Sadly, I think it’s time for this site to come to an end. I’m getting a tad teary eyed, but I think it’s a good move. I have migrated all the content from this site to michael.blog and will update that more regularly. My adventures are far from over and I’ll continue to share them on […]
Category: Exploring
Ghost towns, mountain passes, a wildfire, and a Corgi
Obviously, I have to lead with the picture of Pueblo the Corgi. I mean look at this little buddy! Last weekend, right after the Fjallraven Classic USA, Keya and I met our friends, Veronica and Evan, near Jefferson. Then we headed up some mountain passes to find ghost towns! We started on Boreas Pass on […]
Fjallraven Classic USA 2018
Well, we did it. Thirty miles in three days on the Colorado trail. Beau already did a great writeup of last year’s Fjallraven Classic USA. Definitely give it a read if you are interested. Some notes from my experience: I packed light opting for the (not super comfy) bivy sack instead of a tent. Because we […]
Grays and Torreys
Keya, Zag and I did our first 14ers of the year. Despite having never done a 14er before, Zag did the best of all of us.
An attempt at shorter posts
My posts tend to either be super long, filled with tons of pictures, or both. I’m going to try something new. For the next few weeks, I’m going to try exclusively posting from my phone which should help break up content a bit as well as keep it on the shorter side. The first series […]
Under the ledge
Last weekend we headed down into the Canyonlands in Utah. It is one of my very favorite places to be and one of the most pristine environments I have experienced. Where we went is definitely the road less traveled. In fact, it’s impossible to get to for most vehicles. Usually, it’s super photogenic, but it […]
2017: My year in photos
It’s been too long since I posted. Much has happened and maybe I’ll get to posting, but for now, here’s 200+ of my favorite photos this year. Let me know what you think! The travel photos made possible because my employer, Automattic, is fully remote. We’re hiring! You can also check out my photos from […]
Heading to BC
Last year Stephane and I took our Jeeps from Montreal to Whistler. This year we met up in Calgary and have about a week to get there. This means we’re taking the scenic route. We also have additional adventurers. Keya and my dog, Zag, are making the trek with us! Follow our progress here.
Cactus Consequences: Ojo Caliente, Sante Fe, and Albuquerque
Ojo Caliente During our stop in Ojo Caliente, we headed up the road behind the hot springs and found some nice gnarly roads to bike on with Zag. We ended up by a neat mica mine. I had never seen mica grow that thick before. Zag also got a couple minor lessons about what cactus […]
Highlights: Colorado Springs, Buena Vista, UFO Watchtower
Colorado Springs Keya, Zag, and I headed down to Colorado Springs to visit my sister, Kristen. She took us on a hike in the Red Rock Canyon Open space. It’s a beautiful meandering set of loops that can be extended if your group is up for it. It looks like the open space would be […]
Buckskin Gulch
About a month ago, Keya and I hopped into my Jeep and headed down to Buckskin Gulch. Buckskin Gulch is the longest slot canyon in the USA and runs into the Paria river. It’s located on the border of Utah and Arizona. Getting to it can be done in any vehicle since most of the […]
The UFO Watchtower and the Great Sand Dunes
Keya and I headed south to check out the Great Sand Dunes National Park a couple weeks ago. On the way, Keya asked if I had been to the “alien place” near the dunes. There is no better way to peak my interest than by mentioning aliens. While I was driving, she loaded up the website […]
The Maze
Last weekend, Keya and I went on a bit of an expedition down into the Maze District in the Canyonlands. It was unbelievable. If you’re thinking about going, you’ll probably want a pretty high clearance vehicle, as much water as you can carry, a few good maps, and maybe some extra gas. It’s pretty dang […]
Colorado photo dump
I’ve been a bit radio silent on this blog, so here are a bunch of photos and a little about what I’ve been up to. Steamboat Oh, and Joshua brought his nifty drone with us when we went snowshoeing and cut together this quick video. Mathews-Winters Open Space Copper Mountain Eldorado Canyon Breckenridge Switzerland Trail […]
Home sweet boat in Amsterdam
Several weeks ago, I was looking for a place for Jeff, Rick, and me to stay in. I jokingly suggested we stay in a houseboat, but in the end we decided against it thinking there just wouldn’t be enough space. Instead, I found a nice looking place for a reasonable price. They both took a look at […]
Down the west coast – part 2
Okay. It’s time to continue from where I left off in part 1 post Damascus, OR. Cannon Beach to North Bend I drove up from Damascus to Cannon beach to get some lunch and wander further down the coastal highway. I ended up stopping and camping near the Oregon dunes. It was a bit rainy so I […]
Down the west coast – part one
Earlier this year I drove from Tofino on Vancouver Island all the way down the coast to San Diego. I took the coastal highways most of the way going back and forth between the 101 and the 1. I tried to stay as close to the coast as possible from Canon Beach all the way […]
My best photos from 2016
Here are my favorite photos from my travels this year. Not all are the best, but I think I caught a few gems. I recommend opening the gallery and just scrolling through. They should all have a comment and location. Let me know what you think!
Surfing in Tofino
A few weeks ago, I made the journey up to Vancouver Island. I had heard some great things about Tofino, a small surf town with legendary tacos. With no prep and on a whim I departed. Google said it would take me around five hours to get from where I was staying near Squamish to […]
Trans-Canada adventure part two
Sorry about the delay, folks. I’ve been pretty dang busy the past several weeks and this post is long overdue. I am currently writing this at a friend’s beautiful goat farm near Portland Oregon. Time for part two of this little adventure. For those of you who missed it, here’s part one. So there we […]
Trans-Canada adventure part one
I’m sitting in a coffee shop in Horseshoe Bay waiting for the ferry to take my Jeep and me to Vancouver Island. A little over two weeks ago, I left on a trek from Montreal, QC all the way to Whistler, BC. According to my trip meter, we travelled about 5,800 kilometers (3,600 miles). We […]
The Trans-Canada Adventure kickoff
After months of preparation, Stephane Daury and I are heading out in our Jeeps across Canada. We have left Montreal and are heading all the way to Whistler via the TCAT (Trans-Canada Adventure Highway) and some of the main highways. The TCAT is a trail mapped all the way from coast to coast across Canada […]
Follow our adventure across Canada
Stephane and I will be leaving on Wednesday on a trip that will take us on and off road all the way from Montreal, Quebec to Whistler, BC. I’ll be using the tracking feature of my Spot device to show where we are in real time (pretty cool). There are some limitations, but the gist […]
Last Weekend: A fair adventure in Hudson, NY
When I left for Hudson, I didn’t really know what to expect. All the information I had on it was an address for my friends house. I didn’t know I was in for one heck of a great weekend. Before I left Massachusetts, I headed into Boston to meet Mel and Kelly at the best […]
Backpacking on Mount Carrigain
On Wednesday morning, the Golenski’s and I headed up to New Hampshire’s White Mountain National Forest. We gathered up everything we needed or wanted to backpack up to the top of Mount Carrigain. The hike up is a bit over five miles, but has an elevation gain of around 3,300 feet, most of which starts […]
Fall River mountain biking
This morning I headed with Jeff Golenski to the second quarry I’ve visited in the last few weeks in two different states with two different modes of transportation. To put that in perspective, I can’t recall going to any quarries before these two. We ended riding 15.5 miles in about two hours. It wasn’t particularly hard, […]
Atlanta, Durham, Philly, and Little Compton
I’m a bit behind, but I wanted to get a quick post up on these places I visited two weeks ago while I was making my way up to Maine. It’s been a whirlwind. Here we go! Atlanta, GA I stayed with a good friend of mine in Atlanta and holy smokes was it a nice […]
Seven cities in seven days
Last weekend feels like a month ago. I started in Twin Falls, Montana on Saturday and in seven days made it all the way to Memphis, Tennessee on Friday. while staying in a different city each night. The cities Saturday night: Twin Bridges, Montana I had been staying in Twin Bridges when in Montana. I […]
Montana
Last week, I had the fortune of spending a week on a ranch near Twin Bridges, Montana. It is an incredible and beautiful ranch right on the Big Hole River. Oh, and I had absolutely no internet or cell reception on the ranch. 📵 We took two days to get there so we could drive up […]
Goodbye, Colorado
Well, it’s finally happening! Today the real nomading begins. I’m heading out today to Yellowstone and then on to Montana. After that, I head east! 😀 This is where things get interesting. I won’t have as many people around me to lean on for places to stay or to hang out with. I’m think I’m pretty well prepared for it […]
Last weekend: The ghost towns, Animas Forks, Carson, and Old Carson
Last weekend, my friends and I went to Lake City Colorado to visit some 👻 ghost towns 👻! We took my Jeep because the roads up are fairly rough (and super fun). This time I took a few more photos to document the place. We took Cinnamon Pass up all the way to Animas Forks. Then, we made our […]