Nature
Into the Wild
Mountains reflected in Store Skålbrekkvatnet Preparing for the next trip, in rush, again. I have just a couple of days left to take care of some remaining stuff before heading north. This time I am going nearly straight from Israeli desert to far north of Norway. It takes about 3000 km get to northern coast…
Read MoreOasis 101 on Israeli desert
A perfect full moon night on 101 desert It is a real scorcher at the southern tip of Israel. A bath in the Red Sea is the last chance for refreshment. We set off north towards the Sea Dead. The visibility in a full moon night allows us to ride after dusk. We continue until…
Read MoreIsrael on two wheels
Some places you get an idea that half of Israel is one huge firing area Instead of the promised sun and heat, it is heavy rain to greet us upon arrival. An immigration officer asks a few detailed questions, he stamps our passports and lets us in Israel. Our friend Ohn Debby picks us up…
Read MoreWinter season in covered with snow Austria
Waiting in clouds to see the next thing life brings The idea to spend a whole winter season in Austria has always been on my mind. One day I found a way to make it happen. I got a job in Bad Hofgastein, an alpine village located nearby Saltzburg. Snowboarding, skiing, high mountains, an idyllic…
Read MoreA break on Ko Samet island
A new day comes to Ko Samet Tired of Bangkok I decide to take a short break on the island of Ko Samet. It is the last chance to grasp a bit of summer before returning to Europe. Soon I realize that I am at a certain front line. This is the island on which…
Read MoreLao motorcycle diaries
While the four guys came up to the fence, the fifth one hid behind a tree Bolaven Plateau is an area located at an altitude of 1000-1350 meters in southern Laos. The region is famous for its picturesque waterfalls. Making your way to the waterfalls you will pass little scattered villages inhabited by ethnic minority…
Read MoreFour thousand islands on Mekong
Islanders set off for fishing early in the morning, Si Phan Don The wild south of Laos is mainly empty gravel roads, sparsely populated villages and fields of rice filling the floodplains of mighty river Mekong up to the horizon. Si Phan Don means in Lao 4000 islands. This is one of the main attractions…
Read MoreSouthern Cambodia
A curious but still timid girl, southern Cambodia Cambodian four hours equals roughly seven regular hours and it is the amount of time to reach Kampot by bus. We discover another pleasant city, whose once slow life bustles on when you visit a marketplace. The local market is divided into sections making some sort of…
Read MoreA glimpse from Ethiopia
An Ethiopian beauty In the center of Addis Ababa, just off the main street we find a friendly Ethiopian, a happy owner of a timless Renault 4. He give us a ride to the bus station. This old car has a unique charm. Clutch is a manual handle, the gears transmission works vertically and on…
Read MoreCycling through the Congo
Curious children looking through a window in a bar A red gravel road ahead heralds hundreds of kilometers pedaling into the Democratic Republic of Congo. For the next few days I expect to become absolutely detached from the outside world, with no mobile phones, no electricity, no running water and at most a few poorly…
Read MoreBurundi, the heart of Africa
A Hutu tribe woman, Burundi A scenic river runs along the valley defining the border with Rwanda. Since the outbreak of civil war and even after the official ceasefire, Burundi has a reputation of a very dangerous country. Just a year ago the capital city of Bujumbura was the only area controlled by the state,…
Read MoreOne thousand hills on a bike
Mzungu among Rwandan kids Tired of a long journey we are looking for a bottle of cold beer. Searching through the mysterious alleys of Kigali all we find is a warm and tart banana wine. We still have to take a five-hour bus ride to Gisenyi, a town on the western end of Rwanda. It…
Read MoreWhen the temperature drops to minus 40 ºC
The temperature is approaching -40ºC Central Norway is the coldest place in Europe. Contrary to the apparent logic, moving further north you will find yourself within the range of warm Mexican current, which makes Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea never freeze. Therefore the air temperature has also relatively small fluctuation over the year. In Gålå…
Read MoreCross-country craze
Cross-country skis will get you anywhere you want I bet I have traveled much more on cross-country skis than the combined distance covered by car, train, bike and on my feet during nearly a five-month long Norwegian winter. Cross-country skis or langrenn (in Norwegian) is undoubtedly the pride and the national sport here. Locals are…
Read MorePeniche
Fortaleza de Peniche We are too late! This year’s world surfing championship at the beach of Supertubos ended two days ago. We missed Kelly Slater and Laird Hamilton, the world’s top surfers. One of the accidental hitchhikers assured me that last week during the competition there were six meters high giant waves. The atmosphere of…
Read MorePortuguese Odyssey
Sanctuary on the dark Cabo Espichel The winding mountain path is surrounded by the lush green vegetation of Serra da Arrabida nature park. At dusk we arrive at the terrifying Cabo Espichel. The heavy, wet fog reveals only the outlines of abandoned buildings at the very end of the cape. This is a cultic pilgrimage…
Read MoreMussels and squid
Praia do Amado Cooking squid for not a skilled cook is kind of a challenge. Awkward incision makes intensely black ink splatter around. I remove the squid’s float, looking indistinguishably like a part made of plastic. Everything around is stained with ink and definitely does not look like anything edible, not to mention being tasty.…
Read MoreAlgarve tripping
Surfing time Early in the morning I say goodbye to southern Spain and cross the Portuguese border. My first stop is at the tourist information office. Courteous black girl, probably in the seventh month of pregnancy greets me with Portuguese “Bom dia!” and a smile on her face. I collect detailed information on the Algarve…
Read MoreSardinia
A place for snorkeling A night ferry from the Italian port Piombinio takes us to Olbia, a city on the north-eastern Sardinia. Still long before dawn we head towards the Isola de Gabbiani and Porto Pollo. It is getting bright and this is exactly the time and the place for a hearty breakfast and morning…
Read MoreA loop around Poland
A loop around Poland Enchanting trails of Bieszczady mountains First, we pick the most interesting places of Poland and then decide to spend around one month to follow the loop inside our country. We do our best to keep a safe distance of a hundred kilometers from the capital, as in order to stay a…
Read MoreBialowieza National Park
Białowieża National Park King of the Białowieża Forest Poland’s journey from west to east takes thirteen hours and is getting longer every year. More cars imply increased traffic, while road surface of inferior quality needs constant repairs. The repairs are carried out in an absurd manner. This involves simultaneously digging up a dozen sections of…
Read MoreGibraltar, a sunny rock filled with monkeys
Intrusive monkeys have no limits Gibraltar is a place of numerous disputes over the centuries. The territory once conquered and ruled by the Berbers in 711 A.D. had been waiting more than seven centuries to get back into the hands of the Spaniards. Not for long because in 1704 during the Spanish Succession War territory…
Read MoreKashmir
Kashmir Valley Shikara on Dal Lake, Srinagar Kashmir and the Pakistani-Indian border is a region of long lasting dispute. All the time the area remains restricted for visitors. Once in New Delhi we have to take obtain permission to enter Kashmir. We hire a jeep and our driver is supposed to take care of any…
Read MoreBritish Columbia, the outdoor paradise
British Columbia Downhill in Whistler A journey to the south-western Canada. Province of British Columbia is considered to be one of the most beautiful places of the globe. Its wild nature, rainforests, mild climate, ocean coastline, plethora of mountain hiking trails and ideal spots for winter sports do the job. A low impact of destructive…
Read MoreGuatemala, lagoons and volcanoes on fire
Early morning at Laguna Lachua Our minibus is runs into a deep pool of lime dirt. The vehicle gets dark inside and driving visibility is reduced to zero. We stop to wash the windshield. A few more hours on a bumpy road towards Flores, the town located in northern Guatemala. Passing the colorful buildings and…
Read MoreHidden beauty of Belize
Beach bar on the island of Caye Caulker The flight from Miami approaches the Yucatan peninsula. We land at the airport located half an hour from Belize City. Terminal looks quite unusual, more like a bus station back in the 80’s rather than a modern establishment. People queue up waiting to be handed in their…
Read MoreArizona, Nevada and endless desert
Vegetation on the Mojave Desert Weather anomalies. Beautiful, wild and uninhibited nature. Scorching hot deserts. Strictly monochromatic scenery. People and surroundings born in the wild west. Arizona and Nevada. The two states, which despite the common border, currency and language are so much unlike California that it’s easier to talk about differences than similarities. We’ll…
Read MoreCrossing Norwegian forests and lakes
Norwegian lakes are famous for clear water We take a tent, two backpacks, some food and fishing rods. The only necessary things to hole up for a week in Norwegian woods. The plan is to walk from one lake to another. This Scandinavian country is often associated with large amounts of fish, beautiful landscapes, short…
Read MoreElbrus, the Europe’s freeriding Mecca
Panorama of the Caucasus, view from Elbrus North Caucasus. Elbrus and Cheget are the two mountains, which slopes are covered with hundreds of thousands tones of fresh powder every year. Such snow conditions make it a true paradise for snowboarders. The trip itself to this place takes three and a half days. We take the…
Read MoreSnowboarding in the summer
Traditional Austrian attire Snowboarding in the summer? Sure. You just have to find a bunch of guys who would rather take out the dusty snowboard from beneath their bed in the middle of summer rather than lie on the sunny beach. The idea appeared to happen in mid-July, a period usually not identified with winter…
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