , Otaku Culture