Journal

stories worth going for.

Stories, guides and beautiful stays — one editorial home for everything Jen publishes.

On the deck in my accomodation at Wilderluxe Lake Keepit

Featured story

the place i nearly saved for someone else

I kept putting off one of the most romantic stays I had ever seen because I was single. Eventually, I realised that was a fairly ridiculous reason not to go.

Read story

when you’re so tired that sleep doesn’t work

Four nights on the NSW Mid North Coast, three quiet stops and no real itinerary — just ocean, wine, cheese and enough space to start feeling like myself again.

Story

i got stood up, so i went to lunch anyway

I got stood up on a first date in Sydney, then decided not to let someone else’s bad behaviour take the whole day with it — and went to lunch anyway.

Guide

taking yourself to dinner

This is essentially a step-by-step solo dining guide: choose somewhere comfortable, book early, go at 6pm, wear something you feel good in, take a book, make one conversation, put the phone away and order what you actually want.

Jen in a hot air balloon overlooking the Hunter Valley

Story

up, up and going anyway

I booked a solo hot air balloon ride and discovered that some of life’s most beautiful moments don’t need the perfect person, timing or amount of courage.

Jen smiling beside an indoor pool wearing a purple swim cap and goggles

Story

a few years ago, i decided i needed to learn how to swim properly.

I could technically swim — but learning properly turned out to be less about the water and more about getting out of the car, ignoring the fear and trying anyway.

Jen smiling with a large backpack beside a row of yellow rental bikes while travelling solo

Story

i thought i was waiting for love.

I thought I was waiting for the right person. Really, I was waiting for permission to start living — and learning to go alone changed everything.

Jen eating breakfast on the balcony of her Yamba cottage overlooking the beach

Story

i spent my birthday week alone in yamba and it might be the best thing i've ever done for myself

A solo birthday week in Yamba became something bigger: a reminder to stop waiting, choose yourself and build a life that already feels worth living.

Jen on the Larapinta Trail with red ridgelines stretching across the West MacDonnell Ranges

Story

i cried my way across 250 kilometres of the desert

A red dirt trail through the West MacDonnell Ranges, freezing gorges, stolen hiking shoes and the 250 kilometres that still call me back.

Story

the part nobody posts

The photos make sunrise hikes look peaceful. They don’t show the 4:30am alarm, the fear, or all the reasons you nearly stay in bed.

Story

the first time i ate alone at a restaurant and didn't hate it

The first time I asked for a table for one, the owner loudly asked why I was alone. I stayed anyway.

Jen with a glass of red at sunset during Easter in Orange

Story

i didn't mean to become the "solo travel girl"

I didn’t set out to become the "solo travel girl". I just got tired of waiting for someone else to come with me.