I started my travels within the States, traveling from my home state of Florida into Alaska to become a deckhand on a tour vessel. To start, I arrived into Ketchikan to enjoy a small vacation before I began work in Sitka, Alaska.

I arrived in Sitka where I would stay for nearly six months, making money and getting adjusted to being far away from home. 

Only three weeks after my arrival, we were in an unlucky situation, a boat fire. Despite the unfortunate situation taking place, it set me up to become a kayak guide for the rest of the season, which I thoroughly enjoyed!

While in Sitka, I made an effort to try to hike every trail in the area. The hardest of the hikes, as well as the hardest hikes I've ever done, was up an active volcano, named Mount Edgecumbe. This hike tested me mentally and physically, but we had a big group with lots of support that allowed everyone to finish. I did learn a few lessons with this hike.. specifically the dangers of over-packing.

I learned a lot through my season as a kayak guide and made a lot of friends. Most importantly I learned how capable I truly was of solo traveling. My last tour was one of my best as I was surrounded by whales for just about the entire time.

I went home for a few months to soak in some quality time with family before I deeply cemented myself into my travels. There was a lot of uncertainty during this time, but I had the comforts of my family surrounding me through this process. I inevitably decided to go off to New Zealand to work and live there for a little bit, with a larger goal of eventually going westward around the world.

I flew into Auckland with no real plans, but my first night booked at an accomodation. I quickly learned that I was a bit over my head as a couple nights later, my accomodation would be completely booked out and I had to figure out a place to sleep. It was stressful and I wished I went into it with a bit more of a plan, but I eventually figured out what to do.. after a lot of unnecessary stress.