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…
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, for all the stressing, researching, calling Canadian government/public health and asking others’ advice, I can now say our drive north through Canada to transport our camper van, trailer & us back to Alaska was easy peasy! We drove through Canada in FOUR days, a record for us. Justin’s first trip driving north in 2003…
Remember a few days ago when I announced I am a PUBLISHED AUTHOR?? Here’s the thing. Between Each Step has been SEVERAL years in the making, from the time we hiked, to the time I started writing the manuscript, to the time it hit your bookshelf (that’s me happily assuming you’ve pre-ordered it …). Bottom…
On Feb. 5, 2016, I announced on the blog that I was getting serious about book writing. The post was part-reflective, part-goal-making, but I fully recognized that the process would be glacially slow and I ended the post by saying: “Wish me luck. Maybe I’ll have a book written by 2020.” Oddly enough, we are…
Hello from Alaska! Catching up on our drive through Canada first … When we found out we’d be driving up to Alaska again and going through the Banff/Jasper area, we knew we wanted to do more than stop at all the pull offs along the Icefields Parkway. I mean, don’t get me wrong, these roadside…
This blog post is overdue and happened what seems like months ago! We are currently back on the road for Leave No Trace/Subaru for the Zero Landfill Tour, so this recap is focused on April-June. Ready, rewind. (***Warning, picture heavy & long!***) Much of the last 8 years as nomads, it’s been for work—starting with…
About a year ago, our nomadic/hiker friends, BJ and Clara (also known by their trail names Shadow and Country Mouse) starting putting down roots again after 7 years on the road and purchased a casita on the peninsula of Baja, Mexico. Come visit, they said! We will, we said! Between its warm winters and cheap…
Finally getting caught up on blog posts to our current location and happenings in California, so here’s a recap of our drive through Canada in late August … When we drove up to Alaska in July, it took us 8 days and we drove the Icefields Parkway & Alaska Highway (Al-Can). For our southbound trip…
Warning: Picture-heavy post ahead! When you think of the whole United States, most people don’t realize just how far north Alaska is. Go take a look at a geographically correct map. Cue collective “WHOA” There are only so many ways you can drive to Alaska and most journeys take days (even the ferry). And while…
When I was researching writing retreats for my book on Te Araroa, I was completely overwhelmed by the quantity and variety of retreats offered. Some lasted just a weekend. Some lasted longer. Some were local. Some were international. Some included food. Some didn’t. Some included lodging. Some didn’t. Eventually I weeded through the mountain of…
I have something a little different on the blog today … it is an interview with someone about their first-time trip to the good ol’ ’Merica. Can you imagine coming to America for the first time? What would be your first impressions? Our Kiwi friends Max & Lyn took a 6-week road trip around the…
Sadly, I am bidding farewell to New Zealand today. I am extremely pleased with my book-writing accomplishments and plan to write a full post about the retreat, etc, but for the time being, I have a report on one more NZ excursion: Milford Sound! Even though J & I had been to Milford Sound last…
Greetings from New Zealand! I am doing well … busy writing, practicing yoga, writing, writing, biking, hiking, writing, practicing yoga, writing … you get the picture. And if you don’t, this is what it looks like. In between the retreat, my fellow writers and I are enjoying grand adventures around Wanaka. I thought I’d give…
Hello from New Zealand! I didn’t want to make any promises about posting, but I thought I’d chronicle my time so far. My retreat starts Monday in Wanaka, but I planned my first 2 days to stay in Queenstown. Queenstown is a little crazy and I don’t get involved with the real hoopla, but I…
If you’ve been reading this blog for a long time, or if you are my “real-life” friend, you would know I am a writer. I have a degree in English and spent the better part of my traditional career as a medical writer. I do a lot of freelance writing, too, for magazines, blogs, and…
After tucking 2015 into bed, J & I realized we’ve had quite a year. If you are a long-time reader, you know I love me some stats. I’m also quite wordy. For your benefit, I chose numbers over words for this post. 111 = Days we spent out of the US (mainly New Zealand,…
Te Araroa is trending. While the Te Araroa Trust estimates there were 200 hikers on the trail last season when we were out there, those numbers are surely doubling this season. And because I’ve written about Te Araroa every which way—for Backpacker Magazine, the Appalachian Trials blog, Gregory’s blog, the Therm-a-rest blog, Superfeet’s blog and…
We stayed in 25+ different hostels/holiday parks along Te Araroa and most of them were great, but they do vary. We thought a review post might be helpful for anyone planning to hike the trail, or just visiting New Zealand. A general observation is that hostels are more crowded on the South Island than on…
We made the most of our 5 days in Sydney, taking all modes of transportation to get around (including walking of course!) and seeing a variety of sights and tourist attractions. We rented an AirBnB in Darlinghurst, which was walking distance from the downtown. It was a tiny studio apartment, but much, much better than…