Author: Troups

Ultimate Packing List for Iceland

Ultimate Packing List for Summer Travel in Iceland

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 We visited Iceland for two weeks in August (summer season). We spent the first week backpacking the Laugavegur trek and hiking in the Thorsmork area.  The second week, we rented a car and drove around the island.  The packing list below was what we had for the two weeks in terms of clothing and camping gear. We packed food for the first week as we didn’t have access to any shops. Once we had a car in the second week, we were able to buy fresh food and vegetables. We spent 13 of the 15 days camping so the camping gear listed below was used extensively. We knew that Iceland weather is notoriously unpredictable, and you really should assume that it will rain every day.  For that reason, keeping your gear and clothes dry will be a challenge, especially if you are camping and don’t have access to washers/dryers.  Below is our packing list. If you have any questions, please comment below! Not sure how much a 15 day backpacking trip in Iceland would cost you? Read our budget …

Our 15 Favorite Photos from Iceland

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These 15 photos reflect the varied landscape and raw natural beauty of Iceland.   Enjoy! If you are planning a trip to Iceland, read our top travel tips and expense report from our 15 days of camping and hiking in this beautiful country. Liked what you read? Don’t forget to sign up for travel tips straight into your inbox and/or share or leave us a comment! Read more about Iceland: Top 18 tips for Iceland adventurers 15 day expense report with tips on cheap travel Best day hike in Iceland  

Iceland: 15-day expense report with tips on cheap travel

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Iceland is not a cheap country to visit, but just like anything else in life it is about setting your priorities. If you want to travel Iceland for longer than 4-5 days and you are on a budget, I’d suggest stack ranking the things you want to do or places you want to visit.  Like most tourist destinations, once you are in country you will be overrun with tour offers and expensive travel packages.  You’ll find a lot of blogs online that will demystify travel from place to place and provide lower cost accommodations.  In our case, we didn’t care about doing excursions such as whale watching, glacier walks or helicopter rides; although I’m sure these things are fantastic.   We wanted to focus our trip on hiking as much as humanely possible given the allure of the wild, volcanic and raw landscape of Iceland.  We’d also purchased a lightweight tent, so we were anxious to try our hand at multi-day camping.  We generally do day hikes while traveling and/or we look for treks with huts along the …

Top 18 Tips for Iceland Adventurers

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These are some ‘off the top of my head’ tips for preparing a trip to Iceland and for traveling within Iceland.  There are number of good blogs on Iceland given its recent popularity.  In August (peak summer season), we spent 1 week backpacking in the Central/South Highlands and then took a weeklong trip in a rental car around the entire Island.  We stuck mainly to the Ring Road (Route 1) but ventured off to hike in East Fjords and to see the mammoth waterfalls in the North.  The Icelandic people were extremely friendly and helpful everywhere we went.  There are so many outstanding hikes/excursions available all over the country.  If you  are adventurous and you love the rugged, raw nature, you’ll will fall in love, despite the incessant rain and unpredictable weather! So, here are our top 18 tips for Iceland adventurers: Iceland Camping and Hiking Tips Bring lightweight rain gear (obvious, but some think that just bringing their normal winter coat is enough) Bring a tent footprint (this is the waterproof tarp that you put …

Fimmvörðuháls Hiking Trail – Iceland

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We had heard and read several times that Iceland’s weather is highly unpredictable but we live in Colorado where you can start a hike in sunny 80 degree weather and be met with snow and ice or torrential rain 2hrs later, but soon enough the sun will be back in full force to pick you back up. We joke that in Colorado one can ski, hike and golf in the same day! Let me just say, Iceland is a different beast. Unpredictable Icelandic weather brings heavy winds, sudden fog, rain, and sleet in the middle of summer and this weather can hang around for days not hours.  We ran into this first hand in Þórsmörk.  We were a little over halfway through the 75km trail from Landmannalaugar to Skogar, and had already traversed mountains and battled wind and ice through majestic lava fields.   However with a 24km climb over steep mountains and volcanos left to go, heavy rail and high winds moved in to derail our journey.  We’d already bunkered down in a tent for a …

blue lakes hike

Blue Lakes, Mt Sneffels Wilderness: Best Wildflower Hike

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It always feels so easy to get on a plane and go to a new destination and forget all about the amazing places in your own backyard.  I daydream about climbing Aconcagua and walking miles on the desolate terrain in Iceland but the reality is that the state of Colorado has a very diverse geography, ranging from majestic mountains, deep canyons, deserts with enormous sand dunes to lush forests.  So last summer, instead of trying to get away to far flung places we decided to spend some time discovering our state. For Dan’s birthday in July, we drove down to Telluride (about 6 hrs from Denver), a ski town nestled in San Juan mountains in south west Colorado.  We did an overnight stop in Montrose and mastered the art of car camping.

Blue Lakes Trail in Mt Sneffel wilderness

Summer trip to Telluride

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It always feels so easy to get on a plane and go to a new destination and forget all about the amazing places in your own backyard.  I daydream about climbing Aconcagua and walking miles on the desolate terrain in Iceland but the reality is that the state of Colorado has a very diverse geography, ranging from majestic mountains, deep canyons, deserts with enormous sand dunes to lush forests.  So last summer, instead of trying to get away to far flung places we decided to spend some time discovering our state. For Dan’s birthday in July, we drove down to Telluride (about 6 hrs from Denver), a ski town nestled in San Juan mountains in south west Colorado.  We did an overnight stop in Montrose and mastered the art of car camping.  Next morning, despite our lack of sleep and stiff backs, we were excited to be on the way to hike the Blue Lakes (between Montrose and Telluride). We got off the main highway and drove another 15 miles on a small, windy road.  The area is so desolate that …

Apple-Walnut Oatmeal

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As a kid, I was a picky eater and sat with a plate of food for an hour everyday, just picking and playing with it.  It is funny that whenever we see a kid who is a picky eater, we do not understand why they are making such a big fuss. I think to myself, “It’s food..it is fun!! I wish I could eat and snack all day without feeling guilty or slapping on a thousand pounds!”As adults, we forget that when we were kids we were no different. We question why our kids have to be fussy but we forget the pain our parents went through in trying to feed us everyday. My mother like any Indian mother was a milk tyrant and forced down warm milk in me every morning in the hopes that I would get taller and stronger. There were days I bought into her milk propoganda but most days I peacefully protested by avoiding drinking the glass of milk for about an hour.  I would watch the clock hoping that the glass would miraculously disappear but soon …

Golden Beet and Fennel Soup with beet top pesto

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It is happening again. After three weeks of incredibly warm weather in Colorado, we are getting a cold spell as I write this. Just yesterday, I was walking around outside in a t-shirt and saw people laying outside sunbathing by the pool.  I am back to bundling up in my jacket and watching the freezing rain turn to snow outside.  Funny enough, I was praying for this weather for the past few weeks. I watched in pure jealousy how the East Coast people were getting more snow than us this year.  Trust me, I love warm weather but when it comes to maximizing my ski pass (my first ski pass for that matter!), I wasn’t too happy with many warm days in a row. I had pretty much given up.  So guess what, the skis are out again and I am making a trip this weekend to the mountains for what might be the last ski weekend this season! I know I sound like one of those ski bums who are going backcountry terrain for …

Coconut and Miso Lentil Soup

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Apart from a few days of unhealthy eating and drinking, its been a fairly healthy and happy New Year. I am trying to eat as much Kale as humanly possible.  Kale shakes in the morning, kale and cheese sandwich in the afternoon and then, kale and roasted winter vegetables for dinner.  Also sneaking in home-made kale chips for snacks. If there is a short supply of Kale in the world, you know who to blame.   My system is totally ready to take on the two weeks of binge eating in Delhi for my brother’s wedding in February. Yup, I am Delhi-belly proof! It’s been excruciatingly cold and foggy in Denver/Boulder area for the last few days. It is an anomaly for this area to be without sun for 3-4 consecutive days. After all, we claim to have 300+ days of sun here. Here is an Asian style soup recipe to warm you up in these cold winter days. Coconut and Miso Lentil Soup Recipe by Shrutika Troup; Gluten Free and Vegan Yield: 2-2.5 quarts, serves 3-4 …

Hike to Sandbeach Lake

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I love hiking and being outdoors but I admit, I am also a total wuss when I am too exposed to elements in the wild.  My heart starts throbbing if I am hiking through deep woods and don’t see a hiker for miles. I get startled when I hear leaves rustling and start to imagine bears and mountain lions coming out of the woodwork. The moment I see a dark cloud above us, I imagine lightning bolts coming down to strike us. My mind runs through the steps recommended by wilderness experts if one encounters bears. Safety steps such as making yourself look big or making loud noises.  Although, in reality I know that I am more likely to execute perfect Darwin Award winning moves like trying to outrun the bear or taking shelter under the biggest tree in case of a lightning strike.  On the other hand, Dan has no fear of such things. He wants to hike closer to the evening so there is a higher chance of seeing the animals. When we saw a coyote on a …

Jack of Few Trades

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When we decided to travel around the world, we had a lot of ideas on how we wanted to travel. Though we were successful in certain areas like traveling ultra-light, avoiding big hotels, visiting local farmer markets, hiking where ever possible, effectively communicating with each other under life-threatening situations (well, almost!) , we weren’t very successful when it came to our desire to work and live on farms or pick up new skills (like learning new language). The desire to pick up new skills stemmed after reading 4 hour workweek by Timothy Ferriss and from the realization that apart from doing “office work”, we didn’t really have a lot of “life skills”. We wanted our lives to have diversity of experiences and connections with people from all walks of life. We figured no better way to start than on our world trip. We had signed up for a service called HelpX (similar to WOOFing) before we left on the trip. The service allows farms, B&Bs, ranch owners to invite volunteers to work in exchange of …

The new summer

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I know I have been away for a while. It was hard to focus on words and writing. I was lost in my own head a lot of the days. Life took a strange and unexpected turn early this year. It beat us down. And every time we tried to get up and move again, it dragged and crushed us further until we couldn’t breathe anymore.   Long dreary winters added to the misery.  I always wanted my blog to be about happy things in life – travel, food, hiking, fun experiences – so I felt that I really couldn’t say or express much except for talking about the lingering and never ending sadness.  I was naive enough to think that life is a bed of roses at all times and that nothing can ever go wrong with you and your family. And then IT does. Maybe in future I would be courageous enough to talk about the bad stuff. As the time is passing,  things are slowly falling back in their place together. Of course, there will be that …

Nymph and Emerald Lake Hikes: Rocky Mountain National Park

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After spending our holidays gorging on cookies and chips and a *few* drinks here and there, it was time to leave home and brave the cold in order to shun some of the love around our waists.  We did the first hike of 2014 in the beautiful but very windy Rocky Mountain National Park (35 miles NW of Boulder) this past weekend.   The 40 mph gusts made for some interesting hiking conditions in the drifting snow.   I had done the same trail 2 months ago and the deep snow made it feel like a different trail altogether. The lakes were completely frozen over.  The trail and the signs was buried under snow so it was hard to follow the actual trail.   

First hike of 2014

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After spending our holidays gorging on cookies and chips and a *few* drinks here and there, it was time to leave home and brave the cold in order to shun some of the love around our waists.  We did the first hike of 2014 in the beautiful but very windy Rocky Mountain National Park (35 miles NW of Boulder) this past weekend.   The 40 mph gusts made for some interesting hiking conditions in the drifting snow.   I had done the same trail 2 months ago and the deep snow made it feel like a different trail altogether. The lakes were completely frozen over.  The trail and the signs was buried under snow so it was hard to follow the actual trail.    It’s late but we wanted to wish everyone a very Happy New Year!  Hope your 2014 is filled with joy, love and fun adventures.We aim to hike more this year and perhaps attempt a 14er in summer which would involve waking up at 3am in the morning and getting to the …

Holiday Fun – Pistachio Biscotti

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You know the holidays have begun when you randomly start baking things after a long hiatus from baking all year. Inspite of going to culinary school,  I am not much of a baker. Bakers come from a different planet.  They are meticulous and super OCD.  I , on the other hand do not like to follow recipes…I cook as I go along. That would be a complete disaster in the baking arena unless you are a freaky genius.  So, despite my lack of patience to measure things tediously,  this time of the year brings out the Martha Stewart in me.  I also realized that all these years,  I used the excuse of not having the right equipment to mix/whip/cream ingredients as a hindrance to produce baked goods. And that its not healthy to eat sugar and butter.  No more excuses as Trouper got me the Christmas present early this year – Kitchen Aid mixer.  There are really no more places to hide anymore.   I am going to take deep breaths and channel my inner …

raw chicken

The Vegetarian Killa’ : Culinary School Adventures

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When the headless chicken and I first locked eyes, I thought that there was no way I was going to survive the culinary program. It was only the second week in the kitchen.  I knew when I signed up for the program what I was getting myself into. I figured I would be able to handle the dead meat. When the moment actually arrived, I was squeamish and disgusted.  The blood dripped off the poor chicken’s dead body. I was so shook up for a second that I couldn’t tell where the legs were and where the wings were. Random thoughts raced through my mind like, “How would I feel if someone did this to me?” Weird, I know.

raw chicken

The Vegetarian Killa’

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When the headless chicken and I first locked eyes, I thought that there was no way I was going to survive the culinary program. It was only the second week in the kitchen.  I knew when I signed up for the program what I was getting myself into. I figured I would be able to handle the dead meat. When the moment actually arrived, I was squeamish and disgusted.  The blood dripped off the poor chicken’s dead body. I was so shook up for a second that I couldn’t tell where the legs were and where the wings were. Random thoughts raced through my mind like, “How would I feel if someone did this to me?” Weird, I know. My Kill Board The funny thing is that I have tried chicken before. Dan even cooks it from time to time at home. We buy the breast or the thigh meat at the big grocery stores where all meat looks the same. Red or white.  You can barely tell what it was before it was cut …

Filling Our Toy Box

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After having to strip down to backpacks for our round the world trip, we realized that we didn’t need a lot of stuff to survive or have fun. Decisions are a lot more simpler when you only have two pair of pants, three shirts and a pair of shoes to choose from. Even after we got back, we had no interest in shopping or accumulating random stuff. It seemed like such a waste. A year later, we still find ourselves wearing the same clothes we wore on the trip despite having a lot of other options. Weird! But now we face a dilemma. There are so many outdoorsy things to do here in Colorado but almost all of them require gadgets and specialized gear.  And we desperately want to do all of the activities. So on that note, here is our short wish list of things we think we NEED!   So much for livin’ lean.    4 wheel drive SUV (Subaru Outback) Snowshoes Hiking Poles (I got mine, Dan still needs his) Kahtoola Microspikes …

culinary school gear

Another Year, Another Adventure..

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It was exactly one year ago on March 4th, 2012 when our friend Doug dropped us to the Newark Airport early in the morning. It is one of those moments I will never forget.  We had been busy wrapping work, packing our apartment, renting the place and stuffing everything we would own for 5 months in our backpacks. For weeks, it hadn’t hit us that we were leaving our jobs, our home, our friends, and our lives behind.  We had been talking for almost one year about travelling  around the world. The idea seemed silly. We joked and laughed about it. It was something that would never ever happen. Who would leave their good jobs, their home, to live out of a backpack for months? We weren’t ready to do the planning that went into something monumental like this.   The Day Dan’s ‘stuff’ for 5 months My stuff for 5 months But the idea stuck in our heads. We talked about it every weekend. And, then we talked about it every day at work, …

Weekend Video: A Pep Talk

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Originally posted on Life Out of the Box:
We all need a little encouragement every now and then and sometimes a pep talk can do just that. We found this video very inspiring to anyone who has a dream. Anyone that wants to make a difference in the world and live their life to the fullest potential. Let this little man’s pep talk encourage you and guide you towards your journey. Have a spectacular weekend, make this one to remember.

Bushwacking through Cinque Terre, Italy

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No surprises. We were lost yet again.  This time on a trail in Italy.  It all started as it usually starts. We both mutually decide to climb to the highest point in the town in the hopes of getting the best views while burning calories from the food intake from the night before.  If only we could stop stuffing our faces or be less guilty about stuffing our faces, we could actually spend our time enjoying the town and not being lost in the wilderness.