The Pursuit Zone

Ryan Wichelns is the founding editor of Trails Magazine. It is the only independent, quality-over-quantity, and print-only magazine for backpackers and those who love to sleep in the dirt. He is also an outdoor-adventure and environmental freelance writer and journalist. His work has appeared in Backpacker Magazine, Outside Online, Gear Junkie, and more. Ryan first appeared in episode 12 and again in episode 100. You can learn more about Trails Magazine at trailsmag.net. Ryan Wichelns, welcome back to the show.

In 2015, with his friend Tarran, he completed a kayaking adventure along the Amazon River, traveling from the headwaters of the Rio Mantaro, high in the Peruvian Andes, to the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil. It was 400 miles of trekking followed by 3,600 miles of kayaking for 4.5 months. You can learn more about Olie and his adventures at oliehuntersmart.com. Olie Hunter Smart, welcome back to the show. Olie appeared first in TPZ episode 204 about his walk across India I interviewed West Hansen about his Amazon adventure in TPZ episode 038

In the summer of 2019, Anna Welch traveled from New Zealand to San Francisco to begin cycling across the United States. She was inspired by the Kate Harris book Lands of Lost Borders – A Journey on the Silk Road. She wanted to see a cross-section of American culture and geography in a way that tested her mental and physical limits. She followed the Western Express and Trans Am routes, using maps from the Adventure Cycling Association completing her journey to Yorktown Virginia in 83 days. Anna says the best thing about the whole adventure was how cycling facilitated a connection to the landscape and the people. You can learn more at thesevariousadventures.wordpress.com. Anna Welch, welcome to The Pursuit Zone. Anna's presentation on YouTube My Kate Harris interview - Episode 162

He lives a life of adventure as a travel writer and broadcast journalist, reporting from over 100 countries in the past decade. Back in 2016 he sailed and cycled from China to London in 133 days. The main legs of this journey were a 28-day yacht race across the North Pacific then cycling across the USA in 49 days before getting back into the race on a different crew and sailing 11 days across the North Atlantic from New York to Derry/Londonderry in Northern Ireland. His latest creation is a video series titled Earth Cycle. In the first season he cycles 2000 miles in Norway and Sweden, interviewing locals and shining a light on environmental issues. You can learn more about Simon at simonwparker.co.uk. Simon Parker, welcome to The Pursuit Zone. Simon's TedX Talk BBC Radio Documentary for the Sailing & Cycling Adventure

Photo credit: Susanna Oreskovic In the late 1920s, the husband-and-wife duo Don and Phyllis Munday believed there was an undiscovered peak in the Coast Range about 200 miles north of Vancouver which was an uncharted part of the province. They called it Mystery Mountain and set out to find it. They achieved their goal in 1928, reaching the lower summit of Mystery Mountain which became known as Mount Waddington, the highest peak inside British Columbia at 13,186 ft. About 90 years later, a team of six set out to retrace the Munday's expedition to Mystery Mountain using only 1920s era equipment. Greg Gransden directed the documentary film about the adventure titled The Mystery Mountain Project which is available to view online. You can learn more about the film and the team at canadianehsociety.ca. Greg Gransden, welcome to The Pursuit Zone. View on Amazon View on Vimeo View on Reelhouse View on Adventure Sports TV Don and Phyllis Munday Photo credit: Museum of North Vancouver

Her adventure began in Ushuaia Argentina in late January 2013. Nearly 7 months later she cycled into Santiago Chile after 4,600 km accomplishing her goal of unicycling through Patagonia. But the goal was more than just a cycling challenge. It was a way to meet people from different cultures and a way to discover herself at the same time. In 2016, she received the Kris Holm Evolution of Balance award that supports riders seeking creative and self-supported mountain unicycle adventures in remote places. She was granted this along with Kelli Carley for their adventure in the Alps on the Haute Route. You can learn more about Anne-Sophie at her website annesophierodet.com. Anne-Sophie Rodet, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

When she was little, she dreamed of becoming a writer. But by her early forties, after dozens of jobs from teaching to real estate to selling insurance, she wondered why she had lost sight of that dream. So, in 2011 she set out from Belgrade Serbia on an old 8-speed mountain bike with a budget of 5 euros per day to begin cycling around the world. Along the way she overcame many hardships. But she took time off when needed to rest, earn money, and most importantly to begin writing books about her journey. Nine years later she has cycled in over 40 countries and is currently in South America with plans to cycle to Alaska. You can learn more at her website snezanaradojicic.com. Snežana Radojičić, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

Karma is from Sweden and Scott from New Zealand. They have a passion for long-distance hiking and exploring the world. Not wanting to be owned by their stuff, they sold everything but the packs on their backs and in 2019 began a multi-year trek from North Cape at the top of Norway toward Bluff at the bottom of New Zealand. So far, their journey has taken them through 8 countries. They traveled through the UK during winter then into France and Spain where the adventure was paused in March 2020. You can learn more about them and their adventures at rebootlife.me. Karma and Scott, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

Back in 2006 while snowboarding in the French Alps, he met some backpackers and became fascinated with their lifestyle and tales of travel and adventure. Soon after, he quit his job and spent a year working and traveling Australia. A few years later, while backpacking and volunteering in Central America, he decided to retire the backpack and begin traveling in other ways. First, he built a bike-car that seats two cyclists in the front and two in the back. Its maiden voyage was from the UK to Italy and after some modifications he cycled it across Canada and partway down the west coast of the US. Since then he has gone on to do many more adventures including kayaking the Inside Passage. You can learn more about Paul and his adventures at going-solo.co.uk. Paul Everitt, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

In August 2019, he began a 780 km trek across Madagascar. Joined by three team members, the goal was to walk east to west along Madagascar's longest river, the Mangoky. The journey was 29 days through jungles and across mountain ranges while avoiding crocodiles and the threat of armed bandits. Part of the adventure is to raise funds and awareness for the loss of wildlife and wild lands across Africa by working with the African Wildlife Foundation. You can learn more about Chaz and his adventures at thewildestjourney.com. Chaz Powell, welcome back to the show.

They saved their money and quit their jobs to begin traveling the world with the goal of reaching all seven continents. Their fourth continent, Antarctica, is an expensive place to get to so they applied for jobs at McMurdo station, a US Antarctic research base with a summer population of about 1,200 people. You can learn more about their 5 months at McMurdo and their other travels at their website peregrination-travel.com as well their YouTube channel Peregrination. Zach and Leah, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

The North Sea Cycle Route extends along the coastline of eight countries bordering the North Sea. It's about 6,000 km long and is also known as EuroVelo 12. It's a diverse route covering land below sea level in the Netherlands to cliffs over 1,000 meters high in Norway. Laura Kennington completed this journey over 70 days in the summer of 2018. She has also recently authored a book titled Kairos, an ancient Greek word meaning the supreme moment, where she shares the stories and lessons learned from her adventures. You can learn more at lauraexplorer.com. Laura Kennington, welcome back to the show.

Over the past decade she has done many adventures which have taken her to the Arctic, the Haute route, Bolivian high peaks, Denali, and Iceland to name a few. Her first time in the Amazon jungle was a short trip to Guyana in 2014. She went back in 2020 with the mission to cross the Kanuku mountain range. With a small group of Amerindian tribe members, the team completed the crossing after a few weeks in the mountains. They encountered jaguars, bushmaster snakes and bullet ants. You can learn more about Lucy and her adventures at lucyshepherd.net. Lucy Shepherd, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.