It’s been almost 3 months since I posted original content on here, making it my longest break from blogging since I started The Open Road Before Me in 2011. There was good reason for that. April and May could best be described as a gauntlet, during which I decided to break my contract at Shane …
lake
Climbing Acatenango and Fuego Volcanoes
Mountains are the sirens of geologic formations — luring in adventurers and enthusiasts with a rugged beauty that draws a veil over the hazards they contain. Soaring altitudes, inclement weather, and unstable terrain… these things and more have wrought tragedy upon countless back-country explorers drawn inexorably towards the mountains. But there is one breed of …
REVIEW of Acacia Africa: Desert and Delta Express Tour
Last month, I got to fulfill a childhood dream and travel to southern Africa. My sister Alisha and friend Sejeong went with me, and after a great deal of research on Alisha’s part, we decided to make this journey with Acacia Africa. There were several reasons for choosing them. They have a reputation for sustainable, …
REVIEW of Acacia Africa: Desert and Delta Express TourRead More
The Great Pacific Northwest Road Trip
I love a good road trip. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of setting off to some distant place, knowing it will take you days to reach it, not knowing what adventures await you along the way. There are many reasons I enjoy living outside of the US, but few places can rival my homeland’s …
Game Drives in Etosha National Park with Acacia Africa
My interest in Namibia began with nature documentaries. For some reason, deserts fascinated me — I think it was the utter foreignness of it. I’d never seen a place that was seemingly so barren, so devoid of life. But I quickly learned that these dry places that seem so desolate on the surface can be …
Game Drives in Etosha National Park with Acacia AfricaRead More
Tales from the Watering Hole: My Stay at Elephant Sands
You are stuck inside the confines of a vehicle for most safari experiences, jostling for space with other tourists and using what wiggle room you have to get the best angle for your photography. That’s the norm. But there are some places where wildlife comes to you, and the barriers separating you are non-existent. Elephant …
Tales from the Watering Hole: My Stay at Elephant SandsRead More
Hike to Cutthroat Pass on the Pacific Crest Trail
September brings with it the end of summer, and with the end of this particular summer comes the last of this interlude in the PNW. It’s been a whirlwind of activity, with hikes all over the Chuckanut and Cascade ranges, as well as a ton of get-togethers with friends and family. This ritual of visiting …
Reasons to Visit Anacortes
Traveling from Seattle north along Interstate 5 will take you to Bellingham and eventually Vancouver in beautiful British Columbia. It’s a tempting bit of highway to breeze along, skipping all the drive-through towns in Snohomish and Skagit Counties for more intriguing destinations further north. You certainly could, but it would be a mistake. You’d miss …
Hiking to North Butte in the Chuckanuts
Summer is really the best time to visit the PNW, with the weather as good as it’ll get and the trails open for exploration. The North Cascades have some of the best hiking trails in the PNW — such as Heliotrope, or Lake 22 — but there are other destinations around Northwest Washington with much …
Hiking to Udziro Lake
My time in Georgia is drawing to an end. Three months, you might think, is sufficient time to spend in such a small country, but you’d be wrong. There are so many hikes I won’t have the time to do, so many places I won’t have the time to visit. All that means, though, is …