I'd agree that a lot of the activities mentioned may well be very enjoyable, and I'd particularly endorse fishing, good food and drink and arriving somewhere for the first time, full of anticipation.
But I couldn't honestly say that any of them (with the sadly rare exception of hooking a really big fish) would normally get my heart racing - which is just as well, as my ticker would probably have expired long ago if that were the case.
A good game of footy can do it, particularly where Liverpool need a goal to qualify with 3 minutes to go!
I also agree with HYD that gambling can have that effect. I do enjoy it, and bet quite regularly (often against Liverpool, which is, I'm pleased to say, proving expensive this season). But I don't bet large sums, and I'd be frankly horrified to think I'd lost £100k - there's no way on earth that gambling would ever give me anywhere near that much pleasure.
There appears to have been an informal pact to avoid discussing carnal methods of getting the heart going, so I'll happily sign up to that
But I think I can probably claim with some confidence to be the only Lemon Fool whose heart is set racing on a regular basis by the joys of litigation! In many ways it is a form of gambling, though the information available to assess the odds is far more plentiful than most other forms of gambling. But it's all about getting evidence, building a case and then going in to battle with your opponent. Like any battle, there are twists and turns, but there often comes a moment - the sweet spot - when you suddenly know you've won. And the kick that gives is better than any drug.
It also involves a lot of strategy - using various techniques to convince your oppo that your case is far better than it really is or that theirs is fatally flawed - and there's a lot of "who blinks first", as well. I really enjoy this, and at the risk of blowing my own trumpet I'm good at it, though a lot of that is down to thirty odd years' experience. This is one of the very few jobs where you really can get better as you get older (well, up to a point!) and as you get better at the job so it becomes more enjoyable.
Of course you can't win all the time, and losing (or far more commonly settling on disappointing terms) - particularly when you expected to win - can be like a very bad hangover. But it soon fades, and the next case that comes in gets the adrenaline running again.
I particularly enjoy pursuing a classic baddie - often a fraudster or someone who's screwed my client over. It really is like hunting, and you have to use all sorts of cunning strategies in the pursuit. And if I can finally nail him that's just a fantastic feeling - the knight on a white charger syndrome!
I think HYD asked on another thread whether anyone really loved their job. Well as you may have guessed, the answer for me is a most definite yes. I feel extremely privileged to have been granted a licence to have an inordinate amount of fun, to have changed quite a few people's lives for the better and to have made a very decent living out of it
