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Cross-country skiing is a hard sport to dress for. While you may be facing sub-zero temperatures, you are also extremely active, producing heat and moisture. Getting cold is painful and dangerous, as one lap around your one-way loop can take up to two hours. Overheating is not so bad at first, but the moisture in your clothes from your sweat will ultimately conduct your heat away from you when you stop and rest. Removing layers on the trail is also less than ideal, because you have to come back for them later. Top that off with the fact that your outfit must be low-bulk, and you have yourself quite the challenge. I myself have been skate skiing for 6 years now, and I have finally collected a technical wardrobe that serves me well in almost every set of conditions. I notice quite a few skiers that could improve their choices when it comes to dress, which inspired me to create this overview of what I wear.

Conditions:

-10C almost all day, with flurries on and off. Moderate winds, though most of the trails are in the forest, making wind negligible. The facility was Highlands Nordic, a great trail system with plenty challenging hills.

Socks:

Surprisingly, cross-country ski boots are very slim, offering little insulation to your feet. That’s why I take merino-wool ski socks that are common place while downhill skiing. You still want to be able to fit your foot in your boot, but the socks are the primary insulation. I take the over-the-calf style, just for a little extra warmth on my lower leg. If that extra insulation is unneeded, you can always scrunch the socks up by your ankles. My socks are made by Burton, but you can find a similar pair from Darn Tough, their Hunt series Over-The-Calf Full Cushion. In fact, Darn Tough may even be a better choice because of their amazing warranty and great blend of merino wool, nylon, and spandex.

Bottom Baselayer:

Moving up from the socks, we come to the baselayer on your legs, which is one of the most important pieces. Everything on your legs must very low-bulk and flexible, as your legs are constantly in motion. With this in mind, I take my merino 200g/m² leggings. The warmth to bulk ratio is extremely high with merino wool, and it also wicks moisture quite well. Specifically, I use the 200 Oasis Leggings from Icebreaker.

Bottom Shell:

The bottom shell us usually a water-resistant, stretch layer with a little bit of insulation and a relaxed fit. Drawstrings around the ankles are a huge plus to keep the cold air out. Water resistance is not a necessity, but it depends on how much you fall. The largest concerns are flexibility and wind-resistance. Stretch or a relaxed fit is required so you don’t impede your leg movement, which makes skiing far more comfortable. Wind resistance is important when going downhill. While the trails themselves are usually quite sheltered, tucking down a hill can make your legs extremely cold if your pants are not windproof. My pants are made by Salomon, but Outdoor Research makes some great Cirque Pants that are quite similar. Both pants are stretchy, perfect for high-motion activity, and also water resistant for the occasional fall.

Top Baselayer:

The properties of a good baselayer are well known: warmth, flexibility, and breathability. I usually use an HH dry piece from Helly Hansen, made from their synthetic Lifa material. This piece hits all the points mentioned above, while also being very lightweight. The elastic cuffs are a bonus to keep the long sleeves down at their full length. A slight upgrade would be the HH warm Ice Crew, which is the same Lifa material with merino wool. The HH Warm Ice Crew would be warmer, so ultimately depends on preference and the conditions.

Top Midlayer:

The top midlayer is one of the most interchangeable parts of a cross-country skier’s wardrobe. This layer is the primary insulation layer, and so it can be adjusted to the environment. On this specific day, I chose to wear a light sweater that is fairly breathable. One benefit to the -10C and up conditions is that you can shed a light layer, pocket it, and keep moving. While I didn’t have to do that, it is still a good idea to have multiple layers instead of one large layer, for more options. The layer I was wearing is very similar to the Nova Top Long-sleeve by Westcomb. As long as it keeps you warm, and wicks fairly well, it will do the job.

Top Shell:

The outer shell is important for wind-resistance, warmth, and possibly waterproofness, in wet conditions. Most people go for a softshell jacket, which is warm, wind-resistant, and slightly water-resistant. Most of the time, you can simply brush off the snow after you fall, and you won’t get wet. I, however, wanted to test the breathability of my Columbia Titanium Interchangeable Stretch Jacket. This rain jacket claims to have good breathability, and you can wear it inside-out for a different look. This jacket is new for 2017, perfectly waterproof and windproof thanks to Columbia’s OutDry technology. Warmth wasn’t that much of a concern to me, since that was covered by the midlayer. I was interested, however, in the breathability. In the morning, I wore the jacket with the more casual look on the outside. To my surprise, it did not do a great job at wicking. It felt like I was wearing a regular rain jacket inside out. In the afternoon, I tried the jacket with the rain jacket look on the outside, and was impressed by the breathability. While the jacket did not live up to its claims, the additional option of a second, urban style is still a nice feature. You just have to decide which jacket you want to wear, truly two jackets in one. In the afternoon, the jacket performed quite well, especially since it is slightly stretch. This helped with movement, and being completely waterproof came in handy when the flurries blew in. While we don't have this jacket in-store just yet, the Columbia Titanium OutDry Ex Gold or Diamond jackets are extremely similar and may even breath better.

Headwear:

On my head, I wore a balaclava and a simple acrylic hat. A simple hat is nice, since it is one of those pieces that you can take off and pocket to cool down. The balaclava is extremely nice to have, for the warmth of your face, and the protection from snow. It can sting quite a bit when tucking downhill while it’s snowing. One thing I wish I had were some sunglasses, to keep the snow out of my eyes. Quite a few skiers had cross-country ski visors, something I wish I had though of. Make sure that your balaclava is breathable, or it has a mouth hole, to combat the condensation from your breathing. Most people find it extremely uncomfortable to wear a wet balaclava. The Columbia Trail Summit Balaclava that I was wearing has a few holes around the mouth region, perfect for heavy breathing while exercising.

Gloves:

One thing that I find frustrating while cross country skiing is the restricting pole bindings on your hands. On most cross-country ski poles, there are bindings that go over the back of your hands and palm, and then the pole itself is attached in between your index finger and thumb. This means that your gloves are limited by size, since you still have to get the bindings over them. After some switching around, I settled on Gordini Challenge XIII Glove, which has Gore-Tex waterproofing and Primaloft insulation. The insulation has a great warmth-to bulk ratio, and just barely fit into the straps of the pole. I actually had to put the glove in to the straps first, and then put my hand in. The Goretex is an obvious plus, with breathability without sacrificing waterproofness. I like waterproof gloves while skiing, since I normally fall on my hands, and wet gloves are not fun.

There it is! My go-to pieces for cross country skiing. If you have any suggestions, I am always open to improving my outfit. Also, if you have any tips that you found useful, please share them with us.

Thanks,

Sinclair

Thank you to everyone who applied! We have filled our positions.

If you are someone who is…

We are pleased to announce that ScoutTech is bringing in a new brand this spring: Topos! 

This footwear company specializes in athletic, multi-sport, hiking, trail-running shoes. Here is a quick look at one of their great shoes, coming to ScoutTech in the spring. The mens' size 9 is 10.4 oz, and the women's size 7 is just 8.2 oz. The forefoot sole features a flexible yet strong layer to protect against sharp rocks and roots, and the mesh on top is tear resistant. Couple this with aggressive treads and a wide, stable outsole, and you have the wonderful Terraventure by Topos.

Shipping Notice:

Attention all customer because of the pending Canada Post lockout we are switching to Courier service for Canada and USPS Direct for our USA and International customers, so there are no delays in shipping, processing and delivery if Canada Post decides

During the Canada Post Postal Strike we will be disabling the Xpress option for our US and international customers. If you need priority mail please reach out to us and we will look into making a special arrangement. Packages deliveries to P.O Box will also be disabled for this time period as, well. We apologies for the inconvenience this sudden lockdown has brought, however we are hoping to provide our customers with solutions and a great service.

During this lockout period we have done our very best to switch over and implement new shipping options using USPS and other courier companies. In the event that something is purchased with a shipping option not offered by USPS or couriers we will contact you. This mostly applies to very Large/Heavy or oddly shaped items. 

Thank you for your patience and understanding.

- ScoutTech

Is everyone as excited to welcome the first day of summer as we are? To kick off the start to a great season of warm weather adventure both on the water and on the trail we're pleased to present our loyal email list following with a gift to great gear at 30% OFF!

Brands Excluded from the Sale: Current season's Arc'Teryx, Patagonia & Merrell

*Discounts apply to regular price items only

*While quantities last

*Sale ends Sunday June 19 at 11:59PM EST Canada Time

*Sale valid both in-store and online. No need to print, just mention this email for discount!

Here are some new brands we have welcomed on board this season:

- Patagonia Apparel

- Lole Women's Apparel

- Jambu Women's Footwear

- Leki Trekking Poles

- Lowa Footwear

- Merrell Footwear

- Gregory Packs

- Eagle Creek Travel Packs and Accessories

Important note when hoping to travel by Viazul: The day prior we had tried to obtain some bus tickets to Varadero with the sole Cuban state tourist bus line called Viazul. No luck there as bus tickets were sold out for the next several days. Typically in most other countries I’d have arranged this type of transportation well in advance but the only way to do this in Cuba was to show up and be added to a list for tickets if there were any available seats. It added a little bit of edge that you were not even obtaining a physical ticket at this point and simply being added to a handwritten list and told to show up 30-60 minutes before departure to claim your seat and pay for your ticket.

After striking out at the bus depot seeking transportation to Veradero we were approached by someone arranging Taxi Collectivo rides which are shared cabs to the same destination. We made travel arrangements but had no idea how to describe our pick up location so the organizer walked back with us to chat with our Casa Particular hosts and make a note for the driver. The next morning the driver arrived about 20 minutes ahead of our 9am scheduled pickup. We never imagined anything would happen ahead of schedule on the island but we quickly gobbled our breakfast, paid our hosts and were on our way to Varadero! Our companions on this ride were a couple of friends visiting from Poland that were having a bit of a rough morning so there was not much conversation on this drive. This was one of our longer rides from the South to North end of the island. Thirsty?? Too bad! While this driver was happy to make stops at the side of the road for rest breaks he was much less inclined to make stops for water and it took about a dozen requests in Spanish before he was willing to pull into a highway stop for hydration.

Note: Make sure that you prepare ample supplies prior to the trip in case you end up with a driver like this that is not very cooperative (or the car has troubles).

When we arrived in Veradero we headed over to the next Casa which had been pre-arranged by our host in Trinidad. Much to our chagrin there was once again an issue. This time the hostess claimed she had no such knowledge of our host or us! She graciously made a couple of calls and led us a few houses further along the street and we were good to go. The mix up here worked in our favour this time as the new Casa was away from the main street and absolutely stunning! The main floor had been divided into 6 rooms for tourists to stay with a couple of indoor and outdoor common areas which were great for meeting the other guests visiting from Germany, France, Argentina and Vancouver, Canada. Our rooms were not quite ready yet so we left our bags and headed out for lunch and what would be the only disappointing meal for myself of the trip. We ate at an “Italian” restaurant where I ordered some Cannelloni and received something with the look and texture of a burnt crepe. After lunch we headed back to unpack and change for some beach time!

The instant we arrived at the beach we realized why it had received such international acclaim. It stretched on in both directions for as far as the eye could see, dotted locally with occasional small hotels and views in the distance of large resorts grouped at the far peninsulas. The waters were a very clean light blue and the sand soft and smooth. The Oceanside road was hidden from sight by groves of palm and other trees where you could rest away from the sun. Best of all, very few people were here to enjoy it so far from the resorts! After a few hours of wandering along the beach chatting with occasional tourists, swimming and sunning on the edge of the beach in the soft wet sand letting the waves wash over me I decided it was time for my fair skinned self to seek some refuge from the sun. For me this place was one of pristine beauty but it sure had some bite! We decided to part ways for a few hours and I headed back to read in the shade of the deck at our casa particular.

This was when I met Wally. A fellow Canadian visiting from Vancouver that had also last visited Cuba about the same time as my first trip and was far better prepared than us with an assortment of travel books. He happily agreed to lend me them for the day since most of the travel plans I had made for Havana had been saved on my now defunct phone. That sure helped us make the best use of the remainder of our stay. If you ever read this…”Thanks Again Wally!” I met up with my travel companion Dave around supper time and Wally joined us for dinner at a restaurant Dave discovered while chatting up some locals on the way back from the beach. Unlike my lunch this meal was awesome! We shared lobster tails and white fish I introduced Wally to the cheese cream soup which I’d discovered the day before at a restaurant in Trinidad. If you are visiting Cuba (or anywhere else in the world that serves this) I highly recommend giving that a shot! You can customize it by adding ham, seafood, etc.

The next morning we rose early and enjoyed a breakfast prepared by our host. It was bit of a different assortment from our last Casa and of course delicious. Some morning beach time was a must and then we decided to make attempting to purchase bus tickets a top priority. Success! We managed to reserve the last 2 seats on a bus heading to Havana the following morning at 11am. On the way back from the station we noticed a couple of banks and decided we had better attempt to replenish our cash flow. This is where I was glad that we took out some CUCs at the airport with cash we had bought at home. The first bank would not let us in without a passport (other government ID was not sufficient), the second bank said if we wanted cash we had to use a machine and then that banks machines didn’t work. We then headed back to the Casa to get our passports and when we returned to the first bank there was a large line so we nervously decided to give the ATM’s a try. I tried first with 2 different credit cards which were both rejected (they had been informed of my travel plans) and then attempted with my debit card and was successful. There was a fee charged of 3% for the withdrawl and a $5 foreign ATM charge at home but I felt these expenses were safer

if we needed more cash during our trip than carrying excessive amounts of cash. With this accomplished we spen

Stray dogs had been pretty common up to this point but in Veradero I had begun to notice large numbers of stray cats. In fact a couple of them have decided to join me as I’m writing and I couldn’t help but wonder how they get along with all of the numerous dogs and chickens also roaming the streets competing for food and attention. My La Carte (menu) took off in a gust of wind and as I bolted up to recover it I noticed that the cats had left my side and a large iguana had taken their place. After a while, one of the cats joined me once again and as I sat petting it and wondered what I could order that it might enjoy. I figure it must have given up on me as a source of food and decided my Iguana friend looked tasty instead. Was the circle of life ever different here! I began to understand why Ernest Hemingway found inspiration in Cuba. At this point a busload of tourists arrived at the restaurant and I noticed the sun was starting to set so it was time for me to hit the beach once more.t the next part of the day alternating between exploring the few sights and markets of Veradero. When the sun at the beach became a bit too much for myself we once again parted ways for the afternoon. I initially went to the Casa to work on some trip notes but there was some 

fumigating going on and we were situated downwind from it. I headed over to La Vicara Restaurante to hide under the shade of a thatched umbrella and work on my notes for this trip blog of the experiences we had shared so far while.

That evening I headed out with Wally to check out a Cuban Chinese restaurant at the west end of the strip. He managed to negotiate for a horse cart ride for 6 CUC for the 2 of us down from 10 for the 11 block trip and on the return found a taxi Uber-Pool style for just 2 CUC! We found the Chinese food here was okay but certainly a bit on the bland side which was remedied by some extra sauces that accompanied the meal. We were impressed that they had chopsticks available by special request.e enjoying the best Daiquiri’s we’d had in Veradero and some snacks.

I set out extra early this morning and headed out to explore some more of the Malecon in the direction opposite where we had explored yesterday. In this direction I enjoyed some more great coastal views, explored some monuments and passed the US embassy just a couple of days before US President Barack Obama was scheduled to arrive to discuss restoring relations with Cuba. I climbed up on the wall of the Malecon on the way back and walked along there observing the many Cubans that had climbed down the wall for some morning fishing and the unique rock formations that dotted the shoreline that we’d previously missed as they were mostly out of sight from the regular walkway. I then stopped once again at the Hotel Nacional to check out the peacocks up closed that were roaming the grounds and to purchase some Cuban rum and a cigar to bring home as the prices there for those items were some of the best I had encountered!

After a late breakfast, our scheduled Taxi Collectivo pickup time of 10am was approaching so we paid and said our goodbyes to our hosts and headed downstairs. After waiting for about 40 minutes we decided we’d been forgotten about (or lost our seats to a higher bidder perhaps) and took a bus to the Viazul Bus station in the hopes of procuring some form of transportation to Santa Clara. Luck was on our side and there was a couple from Oslo, Norway looking to spend a night in Santa Clara en-route to experience Trinidad. A short while later the person organizing the taxi rides had found a driver willing to make the trip this late in the day. Unlike our previous shared taxi ride our Norweigan companions, Fridtjof and Katharina were delightful company and well-travelled as well. Fun stories of our past adventures were shared along the ride to pass the time.

The taxi dropped us off right at our doorstep and this was the one time that a pre-arranged casa that our Havana hosts had set up for us worked out according to plan. They settled us in and promptly helped our companions find accommodation elsewhere. We quickly set out to make it to the Armoured Train Park (an important piece in the battle of Santa Clara during the revolution) which was about a 10 minute walk from our Casa before it closed. The cost to tour the small park was 1 CUC or 2 for a guided tour. Unfortunately we had arrived too late in the day for the guided option so for about half an hour we wandered through the train cars and the exhibits they hosted.

We then decided to walk over to check out the Che Guerva Mausoleum and Plaza of the Revolution which turned out to be about an hour stroll through the city. Along the way we handed out the last of our candies and dollar store items to children and families we met along the walk. The Che Monument was certainly one of the most impressive that we encountered on the island. We flagged down a horse cart and for 5 CUC we were whisked back to the centre of town along some scenic roadways through the city. For dinner we found ourselves at another Italian restaurant and just as we were finishing off our meal we bumped into Fridtjof and Katharina and joined them for a few rounds of drinks and good conversation for a perfect last night to round off our Cuban adventure!

Day 8: Santa Clara and Home

When we woke up the last day the person that would cook the breakfast had not yet arrived so we wandered about the town some more and at the square we were able to make arrangements for a 15 CUC taxi ride to the airport. We returned to pack our things and enjoy one last Cuban smorgasbord before catching our Taxi. Once at the airport it did not take long to check-in and clear security and we were delighted to learn that Air Transit had covered the cost of the departure tax. There was a currency exchange window inside the main entrance where we switched back to Canadian funds but we later learned there was also one once you had cleared security. I would recommend exchanging funds there in case you’d like a meal or to do some last minute souvenir shopping. When it was time to board the plane everyone lined up to take a shuttle bus across the runway to where our plane was waiting. We climbed the stairs to board satisfied that it had been a March break adventure we’d remember for years to come!

Some of the gear being tested on this trip courtesy of ScoutTech Outfitters at www.scouttech.com :

We awoke around 5am to the constant crow of roosters (they start well before dawn here) and barking dogs a plenty. Fortunately since we’d retired pretty early the evening before due to the blackout we were still pretty refreshed and rose with the sun. Our Casa host was awake and offered to make us a breakfast for 5 CUC a person. Eager to get out and explore the nearby national park we gladly accepted as them seemed a much better option than strolling about hoping to find an open restaurant so early on a Sunday morning. She provided quite a spread including fruit platters, ham and cheese platters, home- made cream cheese, muffins, biscuits, a small loaf of bread coffee and fresh pressed juice. The coffee was espresso strength and served with honey and warmed dehydrated milk and would become an essential way to jumpstart our date. Turned out there was even enough leftovers to bring along as lunch and snacks for our day trip.

We quickly packed for our trip and made a stop at a small grocery store we’d discovered for some water and juice. Taxis were looking to charge $15-20 for a one way trip and $30-35 wait for you to hike and take you back home after. Since we were told the park was only a few kilometres away and keeping in mind we were budget travelling we decided to hike there seeing it as an opportunity to see some more of the city and some of the countryside up close and maybe even meet some interesting people along the way. Shortly after passing the welcome to Trinidad sign, we did indeed encounter a farmer named Ruen and a friend heading home after delivering their goods to 

restaurants and markets in the city that morning and they offered us a ride to the trailhead for $5 CUC in their horse drawn homemade cabbage cart. We happily accepted the offer as we knew this money was going to a good cause and it fit the profile of the way we were hoping to experience some travel here. Turns out we really benefitted from the ride because the few kilometers was to the park road off of the main road and then it was a good couple of more to the trailhead. He dropped us off at the official park entrance and we started to walk in from there and encountered a nice gentleman from Wisconsin venturing out to the park with a Cuban friend who offered us a ride yet another ways down this road to the entrance.

We thanked them and parted ways for now. We had procured some national pesos from our hosts with the understanding that it would be much more affordable to gain entry to the park. It turned out this particular location currency didn’t matter any tourists had to pay the 9 CUC entry fee. It was a bit of a surprise but we were prepared and paid up for the opportunity to experience the natural beauty offered here. The main trail to the waterfall was not much more than 45 minutes long but there were side trails and many things to stop and see from giant termite mounds and strange twisting trees to large cliff nesting bird settlements and swimming spots en-route. Along the hike we reconnected with the people we’d met in the cab and the Cuban was pointing out many bird and wildlife sightings including the Cuban national bird which was grey with a red splotch on the chest and some very tiny green birds as well as a something that looked like a Chinchilla on a tree. Some hikers are recommended here as there were some slippery rocks, potential for mud and a river we crossed a couple of times. The people attempting the hike in flip flops did not appear to be enjoying it. At the end of the trail we were rewarded with a really neat waterfall that looked a bit like a giant waterslide with a drop at the bottom. We ran into a number of folks here, a good blend of tourists from around the globe and Cubans. There were cliffs of varying heights that you could jump from into the pool at the bottom of the waterfall and you could swim under it to explore a cave full of bats and really cool rock formations. The water was cool but not cold and a very welcome reprieve from the high humidity that day. Unfortunately this is where I parted ways with my camera/cellphone when someone was filming us jumping off of the cliffs. We managed to recover it but it had swum with the fishes a bit too long. Note to self: If using cell phone as primary camera in the future, invest in a Lifeproof phone case. A large snake made an appearance and caused quite the stir as it slithered across someone sunning on a rock and after entertaining us for a few minutes it departed and so did we. At the trailhead we decided to relax a few minutes and enjoy a drink while recapping the highlights of the hike. Shortly after starting the walk back to the city we again encountered the same folks in a cab and were happy to split the 5 CUC rate that they had arranged with the driver. Back in the city we picked up some more supplies and headed to our Casa to see if our hosts could prepare a seafood dinner feast (10 CUC) and change for some evening exploration. We explored some Cuban art galleries and small market places and then headed out to enjoy some Cuban nightlife. My favourite spot that evening was called Castille de Cerveza (Castle of Beers) where it was easy to meet and dance with people from both Trinidad and abroad. It was an outside dance space in what appeared to be the partial ruins of an old castle like building.

At ScoutTech we’re constantly testing out gear on all types of trips and searching for new travel and adventure ideas. We thought we’d try sharing some of our stories with the world to inspire anyone to get outdoors and enjoy the many sights and experiences our planet has to offer whether their taste for adventure is a guided walking tour in a foreign metropolis to trekking through a rainforest or kayaking a gorgeous coastline.

This travel blog entry is a first so I’d love to hear your feedback on future editions about what you’d like to hear whether it be more details or less about certain things such as accommodations or gear configurations. I hope that you enjoy!

Doing Cuba a Little Differently

I’d been to Cuba before about a dozen years ago, which was in fact my first excursion outside of North America and planted the travel bug inside me. What I vividly remember from that trip was not the whole resort and beach thing but it was the day that my friends and I spent off resort driving a Skoda SUV in a small convoy exploring the countryside from Cayo Coco to the mountain top of Bolivia, Cuba to the city of Moron. I also remember the incredibly friendly people and the stories about their home and as I departed I knew I would be back some day to see more.

The goal of this trip was to see some of the many wonders (from UNESCO to natural) and immerse ourselves as much as possible in Cuban culture while backpacking through the island on a budget. We chose to take advantage of a fairly new accommodation option which was not available on my last visit called Casa Particulars. A Casa Particular is where the Cuban people graciously open up their homes to tourists for reasonable fee. We figured what better window into the Cuban way of life could there possibly be!

Day 1: Toronto to Santa Clara (Abel Santamaria) Airport to Trinidad & Getting Acquainted with Cuba

It was 5:35 am and we had just lined up to board our plane. We had decided to maximize our limited time and budget for this trip and take the first flight out on Saturday morning in the hopes of being able to catch a bus from Santa Clara to Trinidad (Cuba). As we disembarked the plane we were greeted by a perfect combination of warmth and tropical breeze. Our plane, they first of four that had just arrived from Canada for March break had landed a few minutes early and we were hopeful that we’d soar through customs, collect our baggage and be on the next air-conditioned bus to Trinidad.

We did indeed move through customs at a reasonable pace even though they were taking everyone’s photographs at the customs booth. However we were held up at the baggage claim for over an hour waiting for our luggage to arrive. I had packed for carry-on and at first regretted that last minute I’d decided to bring along extra liquid toiletries to give away but was quickly comforted by the fact that a little bit of impatience on my behalf was nothing compared to the smiles that the good deed being done here would bring. During this wait we were unable to leave to wait in line for currency exchange which was outside and then return so a note here is splitting up may be worth considering if you are travelling with someone and are on a bit of a schedule. I was a bit groggy from our early start and wish that idea had occurred to me at the time and we might have been lucky enough to make for our early bus as the currency line took about another 45 minutes. It was certainly possible to find a bank and withdraw money elsewhere (highly encourage by taxi drivers that approached us while we waited) but we felt very uneasy about setting out into the country without any funds in hand.

Our backup plan for the day if we missed the early bus was to head into Santa Clara and explore a bit until the evening bus came. But some good that did come of our wait in the currency line was that we were able to negotiate with one of the cab drivers to take us directly to our Casa in Trinidad. At first he was unwilling to drive such a distance but once we arrived at his car he took off for a minute to chat with some other drivers and we agreed on a rate of $60 CUC (Convertible Cuban Pesos) for the journey.

I’d done a bit of research online before leaving and knew that was actually a very good rate and given that a cab to Santa Clara plus 2 bus tickets to Trinidad would have cost us approximated $40 this was an easy decision. It turned out to actually be incredible added value as the taxi cut our travel time in half as the buses take a roundabout route to other cities. The drive was a really friendly guy and went a bit off the beaten path and stopped to show us some sites such as coffee plants and Spanish citadel. The scenery we drove through ranged from rainforests to mountain tops and turned out to be the most beautiful drive we’d experience this trip. Most of the trip was on asphalt roads and was pretty smooth as long as our driver skilfully dodged the many large craters and uneven stretches. Keep in mind when travelling by unofficial cab you definitely need to willing to sacrifice some creature comforts. I took notice of the broken speedometer and the lack of air-conditioning, armrests and working doors and travelling without these may be a bit scary for the faint of heart! To note here from my experience throughout the trip, some basic Spanish is often required to negotiate rates of much of the transportation throughout the trip and I was fortunate to be travelling with a fluent speaker though we did meet folks that did not speak Spanish and seemed to be getting along just fine.

As we reached Trinidad we noticed our asphalt roads quickly turned to cobblestones and then the largest and most uneven cobblestones I’d ever come across! Once I was through observing the streets I looked up and we were surrounded by winding, hilly streets of colourful houses. Well there are many pictures of Trinidad available on the internet and in magazines they just could not capture parts of the real beauty of this place, the hustle and bustle of the many types of friendly people going about their daily lives. The cab encountered some heavy traffic so he let us off a couple of blocks away from our first Casa where we quickly discovered the dynamics of how using this system of accommodation really worked.

An important note about the style of accommodation we chose is that prior to departure we had only been able to establish regular contact with our first host. We had read quite a few stories about how once you are in the Casa network the hosts typically always have a friend they can refer you to wherever you are travelling next so we were confident when left that we would not have any trouble finding hosts. I found that since internet in Cuba is scarce and costly for Cubans that often receiving a response could take 2-3 business days and commonly the response could be “sorry no rooms available”. If you have enough time to start making Casa arrangements at least a month early you could most likely find multiple options however even solid arrangements don’t always work out as planned as we were about to discover.

Our first Casa was a beautiful Spanish Colonial mansion owned by a European gentleman and his Cuban wife. It was 

very nicely kept up with an open air courtyard full of plants and sculptures and winding staircases with several rooms for tourists. Unfortunately we quickly discovered this would not be home for us during our stay in Trinidad. Even though we had been in touch with the owner the night before he had to leave in a rush to attend to some urgent needs back home why exactly they didn’t have a room still available for us was never really made clear. The owner’s wife was happy to welcome us in for a few minutes while she called some friends and then proceeded to walk us a few minutes down the road where we were greeted by a friendly couple and their mother who were eager to accommodate us while we toured Trinidad. The rate at this Casa was 35 CUC for the two of us per night. To my benefit one of our hosts here spoke some English and shared some stories about themselves (he was an architect and his wife a chemist) and was very helpful when arranging plans during our stay.

After quickly unpacking, our hosts suggested a restaurant atop of a hill at the Plaza of the Monuments with a great scenic view of the city and ocean beyond. After dinner we wandered around the busy square taking advantage of the incredible lighting for photographs as the sun was setting and then found a nice spot at a café situated on an expansive cobblestone staircase at the very top of the hill to pause and reflect on what an incredible day it had been. As we were leaving the cafe we experienced a city wide black out which would last most of the night and interpreted that as a sign to head to bed and rest up for our trip to the national park tomorrow. Fortunately having experienced a few blackouts in my travels I had brought along a headlamp just in case of such an event or spontaneous night or caving adventures.

Thank you to everyone that stopped by our booth at the Toronto Outdoor Adventure Show! It was great to have a chance to chat with familiar faces and meet many of you for the first time.

We are excited to congratulate the winner for our 2016 Show contest, Sonia Allen-Jordan! She stopped by the store earlier this month to pick up her brand new Sea To Summit Talus II down filled sleeping bag! We wish her many awesome adventures with it :)

Wishing everyone an exciting season of outdoor adventures and travel!

- The ScoutTech Team