Hey Kiera - She Will Explore

23/02/2026

….just one more stamp 😅

But seriously hiking from stamp to stamp is a really nice incentive to motivate yourself to keep going… 😂

My first thru hike was the Camino de Santiago in 2018 and since I have walked the Manimahesh pilgrimage in northern India, the Jordan Trail, the 88 temple pilgrimage and Kumano Kodo in Japan.

There’s something special about having a little booklet of stamps you hand collected while you struggled over rivers and mountains.

Do you know of any other trails where you can collect stamps or something similar?

I have since lost my Camino stamp book and certificate of completion… maybe a good reason to go back and do it again 😉
…so a big thanks to for sending me photos of his Camino pilgrim passport for this post! 🙏

I’ll send you a 🌻 for any hikers that can guess where the first photo was taken…. I’m sure many of you have hiked past these fields!

21/02/2026

I always get asked how my backpack is so light when I’m on a multi day hike… my base weight is around 5-6kg and then the rest of the weight is food, water and random stuff!
If you want to lower your pack weight the best approach in my opinion is to invest in light options of the big 4 first and then as you go you’ll see where else you can cut weight.
And don’t worry… if you’re new to hiking and don’t know what I’m talking about, I also didn’t have a clue in the beginning and my first tent flooded because it was so cheap + my pack on my first hike was so heavy I cried 😅

Yes… light gear can get expensive but I’m all for good quality gear so you don’t need to buy it again in a few years 😅

I’m no expert… so don’t take this post as the only option! This is just what I’ve found works for me.
Do your own research but if you’re trying to get into thru hiking I would be looking at your pack, shelter and sleep system first to reduce weight 🙌

What else do you want to know?

👋 Hey, I’m Kiera… I like exploring countries via the path less travelled (on my own two feet). If you’re new here, welcome! Follow along to join my adventures virtually or for the ladies - join in person on one of my women’s only adventure trips at .will.explore

🌞

20/02/2026

Everyone said don’t go… I had just finished university and my family wanted me to settle down, start working in what I studied and stop travelling.
But this pilgrimages kept calling me…

So on a random day in March I booked a one way flight and I left to Japan for the first time. I didn’t even look around Tokyo, I caught a bus from the airport to the city and jumped on a night bus straight to Shikoku.
I got off the bus at 5am and started walking towards temple 1. The temple opened and pilgrims started arriving. I knew there was an English guidebook in the temple shop. I walked around awhile till I saw it, the only thing in the shop with English words. This will be my bible for the next 45 days. Next my stamp book, I chose a beautiful embroidered cover with sketches of each temple. A woman told me to try on a Hakui (pilgrim vest). I bought it. Then another woman gifted me a wagesa and showed me temple etiquette, I’m forever grateful to her or I would have likely annoyed some locals with my ignorance.

I started walking, following the little signs. I walked for as long as I could, I heard from a local there’s a bell tower for pilgrims to sleep in. That was my first night. I woke up to other pilgrims coming up the bell tower to take photos…
Every day after… I just let the trail guide me. The locals guide me.
The encounters I had on this trail changed my life, how I view others, how I interact with challenge and how I walk through life. Sappy I know, but until you’ve experienced the challenges of a pilgrimage, you’ll never really get it.

The people of Shikoku are something else… this 1,200 year old pilgrimage has shaped them to be some of the most caring people I have ever met. I’ve since visited other parts of Japan but Shikoku will always be my favourite.

With the boost of tourism in Japan and the restrictions they are putting in place for the popular dedications, I invite you to venture off the beaten path… travel to less known places like Shikoku. You’ll be pleasantly surprised 🌞

Keep exploring friends, step outside your comfort zone and don’t listen to others opinions when your heart says go!

29/01/2026

What happens when you step outside your comfort zone and hike solo across Jordan (against everyone’s ’advice’)?

Well… a lot of things but one thing that probably jumped straight to the front of your mind was something dangerous (I hope I’m wrong though!)

I went to Jordan solo but the funny thing is I was barely ever alone…

I’m getting ready to go back to Jordan to host my women’s hiking trip and along the way I’m stopping in Iraq and Kurdistan to hike a part of the Zagros mountain trail.
And everyone I tell ask me… why would you go there!?!
But if I said I’m going to South America I’m sure they wouldn’t question it…
I had someone recently ask me why I put myself at so much risk visiting the Middle East… ‘just go somewhere normal’, they said…
But I want to ask them why do you make a conclusion about a place you know nothing about beyond a news segment?

I’ve travelled to over 60 countries and experienced a lot of different regions, cultures and religions…
And the message that I choose to believe is: the world is a kind and safe place.
In every country there are good and bad people/experiences but I would rather live my life focusing on the good.

I’m not here to tell you to go here or not go there, or this place is safe and this is unsafe. All I can do is show you my experience and you can make up your own mind.

I’m so excited to be going back to the Middle East and exploring a new part of it.

Keep exploring friends, outside but also inside your mind,
Kiera 🌞

29/07/2025

🚨 Looking for adventurous women to join me hiking to Petra in April next year!
We will hike, float in the Dead Sea, ride camels, eat amazing food and fully experience everything Jordan has to offer.
We will event meet with local women in the desert and make pottery with them 🥰
Link below, only 8 spots left

New Pending Creator Women’s Jordan Hiking Adventure with Kiera Blaney – She Will Explore Apr 19, 2026 - Apr 27, 2026 Adventure $2,199 USD BOOK WITH 25% DEPOSIT Women’s Jordan Hiking Adventure with Kiera Blaney – She Will Explore Apr 19, 2026 - Apr 27, 2026 $2,199 USD BOOK WITH 25% DEPOSIT ....

12/06/2025

🚨Attention local women from the Gold Coast and Brisbane who want to get into hiking!

I’m organising a FREE women’s hiking meet up on 22nd June at Springbrook. Message me if you want to join☺️

I do organise international women’s hiking trips but this hike I’m proposing in the Gold Coast is just a causal, peer-led outing. So everyone joining would be joining the hike at their own risk and taking responsibility for yourself and your safety🙏

22/05/2025

Amazing interview with Roya News English about my journey in Jordan. Thanks for sharing it ☺️