R2RThe New Year is the perfect time to reflect on the past year and to dream of the future. We are a little behind in getting this post up - but it is better late than never!
2019
This was our first full calendar year playing this retirement game, and whew, what a year we have lived! We managed to sleep on the ground, spend time with friends, get back on the bike and get to some new countries for both of us!
Here are some of our highlights from 2019:
Butterflies
Horseback riding to the Monarch Butterfly reserve in Mexico with Heather’s mom. These amazing migrating butterflies find their furthest south point and rest before returning to Eastern Canada.
One of the millions we were fortunate to spend time with
Skiing in Japan
Powder, powder and more powder is the best way to describe this experience! Japan was a new country for both of us, and we are both itching to get back there soon. It was also a highlight to join our friends on this adventure as we discovered what an Onsen and a shot ski are!
Can you say powder?!
Hawaiiing (it’s a new verb now!)
Tropical living in paradise during the coldest part of Canada’s winter. It was another first as Heather had never been to any of these islands before. We did what any self-respecting couple would do when in paradise: buy matching outfits!
Don't we look cute?!
Staying Put
We managed to ‘stay-put’ for a few months while we were house sitting in Airdrie, Alberta with some wonderful cats.
Both of us took some work contracts for this time, but we certainly learned that these should be FEW and FAR between!
The time at home did allow us to connect with friends and family and we got to participate in the odd annual event - like some bacchanalian delights in Osoyoos with a bunch of the runners. YES, we did do some running between the wine consumption.
A big thanks to Heather and Derek who also let us stay in their house while we planned and packed for our big August adventure! Whenever we are in Alberta, we land pretty hard on our friends Rob and Anne… thanks for putting up with us in your basement!
Hiking the Canol Road
Matt had been dreaming of this adventure for years. The 4 weeks and 222 miles of mud, willows, rivers and cold did not disappoint. We were also honoured that our friend Karyn joined us for this adventure.
Weddings and Half Marathons
September was a busy month of a 4-week drunken taper (at the weddings) followed by a great ½ marathon in Montreal. Oddly enough Matt had a great run - despite the fun we had at our friend’s Bob and Janet’s weddings in both Alberta and Ottawa.
At the finish line of the 1/2 marathon - it would seem they all kept their taper going.
We were happy to connect with new and old friends while in Ontario and we even got a private tour of Canada’s Space Agency thanks to Fran. We were lucky to have a brief meeting with Jenni Sidey-Gibbons - one of Canada’s newest astronauts!
Bike Tripping
Our friends joined us for a 4-day bike trip on the Petit Train du Nord in Quebec which was full of laughs and amazing fall colours.
We cycled from Pittsburgh to Cumberland on an old rail trail with our friend Cathy - she even completed her bike touring 101! It was too much fun, so we kept on going all the way to Harpers Ferry on the C&O Canal Trail.
The fall colours were spectacular!
Disneyland
Our inner child got a workout! We loved the new Star Wars and the deathly expensive ‘blue’ drinks’ you can get at the Mos Eisley Cantina. (The only licenced place in Disneyland)
Chewie was really worried about the lack of hair on Matt's head
Mexicoing (if Hawaiing can be a verb, then so can Mexicoing)
We went in search of the ruins on the Yucatan Peninsula and climbed more ruins in the heat and humidity than we thought possible. Our time on the peninsula was capped off at a week-long all-inclusive resort to celebrate December birthdays with friends from Calgary.
Yes, we climbed that ruin behind us... and it wasn't even the biggest!
Jungles and Rain forests for Christmas and New Years
We went in search of the sloth in the rain forests of Costa Rica and tried to get up close and personal with an active volcano. Unfortunately, the volcano is no longer active… but we did get up close and personal with it!
We had the trip of a lifetime with Uncruise Adventures and spent time in the jungles hiking, kayaking, paddle boarding and snorkelling with a new group of friends. We can’t think of a better way to celebrate the holidays of 2019.
Hanging out on a skiff
2019 Lessons
We have learned that our lifestyle is sustainable. We need to do a better job of managing our Blog with the life that we live. Maybe a new tagline will be full-time travellers and part-time bloggers?
Visiting wild spaces before they are irrevocably changed has certainly been a highlight of 2019. Outdoor spaces are diminishing around the globe, and we are fortunate to spend time in them whenever we can.
Looking forward to 2020
We are coming to terms with the fact that planning for our lifestyle is overrated. We begrudgingly plan when it is required - like when we want to visit popular places that require permits. That said, we do have some 2020 plans.
January has had us busy hiking in Patagonia and we hope to continue to find great hikes as we head north in both Chile and Argentina.
On the Torres del Paine Circuit
A dream for both of us to get to our 7th continent has come true, as we snagged a last-minute deal to Antarctica with Quark Adventures.
The Camino in Spain is still on the planning board, and we hope to fly from South America to Europe in April. We have experienced the beginning of the Camino in the past, so we hope to conclude the whole journey on this trip.
The polar regions continue to call during the ‘summer’ months (in the north) so we will be heading to Greenland in August. Our plans are to complete another Arctic Circle hike, a ‘poor man’s cruise’ (AKA Ferry) and to herd Reindeer for the roundup into September.
The fall is a bit murky (it is 10 months away!!). We will likely take the bicycles to New Zealand to ride the length of 2 islands. We could also find ourselves in SE Asia, or Sri Lanka, or Nepal. Hopefully, we have things figured out before Sept!
Thanks for reading this blog and following us on social media. We miss folks at home but are enjoying meeting new people on the road. The adventure, connections and lifestyle seems like a good reason to roam!
