Travel Archives

A Road Trip Around Iceland’s Ring Road

May 17, 2024November 11, 2019 by needforreed

With the passage of time, small details leave me. Entire swaths of experiential minutia evaporate without me even noticing. I’m often left with the feeling of something having happened and having never happened. I don’t know if my mind has always been this way, or if my ability to metabolize experiences has changed over time.

In an effort to stave off the little bits of memory fluttering away, I try my best to jot down initial reactions and couple it with images that catch my eye. It takes me a while to properly process a journey, but I know I can’t wait forever to eke out a few mutterings. This is my version of a scratch in the tree bark to denote a time and place.

Iceland was such an immense experience. Lonely, powerful, bleak. There is a depth there that I haven’t felt elsewhere. The word is misused often, but Iceland is truly awesome. I’m thankful for the time I was able to spend there. The freedom to putter around and explore at my leisure was very much a gift.

Climbing Mount Rainier

October 29, 2023September 19, 2018 by needforreed

The initial seed that would lead me out to Mount Rainier was planted back in January 2018 by a conversation with a co-worker who shares a love of the outdoors. Upon actually trying to figure out what it would take to climb Rainier, I was quickly met with an impasse, as all guided trips for the 2018 season were already sold out. I tucked away my little mountaineering idea into the recesses of my brain, and merrily carried on with my mundane day-to-day for the next few months.

Flash forward to the very tail end of July 2018. My work situation had changed considerably, and I found myself in an NYC hotel room casually perusing various guided Rainier expedition websites (as one does in major metropolitan areas). That’s when I finally stumbled across the diamond in the rough. A spot had opened up on one of International Mountain Guide’s trips. I hastily made a few phone calls, filled out the appropriate paperwork, sent in my deposit, and in a matter of 24 hours realized I would soon be hucking myself at an active volcano at the end of August.

How to Hike Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park

October 29, 2023May 23, 2017 by needforreed

While traveling through the Patagonian region of South America, I encountered many a befuddled traveler who was a bit miffed by the planning process required to enter Torres del Paine National Park. I will go ahead and include myself in this stack of confused, well-intentioned hikers. For years I have fawned after photos of Torres del Paine, but it wasn’t until I actually started the process of researching how exactly to pull off a visit, did I meet the gut-sinking moment of “Oh, no. I’m too late.”

It’s really an awful feeling to have as a traveler. The stars have finally aligned in life, and you are on the cusp of departure, only to stumble across this one little detail that has the potential to derail everything. Reservations? You need reservations? I simply was unaware. Now, with that said, the 2016-2017 season is the first year to see the implementation of required reservations prior to entering the park. I was not the only one caught in the crosshairs of a new system.

Torres del Paine National Park is one of the premiere hiking destinations in all of South America, and with the influx of new visitors, restrictions on how many people can enter the park are being put into effect. It is understandable, and long term, definitely a good thing to protect the fragility of the park. I am hopeful that as word spreads, more travelers who wish to enter the park will be aware of the requirements, and less headaches will abound for everyone.

With that said, I was able to finagle dates in the tail end of February to make my “O” trek a reality. Below I’ve put together a guide that will hopefully streamline the leg work required to visit such an incredible destination. Take a gander, and hopefully it will allow you to spend less time planning, and more time enjoying your visit!

Getting Connected in Cuba

March 3, 2017 by needforreed

While standing in “line” to purchase an internet card, I was reminded that this particular arrangement of humans is but a distant figment of my imagination, in a different world. Here, the art of squashing together serves as both a defensive and offensive mechanism. By eliminating space between yourself and your neighbor, entry is prevented … Read more

To Awake Somewhere New: Trinidad, Cuba

October 29, 2023February 18, 2017 by needforreed

To awake somewhere new. A rooster crowing in the distance, horse hooves clop-clopping on the cobblestone streets, unfamiliar voices in rapid transmission. All of this layered on the distant pulse of a regatone beat and the minutia of a city waking up. Good morning, Trinidad.