Inside the Travel Lab

Surfers have a reputation for being cool, laid back and sexy. I’m talking, of course, about the professional ones with their seamless suntans and freshly squeezed physiques rather than, well, the rest of us. Those whose very act of lashing a surfboard to our ankles transforms it from an uber-cool sporting accessory into an oversized, [...]

I’ve arrived in Sydney, a little dazed, a little confused. Apparently that’s jetlag and it’s something to do with circadian rhythms, cortisol surges and melatonin…although right now I can’t quite remember my name and could easily believe that jetlag’s caused by blue-edged tomatoes and overripe watermelon and comes with an easy cure of standing upside [...]

Another four am start. Another cold morning. Another walk through darkness and another outstanding experience. After years and years and y-e-a-rs of trying to get on board a hot air balloon, I finally managed to get airborne and float across the Pyrenees in September this year. Barely a month later, good luck struck again and [...]

Canyoning. Turning a noun into a sport and a canyon into a playground.

This time last year, I’d…

Fear. It’s all in the mind. That’s what I tell myself as I inch my foot sideways, staring straight ahead. Daylight fills the 20 foot space between my eyeballs and the glistening wall of rock…

Just when you think you’ve done it all (Well most of it. A lot. At least half. OK, so some adventures at least) along comes something new. Welcome to canyoning…

A number of things are wrong. To begin with, I’m standing in a field surrounded by darkness, my mind pulling the duvet covers back over its head and mumbling into its pillow. Second, I’m…

Men form a semi-circle on the sand, arching their backs and turning their faces towards the sun. But this isn’t a wellness retreat or a yoga lesson.

It’s surfing. And this is a surf lesson…

Somehow, my vision of becoming a sexy surfer babe didn’t involve this…

Water. In the space called Frederick Sound, the water waits silently. There’s a grey – or even silver – hue to the air and the frosted breath of everyone on board seems to add to the tension.