Royal National Park | Day Hike: wedding Cake Rock | The best thing about visiting Australia is that scenic views and spectacular nature are just a sto

sand - Fernwayer Travel Stories & Experiences

Australia

The best thing about visiting Australia is that scenic views and spectacular nature are just a stone's throw away, no matter where you are. If you're in Sydney, you won't get a better view of the ocean than walking through Royal National Park and taking Bundeena Drive to Marley Walk.

Passing through scenic heathland with small trees, you'll soon come to a bushwalk through a denser forest. We saw many native bird species, including the famous cockatoo, had a dip in one of the pools along the way, and took stunning sunset photos as you look out over the wild ocean. The tourist highlight is Wedding Cake Rock, but our personal star was Marley Beach, a dreamy, hidden sandy beach where you can relax and dip your feet in the refreshing water.

You can rent a car and drive directly to Bundeena, but we decided to take the train from Sydney to Cronulla and from there take the ferry to Bundeena.

Day Hike: wedding Cake Rock

United States

If you're looking for an unconventional neighborhood with art galleries, parks to hang out in, and lots of young, trendy people, Newtown is the place for you. I basically spend all my weekends there, drinking coffee, going to book clubs, working at the community kitchen Lentil as Anything, and having a beer at one of the lively bars at night. 

Australians love vintage – which makes Newtown the heaven for vintage clothes, cameras, vinyl records, and much more. I’ve got some new sandals, a polaroid camera, and jewelry, all unique pieces at an amazing price. Worth the hype!

You can easily get there by train, it's just a ride from Town Hall, or simply stay a few days in one of the hostels in Newtown.

Bohemian dreams in Newtown

Colombia

Visiting Western Australia's Nambung National Park and the Pinnacles Desert is a must.

Located at the southern gateway to Australia's Coral Coast, along the Indian Ocean Drive, the Pinnacles Desert of Nambung National Park is one of the major natural attractions in the region and are Western Australia's most visited attractions.

The park is located roughly 200km, or 2 hours' drive north of Perth, and covers an area of 17,487 hectares providing natural habitat for an extensive array of native animals and bird life.

The Pinnacles are amazing natural limestone structures, formed approximately 25,000 to 30,000 years ago after the sea receded and left deposits of sea shells. Over time, coastal winds removed the surrounding sand, leaving the pillars exposed to the elements. The Pinnacles range in height and dimension - some stand as high as 3.5m!

Desert limestone formations

Botswana

Meet the Lion. Landlord of the Okavango floodplains. The fearless prides of lions here are known to hunt buffaloes and elephants. They have large prides, with several young cubs. In the delta, as it is elsewhere, it’s all about power and opportunism.
🐃 | 🦁 | 🐘 
“The Okavango Delta is an astonishing sight: the great Okavango River, rather than flow towards the sea, flows inland, into the sands of the Kalahari.”- Alexander McCall Smith

The delta is clearly a fluke of nature, and the way to appreciate it best is from the air, especially in June and July when you can see the progress of the rain water flooding into the area and turning it into a lush paradise teeming with wildlife. 

It’s a very special place.

Lion vs. Buffalo

Faroe Islands

I’m seduced by the untouched beauty and drama of the Faroe Islands. Driving into Tórshavn, I witness a rare Faroese sight.

The ocean is bright red. The beach is packed with onlookers. It’s a grindadráp, a pilot whale hunt. Heavily regulated, it’s being carried out with process perfected over millennia. A local couple points out their son to me, he is on one of the boats — “unless we send a boat, we won’t get our share of the whale meat.”

When a school of pilot whales is sighted, boats gather around and slowly drive them towards the chosen bay or beach, for it’s illegal to kill the whales in the open sea. This time, there are about two hundred of them. Every bit of them will be consumed or used — and none can be sold.

I’m shocked, outraged, fascinated, caught up in the excitement and terribly conflicted. As a traveler, I respect — and seek to understand — culture and tradition. And the Faroese are holding on to this one — as it symbolizes for them their relationship with the sea.

Culture Shock

Iceland

On the epic Ring Road drive (A1) in East Iceland, there’s a black sand beach called Stokksnes, just a few kilometres from Höfn. 

A gravel road gets you to a tiny cafeteria - where you can pay a small fee to drive further in till the edge of the water. 

Volcanic black sand dunes, Tall green grasses. Waves breaking on the rocks. Wind. Reflections in the water. Incredible beauty. Pure zen.

Pure Zen

United Kingdom

Continuing my recommendations for a stunning drive to the South of Iceland -

1. From Dyrhólaey to Vik: Stop at Dyrhólaey for its sea arch and basalt blocks - turn from the Ring Road to the right to road 218, and drive that road to an end, you should see puffins at Reynisfjall cliffs, at Arnardrangur "Eagle rock” (very picturesque with Reynisdrangar and Reynisfjara in the background), at low tide, you can walk along the black beach and discover little caves and rock formations, and finally, the little village of Vik with its stunning black sand beach and sea stacks, worth visiting both at sunset and sunrise.

2.  From Vik to Stokksnes Headland. You will want to stop for pictures of the moss-filled lava flows on the sides of the highway. Go to Skaftafell Glacier National Park for a glacier walk. Then pause at Fjallsárlón glacial lagoon, a nice precursor to Jökulsárlón. I’ve always found sitting on the lagoon and watching the icebergs (barely) floating by absolutely therapeutic.

Icelandic Road Trip - Part 2

I love Iceland for many reasons. The road trips are magical - and so is the light - perfect for photography. These are my recommendations for a drive from Reykjavik to the South of Iceland. 

1. Þingvellir National Park: Go to the Visitor’s Center for a great view, and get a driving map, or suggestions from there. Find Almannagjá – the space between the North American and Eurasian continental plates. I love the little church. Lots of easy walking paths.

2. From Þingvellir to Dyrhólaey: Stop at Seljalandsfoss (easy stairs to climb behind the waterfall), Skógafoss (set your tripod in the water to take an iconic waterfall photo, then climb up to the start of the lava from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption), Sólheimasandur (for haunting pictures of the airplane that crashed on the black sand beach, there’s no sign but the coordinates are 63 27.546-19 21.887).

Part 2 coming soon.

Icelandic Road Trip - Part 1

Namibia

It’s a new day in Sossusvlei. And I am rising towards the sky, timed perfectly with the rising sun, in a wicker basket attached to a hot air balloon. It’s my first balloon ride!

The sand dunes of the Namib desert are taking their time turning orange in the glow of dawn. Our pilot tells us that in Namibia, the only time one can fly a balloon is the sunrise hour. She can’t steer the balloon but she can control the altitude, and depending on the wind channels at each altitude, choose her preferred “course”. 

It’s more peaceful than I imagined. The sound of quiet is unnerving, but no one in the gondola wants to break the peace. In fact, the only sound to be heard is the feverish clicking of cameras. I could get used to seeing the world from this perspective.

Thanks to Namib Sky Balloon Safaris.

Safari from the sky

I am never going to climb a sand dune again. I say that vehemently (many times) as I climb Dune 45.

After 50 long, sand-filled minutes taken to trudge up, here are the lessons learned: Take slow steps. Barefoot works best. One step forward will indeed feel like two steps backward. Don’t stop. Don’t get disheartened if a sprightly guide whizzes past you in an attempt to beat his own 10 minute record. When you have reached the peak and admired the view, scream a joyful “whee-eee” and slide down the side of the dune, marveling at the roaring sound of the minor avalanche that you will create. 

Ok, can we do that again? 

Nearby is Dead Vlei / Sossusvlei. It’s a kaleidoscope of yellow and orange sands and the white of the stunning vlei. Meanwhile, the oryx are vying with each other to position themselves strategically into my shots. They seem to have no issues with climbing dunes. Then again, I don’t see them doing any joyful slides down.

Don’t Stop

The stuff that dreams are made of! Photographers’ dreams, and travelers’ dreams. Surreal and in shades of orange. “Vlei” is Afrikaans for a depression filled with water - well, it was once - but as the name suggests, this vlei has been dry for a very long time. 

Dead Vlei, Namibia. A kaleidoscope of yellow and orange sands (the latter washed down the Orange River from the Kalahari Desert) and the white of the stunning vleis!

50 shades of sand

Spain

Whether you're a beginner kite surfer or an experienced surfer – Southern Spain is one of the best spots in Europe to practice all kinds of water sports. We spent a whole month on the beaches of Cadiz, jumping waves and visiting nearby tourist attractions. Tarifa is a bohemian town of shabby charm, with a lot of bars and nice places to eat Spanish bocadillos. Our host told us that the city is blessed with wind about 300 days a year, making it perfect for kitesurfing. There are many affordable surf schools for those who still have to learn – just walk around and ask for the weekly price. If surfing is not your thing, you can also go stand-up paddleboarding – or relax on the sandy beach, drink a fruity cocktail, and read a book about Spanish history.
 Also, Morocco is just a day trip away. Tangier, the fascinating city within 30 minutes of Tarifa, once populated by artists from all over the world, is worth spending a day or two there.

Tarifa Surf Mecca

If you are interested in rare natural phenomena and want to learn more about marine life, you should head to Mexico's Pacific coast. One of the best spectacles is the annual whale migration, where you can catch unique glimpses of humpback whales. 

The largest mammals on earth have earned their reputation as the most beautiful, intelligent, and impressive creatures. If you watch the ocean at migration time (either from the shore or on a boat tour), you'll see baby whales leaping and maybe even hear mother whales calling their families together. The baby-whale season is from January until the end of April.

But the Pacific coast is not only known for whales. It's just as beautiful to watch sea turtles hatch. If you come at the right time, you can witness mother turtles laying hundreds of eggs overnight in the soft sand on the coast, and much later, those hundreds of babies hatch and crawl toward the sea. Come between late August to early October.

Witnessing whale migration

Tanzania

We spend nearly four amazing hours in the Sand River Circuit in the midst of a spectacular head of grunting wildebeest. Led by “collective intelligence”, these animals complete a 1000 mile loop over the course of a year, and most survive for several seasons of this tough journey! 

When we arrive in the Grumeti Reserves, further south, we find the last few hundred thousand or so wildebeest. Here they are extremely purposeful and move in a single-file. Perhaps they have realized that they are late and will miss out on all the new green grass in the northern plains. They kick up a storm of dust as they move forward with determination - though it is not unusual to see the whole herd running swiftly back if something ahead spooks them. 

It is here that we see the consequences of the ‘battle’ - injured animals or those too weary to complete the journey. This is sad to watch as they will soon become easy prey to the predators. 

Such is the ⭕️ of life.

Australia

New South Wales

Day Hike: wedding Cake Rock

Bohemian dreams in Newtown

Western Australia

Desert limestone formations

Botswana

North-West District

Lion vs. Buffalo

Faroe Islands

Vága Municipality

Culture Shock

Iceland

Eastern Region

Pure Zen

Southern Region

Icelandic Road Trip - Part 2

Icelandic Road Trip - Part 1

Namibia

Hardap Region

Safari from the sky

Don’t Stop

50 shades of sand

Spain

Andalusia

Tarifa Surf Mecca

Community of Madrid

Witnessing whale migration

Tanzania

Mara Region

One Million Wildebeest