I’ve been thinking about introducing a new concept to Beyond The Backyard. Focused on sharing the stories of unique families that have taken the bold step to escape ‘normal life’ and relocate to less traditional places that truly embrace the natural world.
I don’t know about you, but Katrien and I are constantly debating whether we should up and go. To lead a more nature based existence elsewhere. Depending on the number of glasses of wine we’ve had, we’re either managing a lodge in Botswana or a little less ambitiously, working from home in north Devon.
Either way, we’re marooned on a distant ‘some day island’. Rather selfishly I wanted to hear from those who have actually done it. What made them want to take the plunge? What inspiration could they offer all of us left behind?
So meet Ewan. A wildlife photographer I met on the cliff edges of the Shetland Islands, photographing puffins. Ewan is a brilliant wildlife photographer and a couple of years ago he moved with his family (Robyn and now 5-year-old Finn) to the wilds of Costa Rica.
Let’s dive in!
I remember chatting to you about the idea of Costa Rica years before you went. What finally made it happen?
We'd talked about it for almost a decade, honestly. We first went in 2015, doing two weeks of turtle conservation and two weeks of travelling around. We loved it, but we were at a completely different stage of life, no kids, no responsibilities, so it was easy to fall in love with the place. We always said we'd go back.
Then life just got in the way. Robyn's Canadian, so she needed time in the UK first to get her British passport. Then Covid. Then we had Finn. It stayed a "one day" thing for years.
The moment that actually shifted it was New Year's Eve at my sister's house. We were having the same conversation again, "we should really move to Costa Rica" and she'd clearly had enough of hearing it.
‘‘Stop talking about it and just do it!’’
Eight months later, we were in Costa Rica.
So was making the move as scary as it sounds?
‘‘The risk was just in our head. If it doesn’t work out, we’ve got a place to go back to.’’
I won't pretend we jumped with no net. We had family in the UK and Canada, professional contacts, an actual escape route if it went badly wrong. So I'm not going to sit here and say it was reckless.
But I do think fear inflates the danger of a decision like this. For me, the bigger risk was sitting here in five or ten years wondering what would've happened if we'd never taken the chance.
We made some big financial sacrifices but that was the choice we made to lead a more natural life.
Of course, we’re privileged to even have the opportunity compared to a lot of people, but I do think doing something like this is a lot easier than many people think.
Finn was 3 when you moved. What was that actually like?
Honestly, I think him being three was part of why we could do it. He hadn't built the deep friendships and routines yet that would've made it brutal to uproot him.
That doesn't mean it was easy. The weeks before we left were chaotic, we were packing up the only home he'd ever known. Even once we landed in Costa Rica, it took a few weeks for his mood and routine to properly settle. He was enjoying school within days, but I could see the move had affected him.
Two years on, it's a completely different picture. He's settled, he's got his community, and honestly, he's outside constantly. I really love that about our life here. He spends his days outdoors, he’s not really into toys or screens. It feels so different from where we were in the UK.
So what about the wildlife? Has there been a wildlife encounter that’s really stuck with you?
‘‘It’s wildlife most British kids only see in books.’’
During "millipede season" Finn came home from school with a giant millipede in his backpack. He’d clearly just picked it up at school and popped it in his bag, this thing was huge!
We get monkeys turning up in the tree right outside while I'm trying to wrangle him into the car for school.
But my favourite memories and encounters with Finn are at our local beach. We've watched eagle rays glide through clear turquoise water, and I remember running down the beach carrying him so we could stand in the shallows and watch them swim past.
We've also seen a whale breach in the bay, and a baby crocodile, all at this one beach.
Is Finn learning to relate to wildlife and nature differently, do you think?
100% and it’s awesome to see.
I remember we went on a night walk with some older kids. We were looking for spiders and Finn totally got his eye in, he found one after another, he was awesome.
I don't think of it as formal education. It's more about teaching him to notice things, look closely, wait quietly, and want to be part of finding something. It’s honestly the opposite to this instant gratification culture that most of us are sadly part of back home.
It’s not all cute monkeys and turtles though, is it?
Definitely not. Being outside in the UK means watching out for ticks. Here it's venomous snakes, poison frogs, scorpions, bullet ants. Guides have told us flat out not to leave the trail because of snakes. One insisted on walking me back to my car at night because of Fer-de-lance snakes in the area. Not just one, I mean they’re all around and are the most dangerous snakes in the Americas.
‘‘Let’s not kid ourselves. A lot of stuff out here can probably kill you.’’
We get scorpions in the house from time to time. I'm reasonably comfortable now scooping them into a container and taking them outside, though I'd stop short of calling myself relaxed about it.
So has being out here changed your attitude to risk and parenting more generally?
There is a tension in the whole experience. It definitely worries me as a parent. Finn spends his whole time outside, running around snakes, scorpions and hundreds of other alien looking things that he’s mostly completely unaware of.
I try to learn from the locals. Costa Rican parenting feels a lot less risk-averse than what I grew up with. Kids playing out in the street, trusted to just get on with things, and out in the rural areas, young kids joining in with horses and farm life.
I love how there’s also just a real warmth towards children here, people are affectionate towards Finn despite him being a total outsider.
We're not about to become hands-off parents overnight. But it's pushed us to give him more independence and loosen some of the conditioning that says something terrible could happen at any moment. That's not easy in a place where the hazards are real.
But it's made us question how much of UK parenting anxiety is actually about the child, versus the fear of being judged or seen as irresponsible if something goes wrong.
Beyond nature and wildlife, why does this move matter to you?
It's not just sunshine, surfing or wildlife for me. Costa Rica feels more aligned with who I actually am. I think of it as part of stepping onto "the pathless path" (a brilliant book by the way!), moving away from the conventional career-house-life sequence and building something that feels more personal.
By the way, I also think that’s made me a much better parent!
The community's a huge part of it. Friends have become family, and I'm surrounded by people with a genuinely entrepreneurial mindset, which has pushed me to think differently about what I want to do next.
We don't know where we'll end up long term. We don't see ourselves going back to the UK, and Robyn doesn't want to return to Canada either. For now, we're staying in Costa Rica and taking it year by year.
The tricky question, how’s it actually going, financially?
It’s definitely been challenging.
I’ve found a strange comfort in embracing the uncertainty. It’s pushing me more towards a life that feels more aligned with who I am and what I want to do.
I’ve been doing some freelance consulting over the last couple of years but I’m moving away from that now. The space is allowing me to see opportunities I don’t think I would have noticed before. Coming back to photography is one of things and it’s something I don’t think I’d have the space to do if I’d just carried on chasing the next consulting job.
You’ve got some new photography expeditions coming up then? Can we help you spread the word?
Coming back to wildlife photography here in Costa Rica has been incredibly exciting. I’ve built a ten-day Costa Rica wildlife-photography experience across three stunning eco-systems.
These are small group experiences (max six people) with two experienced guides, so people get real time with the wildlife instead of a rushed checklist of sightings.
The whole principle behind these expeditions is:
‘‘Experience first photography. Take the photography seriously, and enjoy the adventure.’’
It’s an expedition that I developed myself, and my partner guide and I have already experienced the locations and wildlife encounters that make up the trip. We’re opening it up this November, and I’m offering a special rate for readers of Beyond The Backyard.
Expect boat trips, night outings, macro photography, and species ranging from toucans, macaws, quetzals and hummingbirds.
Interested in the expedition?
Details of Ewan’s multi-day Costa Rican wildlife photography expedition can be found here
I loved this interview with Ewan and have always been in awe of his (and his family’s) ability to make the jump. I’ve never even been to Costa Rica despite it being on my bucket list for years.
Listening to him made me wonder how caught up in the ‘making money’ and career cycle we’ve become. Motivated by our desire to fund the lives we want our kids to so desperately have. Yet, Ewan is living much of that life by having completely broken the cycle.
While for now, I fear we’re staying camped on our some-day island, speaking to Ewan has definitely given me more fuel to pile into our wine infused Friday night debates.
I’ve also been thinking a lot about my anxieties as a parent recently. I’m not sure how I’d fare as a dad, living in a world of deadly snakes and scorpions. I’ll hold that thought though, for next time…
If you want to follow Ewan, you can sign up to his regular newsletter
What we’re loving at the moment?
We’ve just subscribed to this brilliant new magazine called Dayhike!
It’s a new publication that first went to print late last year. Its purpose is to celebrate UK outdoor culture. We’ve been blown away by the awesome stories from across the country and countless inspirational ideas to encourage us to explore our beautiful island.
There is also something wonderfully refreshing about receiving an actual magazine through the letterbox these days.
You can find out more about Dayhike magazine and subscribe here.
Photo of the fortnight
I decided to leave the kids at home last weekend as I drove 8 hours to the South of France and the wild coast and marshlands of the Camargue region.
My hope was to find and photograph the world-famous white Camargue horses, a very traditional and equally beautiful French breed of working horse.
With the help of Cecile Domens, a brilliant local photographer, I spent a couple of days capturing some images I’m really proud of.
A quick reminder
You can win a kid’s Yeti water bottle by referring another parent who subscribes to Beyond The Backyard. You have until 4th September and details below. Good luck and thank you!
What’s next?
We’re heading back to the UK and over to Brownsea Island in Dorset for some wild camping. I’ll be flying solo with the boys (Katrien’s going on a mum’s spa trip!) and we’ll be exploring one of the UK’s only protected populations of red squirrels.