I recently returned from walking 1 week of the Via Francigena, an historic pilgrimage route that begins in the medieval city of Canterbury in south-east England, to Rome, the Eternal City. The section I chose to walk, with 10kg on my back, was from the Olympic capital of Lausanne on Lake Geneva in Switzerland, to [...]
Sunday 6th April. 2am, North Haugh, St Andrews. I am herding a cohort of half asleep, half excited 3rd and 5th year students onto a dimly blue-lit coach headed for Edinburgh Airport and a dawn flight bound for Faro, Portugal. Thereafter, an onwards journey into Andalusia, southern Spain, alongside a couple of considerably more seasoned [...]
It's been an exciting first year in my PhD in Earth Sciences at the University of St Andrews, with many challenges - big and small - to be overcome, but I'm proud to say that I've recently passed the first hurdle and am ready to continue in my research journey unraveling the unknowns of explosive [...]
I hope I can be forgiven for this delayed update, but the first 3 months of my PhD have been a busy and exciting whirlwind! There have been undoubtedly intense lab days and more methodical office-based ones, but what I did not expect was just how much I would enjoy being back in academia, and [...]
The PhD begins... in Iceland. Earlier this year, I took-up an offer to study for a PhD in Earth Sciences at the University of St Andrews, starting in September. Indeed, I recently moved back to this beautiful town ready to begin this new chapter. However, it was last month that the research began as I [...]
This is quite a different post from the previous few, but I have some big and important news that marks the beginning of a new chapter: the PhD Adventure Files! Join me here as I begin to chart out my PhD journey into unknown yet incredibly exciting territory... The Big News Well, well. It's been [...]
Following on from Spring in Spain Part 1: Palma de Mallorca, in this post, I'm sharing some of the magic and beauty of Barcelona, and how boarding school friend and colleague Lara and I escaped to the regality of the Catalonian capital for some fun on a small budget over the spring break. From regarding [...]
School holidays, an April escape to Spain with my friend and colleague, Lara. In Part 1, we explore Palma de Mallorca, and I couldn't have asked for a better introduction to this truly beautiful country. From tranquil palm beaches to inspiring art nouveau, Palma is the Iberian Peninsula in miniature, and spring was certainly the [...]
A collection my favourite moments from seven special months in St Andrews & the Scottish Highlands. And, as it turns out, I'll soon be returning there... Summer in Scotland, home in St Andrews, brought so much colour and joy in 2023 - a chance to restore and refresh before embarking on my next adventure (my [...]
The Isle of Barra, a Gaelic rock in the Outer Hebrides and childhood home of my grandmother. If you thought Scotland was wild, Barra is wilder - with stormy seas, chaotic weather conditions and little connection to the outside world. With recent Gaelic ancestry originating from there, I knew this was the year I had [...]
Testament to what happens when life becomes so happy and joyful, please enjoy the next few entries representing my heart's escape back to the wild landscapes of Scotland while my school career presently returns me to England. June 2023: Summer is in full swing here in Scotland, meaning almost endless hours of daylight and plenty [...]
In my previous post, I explored 5 key lessons for humanity I learnt studying Earth Sciences at the University of Oxford. But what is Earth Sciences? And why should you study it? In this post, Part 1 of a two-part series, I’ll answer these questions to dispel some of the confusion surrounding what Earth Sciences [...]
September is my favourite month of the year. It marks new starts, a chance to refocus, reinvigorate, and set a stronger course. This year, more than any year before, I really welcome the opportunities autumn freshness brings. Here, in this post, I reflect on my final year of university and the adventure-filled summer spread across [...]
One brisk Saturday in February, I embarked on my first sports climbing meet to the Isle of Portland with the Oxford University Mountaineering Club (OUMC) – a day of adrenaline, ascents, and lessons learnt on the rock. About 40 climbers of varying levels of experience crammed into two minibuses and several volunteers' cars, leaving the [...]
Hi, and welcome to my site where I document a life lived adventurously in search of understanding the Earth. I invite you to share in my adventures, expeditions and exploration, to embrace the outdoors and the natural world, and to escape modern comforts (most of the time anyway). Along the way, I'll share extraordinary places [...]
Adventure Becca 