Cat Ekkelboom-WhiteExplorer

Visiting Lofoten during the polar winter, the sun doesn't rise, so you'll want to make the most of the short hours of daylight if you want to visit the best spots. We only had a long weekend for our trip, so we spent most of our time exploring the area between Leknes and Å. Even though we are experienced hikers and ski tourers, we had read that conditions could change rapidly due to being on th...

Whilst Innsbruck is known for being a top destination for world-class sport climbing, many of the most popular areas can get very busy, especially in the summer months. This summer we discovered the small crag up at Obernberg and it quickly become one of our favourite places to climb. The crag is easy to reach. You park the car at the main car park at the end of the Obernberg valley. The price ...

If you're looking for a completely unique skiing experience combined with a different kind of adventure holiday, a skiing trip in Lapland might be your next destination. After a few bad winters in the Alps, we decided to look for somewhere that we knew would have snow, so we decided to head up north. Way up north! Levi is a ski resort in Finnish Lapland, famous for hosting the first race of the...

This small Italian town is just a few minutes drive north of Lake Garda in the Trentino-Alto Adige region of northern Italy. And while it might be small in size, it's a huge destination in the world of rock climbing, attracting climbers from around the world. But what makes Arco so special? It's not just the Italian charm that makes Arco special, although the narrow cobbled streets of the old t...

You start this easy hike from just before the toll road station on the road up from Misurina to Rifugio Auronzo. As you are looking towards the peaks and the trail starts on the right side of the road. The first part of the route takes you through some forest and across a couple of streams before it rises up slowly to above the tree line. Here you'll cross a more open field and traverse across ...

The Tribulaun Hütte mountain hut in the Gschnitztal is one of the easiest mountain huts to reach in the area. Leave your car (or take the Post Bus) to the end of the Gschnitztal valley. Just past the car park, the trail up to the Tribulaun hut begins. The trail starts as a wide gravel road that snakes up through the forest, before emerging above the tree line.  At a couple of points along the t...

The Laponesalm hike is an easy family-friendly hike in the stunning Gschnitz valley in Tirol, Austria. Park the car at the paid parking at the end of the valley, and follow the asphalt road which is signposted towards the Lapones Alm. After about 15-20 minutes of walking, you'll come to a bridge where the road crosses the river. You can choose to stay on the asphalt road all the way up to the...

The hike to Lake Sorapis and Rifugio Vandelli is a nice day hike for all abilities of hiker. The trail starts from the roadside, on the road that leads from Cortina d'Ampezzo to Misurina. You'll see a gravel area at the side of the road where you can park - but get there early in the high season as there's very limited space. The first part of the trail is almost completely flat. It's a fairly ...

Madagascar is made up of some incredibly dry and some very wet areas. Ranomafana National Park is an area of rainforest in the southwest of the country, off the highway RN7. This particular area is extremely special as it is the only place where the rare bamboo lemur can be found. To visit the National Park, you must hire a local guide. We met our local guide at the entrance to the park. We w...

Park at the large car park (paid parking) for the main Obernberg lake, but instead of following the trail to the lake, take the road on the right towards Haus Waldbauer.  At the end of the paved road, a gravel road bends off to the right. Follow this gravel road as it leads you uphill and back along the valley.  After around 1 hour, you'll reach a small mountain hut. Keep walking on the main gr...

The hike from Passo San Pellegrino to Rifugio Mulaz is stage seven of the incredible Alta Via 2 multi-day hut-to-hut trek in the Dolomites, which starts in Brixen/Bressanone and ends in Croce d’Aune north of Venice. This challenging but stunning hike is full of incredible scenery, where lush green alpine pasture turn into rugged rocky spires. We started this stage of the hike on San Pellegrino,...

The Gschnitz valley is one of my favourite places to hike in Tirol. Not only does it have some absolutely stunning scenery, but I've never experienced crowded trails whenever I've been there. This hike is an extension of another hike I've shared on here, to the Tribulaunhütte. Whilst we did take a short detour and stop at the Austrian Tribulaun hut for a quick lunch on this hike, our goal was t...

If you're planning a trip to the Dolomites, you simply must plan a hut-to-hut hike.Last year I did a number of multi-day hikes from hut to hut, and this one definitely has to be one of the most dramatic.I've already shared the first day of the adventure in this post, so today I'm going to share the next stage of the adventure.After spending the night in Rifugio Pisciadu, we got up for sunrise a...

Schlick 2000 is hands down my favourite ski resort in the Innsbruck region. This small and modest resort is often overlooked by many tourists who head straight to the larger nearby Stubai Glacier at the end of the valley. But while Schlick 2000 might be small, not only is it usually quieter than many other resorts, but in my opinion, it's one of the most beautiful resorts in Tirol. With the b...

Nosy Be is the largest & busiest tourist resort, an island on the north west coast of mainland Madagascar. We spend the final few days of our trip here, and on our last night our guide recommended taking a taxi up to the highest point, called Mont Passot, where there is a viewpoint, where you can watch the sunset. We just told the taxi driver "Mont Passot" and they knew where to take us. ...

Lago Limides is a small alpine lake on the Falzarego Pass in the Italian Dolomites, not far from Cortina d'Ampezzo.For this hike, we parked at the Falzarego Lagazuoi cable car station, and followed the trail on the opposite side of the road. The trail is a narrow dirt trail, but it's easy to follow. After a short uphill, it bends off a little to the left and you traverse across until you get to...

Starting from the tennis hall in Seefeld, follow the path towards Mösern which goes across the meadows. When you get to Mösern you'll see trails for the Möserer See and the Möserer See Stube. For the hike to the Brunschkopf, you don't actually pass the lake. It's a short detour off the trail but it's completely worth it! Once you're finished at the lake, look for the trail "Waldsteig No. 61" in...

The Krimml Waterfalls are situated in the Hohe Tauern National Park in the Salzburg region of Austria. At 380m high, they are the highest waterfalls not just of Austria, but in all of Europe. In the village of Krimml, near base of the waterfall you'll find a number of parking areas and the Wasserwelten Krimml visitor centre which includes an education centre, interactive exhibitions, a restaura...

The Wolfsklamm is a narrow and rocky canyon just outside the village of Stans in Tirol, just 20 minutes from the city of Innsbruck. There are a few free parking areas in the village with signposts to the start of the trail up the canyon. I've marked the one we used as the trailhead for this hike. The hike leads up through the narrow canyon, up narrow stair cases, wooded walkways, and through th...

This summer hike from the picturesque ski town of Wengen in the Bernese Alps to Kleine Scheidegg is an easy (although sometimes reasonably steep) trail along a well signposted gravel trail. You start the hike at Wengen train station. When you exit the station bear right and follow the upper road. There are yellow hiking signposts to Kleine Scheidegg which estimate the hiking time from Wengen as...

Whistman's Wood is an old oak woodland in Dartmoor National Park in England. This small wood feels like stepping into a fairytale novel. The ancient oak trees grow amongst moss-covered, twisted tree trunks and branches and granite boulders, giving the place an other-worldly vibe. Reaching Whistman's Wood is an easy walk, suitable for all the family. We did the walk as a simple out-and-back walk...

The Martinswand is Innsbruck's legendary multi-pitch sport climbing wall. The route "Emmentaler" is the easiest of the multi-pitch routes on the Martinswand in the area called the "vorbau". The route is named after the cheese most likely due to the multi holes in the rock.  The Approach: The approach is super short and easy. The closest parking for this route is the P3 area. Make sure to get th...

Getting to Lokobe Nature Reserve is an adventure in itself. The road comes to an end where the mangroves begin. As soon as you reach the water level, you'll jump into a pirogue (a type of canoe) where you'll have to paddle your way across to the village at the entrance of the reserve. As with most nature reserves and parks across Madagascar, you'll be accompanied by a local guide and a spotter...

If you love tales of Knights and legends, then you simply HAVE to visit Tintagel on the Cornwall coast in England. Even if you think these stories are just for kids, visiting for the scenery and the history alone is worth it. The Legend / The History Tintagel is a small village in North Cornwall, in the south of England, and Tintagel Castle is a medieval fortress located on a small island just ...