Alistair Humphreys, author and adventurer, tells a story about the moment he realized that his galavanting around the world was taking a toll on his family life. If he wanted to be present in the life of his two sons and his wife, he would have to give up his epic adventure to the South…
Three days in the saddle, you know my body hurt.. – Me and My Uncle, The Grateful Dead My motorcycle is cooling in the garage, windscreen marbled with a smorgasbord of bug guts. The summit conference I am returning from is fading away like Interstate 40 in my rearview mirror. The three aluminum cases I…
#1. Traveler Tip: Stash Money in An Empty Pen (and Then Hang on to That Pen) From Instructables (via Lifehacker) comes this handy tip – use an old pen barrel as a makeshift money safe. It’s a clever idea…except that success hinges on a second tip that isn’t included in the Instrucable – how to find a missing pen.…
Are you feeling the effects of Spring Fever yet? The Art of Manliness has a quick gear roundup to help you pack for a warm weather getaway. The guide includes links to Apolis, United by Blue and other adventure wear makers, via Huckberry. Also check out How to Build a Travel Capsule Wardrobe and…
Tom Stienstra picks ten of his favorite San Francisco bay-area outdoor locations for travelers who want to experience California’s uncharacteristically lush spring this year. In this case “bay-area” is a metonymy for “Northern California”. Stienstra’s list includes: Yosemite Valley waterfalls Shasta Lake Tahoe, Heavenly’s Skyline Trail Santa Cruz Mountains, Silver Falls/Golden Cascade North Sierra foothills, Feather…
Who plans a crummy vacation? If you’re like most people you check out the travel guides, Google the internets and browse through the Pinterests looking for the best places to vacation. That kind of thinking is only going to leave you disappointed. Instead I say shoot for the worst travel destinations and if they turn…
Our recent trip to Colorado was…well it got off to a bumpy start. Hertz rent-a-car was short 200 cars, there was a 3 hour wait – during which time NO HERTZ EMPLOYEE ACKNOWLEDGED THE SITUATION OR SPOKE TO CUSTOMERS IN LINE, when we finally talked to an agent we discovered we had booked our reservation…
I used to go backpacking with a friend who was kind of a schlump in daily life but on the trail he was in prefect control. His backpack was amazingly organized – everything had its place. When he needed anything it was instantly at his fingertips. I made a vow, “someday, somehow, I’m going to…
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. That’s how Hunter Thompson put it. My plan for 2010 is to see how many destinations I can reach that are listed in Weird California: Your Travel Guide to California’s Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets
Back to the Raddison for dinner. Someone in our party spotted Martin Sheen at our hotel, rumor is that he lives in Galway part of the year and goes to university. The lobby was full of Australian football players, in town for the anual Irish/Aussie grudge match of International Rules football. The Aussies stayed up…
By all appearances Williamstown is a typical Irish farming community. The population is about 300. The town consists mainly of three pubs, each next door to the other, and a church across the street. What’s different about Williamstown is that two of the three pubs are up for sale while the church is undergoing a…
People tell you how green Ireland is, but they’re only telling you half the story. You never hear how brown the countryside is, grass turned to rust by the high iron content of the soil. Even the fresh mountain streams run a kind of gunmetal color with yellow foam breaking around the rocks. Some places…
Feck (pronounced “fake” or “fehk” in Irish) is an acceptable word in mixed company, whereas fuck (pronounced “fook”) is vulgar. Feck is an obscure word, meaning something in the neighborhood of “forceful.” The word feckless means the opposite–weak and impotent. Just don’t overuse feck or feckin’…especially not around a crowd of native Esperanto speakers or…
It didn’t take long for this group to find itself in a pub in Galway. The pub was The Quays (pronounced like “keys” and rhymes in Irish poetry with “today’s” and “always.”) The decor of this pub is one part Gothic cathedral and one part shipwreck. Colored glass blocks are set in the floor and…
We reached Ireland in the dark before the dawn, flying over the towns of Doonaha, Kittish, Knock and Kilmurry McMahon. The little villages looked like light-up models of neurons–a central nucleus with branches in five or seven directions, connected to other village neurons by a ganglia of early morning motor cars. I imagined a parade…
