And down again – Whitehorse, Yukon to Victoria, British Columbia

And down again – Whitehorse, Yukon to Victoria, British Columbia
It's been a crazy summer. At the end of July Carly and I packed up the van to move from Whitehorse, Yukon down to Vancouver Island, British Columbia. This seems like a long time ago now looking over the photos, but as we are finally slowing down and getting settled in our new home we can take a moment to reflect. Below covers our two week drive down from Whitehorse to Vancouver Island. I had been a little concerned about filling the van with all of our worldly possessions as it was also to be our home for the next two weeks. I had purchased a roof bag for the van so we could store things

First trip in the van – Victoria, British Columbia to Whitehorse, Yukon

First trip in the van – Victoria, British Columbia to Whitehorse, Yukon
We left Victoria early in the morning to head 'up island' to Nanaimo to visit some of Carly's family. From there we took the ferry back to Vancouver on the mainland. Let the first road trip in the new van begin! In Vancouver we had a quick catch up with some friends, did a little shopping (Whitehorse is a little limited on that front) and saw some more of Carly's family who also put us up for the night. They were out when we arrived but gave instructions on how we could let ourselves in. Unfortunately we managed to set off the burglar alarm, which in a heist film style moment automatically

Applying For Canada’s Federal Skilled Worker Program

Earlier this year I applied for permanent residency in Canada through the Federal skilled worker program. This program allows you to apply for residency without a job offer in place, but relies on your education, skills and experience. From the Canadian Immigration FSW site: Canada encourages applications for permanent residence from people with skilled work experience and education that will contribute to the Canadian economy. As you would expect, the application process is complicated and long. To give you an idea, it took me around three months of toil to get everything together in order

A Journal From The East Highland Way Walk

A Journal From The East Highland Way Walk
Recently I headed up to Scotland to do a couple of long distance trails. Below are some of my thoughts and experiences recorded in my journal as I walked the East Highland Way. Day 1 05/07/14, 22km Avimore → Inverglass Fine weather, the trail much more interesting than the Speyside Way from the offset. Passing alongside lochs with hills in sight. Passed a bothy, another one on the map - perhaps tomorrow night. Got a pint at Loch Insh water sports centre, overlooking the loch. Met a couple (American guy, Canadian girl) who said their car was stuck. I couldn't believe the track, not much

A Journal From The Speyside Way Walk

A Journal From The Speyside Way Walk
Recently I headed up to Scotland to do a couple of long distance trails. Below are some of my thoughts and experiences recorded in my journal as I walked the Speyside Way. Day 1 29/07/14, 12km Buckie → Nether Dallachy   My flight to Inverness was delayed an hour and a half but the busses to Buckie were straight forward. Stocked up on food but could only find a huge gas bottle. Very tried from the journey up here, on top of a late night while visiting a friend in Birmingham yesterday. Starting in Buckie at 5:30pm, I had to bribe myself with the reward of a pub in 8km in order to start

A Journal From The Offa’s Dyke Walk

A Journal From The Offa’s Dyke Walk
A couple of days ago I finished walking the Offa's Dyke path, a 177 mile (285km) long distance walking trail that roughly follows the England-Wales border in the UK. It took 13 days to complete, covers all manner of terrain and goes through some rural villages and small towns. Apart from a few nights staying with friends and family I wild camped every night. I really enjoyed the journey and learnt a few things along the way. I also met a lot of very nice people. It was a bit of an escape from technology for me so I didn't 'blog' as such, but I did write a bit of a journal which I have typed