Scotland welcomed us home with open arms and lots of glorious sunshine for a lovely eight-week pit stop between our international travels. As much as we loved our European adventure, this time at home felt well-earned and allowed us to reconnect with family, friends, and our beloved Munros. From long sunny hikes to cosy evenings, Scotland delivered the goods, and there was plenty of time for some deep reflection, learning, and designing our life plan.

Exploring Scotland from Coast to Peak

After being back a grand total of six days, we hit the road on a mini adventure to Connell (a village just outside Oban).  We were only there for one night with our eye on climbing Ben Sgulaird the next day.  It was a tough climb but super rewarding with a 360-degree panorama of mountains, lochs, sea and islands.  An unbeatable feeling.  On the way back home, we stopped in at the Beinghlas Campsite to grab some food and a drink with some friends who were on their journey along the West Highland Way.  Lee Ann’s already completed this challenge but it’s one I’d like to do in the future.

The next road trip took us up to Oldmeldrum to visit my side of the family, where we enjoyed some quality time in the continued sunshine. We then headed even further North to Golspie to join my parents for a few days in their rented holiday cottage.  We enjoyed a beautiful walk along the Big Burn in Golspie, leading to an impressive waterfall.

We managed to bag three Munros during the trip (Conival, Ben More Assynt & Ben Klibreck), each hike rewarding us with stunning views and the satisfaction of accomplishment. At day’s end, we soaked in the blissful hot tub back at Sluice Cottage—a perfect way to unwind after miles of trekking.  Poor Lee Ann was then subjected to my dad’s fire pit stories & daft poems. 

The weather was nothing short of miraculous—five weeks of uninterrupted sunshine. Such a rare gift in Scotland made every adventure feel extra magical. During our Munro-bagging escapades, we also enjoyed a wee adventure to Kinlochleven where we bagged Binnein Mor and Na Gruagaichean, another challenging day but with more epic views, and stayed over at the Blackwater Hostel.

Our final overnighter took us to Glen Nevis where we summited Sgurr a’Mhaim, this time in much less favourable conditions; cold, wet, windy and absolutely zero summit views!  We enjoyed some excellent food and well-earned beers at the Ben Nevis Inn afterwards though and stayed over in one of their lovely bunk houses with our pals, Shaun & Kate.

Lastly, we took on An Stuc and Meall Gharb, near Loch Tay.  The weather started off pretty decent but wasn’t long until we were layering up and struggling to see much.  Still an enjoyable day with our pals, with loads of laughs and minimal moans.  These ones brought my Munro count to a nice round 80 (Lee Ann’s to 178). 

Until next time, Scottish mountains. 

Shifting Gears: Downtime and Routine

Once the weather turned, it ushered in a slower pace, perfect for recalibrating. We embraced proper downtime, focusing on fitness and nutrition to get back into a sustainable routine. I got the Peloton bug back (finally hitting 100 rides), and it felt good to recommit to health and wellness. We managed to maintain our healthy, nutrient-dense diet to some extent when we were in Europe but it's been great to get back to making all our own snacks and trying out new plant-based receipes in the kitchen. 

This quieter time also gave me the space to work on creative projects. I spent some time updating the website and published a couple of new YouTube videos—progress is coming along, but there’s more yet to share. These moments of productivity balanced well with the reflective time we spent thinking about what’s next.

Big Thoughts Inspired by FIRE

Our deep dive into FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) during our time in Spain sparked plenty of conversations about what we truly want—and don’t want—from life. Scotland gave us the perfect backdrop to continue those discussions and refine our vision for the future. If you’re looking for some great reads on the topic, I highly recommend How to Retire by Andy Farrell and Die with Zero by Bill Perkins. These books have been instrumental in shaping our mindset and encouraging us to think boldly about our goals.

Die with Zero challenges the traditional idea of saving endlessly for retirement and instead argues you should aim to maximise memorable life experiences while you’re healthy enough to enjoy them, something that really resonates with us (and a core reason for taking this sabbatical NOW).  Perkins introduces the concept of ‘memory dividends’, where investing in experiences throughout your life brings joy during the actual experience but then you relive that joy every single time you think about that experience, are reminded of the experience, or you share the story of that experience with someone. We love this idea!

How To Retire takes a slightly different approach, offering a practical guide on how to build financial security to allow you to stop working when you want and not worry about running out of money.  A fundamental starting point is working out how much you really need to live the life you want, then understand how your pensions, savings & investments contribute.  I’ve spent a LOT of time modelling out different scenarios using this calculator.

We also enrolled in the Rebel Finance School, a 10-week online course run by a British couple who hit financial freedom in 2019, allowing them to retire from corporate life at age 35 & 40.  Inspiring stuff! We’re only 3 weeks in but learning loads.

Japan: A New Adventure on the Horizon

Amid the reflections, we’ve also been excitedly planning our next big adventure: Japan. While the idea of organising such a monumental trip felt overwhelming at first, we decided to bring in a travel operator to help us navigate the details. Now, the itinerary is shaping up to be epic, and we can’t wait to immerse ourselves in Japan’s unique culture, landscapes, cuisine, & mountains.

Next Stop: Vancouver

As June draws to a close, we’re gearing up for our next chapter in Vancouver, Banff & Canmore. The excitement is building, and with our packing skills honed after our European leg, we’re confident this won’t take 75 iterations anymore!

Scotland, in all its sun-drenched glory, has given us memories to treasure, clarity for the future, and the energy to embrace what’s next. Here’s to new adventures and continued exploration—stay tuned for updates on Vancouver and beyond!

Sabbatical Thoughts & Reflections

Before setting off on our big adventure I put some thought into the focus and purpose of this sabbatical, using a helpful framework I found online. My purpose is to ‘revive my wellbeing, take time out from corporate life, decide what’s next, work out how to retire early, and create a life by design’.  The core focus areas are:

• Health & wellbeing
• Adventure
• Freedom
• Next career chapter.

With the whole thing being underpinned by a mindset of ‘peace’.  

When we were on the Valencia hiking trip one of our fellow hikers asked us if we’d had any ‘big thoughts’ during the time away from the rat race.  At that point we really hadn’t, we were solely focused on the heath & wellbeing and adventure elements of the sabbatical.  This period at home however has really given us the time and space to have those ‘big thoughts’ and really work out what we want from life.  We’re still working through what our ideal retirement looks like but we are loving the process and so grateful to have the headspace to devote to something so important.  It really feels like we’re ticking all the boxes now and making the absolute most of this sabbatical.

We’re definitely ready to park the financial models and scenario planners for a bit though and get back to have fun and adventure in the mountains. Afterall, life's all about balance.