Epic trips

About It starts with Bus #173

This is my occasional blog focusing on my travels abroad and at home in Dartmoor. All my journeys, whether it’s a 4-day schlepp to Pitcairn Island or a 3-week boat journey across Micronesia, begin with the local country bus #173 from my home in Chagford to Exeter, where I take the train or bus to London.

Photo Essay: Stone-faced shamans & gilded tombs - the archaeological treasures of Southwest Colo

In the wild Andes of Southwest Colombia the stone shamans of San Augustin stared maniacally back at me with wide coca-induced eyes and...

On the run ... barely a digital nomad

It's all glamour this travel writing malarkey. I'm frittering away time at Cairns domestic airport en route to frittering away even more...

Illuminating the Dark Continent - 8 new African adventures for 2018

My first writing assignment for 2018 will be a short trip to the West African state of Liberia in early January. You may have heard of it...

On thin ice ... No safety net

I’ve just returned from 16 incredible days at sea traversing part of the Canadian Nunavut Arctic to sail down the North West Passage....

The ghost of Franklin ... into the North West passage

Sitting in my airport hotel room surrounded by a map of Nunavut and a waterproof kitbag bursting at the seams with electrical gear I am...

Death in the ice - Franklin expedition

As sure as an icy drip falling from an icicle this dramatic exhibition sent shivers down my spine. With good timing, as I prepare to head...

Amid the ice floes

For much of early September I'm going to be transiting the legendary North West Passage through Arctic Canada on board the ship Ocean...

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