My first time in New Zealand, I gave myself one week on the North Island, solo, before meeting a friend for ten days on the South Island and starting my contract at Cloudy Bay. Spoiler alert: it is nowhere near enough. Out of everything I squeezed into that week, the Coromandel is the one I…
I get asked this a lot, and I always give the same annoying answer at first: it depends. But that’s a lazy answer, so here is the honest version. I follow the harvests. One hemisphere, then the other, season after season, with a backpack that is always slightly too heavy and a camera that has…
We landed in Honolulu on December 31st, on an interisland flight from Big Island, with one tent, all the camping gear and 2 huge bags. We left 11 days later having spent 600 dollars each, and having slept in a rental car three separate nights. One of those nights, the police woke us up. I’ll…
Everything you need to know for the Marcadau valley and Cardinquère loop from Cauterets: where to park, what to pack, where we slept, and how the trail actually unfolds. Key Info at a Glance Distance 22 km loop Duration About 6 hours of walking Difficulty Hard Elevation gain 1,133 m Type Loop, through the valley…
Mexico taught me a few lessons I really wish I’d known before landing in Sayulita. Nothing dramatic, nobody got hurt, but a few of these mexico travel mistakes cost us days of stress and a fair amount of walking around in circles looking for cash. So here they are, the five things I learned the…
If you’ve never heard of Nusa Lembongan, or you’ve only heard of it as “the island next to Nusa Penida,” let me stop you right there, because this little place deserves its own story. This Nusa Lembongan guide covers everything I wish I knew before going, how to get there, where to stay, what to…
A first hand guide to the south of Redwood National Park, from the Avenue of the Giants to the best short hikes, based on our trip from Napa Valley. We visited Redwood National Park during our wine harvest season in Napa Valley, over the long Thanksgiving weekend in 2025. It’s about a 5 hour drive…
This is everything I wish I’d known before the Isthmus Peak hike near Wanaka, starting with what time to actually leave the car park. Isthmus Peak sits between Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea, and it is basically Roys Peak’s quieter, less Instagrammed sibling. Same kind of climb, same kind of view over two lakes at…
Everything you need to know for the Cirque de Gavarnie hike : from the UNESCO status and the best time to go, to parking, where to sleep, and how the trail actually unfolds. Where Is the Cirque de Gavarnie The Cirque de Gavarnie sits deep in the Hautes-Pyrénées, right on the border with Spain, inside…
In this post, you’ll learn where to get your PADI Open Water Certification in Bali, which dive center to pick, how many days and dives the training takes, and how much it actually costs. I’ve always wanted to dive. I’d already done two intro dives back home in France, in the Mediterranean, but I wanted…