Last August, when we bought our yurt, we thought about all the time we could spend in the fall and winter getting it set up and ready to go. We had plenty of time before the first snowstorm, right? Then it snowed September 15. And basically didn’t stop snowing until May 12. While we were…
I had this thought in my head for awhile: We needed to take a spring trip somewhere in Alaska before we kick it into high gear for the summer. Our neighbors Sarah & Matt often take a springtime trip to Homer with the same purpose, but also because they are self-proclaimed bird nerds. During this…
Currently living/working: April was another doozy of a month. It included a pet/housesitting gig in Healy, a funeral, and three trips to Fairbanks. Work-wise, we’ve been busier than all winter (yeah for income!). Our joint gear project is underway for Outside Business Journal and wrapping up mid-May. Justin is rocking quite a few new gear…
In honor of National Library Week (April 3-9), I thought I’d chime in about how libraries have played a role in spreading the reach for my travel/trail memoir, Between Each Step. I’ve always loved libraries. A cool fact that most probably don’t know about me: I worked at my college library. It was my “work-for-study”…
Currently living/working: This was QUITE a full month. It started with getting over Covid, then pet/housesitting for 7 days, then Iditarod volunteering for 7 days, then some kind of stomach bug that we picked up at our Iditarod checkpoint for 5 days, and rounding out with more petsitting. In between—somehow unbelievably—we were able…
Justin & I checked something off our bucket list that we didn’t even know we had on our bucket list: volunteering at a checkpoint on the Iditarod. First things first, is everyone here familiar with the Iditarod? The race is a reconstruction of the freight route of medicine across the Interior of Alaska by dog…
I’ve written blog posts about the world of gear writing, and even though I’m doing less and less of this type of coverage, I just wrapped up a “Best of 2022 Foods” article for Backpacker, and thought I’d dive into the behind the scenes, plus let you know about a giveaway a few of the…
Currently living/working: I’m still in that scheming/pitching/planning groove for future freelance writing projects and working on getting my book on shelves in bookstores. The hustle will forever be the least favorite part of my job, but I’m doing it. We did have a few actual projects with deadlines this month, such as my 2022 Best…
Dear Dad, We still cry and we still grieve, but admittedly we moved forward in life without you for 3 years now. There are absolutely moments when my voice is full of loss and longing—either triggered by a memory, a dream (I love when you visit me in my dreams), your voice on a voicemail…
Alaska leads the nation in homes without plumbing, which shouldn’t be a shock as the harsh weather conditions make traditional plumbing and septics very, very cranky. Alaskans know that running water = headaches, and this has been especially true this winter! I thought this would be a good time to explain our unique plumbing situation!…
Currently living/working: We returned to our cabin in Alaska 1/6, and it feels so good to be home!! Work is slow right now, so we are doing more scheming/pitching/planning to fill in gaps (AKA, the non-paying, soul-sucking part of our freelance life), as well as focusing on adult life chores. Thankfully, we did have a…
As I previously posted, we took a side trip to Mexico after our post-Christmas flight back to Alaska from Denver was cancelled day after day, and Alaska Airlines said we couldn’t get us on a flight until after the new year. We quickly thought of Plan B, and were lucky to have so many privileges…
Ever hear of the 2008 movie, Four Christmases? The one where the child-less couple travels to everyone’s homes to visit for the holidays? Change the name to Three Christmases, and that was us this year! From NJ/CT to Massachusetts to Colorado, we were all over the map. And thanks to holiday/weather/Covid airport delays and cancellations, we arrived…
Currently living/working: It’s been a holiday whirlwind! We’ve been all over the map this month: Hawaii, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts & Colorado … and we were supposed to return to Alaska 12/26, but Mother Nature had other plans for us. And after three flight cancellations, we decided, let’s just make a Plan B. And that’s…
Well, I might as well post our last Hawaii trip roundup as we are delayed getting back to Alaska from all our holiday family time and I need a distraction from that stress … Anyway, our last stop in Hawaii was the Big Island with a triple purpose of bagging another state high point, exploring…
Maui was our first stop on our November Hawaii tour … and sadly, we only planned 2.5 days there. People come to Maui for the balmy ocean air, stupidly perfect sunsets and dancing palm trees. And we did that. But our main Maui purpose included none of that. Marking our 56th National Park, we were…
I gave fair warning that I’d be posting all about our first-ever trip to Hawaii in several posts!!! So here goes the first one. And a second warning: it’s long and I am sharing a gazillion pictures. As I said, Justin’s mom instigated the trip, saying she wanted to celebrate her 70th birthday in Hawaii…
Currently living/working: We spent the first half of November in Alaska, and the second half in Hawaii! We purposely stacked our work projects so that our time in Hawaii would be 90% blissfully free of any work. And when we hit the eject button from Alaska on 11/16, we stuffed away our puffies and long…
My trail/travel memoir, Between Each Step: A Married Couple’s Thru Hike on New Zealand’s Te Araroa, took a full lap around the sun! It’s a small pebble of a detail, but I’ve sold 293 books directly from my website and 718 from Amazon/Ingram. You guys, that’s almost 1000 books in my first year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cue incredulous…
You read that correctly: we now own a yurt! Even though we no longer live on the road, we will always be a bit feral. All this to say, our version of “settling down” fits a life less ordinary, which is why we now own a cabin AND a yurt in Healy, Alaska! We purchased…