About Mel

Mel is a British solo female adventurer who lives in Iceland.

In the last decade, Mel has travelled to 70+ countries. She has hiked through the Nepalese Himalayas, across the stunning South Island of New Zealand, and over live volcanos in Central America. She has kayaked with whales in Alaska, snorkelled with hammerhead sharks in Belize and spotted pygmy elephants in the jungles of Borneo.

Mel has also been airlifted to hospital on two separate occasions, treated for a gangrenous leg in China and rescued by locals whilst being attacked by monkeys in India.

Mel is curious about the more unusual things in life, like interactive art installations, rolling around naked in the Icelandic midsummer dew, and taking time to chat with people that everyone else is ignoring.

Mel’s top 10 dream trips:

Gaze in awe at the Moai statues on Easter Island
Trek the Torres del Paine in Patagonia
Kayak in Antarctica
Hang out with Lemurs and chameleons in Madagascar
Snorkle in Bora Bora
Cycle the Mendoza vineyards of Argentina
Run the Laugavegur ultra marathon in Iceland
Sea swimming in Finland
Hike Hadrian’s Wall in the UK
Wander through the dead trees and ghost town of Namibia

Mel’s favourite trips so far:

Tasmania: Outstanding food, wonderful people, inspiring & crazy art
Nicaragua: Colourful architecture, cowboys in velvet suits, mind-blowing burritos
Alaska: Bears on beaches with icebergs, spouting whales, dramatic glacier calving
Italy: Food, iconic sites & art, food, easy to walk everywhere, food
NZ South Island: Fantastic wine, stunning scenery, friendly seals & dolphins
Westman Islands: Puffin madness, favourite restaurant in the world, volcano hiking
Japan: Relaxing onsen, sublime sushi, delightful weirdness
Vanuatu: Live volcanos, traditional land diving, conversations with locals
San Francisco: Iconic bridge, wonderfully walkable, city sea lions
India: Mind-blowing chaotic weirdness, magnificent Taj Mahal, flavorful food
Finland: Incredible art installations, sea swimming and saunas, horror mini-golf
St Petersburg: Stunning architecture, off-beat curious museums, bizarre Banyas