There we were at the end of the trail in Chile’s Torres del Paine National Park. We had completed the “W” – 60 miles, fully laden – and were basking in the warmth of the Patagonian sun. In the process we had become proficient at assembling our tent in strong winds, cooking wondrous meals with packaged pasta, and securing our stuff from mice at night. We appreciated nature in full: not only the beauty of its rainbows, glaciers, condors and granite towers, but also the wrath of its hurricane-strength winds.
At the end of our journey, the feeling of camaraderie amongst our fellow trekkers was palpable. We all shared an accomplishment. In the soft grass at the trailhead kiosk, we indulged in overpriced potato chips and cracked open celebratory beers.
But something was missing. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Argentina, Chile, Perspectives, South America, Travel by: Daniel Noll
12 Comments | 5 April 2010
Wondering why we’ve been quiet recently? Here are some clues as to what we’ve been up to. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Argentina, Chile, Panorama, Photography, South America by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
12 Comments | 26 March 2010
At the time this is published, we should be crossing Apacheta Pass (4,650 meters/15,255 feet) and one day away from Peru’s Machu Picchu. That is, if the scheduled publishing works as it should and we don’t need an emergency mule ride or airlift from the top of the mountain.
In preparing for this, the Salkantay Trek, we reflected on other memorable multi-day treks we’ve completed during our journey around the world. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Travel by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
9 Comments | 9 October 2009
The weight of my backpack at 5:00 AM was brutal: 9 liters of water, 1 sleeping bag, and sundry other camping bits and bobs. And I was one of the lucky ones. Dan carried all that plus an old school (read: heavy) four-person tent.
Even at this hour, it was steamy. Under the weight of my pack, I was glazed in sweat before we reached the crossroads for the chicken bus to the trail head. I looked around at the young, energetic faces – mostly in their early 20s – and wondered, “Am I too old to be doing this?” Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Central America, Nicaragua, Panorama, Travel, Videos by: Audrey Scott
20 Comments | 3 July 2009
Imagine hiking with a Vogue cover girl and not realizing it.
As if our trek around the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal wasn’t interesting enough, we accomplished it with Australian supermodel Gemma Ward close at hand most of the way.
Unfortunately, the rumors regarding Gemma’s identity didn’t begin circulating until the final days of the trek. “I think she’s a model. I’m sure I’ve seen her on Fashion TV,” echoed among the young Israelis – fresh from military service – trekking with us. [Aside: Fashion TV piped into Israeli military barracks?!]
And we only truly believed them when we connected to the internet and found the photo above. By then it was too late to play alpine paparazzi. But we did get a peek. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Humor, Nepal, Travel by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
41 Comments | 9 July 2008
Nepal’s Annapurna Circuit trek didn’t make the first cut of our respective **25 Things To Do Before I Die lists. But maybe it should have.
With bathroom books like 1000 Places To See Before You Die serving as life-prescriptive authorities, we’re hesitant to describe anything as a “must-do life experience.” “Must-do” sounds presumptuous and “life experience” sounds trite. But what the heck. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Nepal, Travel by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
10 Comments | 16 June 2008
Though we are not mountaineers, we have done our share of trekking. Then, just last week, we came off a 15-day trek in the Himalayas in Nepal that looked and felt something like a “best of” of our previous treks. We would like to think that’s saying something, what with journeys in Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Burma and bits of the western United States under our hiking belts. Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Nepal, Photography, Travel, Videos by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
14 Comments | 3 June 2008
When you get there, you’ll meet the Afghan at the telephone pole.
These instructions given to us in Mestia by the Svaneti Mountaineering Tourism Center left us baffled. Is our mountain guide a member of the Mujahideen who’d lost his way and made his home in the mountains of Georgia? After all, in Svaneti just about anything seems possible. Continue Reading »
Article Series - Svaneti
- Svaneti: Why and How To Go
- Svaneti, A Mountain Inauguration
- Blue Eyes, Gold Teeth: The Fabled Land of the Svans
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Filed Under: Audio Clips, Caucasus, Georgia, Travel by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
12 Comments | 19 August 2007
I tell you, the Svanetians are crazy. Their brains are deficient in oxygen.
- A Tbilisi resident describing how the high altitudes of Svaneti have affected its people.
Svaneti, the high Caucasus mountain region in the northwestern corner of Georgia, has a long reputation of fierce independence characterized by the 12th century defensive towers that still dot many of its villages. More recently, Svaneti has been feared as outlaw territory where bandits and escaping terrorists from nearby Abkhazia, Chechnya and Ingushetia took refuge as locals holed up in their homes with guns at the ready. Continue Reading »
Article Series - Svaneti
- Svaneti: Why and How To Go
- Svaneti, A Mountain Inauguration
- Blue Eyes, Gold Teeth: The Fabled Land of the Svans
Filed Under: Caucasus, Georgia, Travel by: Daniel Noll and Audrey Scott
4 Comments | 15 August 2007
We took the boat to Nong Khiaw to visit a less developed area than Luang Prabang. Most people stop off in Nong Khiaw on the way to more popular Muang Ngoi Neua. We decided to stay a couple of days to explore and take advantage of the trekking we’d heard was available in the area.
Continue Reading »
Filed Under: Laos, Southeast Asia, Travel, Videos by: Audrey Scott
4 Comments | 31 January 2007
