the sydney project

13 fantastic day trips & weekend getaways from Sydney

brooke brisbine·July 29, 2019

From beach bums and bushwalkers to foodies and history buffs, Sydney is a lively, sparkling metropolis with a...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

Royal National Park Coast Track: A complete guide to Sydney’s best overnight hike

brooke brisbine·April 9, 2019

Within an hour of central Sydney and yet a world away from the city bustle, escape into nature...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

From Hunter Valley to Manly Beach: 10 itineraries for exploring the very best of Sydney

brooke brisbine·March 10, 2019

Undeniably one of the world’s most beautiful cities, visitors flock from every corner of the globe to discover...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

The Legendary Pacific Coast touring route: a complete guide to road tripping from Sydney to Brisbane

brooke brisbine·September 25, 2018

Crusing by tropical beaches and lush rainforests, through quaint coastal towns and two bustling capital cities, along ocean...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales Queensland the sydney project

The Basin: Camping in Sydney’s Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park

brooke brisbine·August 21, 2018

Occupying part of Sydney’s pristine Northern Beaches just a stone’s throw from the CBD, Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

Perfect Palm Beach & the Barrenjoey Lighthouse Walk

brooke brisbine·August 21, 2018

If impossibly picturesque views over Sydney’s Northern Beaches are your thing (and they should absolutely be everyone’s thing),...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

The great Humpback migration: Whale watching in Sydney

brooke brisbine·August 9, 2018

Every winter, thousands of Humpback Whales make the incredible 5,000km journey from Antarctica’s cold, krill-rich waters to the...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

A complete guide to Vivid Sydney: Where to go & what to see

brooke brisbine·June 9, 2018

Every May & June, just as the days are beginning to feel a whole lot darker and the...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

Top Illawarra viewpoints and lookouts: Bald Hill, Sea Cliff Bridge & more

brooke brisbine·June 7, 2018

Nestled between a lush escarpment and golden beaches from Sydney’s Royal National Park to NSW’s pristine South Coast,...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

What’s on in Sydney: 6 amazing autumn events that can’t be missed

brooke brisbine·May 30, 2018

We may enjoy nearly 9 months of sunny summer weather every year in Sydney, but when winter does...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

Finding the secret lookout above Sea Cliff Bridge

brooke brisbine·May 7, 2018

Despite the popularity of Clifton’s serpentine Sea Cliff Bridge among tourists and locals alike, the vast majority of...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

A complete guide to exploring Sydney’s Blue Mountains

brooke brisbine·May 3, 2018

Although just 90 minutes from central Sydney, the Blue Mountains couldn’t be farther from the buzz of city...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

The Blue Mountains’ Grand Canyon Loop Walking Track

brooke brisbine·May 1, 2018

One of the most popular hikes in the Blue Mountains National Park, the Grand Canyon Loop walking track...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

Spit Bridge to Manly: strolling through Sydney’s Northern Beaches

brooke brisbine·March 22, 2018

Meandering past stunning coastal lookouts, through surprisingly rich bushland, and across secluded beaches from Spit Bridge to Manly,...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

The 5 best photo spots in Sydney’s Circular Quay

brooke brisbine·March 18, 2018

Sydney is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful cities in the entire world. And while that...

Aus + NZ Australia New South Wales the sydney project

1 2

brookearoundtown

•

Follow

I first heard about Shoshone Falls in an Idaho tourism pamphlet that we picked up from a visitor centre during our drive. Alongside a spectacular photo of the gushing falls (more than enough to impress me), the editor described this spot in Twin Falls as the “Niagara of the West” and it was sealed— we had to make the detour 🚐 Not having seen Niagara myself, I can’t vouch for the accuracy of that comparison, but I can say this is one of the most beautiful waterfalls I’ve ever seen— dwarfed in my own memory only by Iguazú in Argentina/Brazil and Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe/Zambia. The photo hardly does it justice. Even at low water levels (rare for spring, but everyone seems to be in a drought this year), Shoshone is a real gem state GEM 💎

5 hours ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

Lakes on lakes on lakes 💦

24 hours ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

Bagging peaks together since 2000; the only difference is that now I have to carry the rope 🏔

4 days ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

HIKING THE ENCHANTMENTS IN 1 DAY ✨ Located in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness of Eastern Washington, the Enchantments is one of the most unbelievably SPECTACULAR (and popular) areas to hike in the state— it’s virtually impossible to score a backpacking permit these days, but you can actually complete the entire 20+ mile trail in a single day without ANY permit 😱🤩 🏔 TRAIL DETAILS 🏔 Trailhead: Stuart Lake TH to Snow Lakes TH (near Leavenworth, WA) Fees: NW Forest Pass, $5 for a day Distance: 20 miles (30km) Elevation gain: 4820ft (1470m) Trail hours: 12-14hrs, including breaks 🏔 HIKING TIPS 🏔 👉🏼 I’d suggest hiking up Aasgard Pass (from Sturt Lake TH) and descending to Snow Lakes, since you’ll do the steepest part of the hike as an ascent and the more gradual part as a descent (trust me, your knees will thank you). ALSO, since most of the lakes are clustered in the first 2/3rds, you get to spend the bulk of the day in the prettiest part of the Enchantments— and if you do have to hike the final miles in the dark, you really don’t miss anything! 💡 👉🏼 Park your vehicle at the Snow Lakes TH and then hitchhike up the road to the Stuart Lake TH to begin the hike. There are heaps of people headed that way— it took us about 3min to get picked up and then we ended the hike already back at our van! 🚐 👉🏼 You’ll need a NW Forest Pass, so if you don’t already have one, pop into the Icicle Quik Stop (76 Station) in Leavenworth and you can buy a single day pass for $5 to display on your dash! 🎫 👉🏼 Save yourself the weight of a heavy pack and bring only one water bottle (~1L)— there are literally HUNDREDS of excellent fill-up points throughout the hike and you’ll have no trouble finding cool water (filter optional, but recommended) 💦

5 days ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

I spent 5 days last week on an amazing expedition through North Cascades National Park: trekking up to Sahale Arm, climbing Buckner Peak, carrying-over Sahale Peak & then descending the summit all the way to Boston Basin 🏔 As with all good adventures, it was wildly complicated by terrible conditions (a marine layer that reduced visibility to little more than 20ft on the glacier), miscalculations of time (canning Shark Fin Tower at the last minute), and near-disasters (slipping out of my steps on steep snow and frantically arresting before we all fell off the mountain ⛏)— but it was also amazing for many of the same reasons. Every trip like this develops my skills, builds my resilience, and pushes me closer to becoming ~a true mountaineer~, and for that, I wouldn’t trade any of the stress or ice-burns or moments of fighting back tears. I’m filing it all away and climbing up to the next peak stronger, more determined, and with a greater appreciation for these incredible mountains 💪🏼

6 days ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

Fresh on the heels of climbing Mt Rainier, and I’ve already topped it in terms of difficulty (and terror) with this week’s ascent up the SW face of Buckner in the North Cascades. To be fair, the ‘ascent’ wasn’t actually the hard part— it was the descent, a white-knuckled 1500ft drop along an impossibly steep snow shoot with a runout that would have sent us all right off the mountain. I didn’t like the look of things as we started down off the summit, but the anxiety got a lot worse after I took (my first) fall on the ice, pulling our entire rope team off their feet before I could get my axe dug into the snow. Thankfully everyone emerged fine and we continued downwards, but it was enough to really shake me— an important reminder that climbing is no joke and every single move counts, both for you and your team. When we later reached another awful section of the descent and dad called down to me that this was ‘no-mistakes territory’, you better believe I took it seriously 😳

1 week ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

Lost in the flowers 🌸🌻🌷🌼🌹

1 week ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

🪚🦷

1 week ago

View on Instagram |
1/10
brookearoundtown

•

Follow

Approaching Mt Rainier via an incredibly long and scenic route over Burroughs Mountain, down to Glacier Basin, up the Inter Glacier, and finally to our base camp at 9,400ft, Camp Schurman, gave me the greatest appreciation for just how MASSIVE this climb is. And for every ounce of physical exertion to get onto that summit, I expended 5x more mental energy just trying to make sure that I moved carefully & made no mistakes when it counted most— there were moments that a small slip could have cost us all our lives, and that reality was not lost on me. For that reason, the days leading up to our summit push were absolutely crucial. We hiked hard through the day to limber up and rested just as hard each night to recharge, particularly on the day leading up to our midnight departure. Roping on the Inter Glacier also granted me, dad & Dan time to learn each other’s rhythm and settle into the quiet solemnity that our impending climb demanded. As much as I just wanted to GET THERE at the time, I wouldn’t trade a single minute of preparation looking back. By the time we did leave Camp Schurman in the dead of night, we were a well-oiled unit who hardly needed light or proximity to communicate— and that’s the only way we made it to the summit. Slow & steady.

2 weeks ago

View on Instagram |
1/10