Travel cheaply: UAB Outdoor Pursuits

Me and Ashley at the Grand Canyon. Socks and boots are hot, no?

I think it's clear from most of my posts so far that I am pretty much a "girly girl." But what you probably don't know is that I have in fact gone 7 days or so without a shower, let alone heels or makeup. And I'm proud of that! In fact one of my coworkers thinks it's highly entertaining that I come to work in my stilettos and dresses and crazy outfits, but I'll go spend a week and a half in the outdoors with nothing but a tent, sleeping bag and some food. I like to think of it as I'm just dynamic :)

Beyond just enjoying being outdoors, there are many other reasons why I love going on trips with UAB Outdoor Pursuits. For one thing, you meet lots of great people. I mean, it's kind of imperative that you become fast friends with a group of strangers when you are riding in a van together across the country for three days straight. Another reason I love these trips is because you're splitting gas among several people and staying in tents vs. hotel rooms, so it's an affordable way to see lots of amazing sights. I certainly wouldn't have been able to afford to have visited places like Yosemite or Grand Canyon, or let alone had the knowledge to backpack in those areas if it weren't for UAB Outdoor Pursuits. Plus, I can't even begin to explain everything I have learned on these trips about the outdoors, myself and one of my best friends/travel partners, Ashley.

So if you are in the Birmingham area and you're looking for a little bit of affordable adventure, I highly suggest you check out UAB Outdoor Pursuits. They have some great trips coming up this summer...and expect to hopefully see me on one later in the fall! And if you're not in the area, check your local colleges to see if they have an Outdoor Pursuits program that offers trips available to everyone, not just students. Or you could also check your local outdoor retail store.

I'll leave you with just a few of my fav pics from previous trips to help tempt you to sign up for an outdoor adventure soon.

View from the rim at the Grand Canyon. photo: Kerri Howard

Our descent the first day into the canyon. photo: Kerri Howard 

Part of our hike in the canyon. photo: Kerri Howard

Our awesome team and our nasty boots. photo: Kerri Howard

We caught the most amazing sunset at Sunset Point our last day in the canyon. photo: Kerri Howard

Me and Ashley before our attempt at canoeing Fontana Lake in North Carolina.

Fontana Lake in North Carolina.

The coolest creepiest building we found while backpacking at Fontana.

The most beautiful fall foliage at Fontana that I have seen in a while. 

Bridge and foliage at Fontana.

More pretty fall foliage, but this time it's at the Sipsey Wilderness in Alabama. 

More pretty fall foliage at Sipsey.

An amazing view of Upper Yosemite Falls.

One of the rivers flowing through Yosemite.

The most beautiful lake I think I have ever seen, in the Yosemite National Park area.

We start our hike in Yosemite in snow!

Me and Ashley taking a break from hiking in Yosemite.

The Lower Yosemite Fall. 

One of the MANY huge sequoia trees we saw up close.

ps. You can see Ashley's Etsy store Magpie Magnets here. And you can visit the blog of my friend Kerri who took the awesome Grand Canyon pics here.