Cenotes exist all over the Yucatan Peninsula. A cenote (pronounced “sen-NO-tay”) is a sinkhole that formed when limestone bedrock collapsed and exposed groundwater below. They are typically quite beautiful and popular tourist destinations in Mexico. Locals also love to go to them to cool down from the hot Mexican sun.
Cozumel has one accessible cenote: Jade Cenote. Jade Cenote is located in a small, historic Mayan town called El Cedral. To access, you must take a tour or pay a fee to enter and explore on your own.
I found my way in by motorbike to check it out. The experience didn’t take long. I managed to avoid the crowds, and I got to see the cenote for what it is: Not exactly the one you want to swim in!
The Santa Elena Cloud Forest is a magical hiking experience. It’s a cheaper, less touristy departure from the nearby Monteverde Cloud Forest entrance. I was able to walk the trails in near solitude and silence aside from the chirping birds and creaking trees.
What I loved about this reserve was its manicured trails depicted on a clear map from which you could choose your own adventure. Not a lot of time? You can pick a shorter path and b-line it for the observation tower for the best views in the park. More time? Take the longer route along Caño Negro.
With the beautiful canopy above, cool mountain air, I was easily enchanted by this place. The views of Arenal mountain on this fairly clear day were the cherry on top!
Did I want to fly over the Costa Rican cloud forest like superman? Absolutely, yes! This is why I came to Monteverde, Costa Rica—the adventure capital of the country. I was there to experience the longest zipline in Latin America from the unique angle of head first.
I’ve never done a major ziplining experience before—just shorter single ones back in the USA. I wanted to experience more beautiful rainforest but from a different perspective and with the adrenaline kick that ziplining provides. What I wasn’t expecting was the giant swing into the canopy below at the end. Yikes!
I did it anyway, in honor of my last swing in New Zealand almost 10 years prior. Overall, my zip-line experience with 100% Aventura was amazing—fast-paced, thrilling, and, most importantly, safe! And I got it all on video.
While visiting Orlando for a conference, I decided to take a little detour for a nature fix. Wekiwa Springs State Park is one of many parks with springs in the area surrounding Orlando. It looked like the perfect place to enjoy a couple of hours in the sun.
This park has much to do including camping, swimming, kayaking, and what I decided to do on my trip—get lost hiking!
Well, I didn’t exactly get lost, but I did end up going down a trail that was once a trail but is no longer! I went literally off the beaten path. Oops! I guess Google maps isn’t always the most accurate about its park trails.
Back in late October, before the omicron COVID-19 variant was in the news, I took a 3-day trip out to Colorado. I had 2 goals while there—to spend time with my bestie, Dasha, and to hike some mountains!
I have absolutely no mountains close by to hike in Miami. So Dasha and I chose a hike that would take us to about 10,000 feet in elevation and end with two gorgeous mountain lake views.
This hike took me higher than my hike up Mount Ngauruhoe (aka Mount Doom) in New Zealand! While, I hiked Hunter Mountain in New York back in August, this was going to be my first time hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park.
My friend recently asked me this question. I decided to create a post around my answer.
This is one of those “into my brain” posts. It’s different from my posts on How to Decide Where to Travel—The Practical Deviation and How to Decide Where to Travel—The Personal Deviation. This one is more process-based, where you get to see how my brain works when I start planning for travel. It’s also based on what I do now as a short-term travel soloist.
My process now is budget-based and interest-based with a final look at safety. I have to admit, it’s something I’ve been doing a lot throughout the pandemic. I look up destinations and plan trips I can’t go on yet. Sounds a bit sad writing it like that but this has actually helped me get through this long period of no travel. Now I have several trips in mind, ready to be booked when the time feels right!
I had a wedding to attend in the Catskill Mountains of New York a couple of week ago. On my way there, I decided to stop for a little hike up Hunter Mountain.
I didn’t realize at the time how intense this hike would really be. While incredibly strenuous, it was exactly what my body craved after months on end living at near sea level in Florida.
In this post, I describe the entire hike from start to finish, including some info and tips to having a great experience!
After a morning at Myakka park, I was ready to get in the water!
Kayaking was on the schedule next. This would be my 2nd adventure on the 3rd day of my Gulf Coast trip. I was excited to experience what Sarasota Bay had to offer in the way of mangroves!
This time I would get to be physically distant by not socially distant. My friend was coming in from Orlando to join me on this adventure. We indulged in much-needed friend time while remaining responsible outdoors and with masks.
The mangroves in Sarasota Bay turned out to be the best I’ve ever experienced! We had an amazing time exploring them and having some wonderful laughs as friends.
I found my way to Saratoga county for day 3 of my trip on Florida’s Gulf Coast. I started my day off with a visit to Myakka River State Park.
I became a little obsessed with wooden observation towers in parks after visiting Tree Tops park in Davie, Florida a few weeks before. The observation tower there was so cool that I started searching Florida for other structures like it.
This research brought me to Myakka. This enormous park had so much to explore that, while I went to see the park’s famous canopy walkway, I stayed for its other features.
Society has changed drastically in only a few short weeks. We all now need to reduce our contact with other people in order to “flatten the curve,” or lessen the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In this moment, I am focused on protecting my mental health and encouraging others to do the same. We can do this by eating healthy, going for walks, or socializing with friends and family over WhatsApp video. These are some of the things I have been doing recently to stay centered and healthy.
But I also realized early on that this situation is completely conducive to my solo travel lifestyle. Solo adventuring is not canceled! Nature is not canceled! And kayaking with manatees is definitely not canceled! In this post, I tell my story about hitting the water less than 2 weeks ago to socialize with manatees instead of people.
There's nothing like spending time with a close friend in a new city and seeing new sights together.
For the last 2 days of my trip to visit Dasha in Denver, I saw psychedelic art, celebrated her birthday with more of her friends, and explored some iconic parts of the Denver area.
We visited the Natura Obscura art exhibit, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, and checked out a little western mining town called Golden. Read on to hear about and see all that we did before I departed back to New York!
You know what's awesome? Having friends as adventurous as I am—friends who aren't afraid to travel across the country to try on a new lifestyle. That's what my friend Dasha did over a year ago when she moved to Denver, CO.
A hiker like me, Dasha left her Brooklyn life seeking higher elevations. When I visited for her birthday weekend back in April, I had the privilege of experiencing some of Denver's gorgeous mountain views.
We also had the chance to explore a bit of Denver's nightlife and restaurants. I did a ton with Dasha in just the first 24 hours in Denver—but there's more! This 3 day weekend in Denver is in 2 parts. Here is part 1...ready, set, go!
Curaçao has plenty of calm, clear water and beautiful, sandy beaches flanked by sheer cliff walls and sea caves.
But that's the southern side of the island. Travel to the north side and craggy, rocky shores, rough waters, and natural blowholes make up the scenery.
With all the snorkeling I did, I really appreciated mixing things up to see natural attractions at Watamula Hole and Shete Boka National park.
A major reason why I chose to visit Curaçao is Mt. Christoffel. Curaçao is the only island in this part of the Caribbean that has a true mountain hiking experience.
Mt. Christoffel, also known as Christoffelberg, is a short but challenging hike with satisfying, 360-degree views from the top. I loved this hike and the views so much I spent a ton of time at the top taking it all in.
In this post, I give the complete breakdown of how to make this hike happen in the best way. From the best time to go to how long it'll take you, this is my hiking story and your guide to climbing the highest peak in Curaçao.
The last time I posted about a hike in upstate New York it was when I hiked Stissing Mountain. That was shortly after I returned form the trip around the world. Since then, I have been meaning to hike more around my hometown area.
The day after Thanksgiving, my sister-in-law, Kate, and I decided to digest our turkey and stuffing with a local hike! I searched for a hike with the following features: in the Dutchess County region, challenging enough to burn some significant calories, short enough to accomplish in a few hours, and able to deliver some spectacular views.
Brace Mountain (2,316 ft) matched all my criteria! And it was a beautiful, late autumn day for a hike.
In February of 2014, I visited Maui for my best friend Erin's wedding. Three years later, I am currently traveling around Oahu! I am super excited to have the opportunity to explore another Hawaiian Island this week.
So, in anticipation of sharing my Oahu adventures on the blog, I wanted to take a look back at the experience I had in Maui. I was maid of honor at the time, so I was mostly busy helping out with the wedding. But, in between wedding plans, I had the opportunity to see a lot of the island. I drove the road to Hana, swam in a waterfall, drove up a volcano, hiked a bamboo forest, explored caves, went whale watching, attended a Hawaiian luau, and lots more.
It was during a time before I had my nicer camera, but I still took tons of photos with my Windows Phone and received some great shots from the friends I was with. Regardless, this photo-centric post will show you what Maui is like and the types of activities that can be enjoyed on a Hawaiian vacation.
The USA continues to surprise me with its natural beauty, innovative architecture, and multiculturalism. The Parthenon and its surrounding park in Nashville, Tennessee are perfect examples of all three of these.
The Parthenon is a replica of ancient Greek ruins still found in Athens today.
But you don't have to fly all the way across the Atlantic to see what remains of it! Head to Music City in the USA and make a detour to Centennial Park to find a replica of the construction as it would have appeared over 2400 years ago.
I've decided to hold off on writing more about Nashville this week in order to honor the bison. If you haven't heard, President Obama signed a bill this past Monday to make the bison America's first national mammal!
I was lucky enough to see this incredible beast (and over 40 of its bison friends) roam the open prairie one state over from Tennessee last month. We saw them while on a day trip to Land Between the Lakes which stretches across the border into Kentucky.
A two-hour road trip outside Nashville brought us across the border for a very close encounter with these historic symbols of strength and intimidation. Let me say that again: A very close encounter. I'll let you decide for yourself just how close you would get!
Fremont, California's popular hike to Mission Peak boasts gorgeous views over Silicon Valley and the Bay Area. The mostly exposed trail rises steadily through cattle farms before reaching the summit. There, a summit pole doubles as an art piece and artifact emphasizing environmental and social awareness.
I had never hiked to Mission Peak before, but my best friend has made it her yearly ritual ever since she moved to the area from New York. This time, we would hike to Mission Peak together. With me at the close of my travels and her at 6-months pregnant—we were both celebrating milestones in our lives and preparing for the next chapter to come.
Have you been following along with all of my Niue posts? If you have, then by now you know Niue has some seriously unique geography. Niue is a coral atoll in the middle of the South Pacific. It withstands the beating of ocean waves against its limestone shores resulting in some truly stunning coastal rock formations.
During my time in Niue, I had the chance to venture out and explore some of the island’s most famous natural geographical wonders. I also stumbled upon a few lesser known, but equally as beautiful locations. Whether hiking through the jungle, strolling down sea tracks, or biking across the entire island, I trekked my way across the bumpy “Rock of Polynesia” only to be wowed again and again.
