Join me as I travel the world and give regular insights into what it is really like being a solo backpacker and tips to help you plan your own adventures
Day 6 - Thursday 27 July The ice reminded us who is boss this morning. After an early breakfast we hit the water fairly promptly having packed up camp. A large glacier calving had caused intense waves so getting off the beach out of the swell was quite a challenge. I almost capsized before managing... Continue Reading →
Another good night's sleep all snuggled in my fleecy PJ bottoms, silk liner and sleeping bag. It was nice to have plenty of time to rest. My wrist is now making a grim crackling noise when I move it, definitely tendonitis. I've strapped it up to partially immobilise it. I had some lovely porridge with... Continue Reading →
We had a relaxed start, the pace of the trip is really great, I never felt we were rushing and was able to enjoy every second of the experience. My tendonitis was really sore but hopefully manageable. I slept really well, though I needed my silk sleeping bag liner and a warm hat - the... Continue Reading →
I woke up nice and early feeling pretty refreshed. My breakfast in the teepee was mostly German bread with ham, cheese and coffee. Julia and I were both ready quickly and weren't certain if we had forgotten something important. While we were packing, one of the huge icebergs in the bay split in half pretty... Continue Reading →
Greenland-Kayak-Exped2
I'm super excited to blog about this next adventure - it's a week-long 100km kayaking and hiking expedition in the fjords of Southern Greenland! I booked this Much Better Adventures trip after hearing some glowing reviews of the company. My first view of the enormous Greenland Ice Sheet On the flight to Greenland I caught... Continue Reading →
I was picked up at 9am by the Glaciers and Waterfalls guide, Kalman and we set off to the Reykjanes Peninsula to hike to the erupting volcano. En route we stopped off at a traditional fish drying farm. The smell packed a punch as I stepped out of the minibus!! Icelandic Cod (heads and bones)... Continue Reading →
The journey to the Costa Rican border from Ometepe Island was uneventful after the early morning ferry. The weather at the border was dark and brooding. We paid $4 to exit Nicaragua and I changed some money for an ok rate (changed 330 Cordoba's for 5,200 Colones and $60 for 34,600 Colones) Finally made it... Continue Reading →
As planned, we left our hotel in El Salvador in the middle of the night under the light of a full moon and starry sky. We made the 4 hour journey to La Union.We had to be quick boarding the ferry to take us across to Nicaragua as the water was going out and it... Continue Reading →
It's been a while since I travelled somewhere new and exotic, which makes this month even more special in some ways. Over the next month I am travelling through Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. The major reason for me choosing this G Adventures trip is twofold, I really wanted to travel through... Continue Reading →
It's going to be difficult to describe the experience on the Cairngorms traverse but to sum it up in a word... Brutal. I didn't make it to the end of the traverse, having decided to head to the road at Braemar in light of a couple of severe weather warnings and having the waterproofing of... Continue Reading →
As I sit in Inverness, taking a break from my final preparations for the expedition, which I embark upon tonight, I thought I had better post the latest update on my astronaut journey. Sadly I didn't make it through to Round 3 in Cologne. I recently received the rejection email along with all of the... Continue Reading →
I'm really getting into this now. Late January is off to a flying start! On the 16th I headed to Brecon Beacons solo to hike the horseshoe with an expedition backpack. I didn't leave super early, so it was a fairly "relaxed" day. Hit the trail at noon and once again headed up the gazillion... Continue Reading →
January is off to a flying start. My swim buddy Lance is raising money for St Mungo's charity by swimming the distance of the channel crossing (22 miles) in January. Despite needing to get extra time out hiking I want to swim with him to keep him company. To meet his target it means swimming... Continue Reading →
Now things really get going!! I'm launching into phase 2 of my training and it's all about steps, hills and weight. I hit the stair master for a 10 minute blitz wearing a backpack to ease myself into it. Even without knowing about the backpack, the machine reckons I burned more than 100 calories -... Continue Reading →
I don't know about you, but watching other people "climb their own mountains" is one of the biggest sources of inspiration and motivation for me. Usually I am referring to "striving toward their own goals" but this time I really mean mountains. I watched 14 Peaks on Netflix and it was just mind-blowing. My brain... Continue Reading →
I started "late November" with pretty epic DOMS after checking whether I was fit enough to climb and then swim, in that order. Turns out that I can, but that doesn't mean I should! And then Couch to 5k (C25K) - Run 5.3 is a warm up then 20 minutes running.. a massive step up.... Continue Reading →
Firstly, a huge shout out to Lauren and the team at Alpkit Bristol - I am so grateful for their help today - what a great place and great team! I thought was going to have to drive to the Lake District to visit an Alpkit store so I was chuffed to find they recently... Continue Reading →
Smooth sailing and slowly building up my fitness and endurance. I had a few days off work and completed Week 4 on the Couch to 5k (C25K) mainly during daylight hours. Walking to warm down after my final Week 4 run on C25K I also hit the climbing gym for the first time in a... Continue Reading →
I had an absolutely lovely day out on horseback with my friend Regan at a gorgeous stable called Cotswolds Riding at Jill Carenza Equestrian near the village of Stanton at the northern end of the Cotswolds. The scenery was spectacular, and we hacked through some lovely moorland and up to some gorgeous views across rolling... Continue Reading →
When I heard that Aerospace Bristol would be holding a Family Space Day on Monday 25th October, with Helen Sharman, the UK's first astronaut, giving a talk under the wings of concorde, I immediately booked a ticket. It was clearly a day aimed at kids and was at the beginning of half term, so any... Continue Reading →
First stop for my preparations for the icy Cairngorms expedition was to see my physiotherapist, Gemma, who had helped me with some ankle rehab in 2020. I hadn't mentioned, but I sprained my ankle pretty badly on a run one day without much warning, my ankle just felt tight for a minute and then.. "ping".... Continue Reading →
I've decided to use my training and trek across the Cairngorms to raise money for The Ocean Cleanup. The non-profit has demonstrated that it has a REALLY compelling solution to remove an enormous chunk of the plastic pollution in the ocean, and I'm really passionate about supporting them. Please consider donating to this great cause... Continue Reading →
So. Home safe in England, but still buzzing from my first trip out of the UK in 2 years, I started to get itchy feet. I reached out to one of the most adventurous people I know, Katie Comer, tour guide for Dragoman overland adventures all over the world, who led my journey through Uzbekistan... Continue Reading →
The journey to Hamburg went off without a hitch, though it was genuinely so strange to be in an airport again after so long. I had bought myself some kids mental maths workbooks to run through and so I spent some time in the airport and on the plane doing some simple maths problems. Upon... Continue Reading →
In late August I received an invitation to a European Space Agency Astronaut selection day in Hamburg! I was so excited to be able to take part in the next round! Due to covid restrictions, the duration for this selection stage has been hugely elongated and I was offered one of 5 test days within... Continue Reading →
I've got some exciting news! I submitted an application to become an Astronaut with the European Space Agency and I made it through the initial application sift! Back in around February, the official timeline was released for the European Space Agency to once again invite applications from across Europe for 6 people to join the... Continue Reading →
Join me on this exciting new adventure as I take you along with me in my application to become an astronaut with the European Space Agency!! In preparation, and to make sure I put some real effort into training, I also signed up to take part in a CRAZY expedition across the Cairngorms in the... Continue Reading →
There's never a dull moment on my trip in the Philippines, especially when it comes to transportation. I was repeatedly told that to get from Tagaytay to Anilao I needed to get a bus to Nasugbu (Batangas) and then I could get a Jeepney to Anilao and from there a tricycle. Turns out that Nasugbu... Continue Reading →
Hiking in the Svaneti Region of Georgia is an absolute treat. It's one of the main areas that is easily accessible from Kutaisi so it's a well-trodden route to get to Mestia from Kutaisi. Getting to Mestia We discovered just how cheap Georgian taxis are when a 10 minute ride to the bus station from... Continue Reading →
