Hotels & Hostels
While traveling I often need quick solutions for accommodation. Popular places in Central America are crowded through the main season and finding some good accommodation requires some planning. To make life simple and easy I mainly use booking.com. On the road I usually don’t have too much time to compare prices and use various tools. So far I never made any bad experiences with my bookings. I am also very happy with the different sort-options booking.com offers as I usually start looking for the cheapest available price!
Are you already dreaming about your next holiday? It’s time to do the next step and check some prices!
Since I had my knee-injury on the PCT and had to use the medical services in the US, I am aware of the importance of having the right travel insurance. You never expect anything to happen but the truth is, that it always can. To be able to lean back and relax while traveling it’s important to decide for a reliable partner regarding your health insurance, no matter how long your trip is!
For my bicycle touring adventures from Mexico to Argentina I opted for the well-known Australian insurance company World Nomads. So far I cannot say too much about World Nomads because thankfully I didn’t have to make a claim yet. The price was good for me and also their customer service is very fast and helpful. Short after I booked the insurance, I wanted to add some additional countries to my policy and it turned out that it is no problem at all.
World Nomads partners with different insurance companies worldwide so you should get a quote related on your own data. Just fill out the form and you’ll get a quote in no time!
If you want to know which gear I use check out my PCT gear list, PCT gear review or my Bicycle Touring gear list!
Outdoor Store in Germany
Whenever possible I go into the next bigger city in Germany and visit my favourite outdoor store. There are a lot of good reasons why I like shopping in an actual physical shop rather than order everything online:
- I can actually touch the products right away and can directly compare lots of products
- In case I need it, the guys working at the outdoor store can provide some wisdom about the products
- A world without shops would be boring, wouldn’t it? Therefore I support their work by sometimes paying a slightly higher price than online (they store all that gear and keep it handy for their customers and they employ some people!)
- On my way back home I have the right to complain about the slow truck in front of me! Because I didn’t buy all the stuff ordered online that it’s driving around!
So just to make the world a bit better and help reducing our environmental impact I highly suggest that you visit a local outdoor store nearby. It’s just around the corner? Perfect! (Unfortunately I don’t get any commission for that!)
Online for the rest of the world
When I travel somewhere else on this planet and need some additional gear “on the go” my first choice is usually Amazon. Their fast delivery and a great customer service are my main reasons for that.
Adventure Books
A great novel about a family escaping into the wilderness of Alaska to solve their problems. Apart from personal tragedies this book gives some nice insights into wilderness life in Alaska.
Be careful – it’s catching! A great adventure novel about a man surviving a grizzly attack in the Canadian Tundra. I had to read it in one go!
I read it while cycling through the Yucatán peninsula in Mexico. I couldn’t wait to get into my tent at night! A great book about the discovery of the White City in Honduras. And a true story!
A great adventure book about a group of young Uruquayans that crash with their plane in the Andes. Find out how they managed to survive in the mountains for more than two months!
I read Patrick Taylor’s first book “Lost on Purpose” and was immediately taken with him on the Lewis and Clarke Trail crossing the Rocky Mountains. The detailed description of the landscape as well as his professional knowledge of the outdoors and hiking make these books (there’s 3!!) a real gem I have basically found by accident!
Outdoor Books – Some good reads to improve your skills
A general and very detailed guide to outdoor medicine.
An amazing guide to mountaineering and outdoor travel! Go, read it!
Really a good guide to winter camping in addition to the Mountaineering book.
Books about Hiking and the Pacific Crest Trail
Great information on the Pacific Crest Trail, especially about the nature of the trail. Reading the book already feels like hiking!
A very lively report of Keith Fosketts hike on the PCT. Definitely worth reading!
Another report of a thru-hiker – when you are preparing for the PCT you can’t read enough!
Hosting Service
One of the first steps when you decide to run your own website is finding a good hosting company. I started off with Hostgator – a company which is advertised on many other resources pages of well-known travelblogs. It’s hard to find diplomatic words to describe the Hostgator experience I had for weeks. Transferring my (very basic) blog from WordPress.com took more than two weeks. Instead of getting started with my website I spent hours on the support-chat chatting with people who never did anything except writing a ticket for my issue. Maybe one day I will get around to write the full story about the first weeks of running my own website.
It was so bad that I decided to switch to another hosting company. Of course I was very suspicious and first of all tested the customer support chat. What I experienced was something completely different: fast reaction time and the people did all know what they were talking about. I got instant help at all times! This company is Siteground. Lifetimetrails is hosted by them and so far I can highly recommend their service. Just click on the link below to get more information and to find an offer that suits you:
Jungletreks.com – adventure of a lifetime
You’re still looking for a real adventure? The small company of Jungletreks offers unique guided tours in the jungle of Panama including the famous Darien Gap. It’s high on my list to get there and I really hope I can participate in one of Rick’s guided jungle treks one day!
mountainsandme.ca – Ever heard about the TEAR??!!
Dylan is Canadian, a Triple Crowner and…. he successfully hiked the TEAR in 2019. A self-made hiking route through the mountains of Europe. What an adventure! I wish I could have been hiking with him!
Halfwayanywhere.com – the PCT collection
Mac’s site is probably the best online resource about the PCT! He covered every topic you can imagine – well, at leats every topic I can imagine. Check it out!
Myopencountry is a campaign to about getting people exited for the outdoors. You can find all sorts of helpful in depth guides on topics related to being outside.
Were my hike and travel resources helpful for you? I guess there’s a lot of stuff out there I haven’t even tried. What is your favourite tool for hiking and traveling? And why should I definitely try it? Let me know in the comment section!
If you want to read on check out my hiking and bicycle touring pages!
Disclosure: This page contains affiliate links which means at no additional cost to you, I may receive small commissions for purchases made via these links. This helps to cover some costs to run the website and to make improvements possible for the future.
