Jan Kraus

The Journal

A collection of unique, truly personal stories, thoughts, moments and ideas

31 January 2023photo story2 min read

Wendover Woods Hike

A view from Outdooraholics hike at Wendover Woods, England, UK

Last weekend, Sunday, I strolled on yet another casual hike hosted by the Outdooraholics group. Wandering through the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty offered an experience of surrounding woodlands and some great, panoramic views from the hills. We left shortly before 9AM from…

13 December 2022photo story5 min read

Highlights from India

Taj Mahal seen on early morning, Agra, India

I recently had the opportunity to visit India for two weeks in October. It was my first time travelling to Asia. I didn’t know what to expect, but I was excited to explore a new country, experience new things and visit new places. Mumbai My first stop was the bustling city of Mumbai. I came there in…

27 November 2022photo story3 min read

Richmond Park Photowalk

Richmond Park Photowalk

Richmond Park is one of my favourite places in London. And it’s funny when you think about it because when you’re there, you feel like you’re actually far away from the big city. I love wandering through its woods and meadows, observing nature. Every time there is something new to discover and…

20 November 2022photo story9 min read

Hampta Pass Trek

Hampta Pass

Last month, in October, I visited India for the first time. One of the main highlights of this journey was a 4-day long trek in Himalayas Mountains on the trail called Hampta Pass. The trek starts in Manali, Himachal Pradesh, a small town situated in Kullu Valley in the north part of India. Just…

18 September 2022photo story4 min read

Hiking Eridge and Harrisons's Rocks

View of Harrisons's Rocks, East Sussex, England, UK

Summer is not officially over yet, and I’ve managed to salvage last sunny weekend to again join Outdooraholics for another hike. Navigating paths at the border of East Sussex and Kent counties, I enjoyed the green and calm atmosphere of woods and stunning crags of Harrison’s Rocks. Eridge As usual…

30 August 2022photo story3 min read

The Seven Sisters Hike

The magnificent views of Seven Sisters cliffs, East Sussex, England, UK

Seeing rain predictions for upcoming days, I feared of possibility that the last warm weekend of summer was just passing by! So, almost at the last minute joined the Seven Sister hike on the sunny, southern coast of Britain. There isn’t much to say about the Seven Sisters that hasn’t been already…

28 August 2022photo story5 min read

Hiking the Rolling Hills of Hertfordshire

Outdooraholics group hiking through the field of Hertfordshire, England, UK

Just a week later, after my last hike, I joined another one with the Outdooraholics group. This time the hike called for exploration of Hertfordshire: a walk through the western area of Hitchin and the North Easterly ridge of Chiltern Hill. We departed around 8:30 from London’s Kings Cross station…

21 August 2022photo story5 min read

Hiking Sussex Weald, Ardingly Reservoir and the Ouse Valley viaduct

Folks from Outdooraholics group hiking through the forrest, Sussex Weald, England, UK

This weekend, on Saturday, I had a chance to enjoy another hike with the Outdooraholics group. This time explored West Sussex, walking through some woods, a few gentle hills and passing under Ouse Valley Viaduct. It was a pleasant and relaxing experience on this beautiful summer day. We started the…

17 August 2022photo story4 min read

Iceland Highlights - Part Five

Iceland Highlights - Part Five

With this tempo of updates, I will probably not finish my Iceland series soon. But I keep trying. In this part, I cover the next part of the trip around Iceland’s Ring Road, driving further east, visiting beautiful beaches, a Viking village, a glacier lagoon and more stunning views. Jökulsárlón…

22 July 2022photo story8 min read

Sunset and sunrise at the Beacons Horseshoe

Sunset and sunrise at the Beacons Horseshoe

Only a few weeks later, after my long hike in Brecon Beacons Mountains, I returned to the same mountains visiting the most spectacular parts, known as the Beacons Horseshoe. This photo essay is a recording of a 2 days hike at the Brecon Beacons, with around 50km of distance and an overnight camp on…

18 June 2022photo story16 min read

Hiking in Brecon Beacons Mountains

Hiking in Brecon Beacons Mountains

At the beginning of June (the long weekend of Queen’s Platinum Jubilee), I left London for a 4-day hiking excursion at Brecon Beacons Mountains in Wales. I planned to hike parts of The Beacons Way - a long-distance walking path running the length of the Brecon Beacons National Park. I didn’t have…

08 June 2022personal journal3 min read

Spring training update

Spring training update

I can finally feel that I’m breaking free from the misery mixture of being unmotivated, lazy and just feeling low. It is still early, only roughly two months of training, but I can already feel some changes. When I think about it, it is actually funny. Spending energy (by exercising) is unironically…

23 May 2022photo story4 min read

Iceland Highlights - Part Four

Iceland Highlights - Part Four

Continuing my Iceland series, I’m ready to share the next part of the journey from my travel. We continue east along Ring Road, visiting some cliffs where Puffins are nesting and then some more mountains and glaciers views. The Ring Road offers many mesmerising views right out of the car window. Too…

21 May 2022photo story3 min read

Iceland Highlights - Part Three

Iceland Highlights - Part Three

Welcome to the third part of my Iceland highlights. This blogpost series is a recap of my trip from the summer of 2021. We continue along the south coast road visiting more beautiful waterfalls, some glaciers, and a crashed plane in this particular part. LAVA Centre We’ve made the first stop at LAVA…

15 May 2022photo story4 min read

Iceland Highlights - Part Two

Kerid Crater seen from the highest point of the caldera

I started last month with a review of my photos from the previous year’s Iceland trip, and I’ve shared some bits from the first days of the travel highlighting the famous Golden Circle route. But Iceland is so much more. Our journey was planned often on the go, driven by the exciting spots along the…

28 April 2022photo story6 min read

My Iceland Highlights - Part One

A close view of water flow at Gullfoss Waterfall, Iceland

I wrote and published earlier two photo stories from my trip to Iceland in 2021. Still, they were only about Fagradalsfjall volcano, and I have so much more to share from that travel. I regret that I didn’t review and process my photos right away when the memories were fresh. Nevertheless, the…

24 April 2022photo story5 min read

The Long Man of Wilmington hike

A view Long Man of Wilmington, East Sussex, UK

Going for a countryside walk on weekend is a great way to spend time. This Saturday I went for another group hike, this time from Berwick to Eastbourne, with the highlight of visiting The Long Man of Wilmington a human figure carved on the slopes of Windover Hill near Wilmington, East Sussex…

18 April 2022photo story3 min read

Leith Hill hike

A view over Dorking, Surrey, UK - Captured from Green Terrace above Denbies Wine Estate

On Easter Sunday, I spent some quality time enjoying a bit challenging yet very rewarding hike in the area of Leith Hill in Surrey. The weather was fantastic, and I had some opportunities to take some photos along the way. Dorking After taking a train from London Bridge, we arrived in Dorking and…

16 April 2022development3 min read

How to access Remix route data in other routes

Not a Remix route, but stunning view on a road somewhere in Iceland

Nested routes are a neat concept of Remix framework. The idea is that segments of the URL path of the applications define the layouts and the data dependency of those layouts. In many use cases, your view could be a composition of multiple route levels, and you may end up with the need to access the…

15 April 2022opinion piece5 min read

Work from home

My remote work setup (as of 2021)

The erosion of the current working model was already happening slowly over the last decade. Still, the previous years of COVID-related lockdowns strongly accelerated the process. I’d argue this was a positive change! I want to tell a story about the changes, collaboration and work that happened…

10 April 2022personal journal2 min read

Updates, updates

Stormy waves hitting shore at Workington, UK

It has been almost six months since the last update. That’s quite a long time. Especially for someone who claims to tell stories! I won’t seek excuses to explain that. I was definitely lacking some engagement, creativity and inspiration. Some ongoing personal changes also contributed to this…

30 September 2021personal journal2 min read

Clarity

Sunrise reflection captured at some marina building at Außenalster, Hamburg, Germany

I went for a run today, dragging my ass from sofa, out through the door on the evening streets of Hamburg. My motivation was low, my energy was low and I struggled to complete simple and familiar 5km loop route I often used to do here. Was it worth it? What did I gain from it? The answer is clarity…

21 September 2021photo story3 min read

Return to the Fagradalsfjall volcano

A view of the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano, Iceland

If you’ve read my previous story about the Fagradalsfjall volcano you know that I didn’t have much luck witnessing actual eruption. But the hike was a great experience anyway, so two weeks later, I’ve returned to the same place, took a slightly different path and went on planning to see the eruption…

25 August 2021photo story5 min read

Fagradalsfjall volcano and the lava fields of Geldingadalir

A view of lava fields "Fagradalshraun" at Fagradalsfjall volcano, Iceland

The Fagradalsfjall volcano was one of the key points of my trip to Iceland. I’ve visited the site twice, in the beginning, and towards the end of my journey. While I almost didn’t see the eruption, I enjoyed the surreal landscape quite a lot. This photo story is a record of the hike. The Nátthagi…

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