Zip, Zip, Away! Notes and The Next Few Weeks

This summer I have managed to spend around 150 hours in the car on weekends alone. Gee wiz.

I recently calculated that, and realized I am lucky car sickness doesn’t run in my family.

Just last weekend I went and camped on South Manitou Island, which is located in the middle of Lake Michigan. It was my first time there and damn was it a good trip. My favorite part had to be exploring an old shipwreck from 1960. A piece of the freighter sticks out above the water (pictured above) and if you gaze inside, you’ll see the hundreds of spiders that call it home.

I have had a fantastic summer. I can’t wait to write stories, share them with you, and hear of your epic summer adventures.

Now, summer is not over, but this week I’m leaving it behind to travel to the land of fire & ice…Iceland! The forecast is showing rain (joy) with temperatures well below my summer average (double joy). However, that weather is not at all uncommon in Iceland, and shall not damage the epicness it holds! Bring on the waterfalls, mountains, fjords, glaciers, adventures and horse-meat burgers.

Has anyone ever been to Iceland? Should I expect sky-high prices in such an isolated country? Judging by the car rentals, I’m trying to tell myself I’ll be able to survive off $2 hotdogs…but we’ll see how that goes.

Before I go, I have a thought list of tid-bits I’ve been meaning to share with you all summer:

1.Thank you! I know this summer has had a few stray posting breaks—but thank you for hanging around. I unexpectedly took on another job (which totaled 3 for the summer), so that limited my editing and posting hours. You know what they say; work hard, play hard. But, fall will be here soon with many more stories and travel guides, I PROMISE.

2.While traveling in Iceland, I will not have cell service. I will depend on extremely sparse Wi-Fi to connect and post to you. I love staying connected on the go, but international phone bills make me want to vomit. Also, it’s Iceland! The perfect place for a little internet detox.

3.This summer I was named one of the 19 best travel Instagram accounts by Travel Babbo and one of 13 Michigan Instagrammers You Need to Check Out by Pure Michigan. Wow! Those were some of the greatest surprises over the last couple months.

4.Shalee Wanders is expanding! I had some unreal opportunities that came my way this summer. I am ecstatic to continue to grow and learn over these next few months. I was hoping to have some finished by the time summer would come to a close, but there just needs to be more time in a day!

5.Lastly, what a great summer! I’ve met some fantastic people (including a few readers!) and experienced some amazing moments. I will admit that I am completely wiped out and that I would love to sleep 72 hours straight without being pronounced dead. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned–it’s that if you’re not tired, you’re not doing it right. I’m gearing up for my last year of college (FINALLY) and will see you all in a couple weeks as long as I’m not a Yeti’s snack.

Cheers!!