Hiking

Backpacking, Hiking, Travel

Hike hard, climb harder – Italian Dolomites

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Hike hard, climb harder – Italian Dolomites

Not every place will steal a bit of your soul…but this one did.

July 2-3 – It’s always a bummer when you lose a day to travel but that’s how time zones work. We made it to Venice around 10 a.m. and Venice in July is WILDLY hot, and humid. We dropped our bags and headed into the city but really only lasted a few hours before we were all puddles of sweat. Even with stops for gelato.

July 4 – Our real adventure begins! We met up with our friends, old and new, and headed to Cortina d’Ampezzo. An adorable mountain town, that’s a little bougie and the location for many of the upcoming Olympic winter games.

July 5 – After 2 days of city and small town life it was time to head into the mountains and start climbing. We pack up our backpacking gear and headed out to begin Alta Via 4, a historic location with via farratas and tunnels through the mountains that date back to the second world war.

We climbed and hiked and tunneled our way through these beautiful mountains, with just a little danger as a storm rolled in and we were hailed on before finding a cave to wait out the storm. Our refugio for the night had some amazing 360 views making each mealtime magic.

July 6 – More via ferratas and hiking await us as we make our way to the next refugio. The day started out a bit foggy but the clouds made for a super interesting landscape. Italy’s mountains are rugged and intricate and the views surround you no matter where you’re hiking making this area just a wonder to behold.

July 7 – Day three brought just a short bit of via ferrata and much more hiking. We took a ski lift down into a town, a bus to our next trailhead and then a fairly short hike to Lake Sorapis (WOWZA) and our refugio for the night. My favorite refugio of the trip both for its proximity to the lake and the pure joy the owner exuded hosting us.

July 8 – We had to make a hard decision for day 4. Either do the most difficult via ferrata and steep scree hike; or hike down, take a bus, and hike again to the next location. Under the best circumstances this would be a really difficult day but the weather was also not on our side, so we opted for the safer option and skipped the via ferrata, and we still ended up hiking up to the refugio in the rain 🌧️. What we didn’t anticipate was missing the bus and being stuck on the side of the road for hours. One thing about travel is you better be flexible enough for the unexpected.

Despite our missed bus we still made it, sopping wet, to dinner and had a place to stay the night.

July 9 – Our last day hiking and climbing and back to civilization and most importantly, gelato!

July 10-12 – We headed out to Trento, our last city for the trip. Larger than Cortina we explored all this city has to offer. We took the cable car up to Sardagna (it runs every 15 mins from early morning to late evening), walked back down through the small grape farms along the hillside. Stopped in at the Piedicastello Tunnel museum–if you only have time for one thing this is it! Toured the Castello del Buonconsiglio, and visited the MUSE. All this while stopping as often as possible for, you guessed it, more and more gelato.🍦

All in all the Dolomites are a true sight to see and if you get the chance to see them, do it.
Arrivederci!

Backpacking, Hiking, Travel

High Altitude Adventure in Peru – Salkantay Trail

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High Altitude Adventure in Peru – Salkantay Trail

A lot (and I mean A LOT) of people will disagree with me but I did not fall in love with Peru. I certainly don’t regret going; if you haven’t seen it I wouldn’t tell you not to go. It’s just not my place. And that’s ok. Not every place will steal a bit of your soul.

June 21-22 – Much of South America is a slog to get to. Several flights and connections, but we made to Cusco! Sitting at 11,000+ feet Cusco can quite literally take your breath away. Upon arrival we were embraced by culture. Cusco’s main plaza was filled with people dancing, playing music and wearing traditional clothing. A parade lasting hours welcomed us to Peru and set the tone for the entire visit.

June 23 – We used a company called Salkantay Trekking to organize our tour and plan our hikes and they are a very oiled machine. Day 1 was spent in Cusco learning about it’s history and walking around it’s many historic sites.

June 24 – Whew this was a whirlwind of locations! At a glance we visited: Chinchero > Moray > Salt mines of Maras > Urubamba > Ollantaytambo > Train to Aguas Calientes

Each of these new locations brought with it new views, new things to learn, and new opportunities to experience the cultures in Peru. We visited Incan ruins; fed llamas, alpacas, guanacos, and vicuñas; learned how alpaca wool is cleaned and dyed; tasted the salts and snacks of Maras; and tested our lungs with a short hike in Ollantaytambo. Ending the day with a train ride to Aguas Calientes, the town we would start in for our visit to Machu Picchu.

June 25 – Up with/before the sun–4 a.m. starts were very common on this trip–and off to Machu Picchu before the hoards of other tourists would be up for the day. We arrived at the standard photo op in time to watch the sun rise and hit the ruins. We then walked through the winding paths and learned it’s history and architecture. We attempted to hike up Machu Picchu Mountain but just a bit from the top we realized we didn’t have time to continue on before our bus was going to leave us, so we didn’t quite make it up all the miles of stairs.

June 26 – Hello early morning again! Today we travelled from Cusco to Salkantay’s Sky Camp, which is a mini-village of glass igloos, and hiked up to Humantay Lake. It’s a fairly short hike to Sky Camp but it sits near 13,000 feet so almost everything is hard to do at that elevation.

Tips for hiking at high elevations:
1. Take *laughably* tiny steps, this is not the time for big stepping even if you have long legs. Shuffle your way to the top!
2. Use the trekking poles. I’m not sure why people often refuse them, they are not just for old people and they’ll help you make it up.
3. Try not to take super long breaks, if you’re doing tip #1 you shouldn’t need long breaks anyway but stopping too long can take the wind out of your sails so pause just long enough to take some deep breaths and then keep moving.
4. Hike your hike. If you’re with friends sticking together may not be the best. Of course keep an eye on everyone you’re with but you’ll need to keep your own pace and momentum.

June 26 – 4 a.m. is the theme, Peru will force the early riser out of you. The hike up to Salkantay Pass is the longest and most difficult in terms of distance and elevation gain, but this was probably my favorite and most memorable day. Some of our group took horses up and some hiked, but we all got to the top to expansive views of…fog. We were quite literally in a cloud at 15,000+ feet.

Once we reached the pass we thought the clouds would burn off but we were stuck waiting around (with about 40 other folks) to see if the view would open up. Just as we were deciding to head back–it’s not a great idea to stay at high elevations for a long time–our guide began passing out perfect coca leaves. Not to eat but for a short cultural ceremony to thank Pachamama (Earth Mother) and blow our spirits into the mountains. We then created a tiny rock cave and placed our leaves inside. Like magic, the clouds parted and we were able to see the Salkantay glacier and mountains that encapsulated it.

June 27 – You guessed it, another 4 a.m. wake up call 🙃. And we’re off to Rainbow Mountain, an extremely popular location and difficult hike due to elevation, 16,398 feet! You can choose to pay for a horse, a motorbike, or take your own feets for free. If you choose to walk it please see the tips above especially about taking tiny steps. As we hiked up we saw so many people really really struggling because they were trying to walk their normal steps. Doing regular steps will make you have to stop frequently to catch your breath and make it so much more difficult in the long run. People may be passing you at the beginning but you’ll be shuffling on by in no time with your tiny stepping.

Taking our time and tiny stepping also allowed for us to have enough energy to head over to the Red Valley. This is a fairly short hike after you take your Rainbow Mountain photos and it’s totally worth it. Where there were piles of tourists atop the mountain, Red Valley trail is mostly empty and the views are really beautiful.

June 28-July 1 – Goodbye Cusco, hello Lima. We spent one last night in Cusco and then headed back to Lima to eat (I highly recommend doing a food tour, Peruvian food is so so good), drink, and recover from all our high elevation hikes. We dipped our toes in the South Pacific, and had a much more chill end to our adventure vacation.

So how did Peru not steal a bit of my soul? I think it’s just a bit too touristy for me; I fully understand that I too am a tourist and I’m adding to that vibe. Despite our early mornings and attempts to beat the crowds there just wasn’t a moment where I could find real peace. I feel the same about the Grand Canyon if that gives some perspective. When I head out into nature to recharge and reset it’s not just for the beauty of a place, it’s to quiet the constant noise of this world, and I just didn’t find that moment here.

Dogs, Hiking, Travel

One Year In Colorado

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One Year In Colorado

July 15 2022 we packed up all our belongings in a Prius and U-Haul and moved from Chicago to Colorado. Wondering where you should hike in your first year in Colorado? Overwhelmed by options we didn’t always pick the most epic hikes but here’s a look every* hike we’ve done (in CO) since the big move. Including our stats, ratings, and links to the AllTrails maps.

*I know missed a few that were not documented well, but this is what I could find.

1. Bear Canyon & Table Mesa Loop

3.7 miles • Total ascent 640 ft
2/10 • Relatively basic trail and super open so not great for summer sun. Difficulty – easy

2. First & Second Flatirons

3.2 miles • Total ascent 1,342 ft
6/10 • We got a little lost so the actual milage should be more like 2.5, but the views here are awesome. make sure to get all the way around to the first flatiron so you get the views of the mountains behind. Difficulty – moderate/hard

3. Mount Sanitas via Goat Trail

2.6 miles • Total ascent 1,063 ft
5/10 • Our first “peak” in quotes because it sits at 6,821 feet so nothing too fancy. This hike was super fun, it is very open so we got pretty hot but Sanitas has nice views of Boulder and beyond at the top. Difficulty – moderate

4. Towhee & Homestead Trails

3 miles • Total ascent 489 ft
3/10 • I honestly don’t really remember this hike. I believe this was one of the first we brought our dog onto after getting his Voice & Sight tags so he could be off leash. Difficulty – easy

5. Lichen Peak (Table Mountain)

2.8 miles • Total ascent 656 ft
5/10 • First of many hikes with friends, Table Mountain is a fun spot because once you get to the top you can kind of bop around all over. Difficulty – moderate

6. Nymph, Dream, Emerald, and Haiyaha Lakes (RMNP)

5.4 miles • Total ascent 1,749 ft
9/10 • My first time ever in Rocky Mountain National Park! Lake Haiyaha became a milky shade of turquoise caused by glacial sediment so we had to get there and it was totally worth the early wake up call. We also stopped by 3 other lakes so it was a big water day and I loved every minute of it. Also a chipmunk walked onto my foot while we had a snack so that was cool 😆. Difficulty – moderate

7. Mount Bierstadt

5.8 miles (7.2 to the top) • Total ascent 2,244 ft (2,736 to the top)
4/10 • Well we tried our first 14er, a peak that sits above 14,000 feet, and it didn’t go well. We went just a bit too late in the season and it ended up being a white-out situation. Once we reached 13,000 feet we decided to call it and head back down since conditions were not improving. Difficulty – hard

8. Lake Isabelle & Long Lake

7 miles • Total ascent 1,352 ft
7/10 • This was a really nice hike; it’s a bit busy but that is to be expected with such beautiful lakes. Also we were a large group so just generally felt busy because of us. Difficulty – easy

9. Crater Lakes Trail

7.4 miles • Total ascent 1,870 ft
8/10 • Our Michigan friends came to visit and I made them hike too high, whoops. This was the first time I realized that I had acclimated as we hiked between 9-11,000 ft and though I was huffing it wasn’t nearly as difficult for me as for my visiting friends. Really beautiful lakes though and a good altitude test. Difficulty – moderate/hard (more difficult if you are a “flatlander”)

10. Brother’s Lookout & Three Sisters Loop

2.2 miles • Total ascent 459 ft
6/10 • This loop is super nice for some boulders to play on, woodsy area, and nice mountain views from the lookout. We came down to Evergreen to see the elk but ended up seeing nothing, what a bummer, but you can’t always get what you want with animals. Difficulty – easy

11. Elk Ridge & Meadow View

3 miles • Total ascent 482 ft
3/10 • We tried this new trail to take a shot at spotting some elk but struck out again. It was a good trail for our friend who was in a boot though! Nice, easy, and well maintained, but overall fairly basic. Difficulty – easy

12. Rattlesnake Gulch

3.4 miles • Total ascent 692 ft
6/10 • Driving into Eldorado State Park is really pretty and this trail is quite nice and has good views. Since it’s a state park it is fairly busy on the weekend so drops it down a bit for me. Difficulty – easy/moderate

13. Dakota Ridge Trail

5.7 miles • Total ascent 1,230 ft
6/10 • For some reason I remember this trail feeling a lot harder than it should have, still can’t say why. The views here are nice, but there are highways on either side of the trail so it’s a bit loud. Saw our first bits of snow for the year! Difficulty – moderate/hard

14. Great Sand Dunes – High Dune Trail (4 hours from the Denver/Boulder area)

2.5 miles • Total ascent 797 ft
10/10 • Hear me out, go to National Parks in the off season. This may not have been the bestest time to load up a camper van and drive 4 hours south for a week but we had an entire National Park to ourselves. These dunes are unreal and this area seems truly underrated. Difficulty – hard (sand is hard!)

15. Mosca Pass Trail (4 hours from the Denver/Boulder area)

3.4 miles • Total ascent 915 ft
8/10 • After a quick nap in our camper we headed out for a second trail for the day. Mosca trail is really pretty, the whole trail is 6.2 miles but we just wanted to do a little something since we had just finished up a difficult sand hike. Difficulty – moderate

16. Zapata Falls & beyond (4 hours from the Denver/Boulder area)

6.2 miles • Total ascent 1,768 ft
8/10 • We parked the van at the Zapata Falls campground so naturally we needed to check out the falls and the trail beyond. The weather was a little snowy so we just went as far as we could, the falls are early on, but we did end up turning around because of some fresh animal tracks + Franklin barking randomly. We didn’t want to run into anything out here. 🐻 Difficulty – hard

17. Garden of the Gods (1.5 hours from the Denver/Boulder area)

3 miles • Total ascent 341 ft
5/10 • On our return home we made a quick stop at Garden of the Gods. I’m not a super fan of this park because it is ALWAYS busy, but it’s pretty enough for a quick stop. Difficulty – super easy

18. First & Second Flatirons (take two)

3.2 miles • Total ascent 1,484 ft
6/10 • See hike #2 and this was our first repeat! Difficulty – moderate/hard

19. Royal Arch

4.5 miles • Total ascent 1,617 ft
5/10 • Royal Arch itself is pretty cool but I’m not convinced the effort is worth the reward, but we’ll be back to do it again 😆. Difficulty – hard

20. Shanahan North Fork & Mesa Trail

4.4 miles • Total ascent 938 ft
4/10 • The Shanahan area is our go-to for a fairly easy, shaded hike with lots of different trail combos. It’s not the flashiest area, but it’s nice enough. Difficulty – easy/moderate

21. Three Peaks Trail

7.7 miles • Total ascent 3,396 ft
9/10 • This one starts with the Shanahan trail and heads in a loop to grab 3 different peaks, Nebel Horn (7,579′), Bear Peak (8,458′), and South Boulder Peak (8,524′). If you can make it I recommend it. You’ll get a real feeling of accomplishment! Difficulty – hard

22. Green Mountain West

4 miles • Total ascent 741 ft
8/10 • I really like recommending this one to people from out of state. It’s relatively easy and gives you great views of the big mountains hiding behind the foothills. Difficulty – easy/moderate

23. Gregory Canyon & Flagstaff

4.5 miles • Total ascent 1,378 ft
5/10 • I didn’t really love this loop. We added a bit of milage by starting in Chautauqua park, but this runs along and crosses several roads so it isn’t one I would do again. Difficulty – moderate

24. Mount Morrison South Ridge

3.8 miles • Total ascent 2,001 ft
6/10 • This is what we call a suffer hike. With elevation gains of 1,000 ft per mile it is steep. It’s a great hike for training for 14ers though. Difficulty – hard

25. Red Rocks & Anemone Loop

4.3 miles • Total ascent 984 ft
7/10 • This is a nice little trail with mild elevation while still getting some nice views. Difficulty – moderate

26. Red Rocks Trail to Cherry Gulch (we made it to 2023)

3 miles • Total ascent 489 ft
5/10 • Pretty basic trail, not a lot to see here. Difficulty – easy

27. Mount Sanitas East Ridge

3.4 miles • Total ascent 1,296 ft
8/10 • The first side of this trail is great, through the forest and ending up at the top of Sanitas with nice views. The second half is relatively boring with a large busy trail in the open sun. If I did this again I would do it as an out and back rather than a loop. Difficulty – moderate

28. Lefthand Canyon

6.5 miles • Total ascent 1,952 ft
8/10 • I did this hike solo and the distance got to me a little. The views are amazing and you feel kind of out there in the wild though very close to Boulder. It is fairly busy with mountain bikers but I didn’t see many other hikers and I was alone at the top! Difficulty – moderate/hard

29. Green Mountain West (take two)

4 miles • Total ascent 794 ft
8/10 • My second time up this bad boy and I like it just as much in take 2. Difficulty – easy/moderate

30. Mountain Lion & Windy Peak

7.8 miles • Total ascent 2,054 ft
9/10 • I really enjoyed this trail. The distance is a lot but very doable and pretty the whole way. Difficulty – moderate/hard

31. Forsythe Canyon & Twin Sisters Peak

7.1 miles • Total ascent 1,663 ft
8/10 • We cobbled these two trails together to make a kind of lollipop loop. Lots of different terrain and a pretty fun spot overall. Difficulty – moderate/hard

32. Mallory Cave via Skunk Canyon

5.4 miles • Total ascent 1,568 ft
7/10 • The full trail up to Mallory Cave closes April 1 so I tried to do a longer hike up to it, but there is a bit of scrambling at the very end and Franklin wasn’t having it so we didn’t make it. Difficulty – moderate

33. Mallory Cave via NCAR Trailhead

3.1 miles • Total ascent 1,020 ft
7/10 • Came back the next weekend without Franklin and made it to the cave. There is this metal covering the cave to protect the bats, but it was nice to get all the way there. Difficulty – moderate

34. Stone Mountain

9 miles • Total ascent 2,621 ft
8/10 • This was a really fun one. The drive out is beautiful and just really great views the whole way around this trial. Difficulty – moderate/hard

35. The Manitou Incline

5 miles • Total ascent 2,159 ft
4/10 • I know there are people who L.O.V.E. this “hike” but I’m not one of them. If you want to walk up 2,744 steps while looking mainly at other peoples butts this hike is for you. Really the only nice views are if you continue on past the top to get a slight glimpse of Pikes Peak in the distance. If you haven’t tried it go for it but it just wasn’t my thing. Difficulty – moderate/hard

36. Degge, Eagle, Hidden Valley Trail & Coot Lake

4.8 miles • Total ascent 240 ft
2/10 • After just doing Manitou we wanted something easy, aside from walking around Boulder Reservoir this is just a big dirt pile full of prairie dogs. Difficulty – easy

37. Apex & Enchanted Forest

5.7 miles • Total ascent 1,312 ft
7/10 • I took literally this one picture, but this is a really lovely trail woodsy and great for hot sunny days. Difficulty – easy/moderate

38. Red Rocks Trail

3 miles • Total ascent 489 ft
5/10 • Took only one picture of this one too, just a quick after work meetup. Difficulty – easy

39. Walker Ranch Loop

8.4 miles • Total ascent 1,739 ft
9.5/10 • Should I just give this a 10/10, maybe. This may be my favorite hike to date. It has a little bit of everything, woods, views, river; it’s just cool. It probably helps that. we had this random snowstorm the night before so the woods were magical. Difficulty – moderate/hard

40. Eldorado Canyon

6.8 miles • Total ascent 1,939 ft
7/10 • The turnaround point for this is actually Walker Ranch Loop so just do that instead of this for more variety and the best views are in Walk Ranch anyway. Difficulty – moderate/hard

41. Lost Lake via Hessie Trail

4.4 miles • Total ascent 869 ft
9/10 • Waterfalls, alpine lakes, views for days. Do this one. Difficulty – easy/moderate

42. Shanahan

2.8 miles • Total ascent 456 ft
6/10 • Nice easy one. This is a take two from earlier. Difficulty – easy

43. Table Mountain – Tilting Mesa

3.2 miles • Total ascent 571 ft
7/10 • We did Table before but this was a new side. I recommend turning around and go back the way you came because the north side of this loop is just looking at the street. Difficulty – easy/moderate

44. Fern Canyon

5.1 miles • Total ascent 1,808 ft
7/10 • We somehow got lost on our way back so this was a weird one for me, but it’s a nice spot and there is always plenty of parking at NCAR. Difficulty – moderate

45. Grizzly & Cupid Peak

5.2 miles • Total ascent 2,684 ft
9/10 • Our first 13er! We set out to get both Cupid (13,117) and Grizzly (13,334) but the pass between the two was a bit too difficult for Franklin to navigate, mainly because there was so much snow we had to go around. I would absolutely come back and do this again with better conditions. Difficulty – hard

46. Horsetooth Falls Loop

3.5 miles • Total ascent 722 ft
7/10 • Two little waterfalls and a few cool views, if you’re up by Fort Collins it’s a decent short hike. Difficulty – easy/moderate

47. James Peak

8 miles • Total ascent 3,110 ft
8/10 • Our second attempt at a 13er. This was one of the scariest hikes of my life. Not because it’s long and hard but we did not start early enough and a storm rolled in when we were just about at the top, it started to hail and we could feel electricity in the air. We turned around before the top to get outta there but Franklin struggled due to thunder being terrifying for him. It’s beautiful but a good reminder to be careful above the tree-line. Difficulty – hard

48. Foothills to Claymore Lake

3.7 miles • Total ascent 128 ft
3/10 • We were killing a bit of time so we stopped by this trail. It was a walk. Difficulty – easy

49. Turkey Trot Trail

3.4 miles • Total ascent 804 ft
5/10 • It’s not that often that we do an after-work hike. It’s a good mix of woods and views. Difficulty – easy/moderate

50. Royal Arch (take two)

4.5 miles • Total ascent 1,617 ft
5/10 • Franklin got to come this time around and he did great! This trail was crazy busy on a weekend nice day, I still prefer the Flatirons to this one. Difficulty – hard

51. Bald Mountain & Boulder Falls

5.3 miles • Total ascent 1,073 ft
8/10 • A great place for views and wild flowers. One half of this is an ATV trail but we didn’t see any vehicles. Boulder Falls was an add on hike, it’s a super short trail from the parking area, if you’re nearby go for it. If if will take you more than 15 mins to drive to it, skip it. Difficulty – moderate

52. Lily Pond Lake

6.2 miles • Total ascent 1,024 ft
8/10 • Friends trip! Really nice hike with 2 lakes and loads of trees and flowers. Difficulty – moderate

53. North Mount Elbert

9.8 miles • Total ascent 4,216 ft
9/10 • 14er! Our first summit above 14,000 feet. 14,439 feet, to be exact, and the highest peak in Colorado. Not at all technical to hike, just long and steep, but beautiful views from the top. We had the best day despite the 4:30am start. Difficulty – hard x2

54. Window Rock

1 mile • Total ascent 177 ft
4/10 • I don’t know if I can call this a hike. We wanted to see Window Rock, and you can drive right up to it, but we stopped short and then kind of bopped around the area. Difficulty – easy

55. Paradise Cove

1 mile • Total ascent 351 ft
8/10 • Another wee baby hike. We had stopped by this area the day before and it was packed! So we decided to get up early and arrive at 6am to have the cove all to ourselves. After a quick cold plunge (icy water at 6am will wake you up quick) we dried off and hiked around a little. Difficulty – easy

56. Pancake Rocks

6.6 mile • Total ascent 2,024 ft
8/10 • This hike was pretty cool. Most of it is through the woods and kind of steep, but then you get to a big open area with these fun rock formations and awesome views. Difficulty – moderate/hard

57. Upper Mule Deer Trail

3.9 mile • Total ascent 981 ft
4/10 • Meh, for our last hike of one year in Colorado I wanted epic, but with a knee injury for one of us (not me) we had to take it easy. We did get to see our first moose on the drive up though! Difficulty – easy

Backpacking, Hiking, Travel

Argentine Patagonia – Los Glaciares National Park

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Argentine Patagonia – Los Glaciares National Park

Is Fitz Roy the true love of my life?

February 1-2 – I’m back on a plane to South America with Zealous Travel Co. One year after completing the W Trek in Chilean Patagonia I’m off to see what the Argentina side has to offer. As much as I love Patagonia the amount of travel time to get there never gets easier, but at least there’s ice cream. Welcome to Buenos Aires! This city is so cool. I’m never a huge fan of staying in big cities when I travel–give me the wild spaces all day–but BA has a really fun vibe and I walked more than 13 miles just taking in all there is to see.

February 3 – The rest of our group arrived and we took a walking tour of San Telmo and La Boca ate some delicious food, had traditional mate, and went to bed early for our early morning (4 a.m.) wake up to travel to El Calafate.

February 4 – After a short flight to El Calafate we stopped by Perito Moreno Glacier and hopped a boat tour to get a really good look at one of the only glaciers in the world that is actually growing instead of shrinking. It is huge and beautiful!

We grabbed some lunch and then took a bus 3 hours south to our final destination, El Chaltén.

February 5 – We had planned to do some white water rafting but the rains the night before made it super dangerous to attempt so we were able to rearrange our schedule and get in to the via ferrata! There are many via ferratas across the globe and I’m sure they are all awesome. Essentially it is a climbing path with metal rungs, ropes, and foot/hand holds and it is super fun (unless you don’t like heights). The route took use about an hour and a half and at the top we were met with absolutely stunning views of the Patagonia mountain range.

February 6 – It’s backpacking time! It’s no secret that any time spent with my backpack on my back is a good time so I was super excited to start this part of the trip. Our first trail started right out the doors of our hotel towards Laguna Torre for lunch (highly recommend bringing an empanada). We continued on to Campamento Poincenot to soak our feet in the very cold stream and make camp for the night. In total we walked about 13 miles for our first day.

February 7 – Waking up at 3:30 a.m. to straight up a mountain is not really my idea of a good time, but watching the sun come up and hit Fitz Roy was absolutely stunning. I could be convinced to say it’s the best view I’ve ever seen. After watching the sunrise and take our breath away we headed back down to camp for breakfast and to pack up for our next spot, Piedra del Fraile.

We arrived at the refugio fairly early and had plenty of time to relax, have a glass of wine, we even made a charcuterie board of trail snacks. The dust that covered our faces overnight was actually quite impressive. It somehow blew through a rain fly and tent groundsheet to leave a lovely layer on everything. Total miles, 11.25.

February 8 – A much more chill day overall, we pack up our daypacks and walked a very windy trail to Laguna Pollone. We got so lucky with the weather being sunny, mild, maybe even a little hot, and no wind so having a little rain and big wind gusts was kind of a treat since that is the expected weather in Patagonia.

After a snack at the lake we packed up and headed out of camp and on to our transport back El Chaltén. On our way we spotted a super endangered deer, the Patagonian huemul! There was an unexpected river crossing right before we got to the van but what’s life without taking off your shoes and hiking up your pants. Today’s total was an easy 9 miles, and we headed back to our hotel to clean the dirt and smell off us, and then get ice cream of course.

February 9 – The next morning we got up at a reasonable hour and headed out to do some horseback riding at a local estancia. My horse, Marco, was very chill which I appreciated. We had lunch in the woods and then though we were supposed to kayak back the winds made it too dangerous so we hopped back on our horses for another ride, and there was a puppy to cuddle at the end. ❤️

February 10 – The weather worked out in our favor this time and we were off to do some white water rafting on Rio de las Vueltas. I was pretty nervous after a bad experience as a teen and had avoided ever rafting again but it was super fun and not at all as scary as I had anticipated. We also had an absolutely fantastic raft guide who kept us safe despite a few class 4+ rapids. I don’t have any pictures from rafting because I was white knuckling my paddle the whole time.

Upon return we had my fourth or tenth ice cream cone for the week and walked around El Chaltén which is one of the most endearing little mountain towns I’ve been to.

February 11 – Another early morning for the ~3 hour bus ride to the airport back to Buenos Aires. We spent one more night in Buenos Aires, this time in the Palermo neighborhood, a 10/10 on the cuteness scale of neighborhoods in BA. We made it back home after more long days of travel but Fitz Roy has my heart forever (or maybe just until the next mountain comes along).

Backpacking, Camping, Hiking, Travel

Laugavegur & Fimmvörðuháls Trails Iceland

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Laugavegur & Fimmvörðuháls Trails Iceland

Let’s go backpacking in Iceland! An absolute dreamland of a country.

August 6 – One major plus of Iceland is that it’s so easy to get to. There are many nonstop quick flights to get there and it feels like just a popover.

This was our very first time using a travel company (Zealous Travel Co.) to plan and organize the whole thing and it was awesome. No worries about permits, or where to stay, or literally anything; which made this trip so much more relaxing despite it being a lot of long days of hiking. Full disclosure this is my friend’s company, but I’d recommend them even if I did not know them!

Upon arrival, we toured around the city of Reykjavík. This city is really cool and I would totally spend more time there some day, but we were quickly on to bigger and better things!

August 7 – Icelandic horses are super cute! They have the fluffiest bangs and are very sweet. We did a short ride and even got to experience their breed-specific gate. We also toured a sustainable tomato farm and restaurant (very tomato-forward meals 🍅), and relaxed in a natural hot spring before we wrecked our bodies on the Laugavegur Trail 😉.

August 8 – Here we go!

Day one of backpacking made Iceland feel like a truly otherworldly place. We had many firsts on this trip including this being our first backpacking trip with a guide, food provided, and though we slept in tents each site has huts for bathrooms, food, and water. It really felt like glamping in comparison.

You are also able to drink from most any stream because there are very few animals carrying disease and the water flows directly from glaciers (so cold and tasty). All of this meant that our packs were quite light with very little in them. At just 7.5 miles hiking this first day, it was a pretty easy one, though still a lot of ups and downs over the rolling hills.

August 9 – Day two hiking. We headed out early and this day had so many river crossings. Day two was pretty short as well, but we did add a bonus hike at the end to see Iceland’s “Grand Canyon”. I think I will always do the bonus hike when available. Even when you’re tired and have hiked all day, it’s worth it.

August 10 – This section of the hike was a bit more boring (if hiking in Iceland can ever be boring), it was also super sunny, hot, and windy. I somehow got sunburned in Iceland! I would fully have expected cold and rain but it did not rain one time during our full 10-day trip. So this day was a bit of a slog with the exposure and hills.

August 11 – We completed the Laugavegur section of trail and are on to Fimmvörðuháls (no I can not say this trail name aloud). This day just happened to be our 10-year anniversary and it was one of the most beautiful days of hiking ever. It was a LONG one but waterfalls and terrain absolutely made it fly by. We hiked along glaciers, really interesting rocks and ash, because you are basically walking on a giant volcano in Iceland always, and saw more waterfalls than I’ve ever seen in my life. There were very few moments when the sound of rushing water couldn’t be heard.

We ended the hike at a really popular waterfall called Skógafoss which you are able to drive up to. It’s always interesting to me when I’ve hiked a long time and finally get to a destination and that destination is also easy to get to if you drive it; so you are dirty, and stinky, and tired, and other people around you are dressed up, and fancy, and look really well rested.

August 12 – After a good hard sleep we got up and took a ferry to Heimaey Island to visit the absolute cutest birds in the whole world, puffins! They are just like adorable penguins but also a toucan and they flap their wings so so fast so they can fly. We also stopped by the black sand beach which has been known to sweep people out to sea, but it didn’t get us.

August 13 – After our relaxing day with puffins it was back to exercise! We kayaked a glacier lagoon for quite a while and then popped over to Diamond Beach, which is super touristy but also really cool. It’s this black sand beach with enormous chunks of glacier either stuck on the beach or out to sea. It’s a little bit sad to see these huge pieces of glacier melting off right before your eyes, anyone claiming global warming isn’t real can just go see it quite literally.

This was our last night together as a group, I had only met 2 of the people on the trip before this but I’ve made lifelong friends and everyone was just absolutely wonderful. So thanks to Zealous Travel for bringing us together.

Hiking, Travel

Spain & Portugal

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Spain & Portugal

There’s never enough time and we went vegan in Spain!

November 16 we set off on a whirlwind through Spain and Portugal.

November 16-18 – We took off late on the 16th for a long flight to Madrid with what was supposed to be a short layover in Lisbon. It wasn’t short, we missed the connecting flight and were stuck for about 8 hours. That meant we lost 8 hours in Madrid which was already going to be a short one. So the moment we landed and checked into our hotel we headed out to wander the streets and see as much as we could.

We stopped by Palacio Real de Madrid and Plaza Mayor and then the rain came… So we grabbed something to eat and headed back to the hotel. That is about all we got done in Madrid and bright and early we headed off to the train station because it was time to move on!

November 18 – Córdoba is a cute little town just a quick train ride from Madrid and we spent a few hours taking in it’s wild history. Right across from the train station there is a bus station where you can store your bags in lockers for the day, but get there quick as there is very limited space.

Once we were bagless and oriented we headed to brunch at Maddow, an adorable cafe with awesome vegan friendly treats. We just chilled here for a while and watched the sleepy street.

Around one o’clock we had a guided tour of the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba, it’s the thing to do and the history of it is unreal.

After our tour we walked around Alcázar de los Reyes Cristianos and then it was back on the train to head to Granada.

Ohhhhh Granada, this would be our longest stop and it was a wondrous place to linger.

We first stopped off at this little flamenco bar/restaurant, Le Chien Andalou, to pick up the keys to our Airbnb. The Airbnb was perfection, just off the Paseo de los Tristes–Granada’s most romantic street–with unbelievable views of the Alhambra from the roof-top terrace we couldn’t have picked a better spot. Even the little courtyard was something out of a fairytale.

After getting checked in and cleaned up we headed back to Le Chien Andalou to get some food, drinks, and authentic flamenco entertainment. This little hole in the wall was literally a hole in the wall, it’s a cave. It’s quite busy and small so you need to make advance reservations (ask for the front seats) but it’s such a good show.

November 19 – Alhambra day! This palace is just beautiful and historic. We didn’t do a guided tour but probably should have, there is so much information about how this place was built and I’m sure we missed things. It’s important to get tickets well in advance and be on time to your scheduled entry as they only let a certain amount of people in at a time. A very sad woman in front of us missed her entry time and was denied access she had come from Russia to see it.

It takes a good 4 hours to wander through the Alhambra so we spent most of the day getting lost in all the rooms and buildings of this fortress.

November 20 – Favorite of all the days. We had always planned to do a full day of hiking in Granada, we originally considered renting a car and finding some trails in Sierra Nevada but the weather was a bit against us and they were covered in snow while we were there. So we decided to not to rent a car and it was kind of awesome.

We walked quite a few miles just to get to the trail but we got to see so many small towns and just daily life along the way and it was totally worth it. The actual trail is Los Cahorros de Monachil and it is so cool. Loads of hanging bridges and interesting terrain. In all we walked a bit over 21 miles that day and by the end of it I was exhausted.

November 21 – Best laid plans, like getting up to watch the sunrise over Mirador de San Nicolas, go down the drain when you walk 21+ miles the day before. So we didn’t see the sunrise but we did see the view, the sunrise over the Alhambra would have been unreal so if you can get your lazy butt out of bed, do it. Our last day was spent wandering through markets, visiting the Museo Cuevas del Sacromonte (Cave Museum), and drifting around several historic bathhouses.

The end of the day was spent being pampered at the local Hammam. These Arab baths also include a massage and and special surprises that were perfect for our sore bones. It was a relaxing end to our beautiful adventure in Granada.

November 22 – Adiós Granada, hola, Sevilla. The trip between Granada and Sevilla is…interesting. We bought train tickets but it turns out that the train lines haven’t been built yet, so we ending up riding bus after bus after bus and then finally a train. We also had some trouble with our hotel reservation but after a bit of a rough start Sevilla became my favorite stop.

Once settled in our sweet, suite we headed out into the rain to do a quick stop at the Plaza de España, the best time to go is in the rain because no one else was there! The evening was spent eating and drinking and once night arrived we popped over to Metropol Parasol (heart eyes!)

November 23 – Back to the Plaza de España all morning. This city is just a fantasy, I mean look at that tree, and the dirt is mustard yellow (the color of my soul). We spent our last day getting lost in all the parks and touring the Alcazar of Seville. By evening it was time to say goodbye. Note: the airport in Sevilla took about a minute to get through so no need to arrive super early.

Hit the ground running in Lisbon. We walked up to Parque Eduardo VII to watch the sunset and along the way spotted the best little trolleys. We also stopped to watch the Elevador de Santa Justa and . This city is so interesting and built on hill after hill so there’s not just trains to carry you there’s an outdoor elevator.

November 24 – First stop! Healthy breakfast at 8 Health Lounge. Amazing vegan options here. I will say that of all the cities we visited Lisbon was by far the easiest to navigate for vegan food. We grabbed tickets to Castelo de São Jorge and ventured around the castle with its sweeping views of Lisbon.

We decided to walk the length of the riverwalk to the LX Factory, a series of shops, restaurants, bars, and basically a 24 hour arts fest. This would have been the perfect time to rent a bicycle but we didn’t think of it until we were nearly there. At the LX Factory I purchased a yellow bike bell from Happy Bicycle and it’s now one of my most prized possessions.

We continued down the riverwalk to Padrão dos Descobrimentos where we took the elevator to the top for more awe-inspiring views of the city. At the top it started to rain a bit so we took an Uber back to our hotel to rest a bit before taking an evening stroll around the streets of Lisbon and picking up a too pretty to eat gelato (my one non-vegan moment on this trip).

November 25 – Our last day and so sad to leave we said tchau to our hotel, grabbed a breakfast crêpe and did as much more exploring as we dared before getting an Uber to the airport. The airport in Lisbon is kind of crazy and you need to get there early as boarding begins well in advance due to the way it’s set up; you’ll likely board a bus to get to your gate.

Chicago greeted us with a warm and beautiful sunset but even still Spain and Portugal left us wanting to return and spend much more time basking in their rich cultures.

Hiking

Starved Rock & Matthiessen

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Starved Rock & Matthiessen

Labor Day, the perfect time for a day trip to our southern State Parks, and apparently every family ever thought the same. We’ve visited these parks before (some of these photos are from our other visits) but I’ve never seen it so busy and filled with screaming children. I don’t love crowds; I love that more people want to get outside and enjoy nature but I usually go hiking to get away from the people.

Anyway complaining time over and lesson learned, we made the best of it. Patience was the theme but we could all use a little more of that in our lives. We hiked for a few hours and enjoyed the waterfalls and though I’d avoid both parks on high traffic days here are some other tips to enjoy your time.

1. Go early – This is true of every park but the earlier you arrive the more likely you are to, get a parking space, enjoy alone time, and get there before people start leaving trash around…

2. Wear shoes you can get wet – Much of the park trail is in or through the revines and if it’s rained the streams can be deeper than the stepping stones. Too many people spend all their time trying not to get their feet wet and I have a secret…they are going to get wet. A father spent 5 minutes yelling at his child because she fell in the stream during a crossing and her shoes got dirty. Kids can’t balance. Adults can’t balance. You’re hiking and you should be wet and dirty by the end of it. Be like Franklin and plow on through.

3. Visit both parks – Matthiessen is my personal favorite but both have waterfalls and nice trails and they’re 5 mins from each other so go to both, but start with Matthiessen.

Backpacking, Hiking

Porcupine Mountains

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Porcupine Mountains

It’s been a year since our last backpacking trip and I need to get outside!

July 20th we set out to meet a friend in the Upper Peninsula and explore the Porcupine Mountains.

We all met up at a campground in Hiathawa National Forest near Pictures Rocks National Lakeshore for one night.

July 20 – We decided to do a boat tour since we only had one day at Pictured Rocks and it was awesome. I highly recommend doing a boat tour, if we have more time I think a kayak tour would also be really amazing. The views from the water are so beautiful and you can see so much more in a short time. They also have complementary dog kennels so, though Franklin wasn’t thrilled, we had a place he could stay while on the tour.

July 21 – The next morning we got up early and drive the 3 hours to the Porcupine Mountains, picked up our backcountry permits, and headed up the Government Peak trail toward Mirror Lake. Around 8 miles and 1,000ft elevation gain. The trail was fairly muddy and somewhat difficult to keep our footing but overall a great start to our adventure. There is no view, at least in the summer, at the top of Government Peak but there is a sign that lets you know you’ve made it.

We ended the day at Mirror Lake (site ML-1). The camp site is not on, or even near, the water but it is a large site with a fire ring and bear pole and it’s up a little hill so you’re away from the trail. We went to sleep super early because we were exhausted by the end of the first day.

July 22 – The start of our longest (by miles) day we headed out to conquer the whole of the Little Carp River trail. We got up early and we were all still feeling a little sore so we decided to skip the trek up Summit Peak. I think for us this was the smart choice but maybe it’s worth it to go there, we may never know.

Other than a few river crossings the trail is fairly flat and even though it was 13ish miles relatively easy. Even the river crossings were pretty simple, the usually had stones to step on and it’s shallow so if you fall in just your feet get a little wet.

We got to our camp really early which was wonderful because it was by far our favorite site (site LS-7). Right on the shore of Lake Superior we were able to swim in the cool water. Filtering water from the lake was a breeze because it’s basically already crystal clear.

The only downside was the waves. At first you’re lying in your tent thinking “oh this is lovely, hearing the waves as they gently crash against the shore” and then an hour later you think “oh my gosh, waves can you please shut up!” We also had a storm roll in which was a little scary but no rain actually fell. Just huge bursts of lightning and thunder for maybe 30 minutes. I would not have traded those views for a silent night though.

July 23 – Day 3, the Big Carp River trail, another long day with a literal uphill battle. I like to save what I think will be the best views for the last days, when you’re tired and you don’t really want to hike anymore but then, bam, those views make it all worth it. Day 3 did not disappoint. We had a few more river crossings but by far the difficulty came in the elevation gain. The Big Carp River trail ends at Lake of the Clouds and you have to hike up up up to get here.

We picked campsite ES-2 and though it was fine I would absolutely recommend sites BC-1, 2, or 3 as they are right near the edge of the cliffside (not unsafely near) and still away from most foot traffic. Our site was right on a busy trail but with no view. It’s very busy at the Lake of the Clouds Overlook since there is a parking lot about a quarter of a mile from the overlook but that was about the only busy area we came across.

We hiked around 9.5 miles with an additional few miles back down to Lake of the Clouds to fill our water; I recommend filling while you’re still near the Big Carp River, the Lake of the Clouds water is super gross and took a long time to filter. It was an exhausting day and with just one last day to go we went to bed super early to get an early start.

July 24 – Last Day! With just 4 miles back to the car we started our day just at sunrise and it was lovely. The last leg was down (and sometimes up and then back down again) the Escarpment trail. If you were to only do one trail I’d choose this one. With sweeping views of the lake and river running mostly along the cliffside it’s just beautiful. We made it back to our cars fairly quickly and said our goodbyes. Until next time friends.

Dogs, Hiking, Travel

Devil’s Lake

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Devil’s Lake

The dreaded July 4th, where our neighborhood exhales the sounds of war and Franklin cowers under a table for weeks at a time. While we can’t leave Chicago for the whole month of July–that’s how long the fireworks persist–we can leave for the long weekend and what better place to enjoy the silence than a little town outside of Madison.

We have a backpacking trip coming up and needed to get in as many straight days of hiking as possible to get some training in. We started set off early, as we usually do, to drive up to the Brooklyn Wildlife segment of the Ice Age Trail. We hiked 9 miles and it was horrible. The trail was insanely overgrown in most places with briars and thorns, the mosquitoes were the worst I’ve ever experienced (see photo below of me whipping my hair around to try to keep them off me), and though he had plenty of water Franklin got overheated which was a little scary but he came out fine. Still we made the best of it and certainly earned our showers and soft beds.

The next day we headed to Devil’s Lake State Park. It was a much nicer day and though it was hot we thought Franklin could swim from the dog beach areas if he got overheated. We were wrong, as soon as we go there we saw warning signs for “swimmers itch” I’d never heard of it so we did a quick search and it’s parasites that get under your skin and cause a rash. Yuck! And it hurts dogs much worse than humans so no swimming for Franklin but luckily it was cool enough and Franklin had no problem with overheating.

We hiked up the East Bluff Trail from the south which means a decent elevation gain with some rock scrambling. I love this trail, we’d done it once before and even though there’s no real risk–the trail is well maintained and they’ve built decent stairs from the rocks–it feels rugged.

Since it was a holiday weekend the park was fairly busy but we made the best of it and hiked around maybe 6 or 7 miles.

On our last day we wanted to get another long hike in so we started out in Madison and hiked the Capital City trail to the Capital Springs Dog Park, one of the largest dog parks we’ve ever seen. The trail is meant for bikers and we saw a few but since it was a grey day and had rained most of the morning it was fairly desolate. It’s a relatively boring trail along a mostly industrial area but it served us well for training. See you later Wisconsin!

Camping, Dogs, Hiking

Ludington State Park

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Ludington State Park

Fall camping trip! Just about every fall we meet up with our Michigan friends for a quick weekend camping trip. This year we visited Ludington State Park and it did not disappoint.

The perfect blend of forest terrain and sandy beaches Ludington is a great end of summer spot. This one falls under the “small adventures” category so there’s little to tell but we stayed at Cedars Campground, which is where most trails begin so we would just pick a direction and off we went!

The only trail I know we took is the Lighthouse trail which follows the dunes along Lake Michigan. We had a great time and I’m sure we’ll visit again.