About
ABOUT
me
Hi, I’m Bianca!
At 24, I had a master’s degree, a life that could have followed a perfectly reasonable path… and absolutely no desire to let it.
I had followed the path that was expected of me, completed my studies in communication and earned my degree. On paper, everything was in place for me to settle down somewhere and start building a stable life. Yet deep down, I knew it was not the right time. I needed to leave, to see what existed beyond everything I knew and, above all, to discover what kind of life would truly feel like mine.
So I left my native Alsace with a backpack and a ticket to the other side of the world. The journey was supposed to be a temporary escape, one great adventure before returning to a more conventional life. But months turned into years, travel became a way of life and, quite unexpectedly, that life on the road eventually became my career.
From Patagonia to Alaska
My journey took me from Patagonia to Alaska, hitchhiking around Iceland and across Canada. Along the way, I travelled thousands of miles, lived in some incredibly remote places and collected odd jobs as readily as I collected landscapes.
I worked on farms, in hostels and in wilderness lodges. I took care of sled dogs in Northern Canada, learned to live according to the rhythm of the Arctic seasons and guided my first groups on the waters of Great Slave Lake. Every experience taught me something different, far beyond anything I could have learned by remaining inside my comfort zone.
I left with the desire to discover the world, but what I ultimately discovered was the kind of life that truly suited me. A life outdoors and in motion, shaped by the seasons and the elements. A life that kept drawing me farther north, towards places where cities become distant, roads disappear and the horizon takes over.
Over the years, I realised that I was not simply looking for opportunities to travel. What truly fascinated me was learning how to move through these landscapes, understand them and share their stories with others.
When travel became a career
What was meant to be just one adventure among many eventually changed the course of my life.
After living and working in the Canadian Arctic, I continued my journey towards Norway. There, I guided sea kayaking trips, snowshoe hikes and Northern Lights tours, particularly among the wild landscapes of the Lofoten Islands. I also completed a polar guide training programme in Swedish Lapland to develop my knowledge and independence in cold and remote environments.
I learned to navigate during the polar night, travel on skis while pulling a pulk, cross frozen areas, set up camp in the snow and deal with the unexpected challenges that nature can bring. These experiences confirmed what had gradually become obvious to me: I wanted to turn my passion for wild places and the polar regions into a career.
Sea kayaking slowly became a central part of my journey. It allows us to reach places that would otherwise remain inaccessible, to travel slowly and to experience a landscape from an entirely different perspective. From the water, everything changes. The distances, the sounds, the light and even the way we observe our surroundings.
This passion has taken me from the volcanic coastline of Milos in Greece to the icy fjords of Greenland. In Milos, I guided trips through sea caves, beneath colourful cliffs and towards isolated beaches, while sharing the island’s remarkable geological and mining history. In Greenland, I joined sea kayaking expeditions through Disko Bay before leading one towards Eqi Glacier. For several days, our daily lives revolved around navigation, icebergs, campsites and changing weather conditions.
Today, I work as an adventure guide, leading sea kayaking trips, hiking tours and expeditions in Nordic environments, from the Mediterranean to Greenland.
What drives me
What I love about guiding goes far beyond simply taking a group from one place to another.
For me, guiding means creating the right conditions for each person to fully experience an adventure. It means keeping the group safe, of course, but also sharing knowledge, inspiring curiosity and helping people become more confident in their own abilities. It is about teaching them how to read a landscape, understand the tracks left by animals, observe the weather and notice details they might otherwise have overlooked.
I am fascinated by Nordic regions, their history, their cultures and the ways in which people have adapted to challenging environments. I am just as interested in natural phenomena as I am in the human stories that have shaped these places. I love understanding why a landscape looks the way it does, how local communities live with the changing seasons and what their traditions reveal about their relationship with nature.
I also love the simple pleasures of life outdoors. Paddling at sunrise, watching a sea eagle from a kayak, preparing a meal over a fire, setting up camp in front of a glacier or simply enjoying a hot drink after several hours in the cold. These quiet moments, far removed from performance and spectacle, are often what make an adventure truly unforgettable.
Nature has also taught me humility. It cannot be controlled and does not always match the perfect images we see on social media. There is cold, exhaustion, changing plans, bad weather and moments of doubt. Yet this is also what makes this life feel so intense and real.
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Destination
Patagonia
Hobbies
Sea Kayaking
Food
Italian
Author
Sarah Marquis
A different perspective on adventure
I do not believe that adventure should necessarily be measured by the number of miles travelled, mountains climbed or distant destinations reached. Sometimes, adventure begins simply when we allow ourselves to step beyond what we know.*
Travelling slowly and spending time in the same place has taught me to see destinations differently. Instead of simply passing through them or collecting experiences, I try to understand them. I listen to the people who live there, respect the environments I explore and accept that I am only ever a visitor.
Through my work as a guide and through this blog, I hope to share a vision of adventure that is more mindful, more human and more connected to nature. An adventure that is not only about travelling far, but about being truly present wherever we are.
The stories behind the landscapes
Between expeditions, I continue to share the stories behind this unconventional life.
I write about my travels, my experiences as a guide, the people I meet, the lessons I learn and the sometimes less idyllic realities of adventure. I share the landscapes that have left their mark on me, but also the detours, mistakes and decisions that have gradually helped me create a life I did not even know existed when I first left home.
I had no precise plan when I left France. I simply knew that I needed to see what was waiting beyond everything I knew. Four years later, I continue to move forward with the same curiosity, still drawn to wild places, new challenges and everything I have yet to learn.
I hope these stories will allow you to travel with me, help you prepare for your own adventures or simply inspire you to listen to that quiet voice telling you to try something different.
Because sometimes, it is only by leaving the path that was chosen for us and allowing ourselves to get a little lost that we finally find our own way.
Strasbourg
Cork
I come from a small Alsatian village of 2,000 inhabitants, in the North-East of France. Since I started my higher education, I have been living in the city of Strasbourg, the capital of Europe.
This city in the South of Ireland welcomed me for three months during which I followed intensive English courses during my first year of higher education, in 2017.
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Monterrey
Puerto Viejo
I studied for a year in this city in the North of Mexico during my Bachelor in International Affairs. Monterrey is a gigantic city of a million inhabitants surrounded by mountains.
This small village on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica amazed me with its "Pura Vida" vibe. I lived there for two months when I was volunteering at an animal shelter.
THE PLACES
where I've lived
Yellowknife
During my Working Holiday Visa in Canada, I moved to Yellowknife for a year to work as a dog sled tour guide in the winter and a kayak guide in the summer. An experience in the Great North that will remain unforgettable!
Tromso
I spent a year living in Tromsø, the “Paris of the North,” as it is often called in Norway. Located at 69° north, well above the Arctic Circle, this place taught me how to embrace the rhythm of the polar seasons, from the long darkness of the polar night to the endless light of the midnight sun.
Milos
I lived and worked as a sea kayak guide on the volcanic island of Milos, spending my days paddling between colourful cliffs, hidden beaches and sea caves surrounded by the clear waters of the Aegean Sea.
Lofoten
I spent a winter living and guiding in the Lofoten Islands, where dramatic mountains rise straight from the sea and every day was shaped by snow, changing weather and Arctic light.
ADVENTURES
you can experience with me
Sea kayaking
Sea kayaking is a big part of my life and the activity I feel most connected to. I guide both day trips and multiday expeditions along remote coastlines, through sea caves, between Arctic fjords and sometimes among icebergs.
What I love most about kayaking is the feeling of freedom it gives you. It allows you to quietly explore places that are often impossible to reach from land and to see the coastline from a completely different perspective. I also really enjoy helping people feel more comfortable on the water and watching their confidence grow as the day goes on.
Hiking and trekking
Walking is one of the simplest and most rewarding ways to discover a place. I guide hikes through mountains, along coastlines and across Nordic landscapes, from short day trips to longer adventures in the wilderness.
For me, hiking is not only about reaching the top or getting to the next destination. It is also about everything we notice along the way: animal tracks, unusual rocks, changing weather, local stories and all the little details that help us understand where we are.
Winter and Arctic adventures
The Arctic is where I feel most at home. I guide snowshoe hikes, winter camps and outdoor adventures in landscapes shaped by snow, cold and polar light.
Winter can be challenging, but it also makes the simplest moments feel special. Walking through a silent, snowy landscape, making a fire, sharing a warm meal or sleeping outside beneath the Arctic sky are experiences I love introducing people to.
Expeditions and camping
There is something very special about travelling for several days with everything you need packed into a kayak or carried with you. Life becomes much simpler. You move, find a place to camp, prepare food together and adapt your plans to the weather and the conditions.
These longer adventures are some of my favourite experiences to guide. They give us time to really connect with a place, leave everyday life behind and share moments that often become the strongest memories of the journey.
Northern Lights
Guiding Northern Lights tours is about much more than simply finding the aurora. I love sharing the science, legends and stories behind the lights, while helping people enjoy the beauty of the Arctic night.
The Northern Lights can never be guaranteed, and that is part of what makes them so special. Sometimes we wait beneath a quiet, starry sky, surrounded by mountains and snow. Then, when the aurora finally appears, the whole landscape suddenly feels alive.
My work has taken me from the warm, volcanic coastline of Greece to the fjords and glaciers of the Arctic. Whether I am travelling by kayak, on foot or through the snow, I love exploring places slowly, spending time outdoors and helping others experience the landscapes that mean so much to me.
