One of the closest areas to backpack when living in San Jose is Henry Coe State Park. This (relatively large) park is located on the east side of Morgan Hill and is absolutely loaded with great places to visit. The park is known for its steep climbs and exposed hills, so most people avoid it … Continue reading Coit Lake Backpacking – Henry Coe
In an effort to both embrace more of the things I love to do - and meet more people out there in the real world, on a whim I signed up for CampoVelo in Napa/Calistoga. The event, put on by Clif Bar, promised to be a weekend of adventure, excellent food and wine … and … Continue reading CampoVelo
Spring is in the air - and in the water! One of my favorite springtime activities is to go kayaking at Elkhorn Slough; this year rather than being stuck with clunky rental kayaks and gear, I was able to take my new Oru Bay Kayak out on her maiden voyage. My graduation present: Oru Bay … Continue reading Elkhorn Slough
After an amazing (but strenuous) four days on the Kalalau trail, I spent the second half of my vacation at the wonderful Grand Hyatt resort in Poipu. I’m a points junkie and saved up to spend four nights in this luxurious beachfront hotel. We were lucky enough to score an upgraded room with a partial … Continue reading Kauai Part II
After a few Kauai visits, this year I finally managed to pack the entire Kalalau Trail. Though I’ve often heard that getting permits for Kalalau can be difficult, I booked my January trip the previous August without much difficulty at all, I purchased my permits for $20/person per day without knowing if I would have … Continue reading Trekking Kalalau
On our way back into the city we decided to do all the main tourist attractions of the “Golden Circle” before spending one last day in Reykjavik. We visited Geysir, this impressive geyser erupted regularly much to the delight of a large crowd of tourists. We also went to visit Þingvellir National Park to see … Continue reading Golden Circle, Dill & Tips (Part VII)
After ogling puffins, we then headed to our next destination in the middle of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. Another long day of driving, exploring hot pots with wonderful views and gasping every time we turned a corner. Views along the road. Photo credit: Lisette We discovered one natural hot springs that was REALLY too hot, and … Continue reading Snaefellsnes & Stong (Part VI)
Our next epic driving day meant going from Akeyuri out to one of the farthest points in the Westfjords, Dynjandi. We got an early start and headed out to spend the day driving through the fjords before spending the night at an extremely remote horse farm. Iceland’s best hot pot. Photo credit: Casey On the … Continue reading Westfjords (Part V) and Puffins!
After a very long day of driving the eastern edge of Iceland, we drove quickly through Myvatn to our lodgings at Narfastadir (another HeyIceland booking), one of the great perks of this lovely little hotel was that they had gluten free bread! Lake Myvatn. Photo credit: Lisette The next morning we doubled back to check … Continue reading Myvatn & Akeyuri (Part IV)
We had originally planned to make our way to the Glacial Lagoon for a boat tour this day, but since all boat tours were cancelled due to wind - we had to adjust our plans a bit. We embarked on a harrowing drive that involved pulling over and cowering in the car as massive winds … Continue reading Iceland East (Part III) Waterfalls & Ice