There are dares, there are double dares, and then there’s just plain what-was-I-thinking. Ready to unleash your offbeat sense of adventure? These unlikely vacation ideas should stoke your inner Evil Knievel.

Swimming with Sharks
Share Eskimo kisses with great whites and work through Jaws issues from the (relative) safety of a cage on a Great White Adventures (866-352-7075) day trip to the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco. Squeam alert: Watching sharks chow on elephant seals might be exhilarating, but it won’t make you feel warm and fuzzy. Ah, nature.

In the Buff
Stripping down to your thong after a night of boom-boom shots in Cancun doesn’t technically qualify as going au natural. For real exhibitionism, try a nudist resort. You can pretty much do anything at Caliente (800-326-7731), a Vegas-style compound in Tampa, except reach for a cover-up. The Desert Shadows Inn (800-292-9298) in Palm Springs sends guests home with the ultimate souvenir: sculptures of their nude figures.

Shhhh…
Ever wonder why you never win the quiet contests? A few days of meditation can help you get to the bottom of it. Choose your religion: Pray with monks at the Roman Catholic Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky (502-549-4133) or do a half-day intro to Zen Buddhist meditation at the Palolo Center (808-735-1347) in Honolulu. Be prepared to wake up early, commune with nature, and refrain from speaking. When it’s over, you just may have something meaningful to say.

Cold Feet
If the Scandinavians weren’t so damn good-looking, we’d never pay any attention to their crazy health schemes, like bathing in subzero waters. Ice dipping is said to fight sagging — to say nothing for the natural high you get from the shock to the adrenal system. Members of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club (718-356-7741) have been diving into the Atlantic every Sunday from October to April since 1904. Out west, the Boulder Polar Bears do an annual New Year’s Day ice plunge. Talk about alternative hangover cures.

Get Lost
Depending on your sense of direction, finding your way through acres of mile-high corn fields is either Field of Dreams or Children of the Corn. Either way, it’s good clean family adventure — not to mention a great way to test the strength of your relationship. There are 165 maize mazes throughout the U.S. (in places you wouldn’t expect). Real daredevils (and stubborn mules) will try to brave through without a map.

Go ahead, we triple-dog-dare you.