We’d done a fair bit of single-day hiking throughout New England, and even a few multi-day, assisted by the AMC mountain huts, but we had the opportunity to visit one of the kids in a study-abroad program, so it seemed only natural to explore trekking in the Jungfrau. This was our first multi-day trekking adventure, which means we were unprepared, didn’t know how to pack well, and were set to make all sorts of novice mistakes. All that said, itRead More →

With one of the kids studying abroad in Italy, it seemed like a great opportunity to plan a trip to coincide with their time there, time to visit a bit of time for ourselves – to see the countryside and get in some more trekking. Our trip started with a weekend in Tuscany, centered in Arezzo. From there, we headed to the Ligurian Peninsula and Cinque Terre for some time exploring the 5 towns. On the trailing weekend, we headedRead More →

Having done a few international multi-day trekking adventures, it was time to explore some of the US national parks. Of course, there are many choices – we chose the Tetons and Yellowstone both because of their remoteness and because neither of us had been in that part of the country. We were certainly not disappointed! Getting there was a multi-flight adventure to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, followed by a drive to Grand Teton National Park, enabling a first taste of theRead More →

As we continued to stretch our legs and explore other parts of the country and the world, we wanted to explore a bit of the west coast. With our nephew in San Diego, we thought a visit there, combined with some time in Yosemite might “tick a few of the boxes”. And tick it did – it turned out to be an amazing adventure, offering a bit of time to explore San Diego and experience the very “SoCal” vibe andRead More →

After our wonderful experience with a multi-day trek in the Jungfrau region, and some US-based adventures, we wanted to branch out a bit more. Of course, many hear of Machu Pichu, though we also hear of crowds and such – not our thing. We also heard of Patagonia – no, not the apparel brand – the region in southern Chile. Some research led to Torres del Paine, a Chilean national park – and further research suggested it fit right inRead More →

Coming off our amazing adventure in Patagonia, we wanted to explore more of the US national parks. We’d already explored the Tetons, Yellowstone, and Yosemite – it seemed time to explore some parks in the southwest. Zion seemed to fit right in – easy access from Phoenix – and lots of big sky! Our original plan was Zion and Sedona (because we always like to add a bit of front-country/civilization to our hiking adventures). Interestingly, Bryce wasn’t part of theRead More →

As an avid follower of the Tour de France, one can’t help but be a bit awe struck by the Pyrenees. Combine that with our love of hiking and it’s a winning combination. It was while we were in the Jungfrau – our first international hiking adventure – we first heard of the GR10. As it turns out, these Grande Randonnee (GR), are scattered through Europe and, of course, in France. We chose to do a section of the GR10,Read More →

Recently, we had the opportunity to travel to Colorado Springs – a friend was getting married.  We couldn’t make that wedding date, so we decided to visit separately and add a few days of hiking – weather permitting and all. There are those who might argue that hiking the 14ers is the pinnacle of hiking (Dad joke!) here in the states – whether you believe that or not,  we don’t want to debate – we had two glorious days of hikingRead More →

As we continued to get more skilled in longer distance trekking and adventures, we sought more “interesting” locations. New Zealand claims and supports a number of “great walks“. Not unlike trekking in Europe and elsewhere, these are long distance trails, interspersed with overnight huts, maintained by their Department of Conservation. These Great Walks became the planning centerpiece for our adventure to New Zealand – a substantial undertaking, not the least because of the travel distance. In addition to our NewRead More →

Breaking our tradition of active vacations/holidays – to celebrate a milestone birthday, this adventure was more tranquil, but no less breathtaking in its natural wonder and rustic charm. We traveled to St. John, US Virgin Islands. The island itself isn’t very large, not much more than 10 miles across. We’d found a cute villa on a hillside on the “sleepy” side of St. John – overlooking Coral Bay. It’s an island, so pretty much if you don’t bring it there,Read More →

Trekking in the Dolomites – the Italian Alps – should be on everyone’s bucket list! It’s just that good. Ok, maybe not everyone’s list, but certainly on every hiker’s bucket list. Arguably, one of the world’s most beautiful and accessible regions for single day and multi-day adventures, as well as the Dolomiti Superski region (12 ski resorts, 1,200km of trails, one pass!). For our adventure, we settled on a section of the Alta Via 1 – one of the long-distanceRead More →

One of Jeanne’s favorite Yoga instructors was hosting a yoga retreat in Costa Brava – a resort-ish area on Spain’s mediterranean coast just a few hours north of Barcelona. And since she was traveling, it seemed only natural to tack on a bit of trekking fun. We’d certainly enjoyed our adventure in the Pyrenees, so Andorra caught our eye as yet another area to explore with some amazing hiking. We were not disappointed. And, as we customarily do, we coupledRead More →

We already had a major trip planned for 2024 – our Canadian Rockies and the “third time’s the charm” trip – so we were looking for something without a big travel investment yet with big “wow” factor. Acadia National Park was perfect! With Acadia being relatively close by – we didn’t need to get on a plane – it provided plenty of variety and beauty to tickle our hiking and outdoors “habits”. Our home base was a little cottage onRead More →

They say, the third time is the charm – so it is for us and the Canadian rockies. We had first planned this trip for September, 2020. We all remember what happened in 2020 – of course, it didn’t happen. So we replanned for September, 2021. Nope, we weren’t quite out of the woods (though we DID make it to Canada, just not the way we expected). In 2024, we FINALLY made it to the Canadian Rockies, though even thatRead More →

We wanted someplace warm. Living on the east coast, first to mind coast was the Caribbean. Visits to AirBnB, VRBO, and Booking led to many hotel-ish / resort-ish kinda options – not the experience we were looking for. There were some hits for multi-bedroom places, though those came higher prices – again, not quite fitting what we were looking for. Neighbors talked about their visits to Costa Rica making it sound as if it checked many of the boxes –Read More →

We had both recently and FINALLY ( ! ) retired. To celebrate, we wanted to do something special and memorable. We were also coming up on our 10th wedding anniversary. For us, one of our favorite cities is Paris (what’s not to love?!) – so it was an easy choice to visit Europe – and we thought, tool around Europe like a few college kids – Eurail pass and all, though minus the backpacks and some of the financial restrictions.Read More →

Due to a bit of shenanigans with JetBlue, we ended up with $1,500 of travel credits which needed to be used within the year – creating an opportunity to explore. Having tasted the pacific northwest and Olympia National Park as part of our Canadian Rockies adventure. We decided to explore a bit more – settling on a road trip exploring Oregon and northern California – and including Mt. Hood national forest, Crater Lake national park, the state and national RedwoodRead More →

We had won a silent auction for a three-night stay in Bar Harbor, making the perfect excuse to plan a trip northward. We’d already visited Acadia National Park a few years back, and we knew there was always more trails to explore. But we hadn’t been to the Canadian Maritimes – Nova Scotia and PEI – together, so it seemed a great opportunity to explore further. After some exploration, we settled on a road trip itinerary which began with theRead More →

While it hadn’t been on our bucket list (yes, we have a list), an international yoga retreat in the heel of Italy provided a great opportunity to visit and explore some more parts of Europe we hadn’t been – Greece was it. For many seeing and experiencing Greece, besides Athens, means visiting the Greek Islands in the Aegean Sea. For us and the balance of our trip, we wanted to experience Greece, yet we also wanted to avoid the crowdsRead More →

As it happened, we had two weddings show up on our calendar for October, 2026. Only a few weeks apart in Florida and Colorado, it seemed like a great opportunity to plan some vacation time AND snag a few of the National Parks along the way! While the Florida wedding was in the panhandle, extended family in Fort Myers gave us a great waypoint in a plan to visit the three national parks in south Florida – Everglades, Dry Tortugas,Read More →