She Explores

Enter here for a chance to win a pair of Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots! We’re celebrating Spring by teaming up with Danner to provide one lucky winner with a pair of Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots! Spring is in the air – and what better way to soak up its sweetness than by lacing up your hiking boots and hitting the trail? Danner’s Mountain 600 hiking boots make it easier to do just that.

We have an important announcement, but first, in gratitude: Thank you for reading… since Gale launched the blog in 2014 with a dream of creating a space where exploration was encouraged, and creative work and expression inspired by time outdoors and on the move could find a home (here and in two books published by Chronicle Books). Thank you for sharing… your words, stories, and artwork with us.

10 Books That Celebrate the Dynamic Relationships Between Women and Water We’ve spent the last (nearly) two years diving deep into stories of women and water thanks to our book project of the same name. It’s been a remarkable process to learn so much. Our book contributors have taken us from frozen mountaintop lakes to deep sea research, down raging whitewater rivers and fishing in calm shallows.

Enter here for a chance to win a pair of Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots! We’re stepping into April by teaming up with Danner to provide one lucky winner with a pair of Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots! There’s no such thing as bad hiking weather if you’ve got the right gear to stride through April showers. Danner’s Mountain 600 features a smooth full-grain leather or durable suede upper built with a Danner® Dry waterproof liner.

Enter here for a chance to win a pair of Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots! Catching up with friends on the trail is THE best. It makes for the best conversations and always results in the best stories. And don’t even get us started on the post-trail snacks. Inspired by decades of legendary hiking boots and crafted in partnership with Vibram, the Danner Mountain 600 hiking boots provide unparalleled grip on wet and dry trail conditions.

Everything you need to know about kayaking in a fat body.

"This inspiring collection combines breathtaking photography with powerful narratives from women who swim, surf, kayak, study glaciers, advocate for water conservation, carry forward their ancestral fishing traditions, and more... These first-person stories explore themes of independence, strength, healing, and self-discovery in nature.

Advice for the Yearning Adventurer Words & photos by Alexandra Garcia In 2017, my partner and I set an audacious goal: by the end of the fall, we expected to summit Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in the African continent and one of the coveted Seven Summits. The trek itself would be challenging – coming from the tropical lowlands of Puerto Rico, this elevation would be by far the highest I’d climbed in my life – but there was an additional caveat, a minor dent in my experience.

Considering Going Solo? Advice for Your First Time Hitting the Trail on Your Own Words & photos by Alexandria Garcia I didn’t know what “hiking” was until I moved to the mainland United States from Puerto Rico in 2015. Back home, I spent a lot of time outdoors – traversing tropical rainforests, coastal jungles and beaches, virgin bamboo forest in my family’s farm – but it was never seen as an activity we did, more like places we went to together.

Travel Tips and a Pre-Trip To-Do List Before You Hit the Road Solo Words & photos by Luz Lituma If you’re about to hit the road solo and feeling the jitters, let me tell you, you’re not alone! When set off on my first solo road trip I was super excited, but also was fearful of what could happen. Breaking down, getting lost, not having the right supplies, feeling uncertain (and maybe unsafe) in unfamiliar places are all valid things to worry about.