Tag: everest

After the GLOW

I am now experiencing post-travel wonderlust.

Ok, I don’t know if that is a real thing. If it isn’t, then it should be. This is the time after you have unpacked, edited your photos and returned back to your normal life with nothing special on the horizon and only your memories behind you. This is when people (even those who criticized you about your last trip) start to ask you ” What’s Next?”

Now I always recommend having a 3 trip plan. This is the trip that is booked, the trip that is being planned and the trip that you are dreaming up. I typically do not count weekend getaways in this even if it is a long weekend because I can toss one of those together pretty fast. I count this as big trips. Ones that involve more planning than a quick look at flights and/or hotels and involve taking more than 1-2 days off of work. Having just gotten back from a trip I am now in the process of turning my “planning” trip into a “booked” trip and trying to decide what is moving into the “planning” stage.

I do not having anything “big” planned for the rest of 2023. But 2024 will have 2 big trips. In the spring I will be going back to the UK with my husband for our anniversary. I have been there a few times but it is his 1st time. We are still trying to work out what we want to do. My requirements are low since I have been there a few times already and have seen most of what I wanted to. I have definitely ticked off all the big “to do” items. but I want to know what my husband is interested in so we can make sure to hit as many of those things as we can. For now, that trip although earlier than the fall trip is staying in the planning stage and I am booking my fall trip.

In the fall I turn 50. I want to do something epic and tick another item off my bucket list. So I thought about it a lot and finally decided to go to Nepal and do the Everest base camp trek. As with most of my solo trips pretty much everyone I have told about it thinks I am crazy. At this point, I am use to it and just ignore them. I am not getting any younger and have wanted to do the base camp trek since I first saw a documentary on climbing Everest back when I was in high school. I looked into it and found out that you don’t have to go to the summit, you can just make the trek to base camp. This is still challenging, but a much more obtainable goal. I have dreamed of it since then. I have decided my 50th birthday is the time to go.

I have not taken this lightly. I have read training programs and looked into options of making it solo or doing it in an organized group. How long will it take? How much will it cost? What kind of gear will I need? I put my deposit down a few days ago to secure my spot. I am going to Everest.

The excitement has started. I have decided to go with a group so that my bag will go along ahead of me and I will only need to take my day-pack. I will have an English speaking guide (even though I got a book to learn some Nepalese). I have a training plan as I get closer to going but for now I am focusing on overall fitness.

So what is next? I honestly do not know. 2024 will be a very full year. I have talked about meeting up with my Australian friend somewhere in the world (we have no idea where but Greece seems to keep coming up. I think we are pretty settled on “somewhere in Europe” but we can just as easily end up in the tropics somewhere.) If we don’t meet up in 2025 then I’ll need a backup plan. Maybe the Galapagos Islands or Machu Picchu for my solo trip. I think My husband is dreaming of a Hawaiian Vacation for our anniversary in 2025, but I have also heard Japan or a cruise. I typically let him pick where to go since I have been to so many more places than him. He is a much pickier traveler than I am as well.

Wherever I end up, I am sure it will be memorable. I hope this inspires others to dream up, plan and go have an adventure. After all… Life is what happens when you get off the couch.

Getting ready to travel

Some thing about FINALLY going on my Northern Lights trip in a few days really has put some pep in my step the closer I get. I first booked this trip shortly after I got back from the UK back in the fall of 2019. I set it up for Feb 2021. I was so excited to finally see the northern lights. Then Covid hit. But surely the pandemic would be over by February… In November 2020 I bumped my trip to February 2022. The pandemic will surely be over by then. Well, it wasnt and the travel restrictions still restricted me so in November I rebooked for 2023…after all…the 3rd time is the charm right?

I have sat and watched the restrictions and as it grew closer to the holidays I started to worry about the travel restrictions but they didn’t get tight again. Now here I am just days away from my long awaited bucket list trip to the northern lights and I am exited! I have my polar gear ready to go. I have a rough plan of things to do while I am there. I am still a little nervous about frostbite since I will not see any weather above freezing the entire time I am there and as a California girl… I really don’t do well in cold. I have consulted with a friend who grew up in Alaska who gave me some awesome tips on staying warm in the freezing temps. I have really learned a lot.

People are still surprised that I am going alone. I highly recommend solo travel. Why wait around for other people to get it together and want to go where you want to go when you want to go there? If you happen to have someone who travels similar to you and wants to go the same places you do by all means…DO IT! But, if people you know either have zero interest in going where you want to or lack the time or money to go with you do not put your life on hold waiting. Just go! you will meet new people along the way…People who also like to travel, are interested in the same things as you and have the same budget. After all…You met them while traveling to somewhere you are excited about.

This isn’t just for big trips, but small things too. Have you always wanted to do or see something but no one wants to go with you? Just go anyway. Have people who want to go do something but no on wants to make the decision on when? Make the decision for them. Pick the date and time and invite everyone who was interested with “Hey, I am going to ___ on ___ day at ____ time if you want to join me.” Then if they decline, or want to change the plan say “Ok. Well you have fun with that. Maybe next time.” then move on. Do not change your plans. If everyone declines just go anyway and have a great time.

I find the older I get that a lot of people are all talk and no action. People love the IDEA of going places and doing amazing things but when it really comes down to actually taking action they would rather just sit around the house in their PJs, binging Netflix and eating take out. Now there isn’t anything wrong with that. I enjoy a nice gluttonous day occasionally but I also have goals and dreams that I want to accomplish. I can’t do that from my couch.

So how do you make the switch from watching other people do amazing things on YouTube to being the person who is doing amazing things? Action. Make a plan and actually follow through with it. For example; I am planning on doing the Everest base camp trek in fall of 2024 for my 50th birthday. I want to do something epic and Everest is pretty epic. So, how do I make that dream a reality? Well, first I researched the trip and made a plan to see what I need for time and about how much it will cost including any specialized gear for the trip and I started that research over a year ago. Seriously. Then once I had my travel plan I started looking at training and what will I need to be able to do physically to train for that. Again, I made a plan. I am currently in what I call Phase 1 of my training plan that will last until September. Then I will move into Phase 2 for the winter. Phase 3 will start in the spring and the summer will be phase 4 as I approach my departure date. I will put the deposit down on my Everest trip when I return from the Northern Lights trip to secure my dates. I have a plan in place to pay it off before I enter phase 2 of my training. Action is what makes dreams a reality.

So stop wishing for your dreams to come true. Make a plan no matter if it is big or small. Then take action to make those dreams come true. Your friends and family may think you are nuts for doing all these things and some may grumble or even mock you… but I guarantee you that more people are interested in hearing about the amazing things you did than anyone’s endless days sitting on the couch, binging Netflix and eating take out in their PJs.

***The featured image on this post is of me, alone, preparing to do a wildlife safari in a marine estuary about a 2 hour drive from my house. No one was interested in going so I went alone and had an AMAZING time. It was definitely a hidden gem.

Standing on top of the world

I woke up today after having an amazing dream. For some reason most of my dreams play out like movie previews. I’m not sure why that is, but anyway… in this dream I had accomplished my goal of making it to Everest base camp before my 50th birthday. It was amazing! I looked great. So happy and healthy and everything I could imagine in a perfect world. I even had a bit of a tan. It looked cold there since I was wearing my red coat and hat with the ear flaps. It was set to the song “Standing on top of the World” by Van Halen. and I was spinning in a circle taking in the Himalayas. It was beautiful.

Why mention this? After all, it was just a dream. Well, I believe that you can accomplish anything you put your mind to. I know travel has been on my mind since I just put in for my annual leave at work that morning and was working out my budget for 2024 to make sure I have enough left at the end to put in for my trip to the UK with my husband (his first time there and I think my 5th) as well as my 50th birthday trip to Nepal to make the trek to Everest base camp… something that has been on my bucket list for an eternity. I am not getting any younger and I wanted to do something epic for my 50th so Everest it is!

Let me start by saying I am by no means in shape to make the trek now. I have just over 100 lbs to loose and my current average of 4000-5000 steps a day is far less than the fitness level I will need to make this dream a reality. But I have a plan. I am goal oriented and now after my dream I have seen that it is even better than I imagined. But I have 20 months to get where I need to be. I can totally do this!

No matter what your dreams are you can achieve them with a plan.

#EVEREST2024