Posted on

Solovki: a Remote and Beautiful Archipelago, a Religious Shrine and the Place Where Gulag Originated

On our road trip from Moscow to the Arctic Circle and beyond it, we leave the paved road for the water road and set off for the Solovki Islands. Solovki embodies all the reasons we love the Russian North for: the beautiful nature, the remoteness and historical architecture. However, these idyllic isles have some obscure history of their own.
Continue reading “Solovki: a Remote and Beautiful Archipelago, a Religious Shrine and the Place Where Gulag Originated”

Posted on

Best Daypacks for Hiking, Cycling and Urban Exploration

Some 10 years ago backpacks were but a pain for my eyes. They all looked so futuristic and ugly as if there was some kind of world conspiracy to produce only ugly daypacks. The first vintage styled backpacks spotted on the streets were like the first birds coming back home after a long and cold winter. Now, we have some amazing styles to choose from and they are functional enough for outdoors.
Continue reading “Best Daypacks for Hiking, Cycling and Urban Exploration”

Posted on

Travel Kola Peninsula for Watermelon Flavored Snow, Husky Farms and Out-Of-This-World Landscapes

It’s incredible what you may find on the Kola Peninsula beyond the Arctic Circle in Russia! A great outdoors with tundra, Arctic deserts and fjords is just one of the examples. You can certainly have some unique experiences here – like doing a tour on a nuclear ice-breaker or visiting a reindeer and husky farm!
Continue reading “Travel Kola Peninsula for Watermelon Flavored Snow, Husky Farms and Out-Of-This-World Landscapes”

Posted on

Why is a Horseback Safari Better Than a ‘Regular’ One?

You are planning a trip to the south or east of Africa and a safari is on your bucket list. You are surfing the internet and studying the guidebooks in order to find out, what safari tours are the best ones: where you can go to see lots of animals and what game reserve has the most scenic landscapes. But the right question for us is not “where”, but “how”: it really depends on how you explore the game reserves. Saying that – we had great fun and made the most of our time doing safaris on horseback.
Continue reading “Why is a Horseback Safari Better Than a ‘Regular’ One?”

Posted on

Where to See the Berlin Wall in Berlin?

Once upon a time in Paris, I was idly examining a map of the city. Having spotted “Place de la Bastille” in the network of the streets, I immediately put it on my Paris itinerary: I was curious what this old prison I knew from numerous books by Alexandre Dumas looks like now. It turned out it looks like nothing – not a single trace of it survived the French Revolution.

With the Berlin Wall, things are different. There are some remnants of it spread over Berlin. In order to help you choose which historical sites of the Berlin Wall to visit on your next trip to Berlin, we made a list of the most interesting still standing parts of the Berlin Wall and will tell you what is so peculiar about it.
Continue reading “Where to See the Berlin Wall in Berlin?”

Posted on

Vologda Region – Russia’s Hidden Gem

…When we left Moscow at the end of August, it was burning hot. The city was glowing. Just 450 km north – or a one-night-long drive away – the temperature fell to 12 degrees and the sky was rainy and grey. But with every degree off the thermostat, the landscape around was getting more and more beautiful. The burned yellowish meadows turned to ankle-high wet green grass. Deep dark forests, lakes, swamps and seldom villages built of wood appeared behind the car’s window.
Continue reading “Vologda Region – Russia’s Hidden Gem”

Posted on

Trekking Gear 2018

Since the trekking season is approaching it is a good time to take inventory of our trekking and camping gear: We will use some things from the previous years, buy some new ones after thorough research and put some great items on our wish list. In any case, a great price-quality ratio is something we are taking into consideration when buying trekking gear.
Continue reading “Trekking Gear 2018”

Posted on

10 Lessons Learned from Our Road Trip to the Arctic Circle and Beyond – in Russia

We had an epic time on our road trip to the Arctic Circle, exploring the northern wilderness in the European part of Russia: Karelia and the Kola Peninsular. This part of the world has everything we are fond of: pristine nature and it is far off the beaten path. There is room for both peaceful contemplation and wild adventure.

We are up to summarize our experiences into a series of articles. Maybe it will inspire you to put the Russian North on your bucket list or if it’s already in your plans, our stories might provide you with some travel tips and a sample itinerary.

This first post is devoted to the things we learned on this trip: some of them were more or less expected others got us by surprise!
Continue reading “10 Lessons Learned from Our Road Trip to the Arctic Circle and Beyond – in Russia”