BACKPACK
My first experience living out of a backpack was on the Appalachian Trail, when I spent nearly 5 months lugging that pack from Georgia to Maine. Once I returned home I downsized my life, moving out of my apartment, donating my stuff, couch surfing with friends, and eventually moving into a Honda Element to start my VanLife.
Several years later I got back to living out of a backpack when I parked my VW campervan for the North American winter and packed my ULA Catalyst and flew to spend several months in South America traveling form hostel to hostel, town to town, and country to country carrying nothing but my backpack.
ALL BACKPACK ADVENTURES
Winter In Bali
The summer Alaskan adventure was in the rear-view... actually, the rear-view was in the rear-view... I met Lisa at Born To Run in May and somehow talked her into heading to Alaska with me in [...]
Camino de Santiago Packing List
I once heard an accomplished backpacker say that the the only thing he wished he'd taken on his last trip was less. I've learned over the years that the less I carry on my back, [...]
Hiking the Camino de Santiago – Camino Francés – Part 1
For my 30th birthday I ran 30 miles. For my 32nd birthday I ran 32 miles. For my 35th birthday I walked 500+ miles across Spain. I'm worried about turning 40... When I returned home [...]
Hiking the Camino de Santiago – Camino Francés – Part 2
Day 9 kicked off the second half of my Camino de Santiago hike along the French Way. In 8 days I'd covered 240 miles, and striking out before dawn that morning I had 240 miles [...]
Hiking the Camino de Santiago – Camino Finisterre – Part 3
I left Santiago de Compostela before dawn, following my headlamp through the suburbs. Since most pilgrims only go to Santiago I had the trail to myself. I hiked until noon, stopped for brunch and beer, [...]
Motorbiking Vietnam & Myanmar
River Trip 2017 was gonna be epic! We researched locations and picked the Red River through Vietnam from China to the South China Sea. We booked flights and purchased "Do It Yourself" inflatable pack raft [...]
Bike Tour – Uruguay
We had one week in Buenos Aires before our flight back to the United States and our "No Plan Plan" meant that we could do anything that would take about a week and keep our [...]
Bike Tour – Patagonia
I woke up in El Chaltén, fairly hungover from the previous day's liters of wine, and stumbled out of the bus terminal to this. The southern stretch of our Patagonia adventure would not include much [...]
Bike Tour – Carretera Austral
The sun peaked in through the opening in my sleeping bag as I heard something scavenging beneath me. I sat up in the cool air and startled the stray dog sniffing my saddle bags. I [...]
Bike Tour – Central Chile
Step 1: Register for Race Across America, the World's Toughest Bicycle Race Step 2: Train for Race Across America, the World's Toughest Bicycle Race Train? Oh yeah...well...can we at least make it an adventure? Let's [...]
Lima, Peru
After hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu I was looking forward to heading to the coast, slowing down, enjoying the beach, and catching up on work. Brandy and I landed in Lima, grabbed a [...]
Hiking The Inca Trail
Compared to the Appalachian Trail hiking the Inca Trail was like flying first class with a personal chef and a chauffeur to carry your stuff. Back on the Appalachian Trail a gourmet meal included cold [...]
Northern Peru
I climbed in a Volkswagen van, pulled the door shut, and settled in for the 6 hour ride to Peru. After backpacking South America for 2 months and I finally felt at home in a [...]
Vilcabamba
I checked into Hostería Izhcayluma and another traveler greeted me with "Hi, how long are you staying?" "Just two nights", I said. She replied, "Oh, good luck with that, you'll be here longer, this place [...]
Cuenca
After spending a week exploring the Galápagos Islands with my brother I was back to rolling solo. Tyler caught an early flight out of Guayaquil and I hopped on the 4:00 AM bus to Cuenca. [...]
Digital Nomad Packing List
If there is one thing that I learned from thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail, it's take less. I'd rather be underprepared than overpacked. Underprepared often results in temporary discomfort while overpacked is a constant pain in [...]
Galápagos Islands
It was a picture perfect day when we landed on San Cristóbal in the Galápagos Islands. Translucent blue water, sea lions lounging in the shade, marine iguanas swimming through the surf...yes, our home for the [...]
Montañita
After spending several weeks exploring the Andes and the Amazon, it was time to hit the beach. I took a bus to Guayaquil, stayed one night in the metropolis, and caught another 3 hour bus [...]
The Amazon
I spent my first 10 days in Ecuador living near 10,000 feet above sea level. I enjoyed the mountains, but it was time to get lower. I made my way to the bus station and [...]
Quito, Ecuador
The sun set over Miami, and when it rose again, I was in Ecuador. Modern travel is fast, efficient, and...unromantic. I would have preferred to earn my entry into South America the old fashioned way, [...]
I’m Moving To Ecuador
I listed 6 countries on a piece of paper and rolled a die...I'm moving to Ecuador! Let me explain... Since thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2012 I've been dreaming of living minimally, creating a [...]
Scott Jurek on the Appalachian Trail
When Luis Escobar asks "Do you want to do something epic?" you should either sit down, or run away. You never know what to expect. You might end up hitchhiking across Death Valley in 130 [...]
Adventures in Self-Publishing
Ever had a bad case of writers block? Yeah…well, that’s not what happened to me. After returning from my Appalachian Trail thru-hike I had no problem writing, proofing, and re-writing the books about my experience. [...]
Running Shoes – Brooks Cascadia
Strava keeps sending me emails. At first I thought it was nifty. You can document the shoes that you used for your run, you know, so other people could see what you’re running in. Silly? [...]
A Tribute To Kilimanjaro
Here is a tribute video to Kilimanjaro (aka Flosser, aka Brian Sarvis, aka Flossermnajaro-AT)...the man of many names... Kilimanjaro hiked with us for the first 700 miles of the Appalachian Trail before he headed home [...]