Winter Travel Packing List: What to Pack for Outdoor Activities

The thing about travel is it’s constantly taking you out of your comfort zone.  Which is awesome.  But it also means that sometimes you have no idea how to best prepare for a situation.  For us, that moment came when we were preparing for our trip to Swedish Lapland.  We live in San Diego, home of some of the most beautiful and temperate weather in the United States. What did we know about winter travel to the Arctic Circle?  Not much.  We were not only planning travel to freezing temperatures, but we were also planning to spend much of our time outside enjoying winter outdoor activities.  What to wear?  It was important to get it right so we weren’t miserable.  We put together a winter travel packing list that served us well for enjoying our winter outdoor activities.

The year before we went to Sweden, we took our first winter trip to Madison, Wisconsin.  Because of that trip, we had a little bit of knowledge about packing for winter travel, so some of our winter travel packing list was the same.  But traveling above the Arctic Circle to experience Swedish Lapland’s winter outdoor activities is a little more extreme. 

The key to packing for winter travel is to pack lots of layers and as little cotton as possible.  Layers are important because they provide insulation and ventilation and allow you to quickly adjust to changes in temperature and activity level by adding or removing layers.  Avoiding cotton is important because cotton retains moisture and will create a chilling effect.

The first layer is the base layer, which goes against your skin.  The base layer manages moisture by moving perspiration away from your body to the outdoor layers, allowing it to evaporate.  Do not use cotton thermals for your base layer.  Your base layer should be made out of wool or synthetic fabrics like polyester.   We wore Under Armour, which is made of synthetic fabric, and a popular wool brand is SmartWool.

The middle layer provides insulation by retaining heat and trapping warm air close to your body.  The middle layer should be made with wool, down, or fleece.  For our tops we chose fleece, which is lightweight, breathable, and can still insulate when wet.  Fleece comes in different weights depending on the weather and your needs. 

For our bottoms, jeans weren’t going to cut it.  I actually wore jeans one day in Kiruna, thinking it would be okay since we were just walking around and would be inside most of the time. That was a mistake and my legs were cold and slightly numb.  The best purchase we made for our winter travel was of Craghoppers' lined winter pants, made with polyester and cotton and lined with fleece.

The shell or outer layer protects you from the elements like wind, rain, and snow.  A good down jacket is the perfect outer layer for when you’re walking around outside in the cold and snow.  Down is lightweight and can pack very small when using space saver vacuum seal bags.  It also traps in warmth. 

For winter outdoor activities like snowmobiling and dog sledding you’ll need more.  The best item of winter clothing for winter outdoor activities is a full-body snowsuit.  Luckily this isn’t something we had to pack.  During our stay at the ICEHOTEL we were provided with a snowsuit which we were able to use for our entire stay.  Also, every tour company provided snowsuits for guest use.

It’s also important to keep your head, hands and feet warm.  Wool socks are essential, and if one pair is good, two pairs are better.  We suggest wearing thin socks with very little cotton underneath your wool socks, which help wick away moisture and protect from the wool itch.  Again, make sure not to wear mostly cotton socks.  My favorite winter boots are my lined Ugg boots, but another good option is Sorel boots.  The ICEHOTEL and tour operators provided boots, but I preferred using my own.  Make sure your boots are big enough to fit your extra thick socks.

Protect your hands with really good gloves or mittens.  It’s important for your gloves to be waterproof as you will most likely be touching snow multiple times.  It is suggested to wear mittens because the insulation works better when all your fingers are together in the same opening.  However, I really couldn’t get the hang of wearing mittens so I stuck with my gloves.  Again, the ICEHOTEL and our tour operators provided leather mittens.

To keep your head warm, pack a good knit hat.  My Under Armour hat worked spectacularly because it had an inner layer which trapped heat in.  Also pack a wool scarf to cover your face, especially when joining in fast moving outdoor winter activities.  You may even want to invest in a balaclava, especially for snowmobiling.

If you use this winter travel packing list for your next outdoor winter adventure, you’ll have a successful winter trip and be warm and toasty while outside playing in freezing temperatures.

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links.  If you make a purchase using one of the links it costs you nothing extra and we earn a small commission which goes towards our travels and helps us bring you more stories.  Thank you!

Read More

3 Great Places for Outdoor Activities in Northern Virginia

During our Virginia weekend getaway in Prince William County, located in Northern Virginia less than an hour’s drive away from Washington, D.C., we spent a lot of time outdoors because it was fall and the leaves were just starting to turn color.  There are a number of outdoor things to do in Northern Virginia.  Since we were visiting for a long weekend, we couldn’t visit them all, but we did get to visit three great places for outdoor activities in Northern Virginia where we were able to hike, enjoy the scenery, and learn a little history as well.

Bull Run Mountains Conservancy

The Bull Run Mountains are part of the Blue Ridge Mountains mountain range in Northern Virginia.  The Bull Run Mountains are protected by the Bull Run Mountains Conservancy, which offers walking trails and educational programs.  (To learn more about their public programs, visit their website.)

We love old buildings and history, so our first stop during our visit to the Bull Run Mountains was the Chapman / Beverley Mill Historic Site.  This mill was built in 1742 and is believed to be the tallest stacked stone structure in the United States.  After the mill was nearly destroyed by arson in 1998, after surviving for over 200 years, the Turn The Mill Around Campaign (TTMAC) has worked on preserving the mill and making it accessible to the public.  Their first order of business was stabilizing the mill, which is why you will see bracing bars in the interior.  The mill and surrounding area is open to the public on the weekends only.

The mill was built by father and son Jonathan and Nathaniel Chapman.  It was enlarged in 1758 and was used to process wheat and corn.  It was already a prosperous mill because of its location between the Shenandoah Valley and the city of Alexandria, but the completion of the Manassas Gap Railroad in 1852 created even more opportunity for prosperity and the Chapmans enlarged the mill yet again.  During the Civil War the mill was used to store meat for the Confederates and the Confederates burned the mill and the meat after the Battle of First Manassas.  After the war, the Beverley family restored the mill and took ownership and the mill passed to different owners over the next few decades.  The mill is steeped in war history as it provided cornmeal and flour during seven American wars: The French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II.  The mill finally ceased operations in 1946.

In front of the mill is the Beverley Mill Store.  It was used as a general store and also as a post office.  While you can see the highway nearby, it used to run right in front of the general store.  The Beverley Mill Store is now a registered Virginia Historic Landmark.

If you (carefully) scramble up the rock located southwest of the mill, you will be treated to a picturesque sight of the Broad Run river trickling over a series of short waterfalls as it winds through the trees.

Behind the mill are the tracks of the still in use Manassas Gap Railroad.

After visiting the Chapman / Beverley Mill, take one of the five hiking trails in the Bull Run Mountains Natural Area Preserve, or create your own hike by following a combination of the five trails.  The Green Loop trail is the longest and includes the mill, a fern hollow, and laurel thickets.  The Red Loop trail passes Colonial and Civil War-era structures and a quarry trench used in the Civil War Battle of Thoroughfare Gap.  The easier and shorter trails are Yellow Loop, Blue Spur, and Brown Trail.

Prince William Forest Park

Prince William Forest Park was originally created in 1936 as Chopawamsic Recreation Area, a children’s relief camp created during the Great Depression to help impoverished kids get healthcare and have the chance to play outdoors for a couple weeks.  Today it is part of the National Park Service and provides 37 miles of hiking trails, 21 miles of biking trails, and lots of open spaces for nature lovers to enjoy.

To cover the most territory of Prince William Forest Park, visitors can drive the nine-mile loop scenic drive.  A drive around the park passes trees, deer, bridges, boardwalks, and even a cemetery. 

A popular trail for those without a lot of time to hike is the Laurel Loop Trail.  This trail is 1.4 miles long and visits South Fork Quantico Creek which is crossed on a small footbridge.

Prince William Forest Park has the largest number of preserved structures built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.  Some of the original camps are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Visitors can arrange ranger-guided tours to visit some of these original cabins. 

During our tour of the camps, we also came across a spooky old graveyard.  If you didn’t know what you were looking for, you might not even notice it.  Amongst the trees are fairly deep depressions in the ground marked only with medium stones.  It is believed these are graves of Union soldiers from the Civil War.

Manassas National Battlefield Park

Manassas National Battlefield Park is the site of not just one, but two Civil War battles.  First Manassas was the first major land battle of the Civil War, a one-day battle which occurred July 21, 1861.  Second Manassas was a three-day battle which occurred a year later in August of 1862.

While the main focus of the park is Civil War history, the park is 5,100 acres and provides numerous places for nature lovers to explore while still getting some Civil War history at the same time.  In fact, Manassas National Battlefield Park has over 40 miles of hiking trails, many of which are punctuated by explanatory markers.  Trails include the First Manassas Trail, Stone Bridge Loop Trail, Sudley Loop Trail, Matthews Hill Loop Trail, Henry Hill Loop Trail, China Ridge Loop Trail, Stuart’s Hill Loop Trail, Brawner Farm Loop Trail, Deep Cut Loop Trail, and Unfinished Railroad Loop Trail.

Manassas National Battlefield Park’s trails are popular not only with travelers, but also with the locals.  We ran into a gentleman walking his dog while we were checking out the cannons and view on Matthews Hill. 

Two of the trails, Henry Hill Loop Trail and Brawner Farm Loop Trail, are included in the guided walking tours offered by the park.  The Henry Hill Loop Trail visits the Ricketts’ Battery of Union artillery and the Henry House.  The Brawner Loop Trail visits the area touched by the Battle of Second Manassas and traverses historic farmland.

The Stone Bridge Loop Trail is at the east end of the park.  Hikers cross the post-Civil War Stone Bridge and follow a boardwalk trail along the Bull Run River.  Keep your eyes open for wildlife.  We spotted deer crossing the stream.

The Unfinished Railroad Loop Trail is a beautiful, forested hike along the unfinished railroad grade where the Battle of Second Manassas was fought.  This hike is especially picturesque in fall when the leaves are changing color.  Plaques along the trail describe the eventually unsuccessful bayonet charge by the Union brigade. 

Thank you to Discover Prince William & Manassas for hosting our trip to Virginia and making this post possible.  As always, all opinions are my own.

Read More

Kiruna: The Sinking Mine Town of Sweden's Lapland

Kiruna Church and bell tower.

Kiruna is sinking, literally.  Sweden’s northernmost town located in Swedish Lapland, a remote area with a harsh climate within the Arctic Circle, came to be because of the rich iron ore being mined nearby.  The same mine that brought the people and the town and the money is what is now causing the town to sink.  

The situation isn’t a complete disaster, and it isn’t a surprise either.   When LKAB, Kiruna’s mining company, was founded in 1890, the founder ran the calculations and knew that if the mine continued, the town would have to be moved in 125 years.  That time has come and Kiruna needs to move.

You may be wondering why a mining town that is slowly sinking is a sought after tourist destination.  Kiruna is a popular place to visit for people who are traveling to Swedish Lapland to enjoy outdoor winter activities like snowmobiling, dogsledding, and seeing the Northern Lights.

Kiruna City Hall.

While Kiruna is oftentimes used as a home-base for enjoying outdoor activities, the town itself has something to offer visitors to this remote part of the world.  The main attraction is the mine, which travelers can visit on a guided tour.  There is also Kiruna Church, a wooden church voted the most beautiful public building in Sweden, and Kiruna’s city hall, with its unusual clock tower.  After the city’s big move, some of Kiruna’s attractions will still be in the same place, some will be moved, and some will no longer exist.

Kiruna's iron mine.

A visit to Kiruna should include a tour of the mine.  After all, the town wouldn’t even be there if it weren’t for the mine.  This isn’t your gold rush era old-timey kind of mine like we visited on Arizona’s Apache Trail.  This is a modern, working, underground city kind of mine.

Entrance to Kiruna's iron mine.

The LKAB mine is the largest underground iron ore mine in the world.  It can only be visited on a guided tour which is set up through the Kiruna Lapland tourism board.  (For tour times and to make a reservation, visit Kiruna Lapland’s website.)  A bus picks everyone up from the Tourist Office in Kiruna and drives them to the nearby mine.  Once the bus enters the cave-like entrance, the bus begins winding its way down, down, down into the bowels of the earth. 

Schematic of the mine's tunnels.

The roads inside the mine are called slopeways.  There are 400 kilometers of slopeways within Kiruna’s mine.  The levels of the mine are named after their depth.  For instance, Level 540 is 540 meters down and is one of the main levels from 30 years ago.  A restaurant for mine workers is 1,365 meters underground, and the deepest point of the mine is 1,545 meters.

Equipment used in Kiruna's iron mine.  The tires are filled with water.

After donning hardhats, the tour starts deep in the mine with a short film about the mine and the company.  The tour then walks through the level where mining equipment can be seen and the mining process is explained.  You can even take home a baggie of iron ore pellets, which is the form in which most of the iron from the mine is distributed.  One day of mining produces enough iron to build six Eiffel Towers.

In case you’re wondering how an entire town can afford to move, LKAB will pay for the move.  LKAB is one of the most profitable companies in Sweden.

Kiruna Church.

There are a few things to do and see within the town center of Kiruna as well.  One of the top things to see in Kiruna is Kiruna Church.  Kiruna Church is not your standard church.  It is a wooden church built in the shape of a Sami tent, or goahti.  Kiruna Church was designed by Gustav Wickman and was built between 1909 and 1912.  When the church was completed in 1912, it was donated to the people of Kiruna by LKAB mining company.  In 2001, the church was voted Sweden’s most beautiful building. 

Interior of Kiruna Church.

Kiruna Church is in the center of town.  It is one of the buildings that will be saved and will actually be moved to a safer spot.

Interior of Kiruna's City Hall.

Another must see in Kiruna is Kiruna’s City Hall.  This is a spacious building topped with a very unusual clock.  Kiruna’s current City Hall will not survive the town’s move.  Within City Hall visitors can view plans for Kiruna’s new city center, including the new city hall.  The clock tower of City Hall will be saved and will be a highlight of the new town center. 

Artist rendering of new city hall and city center.

While moving an entire town is an incredibly difficult and expensive endeavor, the upside is that Kiruna will be a more beautiful town with a bustling city center with shops, hotels, homes, and public spaces.  Once the move has been completed, which could take 20 years, a park will be created where the old town once stood.

Camp Ripan.

If you’re planning on staying in Kiruna, we suggest Camp Ripan, a lovely hotel on the outskirts of town, but within easy walking distance, even in the winter.  To learn more about Camp Ripan, its restaurant, its spa, and its Northern Lights viewability, read our article about five awesome hotels in Sweden.

Thank you to Kiruna Lapland and Camp Ripan for hosting our time in Kiruna and making this post possible.  As always, all opinions are my own.

Read More

5 Reasons to Celebrate the Holidays in New Orleans

On a whim last year we decided to head to New Orleans to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s Eve.  It turned out to be one of the best holiday season vacations ever.  New Orleans is a fantastic city in which to celebrate the holidays.  New Orleans is always looking for an excuse to celebrate, and the holiday season is no exception.  Christmas in New Orleans is not only festive, it also lasts longer in New Orleans than other holiday destinations.  New Orleans’ New Year’s Eve is perfect for travelers who want to experience one of the country’s biggest New Year’s Eve celebrations without being packed like sardines in the crowds of New York City’s Times Square.  

New Orleans is Covered in Christmas Decorations

New Orleans lights a large Christmas tree every year in the French Market, but New Orleans’ Christmas decorations don’t just stop there.  The entire French Quarter is decked out in Christmas finery.   New Orleans’ Christmas decorations aren’t just your run-of-the-mill wreaths and lights.  Houses are decorated with Christmas crocodiles, Christmas New Orleans streetcars, voodoo-inspired decorations, and everything else you can imagine.  Even the house museums and plantations of New Orleans are decorated in era-specific Christmas decorations.

Christmas in New Orleans Lasts Longer

Christmas in New Orleans doesn’t end December 25.  Christmas in New Orleans lasts until January 6, the date of the epiphany, which means all those Christmas decorations can be enjoyed all the way through the first week of January.  This also means you can celebrate Christmas with your family at home, then hop on a plane and celebrate Christmas in one of America’s most festive destinations, The Big Easy.

Christmas in New Orleans Has its Own Dinner Menu

Restaurant menus in the city are filled with traditional New Orleans foods.  Many restaurants in New Orleans follow another food tradition by offering a special dinner menu for the Christmas season.  The Réveillon is an old Creole custom.  Reveillon means “awakening” in French and in the early 1800s was a big meal enjoyed when the family returned from midnight mass.  New Orleans revived this old tradition in the 1990s and New Orleans restaurants serve réveillon menus for a month, ending on Christmas Day. 

Réveillon menus are prix fixe and can range from traditional to high-end.  We chose to have our réveillon dinner at The Bombay Club, a cozy, dark, leather and wood restaurant that makes you feel like you’ve time traveled back about a hundred years.  The Bombay Club’s réveillon menu consisted of three courses which ended with brandy milk punch, a traditional New Orleans cocktail, and cookies, the perfect treat to leave for Santa when he comes to New Orleans.

New Orleans Has the Best Christmas Ornaments

My favorite souvenir to purchase on any vacation is Christmas ornaments for our Christmas tree.  At Christmastime, we love to hang ornaments from our travels and reminisce about all of the wonderful trips we have enjoyed together.  Some of the best Christmas ornaments can be found in New Orleans in the shops along Royal Street.  New Orleans Christmas ornaments include fleur de lis, mardi gras masks, streetcars, and voodoo dolls.  

New Orleans’ New Year’s Eve is One of the Best in the USA

While New York City’s New Year’s Eve celebration may be the most famous in the United States, New Year’s Eve in New Orleans is also a big production.  New Year’s Eve in New Orleans centers around a historic building in the French Quarter, the Jackson Brewery building, also known as Jax Brewery.  Every New Year’s Eve a statue of Baby New Year appears on the rooftop of Jax Brewery.  As the countdown to the New Year begins, a lit fleur de lis on the rooftop begins its drop.  It lands at the stroke of midnight and the New Year ignites as fireworks burst out above the Mississippi River as well as along the entire horizon surrounding New Orleans.  Even when the fireworks are over and everyone is heading back home or to the bars, New Orleans on New Year’s Eve continues to be festive with the sounds of When the Saints Come Marching In filling the streets.

We had the unique once-in-a-lifetime privilege of joining in the celebration from the top of Jax Brewery, but there are multiple places to celebrate New Year’s Eve in New Orleans.  Crowds gather in Jackson Square and along Decatur Street to watch the drop of the fleur de lis.  A slightly less crowded place to join the festivities is the Moon Walk, a promenade that hugs the banks of the Mississippi River behind Jax Brewery.  This is a great place to both watch the fleur de lis drop and see the fireworks.  We were also told by a local that another place to enjoy New Year’s Eve fireworks in New Orleans is from the Westin parking garage, though we haven’t tested this for ourselves. 

If you’re looking for a memorable holiday travel destination, New Orleans is the place to be.

Read More

Travel the World's 2015 Holiday Gift Guide

It's that special time of year again when Christmas songs play on store sound systems non-stop and it's time to find that impossible person to shop for the perfect holiday gift.  If that person loves to travel the world, one of these 10 holiday gifts for travelers is sure to bring them some Christmas cheer.  If you're the impossible-to-shop-for traveler, add these great travel gifts to your Amazon wish list and make things easier for your friends and family.

Feel Like a Tourist at Home

When you think of the typical tourist, you picture someone walking around in white tennis shoes (or sandals with socks) and carrying a camera.  Get that same vibe at home with the Camera Lens Thermo Mugand sip your coffee in the morning while daydreaming of all the photos you'll take on your next vacation.

Carry Your Passport Everywhere

Your favorite travel lover will love this phone case made to look like a passport.  While the one pictured is for a US passport, they make them for many different countries. The passport phone cases are made to fit multiple versions of iPhones and Galaxy phones.  

Turn Your Camera Into a WiFi Camera

The Eyefi Memory Card turns any camera into a camera with WiFi.  This gift is perfect for the traveler who wants to share their photos with friends and family on Facebook or Instagram, doesn't have a camera with built-in WiFi, and wants to share their good photos rather than their cellphone photos. 

Wear Your Love for Travel

Most of the items on this list I personally own, but this one is on my own Christmas wish list (hint, hint).  Printed t-shirts are my favorite for wearing around the house, out for chores, or on the airplane headed to somewhere fun and exotic. This Jet Lag Made Me Do It t-shirt is made even better with its fun travel theme.  Airportag has lots of other fun travel-related t-shirts for men and women too.  

Fight Jet Lag

Speaking of jet lag, know someone that loves traveling but hates jet lag?  Help them with that jet lag by gifting them 1Above Anti Jet Lag Flight Drink.  These effervescent tablets dissolve in water and are to be consumed throughout the flight.  As their website says, "1Above® is formulated to fight jet-lag with six essential electrolytes, six B vitamins, vitamin C and Pycnogenol® to help you fly well and arrive ready!"  I've tested it on a flight across the country and it really worked!  I'll be using it again on an upcoming trip to Europe. 

Commemorate that Special Trip

Did you and your favorite travel partner take a trip you'd like to remember forever? Commemorate that trip with this customizable boarding pass throw pillow.  You can get just the pillow cover or both the cover and insert.  This pillow is personalized with name, date, airport codes, and flight number. This would also be an amazing way to give the gift of travel by entering the specifics for a future trip you've planned as a surprise. 

Preview Your GoPro Shots

It seems like everyone has a GoPro.  They're great for snorkeling, zip lining, kayaking, or driving the open road.  What they haven't been good for is making sure you're capturing what you want.  Previously you had to use an app on your phone if you wanted to see a preview.  But now you can add the GoPro LCD Touch BacPac to your GoPro and set up the perfect shot.  Believe me, this thing is awesome!  

Travel In Style with the Incase Duffel

When we travel, I typically travel with one rolling suitcase and one duffel bag. The Incase EO Travel Duffelis the newest addition to my luggage collection and I love it.  It's stylish, it easily slides into the overhead bin, and it keeps its shape when partially or fully loaded.  (For more information, ready my review of the Incase EO Travel Duffel.  

Go all the Way with a New Camera

If you're really wanting to impress and are looking for a gift for your favorite photog, consider the Sony Alpha a7IIK Mirrorless Digital Camera.  I have been a loyal Sony customer for over a decade, first with the Sony Cybershot, then the Sony NEX3, and most recently with the new sony a7II.  In my humble opinion this is one of the best cameras money can buy (the Sony a7R IIand Sony a7SII versions are more expensive). 

When All Else Fails...

Still can't decide what gift to buy?  Or waited too long?  There's always the stand-by gift for the picky or people who have everything, your best friend the Amazon Gift Card.  

Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links.  Purchasing through these links costs you nothing extra and helps fund our travels so we can bring you more travel stories.  Thank you and happy holidays!

Read More