If you’re only here for an overview of the hike and preparation tips, click here. Months ago I heard for the first time of the Quilotoa Caldera, a collapsed volcano in Ecuador with a crater lake in the middle. The pictures looked incredible and I wanted to visit. A few sprees on Wikipedia and my map app later, I knew I wanted to hike the rim of the caldera. Besides hitchhiking, I also enjoy hiking without the hitching part. I hitchhiked from the town of Baños de Agua Santa – a cool destination in its own right – in oneContinue reading
hiking
A Sandy Hike to Cabo Polonio in Uruguay
A few weeks ago I went to the famous Cabo Polonio in Uruguay, an off-the-grid town. It’s not connected to the water or electrical system, supposedly. The lighthouse at the tip of the cape is connected, somehow. Anyway, that’s some stuff I read on Wikipedia before going there myself. An unusual level of preparation for me! Before a Lonely Planet author discovered it, this village got no attention whatsoever. I get all skeptical when it comes to places like that. Overrated or not, I’d have to go there to find out myself. I was stationed in La Pedrera at theContinue reading
Cuevas Waterfalls, Samaipata Bolivia
I didn’t jump from this waterfall. Just chilled an entire day at the three falls of Cuevas, close to Samaipata in Bolivia. Ultimate chill alert! What a beautiful place to cool down one’s feet and enjoy nature. I did get my camera a little wet with all the micro sploosh that’s floating in the air at the bottom of the biggest waterfall. There are two other waterfalls with beaches to relax at. Cuevas is about 20 km from Samaipata in the direction of Santa Cruz and costs 15 Bolivianos for entrance. Unfortunately, it gets really busy in the afternoon onContinue reading
Roque Nublo to Maspalomas Dunes, Gran Canaria: Summit to Sea
The last few days I went hitchhiking on the island of Gran Canaria. This was mainly to avoid the buzz in Las Palmas city. My driver felt like doing the hike to Roque Nublo (featured photo) together with me and left me at the summit to chill. No, he didn’t abandon me; that was my request. I’m not sure if I could have walked up that fast with my whole backpack if he hadn’t set the pace. Nevertheless, there were many trail runners without any luggage. They simply sprinted up and down the forested trail to the barren plateau. OneContinue reading
Yurt-Surfing in Andalucía, Spain
How life gives you awesome people: what began as a spontaneous one-night freecamping invitation after a bad ride, turned into a three-day yurt-surfing adventure with my new friend from Hungary! Turns out she lives at this awesome place hidden in the woods with alternative housing. Housing such as yurts, caravans, and other ‘outdoor furniture’ (Spanish law is strange). The first night I pitched my tent next to her caravan, from where you could even see the Rock of Gibraltar! After that, we crashed at a yurt (i.e. yurt-surfing) at her neighbor’s place, because the winds were too strong. Yurts areContinue reading
The Sierra Nevada from the Road (Spain)
Dramatic skies, flawless tarmac, and mountains everywhere: the Sierra Nevada in Spain! Just some shit-stains on the window, still it’s a pretty good photo taken through the windshield! Here’s the Google Streetview version, much cleaner: This day I finished my speed hitchhiking trip towards Málaga in the south of Spain. It was a pretty rough trip of continuous hitchhiking for four days because Spain is just not that easy to get around. The people at the HitchGathering that told me hitchhiking in Spain was difficult spoke truth to power. My lowest point was when I was stuck at a roundaboutContinue reading
Inspirational Quote: Not All Those Who Wander Were Told to “Get Lost!”
Time for an inspirational quote about travel: Not all those who wander were told to “Get Lost!” ~ Iris the Hitchhiker I’m really on a creative roll for the whole inspirational quotes kind of thing after finding peace, love, and tranquillity in the south of Spain 🙂 first of all, you should know that I find a lot of ‘inspirational’ quotes very uninspiring. They’re often vague, promote airplane travel, or sound like the ramblings of someone who just rage-quit their job. Secondly, I like to mock shit occasionally. When scrolling through my Facebook feed, it’s literally full of stuff likeContinue reading
Gozo: Hitchhiker Gone Hiking in Malta
Today’s random hiking trail brought me to some fabulous geological formations along a cliff’s edge! I was hiking on Gozo Island in Malta at daybreak. It was about 6:30 during the making of this photo. The weather is still tolerable then, as it gets so hot during the day. I think you can count the trees on Gozo on one hand. I walked southward from my rough-sleeping spot nearby Dwejra’s Azure Window. In the south-western corner or edge of Gozo Island, my OpenStreetMaps offline map showed me several hiking trails. So I decided to check out this area. The landscapesContinue reading
Vlorë and the Zvërnec Monastery: a Day Hike
Events in Vlorë and Zvërnec (Albania) happened on Monday 15th of June, 2015. Good Morning Vlorë My hosts left for work in the morning. My plan was to take it easy since I had picked up a cold in Sarandë, or when hitchhiking from Sarandë to Vlorë. The idea I had for ‘taking it easy’ was going on a nice long hike (10 kilometers one-way) with lighter luggage. Within a reasonable distance, the hike to the Zvërnec Peninsula and Island northwest of the city center seemed like the best plan. My hosts confirmed it was pretty there. Walking out ofContinue reading