Brown Gal Essentials

Is There a Place in America for a Global Citizen?
Join Brown Gal Trekker via her social enterprise, Peak Explorations, which markets treks worldwide. Join a life-changing trek with our groups to go to Everest Base Camp, Kilimanjaro, Peru's Inca Trail and Ausangate Trek, South Africa's Drakensberg, Mongolia's Altai Mountains, Republic of Georgia's Caucasus Mountains, and plenty of other trekking destinations! Learn more.
NO BOUNDARIES
If you are faced with a mountain, you have several options. You can climb it and cross to the other side. You can go around it. You can dig under it. You can fly over it. You can blow it up. You can ignore it and pretend it’s not there. You can turn around and go back the way you came. Or you can stay on the mountain and make it your home.
Kilimanjaro almost killed me. The first time was no joke. Lessons were taught by the mighty Kilimanjaro on how not to mess with her without proper preparation and a healthy mindset.
The summit, that is. In just a matter of days I will once again come face to face with a mountain or a volcano rather that has instilled this lingering fear in me. Her name is Kilimanjaro.
It’s fair to say that many travel enthusiasts will have South Africa as one of the must see countries in the world. The country has a diverse array of activities available to enjoy nature, from hiking to scuba diving to whale watching or shark diving.
Whenever I get the chance to explore on my own, I always find myself saying YES to it before I even get there. On the first leg of my journey in India's Himalayan region of Ladakh and Leh, I knew ahead of time that I was going to spend almost two weeks exploring the scenery around Leh by myself.
The Discovery of Yading
How I feel about Yading is incomparable to all the other trekking or travel experiences I ever had. It was in many ways the highlight of my trekking experience in China and I cannot express in words how relevant Yading has been in my life.
Here are some photos taken during a day hike inside the Yading Nature Reserve. Yading is the most colorful during Autumn.
Situated between Europe and Asia, Georgia is a truly hidden gem for nature lovers. Georgia is bordered by four countries: Russia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkey. On a whirlwind of a trip, I ventured into the four areas of the Caucasus Mountains.
Stromboli was special. It always will be. On my journey through Europe, I was trying to decide where I wanted to spend the last year of my being in my 30s. Stromboli was my birthday peak.
The Albanian Alps consist of the mountain range of Prokletije. The range covers three countries – Kosovo, Montenegro and Albania.
Many associate Peru with Machu Picchu. However, Peru has more to offer hikers beyond just the famous Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail. In fact, a lesser known region called Cordillera Blanca gives its visitors a feast to their senses with its world-class landscapes.
It's no exaggeration. The Classic Inca Trail has to be on every list of top 10 treks in the world.
Hence, it can get crowded. You may even be so unlucky that you lose out on the chances of getting a permit. But, don't be discouraged!
When I had the opportunity to do the Classic Inca Trail in Peru with a group of 30 people, I decided to add a more off the beaten path trail to the experience. The Inca Trail is a classic.
It was for a short weekend of about 4 days. I have never been to Toronto and so finding a flight that was less than $200 round trip sounded like a steal.
I don’t know about you but I do get a thrill looking at Carribean colored waters and white sand beaches. But what’s even better than that? Bruce Peninsula.
Have you noticed how happy people are on the trails when you go hiking? I hardly imagine people without smiles or laughter when I go hiking. In fact, there's plenty of good energy when you are on the trail, whatever mountains you're exploring in whatever part of the world it may be.
I solo trek all the time on muti-day treks but can a trekker handle solo long drives?
I have a 16 year old car that just reached over 100,000 miles a few months ago. I realized I have not driven it as much and when an opportunity arose for me to head over to Arkansas for an Outdoor Blogger Summit, I decided that perhaps it’s time for me to take my Toyota Echo for a drive.
Many people associate Washington State with Mount Rainier or Olympic National Park. North of Seattle, however, is filled with wonderful mountain trails to entice any type of hiker or mountain enthusiast. As a former resident of the state, I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't get a chance to explore much of the trekking destinations in Washington.
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