A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
Since the wind forecast was unfavorable for wing foiling at Crissy Field, Inna and I decided to head to Noe Valley instead, to meet up with Alex and to have lunch with him nearby. The drive to Noe Valley was surprisingly quick—normally, I need 90 minutes to reach Crissy Field, as driving through Golden Gate Park is usually quite slow. It took just about an…
Read More: Hiking Lands’ End
Tuesday, July 7, 2026 . From the Takakkaw Falls, it took us about two hours to reach the Kananaskis Mountain Lodge, where we had planned to stay one night. Inna had found an amazing Nordic Spa, and she wanted everyone to rest after so many days of hiking. . . . . . . We reached the Kananaskis Mountain Lodge at around 16:30, and it…
Read More: Kananaskis Village Hotel & Nordic Spa
Tuesday, July 6, 2026 . We checked out of the Storm Mountain Lodge (Lake Louise area), where we had been staying for the past 3 nights, and started our drive to Yoho National Park, where we had planned multiple hikes. . . Our first stop was at Emerald Lake. As we started our drive at 09:00, we were worried about the limited parking there. .…
Read More: Yoho National Park
Sunday, July 5, 2026 . We awoke at 06:00, brushed our teeth, and quickly dressed. At 06:30, we started our drive toward the Summer Gondola at Lake Louise, where we planned to park before catching the shuttle to Lake Moraine. Our shuttle was scheduled to depart at 07:25, so we had a 15-minute wait to drink coffee (from our Thermos) and eat pastries (Pastel de…
Read More: Stunning Lake Moraine
Saturday, July 4, 2026 . After the 50-minute drive from Peyto Lake, we arrived at Storm Mountain Lodge, near Lake Louise. Inna had chosen the Storm Mountain Lodge for its convenient location for the many hikes around Lake Louise (since shuttles were required to access the hiking trails). (I wish that UberX were available for drop-off at Lake Louise, as the price for shuttle transfers…
Read More: Gorgeous Lake Louise
Saturday, July 4, 2026 . At 10:00, after we finished breakfast at Hotel Canoe's Sudden Sally restaurant, we loaded our Hyundai Kona. We made several stops on our preplanned road trip along the Icefields Parkway. . . . . Our first stop was Crowfoot Glacier Viewpoint, about an hour away from Banff. We pulled into a fairly full parking lot at 11:00, but managed to…
Read More: Icefields Parkway
Thursday, July 2, 2026 . On the way to Hotel Canoe in Banff, where we planned to spend two nights, I intended to stop at Wild Flower Bakery to purchase the next day's packable lunch. Once we reached Banff, traffic was extremely heavy, so I dropped off Alex and Inna nearby so they could order pastries and sandwiches while I looked for parking. . .…
Read More: Beautiful Banff
After checking out of the Airbnb in Forestville, we drove for about 45 minutes to Jenner Headlands Preserve. . . We decided to do a short, 4.5-mile loop from sea to sky. It took us about two hours, and we saw cows, horses, and many birds along the way. . . . . For lunch, we first stopped at Cafe Aquatica, but our friends wanted…
Read More: Hiking Jenner Headlands Preserve
On Sunday morning, after breakfast, we decided to hike a few trails at the nearby Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve (about a 20-minute drive from our Airbnb home in Forestville). . . On arrival at the park at around 10:30, we noticed a long line of cars trying to get in, with many cars parked on the road. We decided to try parking on the…
Read More: Hiking Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve
Friday, May 1, 2026 . After returning from work, Inna and I quickly packed and set out on our long drive to Cambria, CA (on California's central coast). We had planned to visit Hearst Castle and enjoy the area for the weekend. . Our route was mostly on US-101, and there was heavy traffic. We arrived a bit later than we expected, at around 19:40.…
Read More: A Trip to Cambria
For Inna's birthday, I had planned a two-day getaway retreat at Calistoga, featuring rest & relaxation at the Indian Springs Resort & Spa. . Friday, February 27, 2026. After Inna and I finished work, we started our drive to Indian Springs Resort & Spa in Calistoga. There was some traffic on the way, and we arrived later than expected. After checking in at reception, we…
Read More: Calistoga Weekend
Inna and I planned a two-day weekend at the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa from Friday, December 5, to Sunday, December 7, 2025. . . . . I precharged our Tesla Model Y's battery to 95% capacity, anticipating the long drive ahead. . Friday, December 5, 2025 . We started the long drive to Sonoma in the late afternoon. There were periods of heavy…
Read More: Two Nights in Sonoma
After seeing the beautiful Manet & Morisot exhibit at the Legion of Honor Museum, we decided to hike the nearby Lands' End trail. . See the Google Maps link for directions. . We started our hike around 15:30 from the grounds of the Legion of Honor Museum, following the coastal trail. There were lots of people on the trail (probably families trying to burn off…
Read More: Hike to Lands’ End, San Francisco
Wednesday, August 6, 2025. Start: #7 Seabeds Luxury Lookouts, Woodlands, Glencoe, Scotland End: #7 Seabeds Luxury Lookouts, Woodlands, Glencoe, Scotland . Highlights: Hike to Buachaille Etive Beag mountain top, Hike to Glencoe Lochan, Hagrid's Hut, Skyfall Waterfall . . . . . . After waking up at 07:30, I showered and dressed. I noticed that our breakfast basket was delivered to our room. The basket…
Read More: Hike to Buachaille Etive Beag Peak, Glencoe, Scotland (August 6)
Friday, August 1, 2025. . Start: Hótel Laugarbakki, Iceland End: Hotel Island, Reykjavik, Iceland Highlights: Glanni Waterfall, Barnafoss Waterfall, Björn's Home . . . I can't believe it's already August 1st! Time sure flies when you're on vacation. . . . After waking up, showering, and packing our suitcases, we stopped by for breakfast in the large dining room at Hótel Laugarbakki at 07:37. Unfortunately,…
Read More: Horses & Waterfalls, Iceland (August 1)
Thursday, July 31, 2025. . Starting: Hótel Edda Akureyri, Iceland. Ending: Hótel Laugarbakki, Iceland Highlights: Whale Watching (humpback whales) on Lilja, Fish Stew at Gisli Eirikur Helgi Kaffihûs Bakkabrædra, Kolugljúfur Canyon . . . After waking up at 06:30, I showered, shaved, and dressed. We had to be ready by 08:20 to load the minibus, as we had an 08:30 Whale Watching tour scheduled. .…
Read More: Whale Watching in Akureyri, Iceland (July 31)
Wednesday, July 30, 2025. Starting: Wilderness Center, Egilstaðir, Iceland. Ending: Hótel Edda Akureyri, Akureyri, Iceland. Highlights: Rjúkandi Waterfall, Stuðlagil Canyon, Mývatn Nature Baths, Godafoss Waterfall, Akureyri downtown, Akureyrarkirkja, Dinner at Rub23 . . . Happy Birthday, Alex!. . . . . . Our Wilderness Center accommodations, in Egilstaðir, were fairly Spartan but comfortable, not too hot or cold (we had the windows open at night).…
Read More: Enjoying Mývatn Spa & Waterfalls, Iceland (July 30)
Tuesday, July 29, 2025. Starting: Adventure Hotel Hof, Fagurhólsmýri, Iceland . Ending: Wilderness Center, Egilstaðir, Iceland . Highlights: Eastfjords, Djúpivogur, Borgarfjarðarhöfn, Puffins, Wilderness Center . . . In the morning, we woke at 06:30 to get ready for another busy day. Our guide had planned to show us Puffins (which required extra driving time). . . . . . . . . It was slightly…
Read More: Puffin Encounter, Iceland (July 29)
Monday, July 28, 2025. Starting: Geirland Hotel, Kirkjubæjarklaustur Ending: Adventure Hotel Hof, Fagurhólsmýri. Highlights: Skaftafell Glacier, Jökulsarlón Glacier Lagoon, Diamond Beach, Fjallsjökull Lagoon . . I woke at 06:15, showered, shaved, and packed my suitcase and backpack. Our Arctic Adventures tour guide had scheduled an early departure at 07:45, and we needed to start breakfast at 07:00. . . . . . . . .…
Read More: Hiking the Skaftafell Glacier, Iceland (July 28)
Sunday, July 27, 2025. . . Starting: Hotel Island, Reykjavik . Ending: Geirland Hotel, Kirkjubæjarklaustur . Highlights: Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss, Strokkur Geyser, Seljalandsfoss, Skogafoss, Reynisfjara, Vikurfjara Black Sand Beach, Vík . . . . . . I woke at 06:30, showered, dressed, and packed my bags. Inna also woke up and dressed. After our bags were packed, we took the elevator downstairs to try…
Read More: Touring the Golden Circle, Iceland (July 27)