Anna Blackwell is an adventurer, writer, photographer and speaker with a love of the outdoors and pushing her limits. This has led her to pursue numerous adventures, from kayaking across Europe, spending five weeks trekking across the wilderness of Arctic Sweden alone, to walking 1,000 miles solo across France and Spain, and even hitch-hiking to Morocco.
In Anna’s words
This July I set off on a 1,000km solo trek across Arctic and Northern Scandinavia. I started at the Treriksröset (the cairn signifying where Sweden, Norway and Finland meet) and made my way south, following the length of the mountains on the Swedish-Norwegian border.
The expedition was self-supported, solo, and crossed some of Europe's greatest wilderness areas. I carried everything I needed (weighing in at around 25kg) and wild camped most nights. Travelling through such remote areas, I was often going up to four or five days without seeing any other people.
Throughout this expedition I aimed to minimise my environmental footprint to the greatest extent possible, by working with with sustainability-focused organisations, choosing locally sourced food where possible, reducing my plastic waste and leaving no trace in the wilderness. I also opted to travel to my start point using trains and buses rather than taking an internal short-haul flight.
Listen to Anna as she share more about the Green Ribbon Expedition
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Listen to Anna as she shares more about Kayaking the Continent!
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We first spoke with Anna in November 2017 when she shared more about walking across Spain & France! You can listen to this episode here!
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Show notes
Who Anna is and what she does
What the Green Ribbon Expedition is and how it came about
Creating her own route
Committing to the challenge in May 2019
Learning more about the planning
Buying a big map of the area
Route planning and why it was so time consuming
Figuring out resupply while out on the trail
Posting packages ahead of time
Taking a few luxury items…
Doing very little physical preparation
The challenges of the weather
Dealing with the midnight sun, mosquitos and very cold weather
Being green on the expedition
Spending 50 hrs on buses and trains
Only working with specific companies who are trying to reduce their environmental footprint
The biggest challenges she would have to face
Why the first 10 days were going to be the toughest
Being stung by a hornet….
Having to call an ambulance
Dealing with a lot of rain over the final 3 weeks
Not knowing what to do
Daily routine while walking
Going with the flow
Getting up at 6am
How busy was it on the route
Navigation and making a few detours!
Problems with the bugs
Day dreaming!
The process of absorption
Getting through the final 3 weeks
Focusing on the small things
The biggest lesson learned from
Heading back to university to do a Masters in Environment and Human Health
Future plans
Committing to be in Falmouth for the next year
Final words of advice and wisdom
Website - www.annablackwell.co.uk
Instagram @annablackwell
Facebook @annablackwelladventurer
Twitter @_annablackwell
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