Destination Details, Things to Do

Traveling the World One Cabin at a Time

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The world that we live in is full of an assortment of beautiful sights and locations.  While the sweeping hills and mountains of Kashmir Valley are beyond majestic and the crystal-blue waters of Lau Archipelago in Fiji  is certainly stunning, some of the best views and vantage points in the world comes from a structure that you might not have given much thought to.

Cabins and other structures constructed from the Earth’s arsenal of naturally occurring materials have long been an integral part of the evolutionary chain as cultures become more developed.  While on a whole, the world has largely departed from the continuing construction of cabins and cabin-like homes, there are still several spots around the world that are capable of stealing your breath in an act of sheer beauty and tranquility.  Still not sold?  Take a look at some of the cabins below and perhaps you will have a change of heart.

Stone and thatch cottage; Pescaglia, Italy 

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Photo courtesy of Tommaso Meschi

Located in the heart of Tuscany, the small municipality of Pescaglia is home to a series of three valleys that offer citizens of Italy as well as destination travelers picturesque views and the opportunity to visit a number of unique vineyards scattered across the province.

Located on a small hill in the Pedgona valley portion of Pescaglia, this stone and thatch cottage looks like it was lifted straight from the pages of Beowulf.  Secluded several hundred kilometers from any other structures in the area, a visit to this cottage will put you at one with the beautiful green carpeted rolling hills and valleys that make up the surrounding area.

The structure is currently privately owned so an overnight stay is currently not possible.  Visitors and hikers will instead have to settle for a stroll by this fantastic piece of architecture.  If just a walk by wont suffice, many services offer a number of stone and thatch cottages throughout Europe that offer guest a chance to inhabit their walls, for a set fee that is.

Muir Trail Hut, Kings Canyon National Park, California

Muir Hut

Photo courtesy of  http://www.hikejmt.com

Situated at the peak of Muir Pass along the John Muir Trail, the Muir Trail Hut is as rich in history as it is in its architecture. During the 1930’s an organization known as the California Conservation Corps constructed this shelter as a reprieve for hikers and climbers who were looking for a pardon from the elements during a strong storm or foul weather system.  The Corps, originally part of President Roosevelt’s “New Deal” program has since gone on to be a thriving organization of young adults, but their endeavors at the peak of the Muir Trail definitely mark a high point among all of their projects.

The structure itself is constructed from materials and stone from the nearby mountains, and from a distance, almost appears to blend in with the rest of the rocky landscape.  While hikers are urged to not sleep inside of it anymore, if you find yourself hiking along this gorgeous trail, you’ll be sure to want to take a few moments to stop, sit down and enjoy the wonder of this beautiful stone structure.

Sod Hut, Geiranger, Norway

Sod Hut

Image credit cabinporn.com

This history of the sod house is one that is both rooted here States-side as well as in areas of Europe and Iceland.  These structures came into being through the lack of traditional building materials that existed in areas of these countries.  For the United States, the majority of sod houses sprung up during the Homestead Act which states that a set portion of land could be given to an individual if they built housing, farmed and maintained the area.  Trees for lumber weren’t exactly plentiful in these parts so large chunks of sod had to suffice.  The results were these sod homes.

Norway and Iceland also took advantage of these naturally occurring resources and thus, the result is the cabin pictures above.  This one, located in Geiranger Norway is a marriage of both traditional lumber cabins and the sod variety.  With a foundation of stone from nearby mountainsides and a traditional sod roof, this cabin is truly a unique coming together of the elements.  The Norwegian countryside is full of similarly crafted structures.  If you are going to be in the area and want to experience one of these cabins first hand, make sure to inquire with one of the staff members of VisitNorway.com to find out which trails can offer you a glimpse at one of these unique structures.

Have any other unique cabins that you have visited or seen? I’d love to hear from you below.

Videos

312 Days and 108,371 Miles in 3 Minutes

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I met a lot of travelers while living in Chiang Mai early last year, among them Gerard and Kieu (@GQTripping) — we had beers at Freedom Bar with Dave Dean and Lauren. Gerard and Kieu just put out a video summarizing their year on the travel trail…

Countries: Fiji, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Thailand, China, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, USA, Peru, Bolivia, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Austria, Hungary

The greatest part of the video? The quote at the end…

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To follow their adventure, follow them at GQtrippin.com.

Travel Plans

My United States To-Visit List

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I’ve been all over the United States. When I was young, we took roadtrips acorss the entire Western half of the United States. One year, a drive from Washington to Nebraska, with stops in Yellowstone and the Black Hills. One year to Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and New Mexico — with the Golden Arches being the big attraction. Christmas in the Florida Keyes about 7 years ago. Vegas for New Years. New York & Boston multiple times. San Francisco and Southern California more times than I can count. At Zillow, I traveled throughout the country during the height of the REBar Camp movement. A road trip to Texas in 2010. Portland numerous times.

You get the picture.

But it’s a big freaking country, and I haven’t been everywhere yet.

Where is the one spot I desperately need to get to?

That’s simple.

New Orleans — for Mardi Gras and/or JazzFest.

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Photo via http://www.1000lonelyplaces.com/

What other locations & events are on my short list?

  1. Coachella — I’ve heard so many amazing things about it from many of my friends who have attended.
  2. SantaCon in NYC — running around the streets of NYC with thousands of fellow Santas? How can that NOT be fun?
  3. Maine – I’ve heard the country side in Maine is beyond gorgeous.
  4. The South – aside from Miami & the Florida Keyes, I’ve never set foot anywhere in the South. Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina etc. That needs to change.
  5. The Appalachians in North Carolina – I’ve heard they are gorgeous and well worth seeing.
  6. Alaska – need I even explain?

Of course, I knocked Burning Man off the list this year (& it was awesome) — that one had been at the top for several years.

What are you must visit places in your home country?

Festivals

My Thoughts on the SnowGlobe Music Festival in Lake Tahoe

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snowglobe10 friends and I spent New Year’s in Lake Tahoe, attending the SnowGlobe music festival.

The good

  • The lineup was top notch – including Deadmau5 and Chromeo.
  • I’m going to go on a limb and say we had the most awesome costumes there (we were 11 Yetis strong).
  • Cold – I’ll admit, an outdoor music festival in the snow was a pretty awesome experience.
  • Close friends – I went with a really tight group of friends, which is what matters to me.

The bad

  • The shuttle lines – the first night, was horrendously unorganized trying to get back to town. The 2nd and 3rd nights were better, but not totally seamless by any stretch of the imagination.
  • Cold – the 2nd night, it was 7 degrees. Now, that’s cold.
  • The crowd was largely a younger crowd, mostly under the age of 23. Don’t get me wrong, we certainly weren’t the oldest people there (the 11 of us ranged from 28-30) — but were on the upper end of the spectrum.
  • There were a few costumes in the crowd, but by and large, cool costumes were few and far between. For those who have been to Burning Man — it’s not even a comparison.
  • Tahoe Casinos on New Year’s Eve – walking around the casinos after the show ended the last night exposed me to a world I’ve been out of for a long time. The party scene for the 18-23 year old crowd. Was that what I was like when I was 18, 19, 20, 21? Scary.

The ultimate question – would I go back again?

The answer to that is probably no. Given the choice, there are other festivals and locations I’d rather try next time. I would, however, go back to Burning Man.

Official Recap Video

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Oh Hey World Updates

Tech Startup Learnings: Focus and Development Priorities

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At any tech startup, product ideas are free flowing. The grand vision is always huge. Development & design resources are hard to come by. What are the next 3 features to build? In what order? Fix bugs or build new features and punt the bugs until enough users scream that you have to address it?

Development resources are a delicate balance, particularly early on. I thought product priorities was hard when I worked at Zillow and we had 10-15 engineers fairly early on. Now, we’re building an entire site with 1 engineer and 1 designer, so priorities and focusing on the right features is beyond critical.

My general advice?

Focus on the features needed to nail very specific user scenarios of your initial target audience. In some cases, prioritizing strategic features or custom work for specific potential influential users, clients, partners, or investors ahead of mass user features is the right decision. Don’t spend development resources on features that don’t add huge value but at hugely time consuming from a development perspective. Lastly, trust your gut.

How do you prioritize?

Western Europe

Backpacking for Brits

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Backpacking is becoming an increasingly popular way of travelling for people who want to see the world, just on a smaller budget. If that’s the kind of thing that interests you then you’ve come to the right place because this site is a great resource for backpackers.

Although backpacking is a great way to see the world, I’m actually going to be covering the best places for backpackers here in the UK.

Lake District

The Lake District provides some of the most beautiful scenery in the UK and its landscape is a match for anywhere in the world. Located in Cumbria in the North of England, the Lake District was created a national park by the British Government in 1951 and attracts well over 20 million visitors a year.

When visiting the Lakes you can’t help but be amazed by the rolling mountains, calm lakes and thriving woodland. It is little wonder that this area provided the inspiration for many of Wordsworth’s best known poems.

Any backpackers visiting the park should take in the scenery whilst taking a long stroll. Alternatively you could have a look around one of the many villages that can be found nestled in valleys, Ambleside which is next to Lake Windermere is a popular destination and has the feel of a frontier town.

Snowdonia

One of the largest national parks in the UK, Snowdonia is home to the second tallest mountain in the Britain, Snowdon. It receives millions of visitors every year who mainly come to take in the dramatic scenery whilst climbing Snowdon.

As good as Snowdon is, and as much as I recommend it to every backpacker out there, there is so much more to see in this stunning landscape. There are numerous campsites located throughout the park so you’ll always have a good place to start your adventures.

If you don’t want to spend your whole time walking then you should definitely have a look around the medieval town of Caernarfon (pr. Ca-nar-von) which is just outside the park’s boundaries. The town is home to a well preserved castle which is worth a look, as well as many reasonably priced bars and cafes.

Scottish Highlands

All the way to the top of the country now to the wild moors of the Scottish Highlands. It is in these moors that you can get about as far away from civilization as possible in the UK. It is also here that you’ll encounter the tallest mountain in the UK, Ben Nevis. Standing at just under 4,500ft Ben Nevis has been a tourist attraction for decades.

As with most of these locations there are numerous campsites available which will appeal to backpackers. Although actually getting to this part of Scotland can take a very long time by train or car so it may not always be that economical.

The highlands themselves range for hundreds of miles and are mostly covered in moorland or dense woodland. The wildlife in these parts is truly impressive, with the Pine Marten, Red Squirrel, Mink, Beaver and Golden Eagle being notable inclusions.

Oh Hey World Updates

Oh Hey World Vision – Part 2

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Any entrepreneur will tell you that visions, and how those are articulated, get refined over time. We’re no different. The vision we’re chasing is largely the same as I mentioned in Part 1, yet the way we’re articulating it has changed as a result of dozens of discussions with avid as well as infrequent travelers. At this stage, shifting is a good thing — if you set your product and messaging in stone too early and ignore your users’ feedback, that’s a recipe for disaster in a startup.

In part 1, our over-arching goal was to “connect you with nearby people and things that are relevant to you.” That gets at the main component, but we’ve decided to really focus on the people aspect of that vision. We’ve shifted a bit, and the vision now centers around “Giving you the Inside Connection to Your Next Destination“. A great inside connection is certainly different for everyone. They are based on friendships, passions, experiences, and values. Our premise is that if we connect you with the right individual(s), whether that be leading up to your trip or on the ground once you get there, you’ll get the information you need. Travelers don’t ultimately want to spend hours researching every aspect of their trip; they’d rather speak to an individual extremely knowledgeable about the area(s) where they are going and get  their specific questions and concerns addressed quickly. A knowledgeable expert to cut through the information overload problem is worth money to a large segment of travelers.

We think “LinkedIn for Travel” is a great analogy. When I think about LinkedIn, I think about it as a central network of all my business connections who can help me either get a job (when I wanted one), strike a business development partnership for my employer (when I had one), or grow my own business. Travel is an adventure. We are focused on connecting you with the people who will make your adventure as awesome as possible.

Oh Hey World Updates

The Story Behind the Original Idea of Oh Hey World

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Many people ask me where the original idea for Oh Hey World came from, so I thought I’d share it with those of you who I haven’t spoken with on the phone or in person.

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The summer of 2010 was hands-down the best summer of my life. In early January of 2010 over beers in Belltown, my friend Ashley and I both decided to leave our jobs and spend the summer in Greece. Over the next month, we recruited my close high school buddy Dan (who was already in Europe) and two of our college friends, Chris and Brooke, to spend the summer with us. We decided on Santorini as a destination, and more specifically Perissa Beach, a place both Jerry and I loved when we traveled there on our trek around Europe in 2005 (Jerry actually took a job & stayed 5 weeks)

Ashley, Dan, Chris, Brooke, and I arrived in Santorini mid May and left early August. There were about 15 others between the ages of 18 and 24 who lived all summer on Perissa Beach with us – most worked at restaurants, bars, or hotels and just wanted to spend the summer somewhere other than home. The group consisted of a few Kiwis, Aussies, Irish, Canadians, and British. We had an amazing community of people to hang out with every single day. But let’s face it. No matter how much you enjoy your friends company, you want some variety every now and then. Sure, we met some awesome travelers who were in Santorini for only few days — but it was just those who we happened to meet at Atlas, Beach Bar, or by walking across the street to Youth Hostel Anna and drinking with the people outside. I guarantee there were some awesome travelers who visited Santorini in the summer of 2010 who had a lot in common that I never met for no other reason than I didn’t know they were there. One particular use case I wanted solved was an easy way to find others passionate about microfinance.

Hence, the idea for Oh Hey World was sitting in the back of my mind the entire summer…

Wouldn’t it be amazing if there was some way to get notified when like minded travelers arrived in Santorini to share a beer, sunset, or meal with?

Santorini is certainly my favorite place on earth — and, no surprise, it’s because of the people I went with and those I met while there. Yet it could have been even better if there was some way to meet fellow travelers who had common passions, interests, or experiences.

So, 3 years later, the frustration will finally be alleviated. Now, I guess I need to go back to Santorini for another summer to test it out…

Exploring the Wild Blue Yonder