S4E9: Nate Buchanan - ‘The Cave’

Learning how to trust is something only you can teach yourself how to do. It can be one of the most important things that you will encounter during travel, but encounter it you must. Who do you trust in this world, though? Can you trust someone you’ve only known for a matter of seconds? How can you trust that you’re going to make the right decision? Hayden introduces Nate Buchanan of Kara and Nate to help him answer these questions and more. Nate Buchanan is famously from the travel vlog Kara and Nate, being one half of the titular pair - the other half being his wife, Kara. The two of them are looking to travel to 100 countries by 2019. In addition to this, Nate is also an expert in travel hacking.

In this episode, Hayden and Nate discuss to plan or not to plan, as well as the importance of being a bucket list maker. They also talk about how Nate became a travel vlogger, and how important accountability and documentation are to his lifestyle and to travel. Nate’s story is based in the Philippines, and which he has titled, spectacularly and simply titled: ‘The Cave.’ In it, he features the island of Siargao, the concept of motorbikes, an adventure under the sea, and, of course, the titular cave itself. Adventure is lurking around every corner; as Nate proves, you just have to be willing to trust yourself, those around you, and the adventure itself in order to access the deepest reaches of it. Much like Nate and Kara accessed the deepest reaches of the cave.

Hayden, of course, takes advantage of the motorbike portion of the story to weave a tale or two of his own, from his journeys on motorbikes to his adventures in Saigon. Hayden brings up trust in travel, too, and how to know you can trust your own decisions, which Nate relates to his own gut feelings. Nate also shares some travel hacks, as well as what travel hacking is and how even the simplest and least informed of travelers can travel hack. Trusting in yourself and others is a leap, not a baby step. It takes time to reach the point of being able to trust yourself to trust others and to trust your own gut. A long road though it may be, Kara, Nate, and Hayden are all living proof that it is a doable and, when achieved, worthwhile task. Trust in them. Trust in yourself. Trust in travel.

• 0:57 - Hayden introduces Nate Buchanan, one half of the travel-blogging duo Kara and Nate, a husband-and-wife team looking to travel to 100 countries by 2019. Nate is also an expert in travel hacking.
• 3:58 - Hayden and Nate discuss what works for them - planning, or not planning, as well as what plans to stick to while you travel and which plans you can ditch. They also talk about why bucket lists are so important to Nate.
• 9:47 - Hayden asks Nate to discuss his and Kara’s vlog and their travel goals.

Get in Touch with Hayden on Instagram: @backpackdigital