Hiking the Grand Canyon: Journey to the Bottom and Back in Time

November 20, 2023November 20, 2023 / Oleksandra Budna / 1 Comment

The Grand Canyon is the kind of place that cracks your heart open and stays with you long after you leave its craggy outlines behind. I remember the first time I saw it from the Bright Angel Point Lookout on the North Rim. It was right after the sunrise. We arrived the night before, set up our tent in the dark just as it was starting to rain so there was nothing to do but go to sleep after finishing our dinner in the car. Now that the dark and rain cleared up, I was in a hurry to see this famed natural wonder. After an uncomfortable shuffle along a 800-metre long trail, long enough to make me regret my choice of footwear – flip flops were considerably slowing down my progress, I finally got to the lookout and couldn’t help but inhale at the sight. A chasm gaped in front of me – the Earth cracked open, its innermost essence exposed.

My first ever view of the Grand Canyon from the Bright Angel Point Lookout on the North Rim back in 2016

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Road Trip 2023: Goblins, Canyons and Sands of Time

October 4, 2023October 4, 2023 / Oleksandra Budna / 1 Comment

Between visiting my brother in California, exploring new parks in Utah, trekking down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and hiking in Colorado – our 2023 road trip promised to be epic. Unfortunately, we had to cut it short so the mountains of Colorado remain untouched by our hiking boots. And even though my mountain soul was really looking forward to that part of our trip, the Rockies have been around for almost 80 million years so I figured they will still be there in a year or two when we make our way back to Colorado. Plus, our truncated trip already featured quite a few beautiful places and exciting adventures. We returned with thousands of pictures, even more great memories and loads of sand in different colours – from the red sands of Utah to the yellow ones of California – tucked away in our camping equipment and clothing. So here are a few highlights.

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The Best of 2016

December 29, 2016 / Oleksandra Budna / 7 Comments

It’s hard to believe 2016 is drawing to a close. And it was quite a year when it comes to outdoor adventures, both close and far. With a three-week road trip all the way to Los Angeles, lots of camping with family and friends, my first solo trip and endless microadventures, it is next to impossible to narrow down ten best. But I’ll still try.

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Our westbound quest: of all things big and small

September 28, 2016October 16, 2016 / Oleksandra Budna / 15 Comments

“It’s about the journey not the destination” might be a cliche but that’s the principle we apply when it comes to planning our trips. We usually go for the slowest mode of transportation possible to get up close and personal with the lands through which we travel. This year, our road trip took us all the way to Los Angeles to see my new niece, and while walking or biking to California would have been fun, I wanted to see the kid before she started school so driving it was.