Tag: hiking

TMB, Day 0: Planes, Trains and Autobuses

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It’s been a while since we last posted our Peaks of the Balkans trek, but we are back in the blogging saddle and eager to finally catch up on all of the amazing European hiking we did in the summer of 2017.

When we last wrote, we had just finished up nine days of trekking through the Dinaric Alps in Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro and were unwinding in the capital city of Tirana for a day before heading up to the Swiss Alps for our next adventure: the Tour du Mont Blanc, a 110-mile circuit of the Mont Blanc massif. The TMB is a fabulous introduction to the European tradition of hut to hut hiking and one of the most beautiful treks we’ve ever done. We hope you will come along for the ride! (more…)

In the Shadow of Peak Lenin, Day 3: A Different Light

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I wake up at 2 in the morning and need to use the bathroom, but I’m too lazy to get out of bed. At 5:30, I can’t take it anymore, and I finally decide to get up. The sun is just about to come up over the mountains, and a sliver of a crescent moon is hanging in the deep blue sky just above the snowy peaks. Nobody is up but me, so, after taking care of business, I walk around camp for a few minutes, taking in the beautiful pre-dawn scene at 14,435 feet. (more…)

In the Shadow of Peak Lenin, Day 1: Welcome to the Big Leagues!

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We have been trekking in Kyrgyzstan for 23 days now. We have only four days left, and we have saved the biggest challenge and hopefully the best scenery for last. For our final trek, we will be hiking around Peak Lenin, Kyrzygstan’s highest peak at 23,405 feet. They say that Peak Lenin is one of the easiest 7000+ meter peaks to summit, but we have no interest in going that high. (more…)

Heights of Alay Trek, Day 6: Coming Full Circle

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Today we will complete the 6-day loop known as the Heights of Alay Trek, and the day starts off with an unusual challenge. The blankets at this yurt camp are exceptionally heavy, and just getting out of bed is hard work. We feel like we are removing the lead vest that protects your chest when you get X-rays at the dentist office. Maybe the idea of those weighted blankets that are so popular now came to us from Kyrgyzstan! (more…)

Heights of Alay Loop, Day 5: Over Jiptick Pass

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We have breakfast in the kitchen yurt this morning at 6:30, which is clearly too early for company according to the little boy in the camp. He has been woken up to make room for us, and he is crying when we come in. His mother gives him a bowl of yogurt to console him, and he turns his back to us hoping that if he can’t see us we aren’t really there. His sister is still sound asleep on the floor right next to where we are eating our fried eggs and potatoes. She doesn’t flinch the whole time we are there. (more…)