There’s a moment before every journey begins — that flicker of anticipation when the map is still folded, the road still unknown, and the world feels impossibly wide.

That’s where this new season of Armchair Explorer begins.

In the coming episodes we’ll travel from the highest volcanoes in the world to the Arctic Circle, from ancient trade routes in Italy to the sacred storytelling landscapes of Australia.

These are immersive journeys, told by the people who lived them and crafted with the cinematic sound design you’ve come to expect from the show.

Here’s a glimpse of what’s ahead.

1. Climb the Seven Volcanic Summits Challenge, summiting the highest volcano on every continent.
2. Listen to an Aboriginal storyteller share the living stories of Uluru — a place where landscape, culture, and time are inseparable.
3. Explore the fjords of Norway in search of the Northern Lights.
4. Hike across Italy’s Old Salt Road, an ancient trade route across the Apennine Mountains to the Mediterranean Sea.
5. Descend into Wind Cave, South Dakota, one of the longest cave systems on Earth, to hear the Lakota Emergence Story.
6. Road trip through Australia’s Northern Territory, where the highways stretch for hundreds of miles and the outback stories grow taller with every one.
7. Take part in the River Nevis Race in Scotland — if Monty Python went white-water rafting, this would be it.
8. Soar on a hot air balloon ride over the Saguaro Desert and a hike through the Petrified Forest of Arizona.

And lots more … These are stories of wild places, remarkable people, and the journeys that change how we see the world. So pack your headphones and join us for a new adventure every single week.

Follow the show so you don’t miss the first episode of the new season of Armchair Explorer!`

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

There are many beautiful countries in Africa, but none are like Namibia.

Today we will travel from the highest sand dunes in the world to the wildest coast on the planet. We will track the last free-roaming herd of rhinos on the continent, and watch desert elephants as we float above them in a hot air balloon.

But more than anything we will discover a sense of vastness and awe that is unmatched by almost anywhere else on Earth.

Taking us there is safari guide and author Peter Allison, who has been guiding in Namibia and elsewhere in Africa for nearly 30 years. He’ll tell us the story of his ultimate Namibia safari, traveling from the Sossusvlei Dunes to the Skeleton Coast. It’s an adventure filled with rare wildlife, inspiring people and more than one of his crazy stories.

Get ready for a journey into the heart of the remote, and enchanting land of Namibia.

Highlights include:

1. Taking a hot air balloon ride watching the sun rise over the Sossusvlei dunes
2. Tracking rare desert elephants and the last remaining free-roaming rhino in the world
3. Spending time with the Himba people of the Hoanib Valley
4. Exploring the Skeleton Coast, where the Atlantic ocean crashes against the Namib desert
5. Sleeping under the stars in one of the largest Dark Sky Reserves in the world
6. 
   

FIND OUT MORE

A lot of our episodes are about huge expeditions and epic adventures.This one is about something you can actually do.

We’ve partnered with Peter’s safari company Natural Selection Safaris, and tour operator Africa Endeavours - two of the most highly regarded sustainable operators on the continent - to create our dream Botswana itinerary. And it’s a trip you can actually book and do yourself.

To find out more go to AfricaEndeavours.com/Armchair and you will get $500 off your next trip. Even if you’re just dreaming about going one day, checking out what they do is a great way to support the show.

Follow Peter on Instagram @peterallisonsafari

FOLLOW US:

Instagram: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠Facebook: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠Newsletter: ⁠armchair-explorer.com⁠

CREDITS

Armchair Explorer is produced by ⁠Armchair Productions⁠. Aaron Millar wrote and presented the show, Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Bhutan is the last of the great Himalayan kingdoms. Still largely untouched by outside influences, shrouded in mystery and magic, this Buddhist country, hidden for centuries on the roof of the world, is like nowhere else on the planet.

Follow British Travel Writer of the Year Emma Thomson as she explores the culture and majesty of Druk Yul, Land of the Thunder Dragon, as it's known by its people. Shunning the usual group tour, Emma stays with local families miles from the tourist trail and discovers, because of that, a glimpse of the real Bhutan most travellers will never see.

But this is more than just an adventure. Cut off from the rest of the world until 1974, and surrounded by virtually impenetrable Himalayan peaks on all sides, Bhutan has remained culturally intact for centuries. It is a real-life Shangri-La, a kind of fabled mythical kingdom hidden in the mountains, where spirituality and happiness are more important than money and economic development.

Intrepid travellers whisper its name in hushed and reverent tones for a reason. Bhutan is, perhaps, the most enlightened country on Earth, and when we visit some of that wisdom and inspiration becomes a part of us too.

Highlights include:

• Staying with two local Bhutanese families in remote rural villages, far off the usual tourist trail

• Experiencing real Bhutanese daily life: tending the fields, bathing in hot stone baths and helping to prepare the meals - fresh dumplings, curries, chillies and cheese

• Exploring Punaka Dzong, the most beautiful of all of Bhutan's fortress temples

• Trekking to the Tiger's Nest Monastery, which clings to the face of a sheer cliff and is the holiest site in the country

• Visiting Bhutan's head of astrology, which is usually forbidden to tourists and discovering a surprise message there that might just shake your scepticism.

• Be inspired by the peace and serenity of the most enlightened country on Earth, and learn how to take that wisdom and stillness into your own life too

CONNECT WITH OUR GUEST

Instagram: @emmathomsontravels

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

This week we are going to Nashville, Tennessee The Country Music Capital of the World … but don’t worry you don’t have to love country to love Nashville. It is a music town. If you like listening to live music – who doesn’t? – then this is a musical odyssey you must take at least once in your life.

We’re going to have some fun, we’re going backstage at 3 rd and Lyndsey, one of Nashville’s most iconic venues, to meet the songwriters who are the beating heart of Nashville and hear a song or two. We’re going to stand on the stage of the legendary Ryman Auditorium, where everyone from johnny cash to Aretha Franklin have played. And of course, we’re going to party on Broadway, Nashville’s ‘Honky Tonk Highway’, row after row of raucous saloons, where you can listen to live music from 10am to 3am seven days a week. It’s like being caught in a maelstrom of sound.

The band’s about to go on stage, turn it up to 11 … we’re going to Nashville, Tennessee.

Connect with us - Tell us what you think of this episode, what you’d like to hear more of, and where you’re dreaming of going next. If you like travel and adventure, we’re going to get on well.

Instagram: @armchairexplorerpodcast

Facebook: @armchairexploerpodcast

Newsletter: www.armchair-explorer.com

We did six episodes on this series, if you like this one scroll back in the feed to find a few more… Memphis & The Birth of Rock n’ Roll and Soul, and The Tennessee Whisky Trail are two of our favorites. Or check out the Tennessee Music Pathways podcast for the full series.

--

Our On-Location episodes take a lot of time and money to produce, so we partner with destinations to make it happen. They help with the costs. But the storytelling is all ours. Thanks to the folks at Tennessee Tourism.

Armchair Explorer is produced by Armchair Productions. Aaron Millar wrote and presented this episode, and Jason Paton did the field recording and production. Find our other shows at www.Armchair-Productions.com. Armchair Explorer is part of APT Podcast Studio.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

"I will show you my Amazon - the Amazon that visitors never get to see."

When Alex Robinson heard those words, he knew he was in for the adventure of a lifetime. His guide, Saru Mundurucu, had recently founded his own adventure and travel company, Aracá Expeditions. As the first and only Amazon adventure company owned and operated by an indigenous Amazonian, Saru promised Alex an experience unlike any other - and he delivered.

Immerse yourself in rich, abundant landscapes as Alex he recounts his eye-opening voyage down the Rio Negro. You'll float along, sipping caipirinhas on the deck of Saru's boat; you'll paddle through the flooded forest in Jaú National Park; you'll come face to face with some of the Amazon's most elusive wildlife, from giant otters to river dolphins. The trip culminates with a hike up the remote Serra Do Aracá  - a mountain which Saru describes as a place "like the world before humans walked the earth." From gorgeous descriptions to surprising and touching anecdotes, this is a story you won't want to miss.

FIND ALEX

Follow Alex on Instagram @AlexRobinsonPhotography or on X (Twitter) @AlexRobPhoto. You can also find his writing in Wanderlust at WanderlustMagazine.com. And check out their podcast, Wanderlust: Off the Page, for plenty of interviews with other incredible writers!

You can also book this episode's featured trip, and other travels with Saru, through his company Aracá Expeditions at Aracá Expeditions.com.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap (on IG @the_sweet_chap).

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Today, we're embracing our weird in Oregon as we explore the Northern Culture Trail!

We’re going to discover Portland’s favorite food carts, sample food from around the world and go on a secret bar crawl to hidden local spots. “Portland is the rebel base of the Star Wars universe, we’re sticking it to the forces of normal,” Dresden of Throw Snakes told us. We’re going to have some fun!

From there we hit the road south to the Willamette Valley to sip some of the most delicious Pinot Noir grapes in the world. But this isn’t pinky up drinking, this is down-to-earth wine-tasting in craft vineyards, surrounded by the beautiful rolling vines of the Dundee Hills.

Lastly, we visit the Eugene Saturday Market, Oregon’s premier art market, to meet the makers who helped turn this artist community into one of the most thriving creative hubs in the Pacific Northwest. We finish at Harmonic Laboratory, an experimental artist collective pushing the boundaries of visual arts, soundscapes, and technology. It’s going to blow your mind.

Through it all, we’ll reveal why, here in Oregon, weird isn’t strange; it’s the spark from which the best things grow.

Find out more at www.traveloregon.com .

Produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Today we're journeying to Lake Baikal, the largest, oldest, deepest freshwater lake in the world...and to get there, we're crossing over a thousand miles in Mongolia and Russia by camel, horse, kayak, and rowboat.

Like all lakes, Lake Baikal exists because of a river. And in 2018, fishing and river guide Peter Fong led the first-ever expedition from the headwaters of Mongolia’s Delgermörön (Selenge) River all the way to Lake Baikal.

As Peter writes, "Rowing to Baikal is about the fish and wildlife that call the river home. About the personal risks of prolonged flooding and sudden snowstorms. About the human history of the region, from the Bronze Age to the fall of the Soviet Union. About the people who live in the basin now—from nomadic herders to construction workers—and their attitudes toward development and conservation. About the old gods and legends that haunt the mountains. And about the disparate possible futures for one of the most starkly beautiful places on Earth."

FIND PETER

Get Peter's book about the expedition, Rowing to Baikal, at RowingToBaikal.com or at your local bookshop. Half of the proceeds from book sales are supporting the International Taimen Initiative via the Wild Salmon Center, so it supports a great cause! There's also an excellent video trailer on the website, so make sure to check that out. And to keep up with his other work, follow him on Instagram @PWFong.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Today, we're returning to the mountains of Colorado to hear about the adventures of Isabella Bird, a British explorer who famously ascended Longs Peak in 1873 with her guide and companion Jim Nugent.

The story of Bird and Jim illuminates the early history and character of Estes Park, as her writings helped establish the town as a tourist destination, and parallels with the broader historic myth of the frontier and the American west.

Bird remains an inspiration to the locals of Estes Park, including restaurateur Melissa Strong. We visit her new restaurant Bird & Jim to hear of her near-death experience and learn how Isabella’s determination to break the conventions of the time was an inspiration for Melissa’s subsequent recovery.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

"There are eight species of bears on the planet. Six of them are threatened everywhere they live."

Thus begins Beartrek, a documentary which took Chris Morgan nearly 8 years to make. In Beartrek, he follows the lives of several individual bears around the world, from a friendly spectacled bear in Peru's arid mountains to a shy sun bear cub in the muggy rainforests of Borneo.

Chris, a British-born ecologist, conservationist, TV presenter, and podcast host, has spent most of his adult life learning about bears and telling their stories. His interest in ursidae began with one very interesting nighttime trip to a dumpster in New Hampshire (listen to the episode for the full story); now, he's one of the world's foremost bear storytellers.

Follow along with Chris as he recounts some of Beartrek's most memorable moments - some of which never made it to the screen - as well as the work he's doing today with bears around the world. You'll travel from Canada's icy Arctic tundra to the humid rainforests of the Indo-pacific, and you'll learn the names - and life stories - of some bears you'll never forget.

FIND CHRIS

Listen to Chris's incredible podcast, The Wild, wherever you find your podcasts, and follow it on IG @TheWildPod. You can also rent or buy Beartrek, his documentary featured in today's episode, on Amazon Prime. Finally, follow all of his work on his website, ChrisMorganWildlife.org, or on socials @ChrisMorganWildlife.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

"It was here, on the banks of the Mississippi River, where music changed the world."

In Memphis, music has always been more than a melody and lyrics - it's a movement. This is a city that launched some of the world's most beloved musicians, from Otis Redding to Isaac Hayes, Carla Thomas, Elvis Presley, and more. And in the midst of segregation and racial tension, the music of Memphis became a powerful tool for bringing people together - and creating the sound of a civil rights movement that would move the world.

Join host Aaron Millar and step into some of the world's most famous recording booths all around the city. It's in these rooms where the greats of soul and rock n' roll have shed blood, sweat and tears for decades. You'll hear how Elvis Presley was discovered completely by accident at Sun Studios; learn about Otis Redding and the joyous growth of soul at the Stax Museum; and go behind the scenes of pop music with Bruno Mars at Royal Studios.

WANT MORE TENNESSEE MUSIC?

Tennessee Music Pathways is a guide that connects visitors to the rich musical heritage of the state. Visitors can curate their own path based on interests using an interactive guide at TNmusicpathways.com. Follow the conversation on social using or searching hashtag #tnmusicpathways.

Thank you to our guests and musicians:

• Hal Lansky, Lansky Brothers Clothing lanskybros.com
• Crockett Hall, Sun Studio sunstudio.com
• Jeff Kollath, Stax Museum of American Soul Music staxmuseum.com
• Boo Mitchell, Royal Studios boomitchellmemphis.com and royalstudios.com
• Dr. Noelle Trent, National Civil Rights Museum civilrightsmuseum.org
• Visit Memphis memphistravel.com

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Today's episode is a little bit different - because our very own Aaron Millar is our guest! This re-released episode is one of the most memorable conversations he's ever had, and we're very excited to share it with you.

In this interview, which originally aired with the Adventure Sports Podcast in 2020, Aaron shares stories from his years as a travel writer - from doing a ridiculous 100-mile pub crawl in Britain to trekking with Shugendo monks in Japan. He also shares a never-before-shared story about surviving Thailand's devastating 2004 tsunami, which you won't want to miss.

If you've always been curious to learn more about the man behind the show, sit back and get ready for a conversation that is at times silly, at times sentimental, and at all times thoughtful.

FIND MASON AND THE ADVENTURE SPORTS PODCAST

Listen to the Adventure Sports Podcast everywhere you can find podcasts, or learn more on their website AdventureSportsPodcast.com. You can also find Mason on Instagram @alive_adventures.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

It's hard to imagine Christmas without reindeer. But long before the beloved antlered animals were pulling Santa's sleigh, they were providing a way of life for indigenous peoples around the world, including the Nenets of Siberia’s Yamal Peninsula.

The Nenets of Siberia’s Yamal Peninsula are among the world’s oldest existing true nomads, making a living by herding reindeer in a place that literally translates to ‘the end of the world.’ And when Christine Amour-Levar learned that she had a third-degree connection to the tribe, she set about arranging an unprecedented trek to accompany them during their southward migration. Five months later, she was leading the largest - and only all-female - group that the Nenets had ever hosted, as they prepared to live, migrate, and journey alongside the tribe for a week.

Cozy up and get ready for an episode that celebrates this traditional symbol of the holidays in a decidedly non-traditional way...even including the occasional consumption of fresh reindeer blood.

FIND CHRISTINE

Follow Christine Amour-Levar on Instagram (@christineamourlevar) or visit her website at christineamourlevar.com for more incredible stories, photos of her expeditions, and more. You can also find her book, Wild Wisdom: Life Lessons From Leading Teams to Some of the Most Inhospitable Places in the World, online or at your local bookstore. Finally, we encourage you to learn more about her two nonprofit organizations, Women on a Mission and HER Planet Earth, where you can volunteer, donate - or even sign up for an upcoming expedition yourself!

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

When Alastair Humphreys was young, he craved something unknowable.

That something - adventure, excitement, wisdom, whatever it was - was close. But he suspected that in order to find it, he'd have to step outside of the familiar shapes of his routines. He'd have to break free from the expectations of his friends and family, of advanced degrees and office jobs and apartment living.

In his search for something, he moved to a rural village in Africa at 18. And after university, he cycled across 6 continents and pedaled the circumference of the globe. But he still hadn't quite found that something - and his quest for it would reveal a truth that would change everything.

Whether you're looking for an epic saga about a cross-continental bike trip or the wildest story about playing the violin you've ever heard, you're going to enjoy this episode about the many types of adventure that exist, how we can have them, and why we need them.

FIND ALASTAIR

Learn more about Alastair, his adventures, and his books at his website, AlastairHumphreys.com, or follow him on Instagram @Al_Humphreys. Find his latest book, Local, wherever books are sold (though we recommend ordering from your local bookshop!).

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

"A life worth living is lived at the edges, where it is wild"

- Rick Ridgeway

Rick Ridgeway is one of the greatest mountaineers of all time. In this in-depth interview he shares the adventures that have come to define his life, and the wisdom he has learned along the way.

Highlights include

1. Getting lost while sailing across the Pacific Ocean in search of Tahit.i
2. Taking the famous newscaster Tom Brokaw to the summit of Mount Rainier with legendary climbers Yvonne Chouinard and Doug Tompkins.
3. Nearly dying of hypothermia while kayaking across a frozen lake in Chilean Patagonia.
4. Discovering what it feels like to be trapped in an avalanche facing certain death.
5. The most profound adventure of his life, a journey through the Himalayas in search of a lost friend.
6. Learning the wisdom of a life spent in the wild and how nature can be our greatest teacher

CONNECT WITH RICK

Rick's latest book is called 'Life Lived Wild: Adventures at the Edge of the Map'. It is a beautiful memoir of a life lived to the full, immersed in the beauty and adventure of the natural world. Through this episode we will also hear some of Rick's other favorite tales of adventure and learn the wisdom those wild places have given him. More info at www.patagonia.com

CONNECT WITH US

If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on whatever podcast player you’re reading this on right now. Go on, do it. It means you get to choose what episodes you listen to, rather than the algorithm guess (wrongly) and kick us off your feed.

Facebook: @armchairexplorerpodcast

Instagram: @armchairexplorerpodcast

Special Offer: we’ve revived our NEWSLETTER! (scroll to the bottom of our homepage to sign up). And contact us for a free copy of our my ebook: The 50 Greatest Wonders of the World

Award-winning travel journalist Aaron Millar reveals the greatest wonders of the world and the insider secrets on how to see them. From where to catch the perfect sunrise over the Grand Canyon to how to swim up to the very edge of the Victoria Falls, this is a road map for discovering the greatest experiences of your life.

Armchair Explorer is produced by Armchair Productions. Aaron Millar presented the show, Charles Tyrie does the audio editing and sound design.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

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“It's kind of interesting that people that come here to Crazy Horse Memorial, because it's almost like there's a spiritual calling. They don't know quite what it is. But they feel it.”

– Paul LaRoche, Lakota tribe member and founder of the band Brulé

The great Lakota Sioux Nation have become the international symbol of America’s native people. Over 60,000 Lakota Native Americans live in South Dakota, and they believe that their very creation began in the Black Hills.

Join us as we delve deep into South Dakota’s rich native American history and culture. We begin our adventure by stepping out onto the arm of the Crazy Horse memorial with head carver Caleb Zilokowski (the grandson of Korczak Ziolkowski, who started it back in 1947).

At the base of Crazy Horse, we join Paul LaRoche who has been coming to Crazy Horse for 25 years with his award-winning band Brulé. Through his music and dance we learn about Paul’s journey back into a Native American life he knew nothing about.

Along the way we uncover what makes Native American culture in South Dakota so unique. And as you hear these stories and the history of this fascinating and colorful culture, you’ll soon discover that you need to experience South Dakota for yourself.

Find out more at travelsouthdakota.com where you'll find lots of inspiration, ideas and everything else you need to know to plan your great South Dakota adventure.

Produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry. Learn more at armchair-productions.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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"Humans are meant to excel. And when you start pushing that and seeing how capable we are, it's phenomenal what you can actually go and do."

-Justin Packshaw

When Justin Packshaw was trekking in Antarctica several years ago, he noticed something disturbing: The ice shelf had visibly melted since his previous visit, just a few decades prior. "In the grand scheme of how old our world is, and its present state, that's a really quite frightening thing," he said. And with that, he had an idea. Not all scientists have the time, resources, or, frankly, the stamina to conduct invaluable in-person research in the heart of Antarctica, which holds the record as the world's coldest, windiest, and driest continent. But Justin did.

He and his adventure partner, Jamie Facer-Childs, proposed a data-gathering mission to several universities: They would cross Antarctica's heart and gather critical scientific data about climate change. But other agencies were interested in the trip as well.

As it turns out, pushing the human body to its limits - physically, psychologically, mentally - is one of the key areas of research for space agencies like NASA and the European Space Agency. Justin and Jamie's expedition would collect critical data on behavior, coping abilities, teamwork, endurance, even eyesight, that would be invaluable for future space missions in which astronauts will live for years in a space no larger than a studio apartment.

This is a good, old-fashioned adventure romp - but it's more than that too. It's also a story about science, psychology, Mars, and climate change. It's about how we cope with the most extreme physical challenges imaginable and ultimately how that defines us as humans.

FIND JUSTIN

Learn more about Justin and his adventures at his website, JustinPackshaw.com, or follow him on Instagram @JustinPackshaw. Find more details about the Antarctica expedition at ChasingTheLight2021.com.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Yolo County in Northern California is one of the world’s premier destinations for slow food. But that doesn’t mean waiting for your dinner - it means savoring every bite and building a connection to the land from which it comes.

We live in a fast world. 20% of all meals are eaten in cars. One third of Americans eat fast food every single day. That has consequences.

When we forget that food isn’t grown in supermarket aisles or materialized in drive-through windows, when we fail to remember that the true joy of food comes not from the instant gratification of everything all the time, but from the scarcity of the seasons, and the rhythms of the land, we sell ourselves – and our tastebuds – short.

That’s what this episode is about, and we’ll be unpacking what that means on a slow food road trip across Yolo County, exploring fresh organic farms, meeting the leaders in Yolo’s Slow Food movement, and eating one of the best meals you will ever eat.

“Slow food is a way of both reminiscing, and yet bringing food into the present with a shinier sense of purpose. It's allowing those who aren't privileged enough to be stewards of the land to enter into that world, even if only for a few hours. And through doing that, without listening to a sermon or reading a book, they are experiencing those values and then they can take it home.”

- Ann Evans

Ready for a delicious food and wine vacation in Yolo County? Plan your own road trip at VisitYolo.com.

Also, please share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

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This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

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This week, we're digging into the Armchair Explorer archives to bring you one of our favorite - and most ridiculous - stories.

If Monty Python went on a road trip, this is what it would be. Follow along with journalist Simon Parker as he travels 2,500-miles and two weeks across the length of India …

...in a rickshaw.

You read that right.

The rickshaw is perhaps the least suitable vehicle on the planet for long distance travel. Used commonly across many parts of Asia, it’s basically a three-wheeled moped with a roof on it and room for a couple of passengers to squash in the backseat. It has no sides. It falls over often. It's essentially a glorified lawn mower.

Dreamt up by a load of nutters called The Adventurists, the Rickshaw Run is all about challenging yourself with proper adventure, whilst belly-laughing at your own ridiculousness at the same time. Simon and four of his friends traveled from the far reaches of northern India, in the shadow of the Himalayas, all the way to the steamy jungles of Kerala on the southern coast. There was no set route. No pre-planned stops or hotels. No convoy or safety car or back up of any kind. Smart phones are scoffed at; Google maps are barred. They simply set off with a pocket map of India and a vague sense of where the finish line was. What would happen in between? Nobody was certain - that was the point.

FIND SIMON AND THE ADVENTURISTS

Follow Simon's work and see his photography on his website, SimonWParker.co.uk, or on Instagram and social media @SimonWiParker. Considering a rickshaw run yourself? Learn more about all the crazy exploits of the Adventurists at TheAdventurists.com.

SOCIAL

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Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

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The 'Old West' is alive and well in Laramie, a small city at the southern edge of Wyoming's great expanse. Here, ghosts of outlaws stalk the streets as the bustle of 21st century commerce and culture whirs to life. This is a pioneering town to its core - a place where layers of history intermingle with the ever-evolving, trailblazing present.

And today, you'll come to see why Laramie is known as the place where 'the Old West meets the New.' Join us as we embrace the cowboy lifestyle in its entirety - from booting up with Western apparel to going horseback riding, sitting around a campfire, and even visiting the infamous Wyoming Territorial Prison - the only one to ever hold the legendary Butch Cassidy. By the end of the episode, you'll be ready to saddle up and ride!

Interested in recreating some of the experiences from today's episode? Plan your trip at VisitLaramie.org.

Also, please share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Wildlife poaching is a complicated problem. But for many years, most anti-poaching groups had only one way of fighting it. Many organizations adopted the same formula: A battalion of men, armed to the teeth, ready to act as a last line of defense between the poachers and the animals. But these efforts lacked community stewardship - they didn't build solutions, they burned bridges. They were costly, they were deadly, and they were lacking one critical thing:

Women.

Now, Akashinga - Africa's first all-women, plant-based, armed anti-poaching group - has forged a new model for anti-poaching and conservation. Beginning as a group of 16 women, Akashinga is now over 600 strong, protecting over 9 million acres across several countries. Each Akashinga ranger comes directly from the communities that she is working to protect. And the ripple effects are massive, shifting conservation into something truly community-led and sustainable.

Despite their revolutionary approach, the group was founded by somebody who never expected to be working in anti-poaching. Damien Mander is an Australian who began his career working in some of the most elite military groups in the world. When he developed a passion for anti-poaching, he knew he had to do something. "I had two things," he says, "and those were particular set of skills, and some money." So he liquidated his life savings to train the first class of the women who would become the original Akashinga Rangers.

This is a story about how to truly build change from the ground up, how to protect what matters most, and how to harness one of the most powerful forces on this planet - women - to create a more vibrant future for everyone.

FIND AKASHINGA AND DAMIEN

Learn more about Akashinga on their website, Akashinga.org. You can watch the National Geographic short film titled 'Akashinga: The Brave Ones' on National Geographic's website or on Disney Plus. You can also follow them on Instagram, Facebook, X, and other social channels @weareakashinga.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap. Cover artwork courtesy of Akashinga.org. In-episode video excerpts from the short film courtesy of National Geographic and Akashinga.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

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From colorful schooling fish to dolphins, sea turtles, crabs, sponges, and more, the Florida Keys are known for their abundant marine life - so it's no surprise that they're also a hotspot for marine conservation. That's why today's episode is a special 3-in-1 feature, showcasing clips from three different episodes of our on-location series, Florida Keys Traveler. And not only will you get to hear highlights from multiple episodes - you'll also be hearing from a special guest host, travel writer and radio personality Elizabeth Harryman Lasley!

First, Elizabeth she'll speak with Dr. David Vaughan, who is revolutionizing coral restoration around the world with a new process that he discovered completely by accident. Next, she'll stop by the Turtle Hospital in Marathon - the world's first licensed veterinary hospital just for sea turtles - to meet some patients and learn about the rescue process. Finally, she'll chat with Ken Nedimyer about the unique methods he's developing to restore coral on North America's only barrier reef (hint: rope and cement).

Recorded entirely on location, this episode will drop you directly into the sun-soaked paradise known as the Florida Keys. So grab your favorite tropical drink and join us!

Learn more about the organizations featured in today's episode:

• Plant a Million Corals Foundation
• Turtle Hospital in Marathon
• Reef Renewal USA

For more details and travel inspiration, visit Fla-Keys.com. To call from the United States or Canada, dial 1 (800) FLA-KEYS or contact your travel advisor. Produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

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Whether you known him as Sasquatch, Bigfoot, Yeti, Thla'Thla, Sninik, or something else, you've heard the legends - the stories of the hairy mountain man who lives, as writer John Zada says, "in primeval nature and collective memory." And today, we're plunging deep into Canada's ancient forests to find him.

But make no mistake - this isn't Bigfoot searching like you've seen before. There are no infrared cameras, scanners, or traps. Instead, we'll follow John as he listens and learns from Canada's First Nations peoples, framing his investigation within a greater story of indigenous myth, community, and sacred land.

When John first began hearing about a flurry of Sasquatch sightings, he was visiting the Heiltsuk Nation in British Columbia on an unrelated assignment. But he couldn't shake the stories from his mind. Intrigued, he decided to embark on a trip dedicated entirely to following these stories to their roots. And in so doing, he uncovered something that goes much deeper than footprints or rumors.

This is a story about monsters - but it's also one that tells us about ourselves. And along the way, it's about the power of myth, the need for environmental activism, and the tangled webs of our own psyches.

FIND JOHN

Get a copy of John's book, In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond: In Search of the Sasquatch, online or from your local bookstore. Connect with John and see more of his work, including his photography, at his website johnzada.com, and follow him on Instagram @JohnZada.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Estes Park was founded more than 100 years ago, and of course it was inhabited for thousands of years before then by the Ute and Arapaho Native American tribes. You don’t get that kind of history without a few tall tales building up along the way; legends and ghost stories retold through generations.

But myths are more than just tales. They are a part of living history, part of the fabric of a place passed from campfire to campfire, woven through the land in the invisible threads of our imagination. And by following those threads, we’ll not only have some fun, but we’ll also see a side to these Rocky Mountains that most people don’t even know exist.

This episode follows three different stories: the Earl of Dunraven, the legend of the blue mist and the story behind the keys at the Seven Keys Lodge, which historically was called the Baldpate Inn.

Two of these stories are told by Estes Park’s professional storyteller, Kurtis Kelly. Learn more about historic characters from Estes Park through Kurtis’ upcoming events or book a private show.

Learn more about the Earl of Dunraven here.

Learn more about the haunted sides of the Seven Keys Lodge and the blue mist here. 

The Seven Keys Lodge opened their tasting room this past summer in their famous key room marveled about in this episode. Here you will find handcrafted cocktails and a variety of an ever-changing menu of food.

Armchair Explorer is produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“Those are my heroes, those guys paved the way for me to be able to travel through this country, free, and they're almost superhuman to me.”  

-        - Erick Cedeño, Bicycle Nomad

In 2013, Erick Cedeño, aka. Bicycle Nomad, came across an old photograph that changed his life. Taken in 1897, it showed 20 black soldiers riding bicycles across the American West. As he dug deeper, he learned that these were the Buffalo Soldiers, an all-black infantry regiment formed after the civil war. The photo was taken during a grueling 1,900-mile journey, in which they traveled by bike from Montana to Missouri in order to test the efficacy of the bicycle as a form of military transport. To this day, it is one of the most difficult bike trips ever undertaken. 

As a black man, growing up in America, Erick had never seen people that looked like him riding bikes. It changed his life, and he knew he had to bring their story back to life. But he did it not by telling it, but by living it - pedaling every mile that they did, sleeping where they slept, eating where they ate, taking the hard roads where modern paved highways do not go. And in doing so he invites us to live it too.

“Curiosity drives me. It fuels my insatiable desire to know what’s beyond the next bend of the road, to discover what’s there beyond the edges of the map. If it is my muscles that propel me forward physically, it is curiosity that propels me mentally.”

FIND ERICK CEDEÑO

Follow all Erick’s adventures at iambicyclenomad.com, Instagram: @bicycle_nomad, and Facebook:@bicyclenomad

SOCIAL

If you enjoy this show, please take a minute to leave a review, it makes a huge difference and enables us to keep brining these stories to you. Remember also to subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about our network partner, APT Podcast Studios, on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

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Every month on Pathways, host Aaron Millar and producer Jason Paton crack open a few stories, play their favorite clips, and take you on a whirlwind preview of what’s coming up this month on Armchair Explorer. It’s part travel hangout, part behind-the-scenes, and a whole lot of part “wait, you did what?”

Special Offer: we’ve revived our ⁠NEWSLETTER!⁠ (scroll to the bottom of our homepage to signup)

And contact us for a free copy of our fearless leader Aaron Millar’s ebook:

⁠The 50 Greatest Wonders of the World⁠

Award-winning travel journalist Aaron Millar reveals the greatest wonders of the world and the insider secrets on how to see them. From where to catch the perfect sunrise over the Grand Canyon to how to swim up to the very edge of the Victoria Falls, this is a road map for discovering the greatest experiences of your life.

This Month on Pathways:

Stargazing with the Bedouin in the Arabian DesertNight has fallen over the Arabian desert, pillows and blankets are laid out in the sand, and our guide, Badrea, begins to share the secrets of bedouin stars

‘Giggly Landings’ in a Hot Air BalloonEver wondered what it feels like to crash land a balloon in the middle of a UNESCO heritage site? Turns out it’s surprisingly funny.

In the Footsteps of J.R.R Tolkien in SwitzerlandDiscover the hike that inspired Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings … and a swiss mountain hut, that might just be the coolest place to stay in the alps.

Hamming it up in a Kyrgyzstani JailCurious how to survive in a Kyrgyzstani prison? In the middle of his 16,000-mile trek around the world, Arjun Bhogle learns how …

Busking for your Supper in SpainCelebrated adventurer Alastair Humphreys takes on his most daunting challenge yet: 500-miles across Spain with nothing but busking and bad violin playing to pay for his food.

Ready to Explore? If you're into real stories of epic places told by the people who’ve lived them, make sure to subscribe—that way you choose the adventure, not the algorithm.

Instagram: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠

Facebook: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠

⁠Armchair Explorer⁠ is produced by ⁠Armchair Productions⁠. Aaron Millar and Jason Paton presented the show, Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Armchair Explorer goes on-location!

"Whiskey is a combination of fire, water, wood, time - and feelings."

Join host Aaron Millar as he samples a recipe as old as the Revolutionary War; visits a haunted prison that distills one-of-a-kind moonshine; meets a mad scientist blending chemistry and artistry in the glass; and learns the untold tale of the legendary whiskey maker that the world never got to meet.

Spanning 600 miles across the state of Tennessee, the Tennessee Whiskey Trail takes visitors through dozens of craft distilleries where no sip is like the last. Along the way, distillers share the inspiring - and often grisly - stories behind whiskey production in Tennessee, illustrate the process of creating a unique flavor, and of course, offer some delicious pours. Whether or not you're already a whiskey drinker, this episode will have you ready to pour a glass!

How about a musical chaser with that glass?

The Whiskey Trail has a sister series exploring the soundtrack of America, made in Tennessee! Produced in a documentary style, the Tennessee Music Pathways series takes listeners on a more than 1,000-mile road trip, from Bristol and the birth of country music to Memphis and the start of rock n’ roll. Along the way, listeners will hear bluegrass played fast as lightning and traditional Appalachian music performed live in the Great Smoky Mountains. Follow along as host Aaron Millar shops in Elvis’ favorite clothing store, bangs drums in the studio that made Uptown Funk, learns to play the spoons and drinks whiskey in a distillery housed in a more than 100-year-old former prison.

The Tennessee Whiskey Trail knits together 25 distilleries across the state, offering visitors an immersive experience rich with history, culture, and taste. Learn more and plan your visit at TNWhiskeyTrail.com.

The Tennessee Music Pathways is a guide that connects visitors to the rich musical heritage of our state. Visitors can curate their own path based on interests using an interactive guide at TNmusicpathways.com. Follow the conversation on social media using or searching hashtag #tnmusicpathways.

TNvacation.com | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

Thank you to our guests:

• Heath Clark, Company Distilling companydistilling.com
• Alex Castle, Old Dominick Distilling olddominick.com
• Bill Lee, Gate 11 Distillery gate11distillery.com
• Stanton Webster, PostModern Spirits postmodernspirits.com
• Nick Bianchi, Lost State Distilling loststatedistilling.com
• Canaan Brock, Brushy Mountain Distillery brushymtndistillery.com
• Fawn Weaver, Uncle Nearest Distillery unclenearest.com/distillery
• Visit Memphis memphistravel.com
• Visit Chattanooga visitchattanooga.com
• Visit Knoxville visitknoxville.com
• Discover Bristol discoverbristol.org

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

This series was produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry. Aaron Millar wrote and presented it, Jason Paton did the field recording and production. Theme music by the artist Sweet Chap

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“When I first decided to do these pilgrimages, I told myself I'm doing this as an investigative reporter. I'm doing it as an observer, and as an outsider … and in the end, that isn't what happened.”

• Rosemary Mahoney, author The Singular Pilgrim: Travels on Sacred Ground

When Rosemary Mahoney got off the ferry at the tiny island of Tinos, in Greece, she witnessed something extraordinary. Pilgrims dressed in black exited the boat and immediately flung themselves to the ground, crawling on hands and knees to worship at a shrine at the top of a nearby hill. 

Watching these men and women rolling in the dirt, sweating beneath a scorching sun, she asked herself a simple question. Every human culture that has ever existed has had some concept of the divine, however you define that. She wanted to understand why.

Her search for an answer began a remarkable journey to undertake six of the world’s most prominent religious pilgrimages. Her journey would take her from the Way of St James, trekking hundreds of miles across the Pyrenees of southern France and Spain, to the burning ghats of Varanasi, on the banks of the Ganges River, in India, and beyond.

This isn’t a story about religion, or faith. It is an investigation into one of the most fundamental, but little understood, aspects of humanity. It is a quest to discover the roots of belief itself. And to find it, she will have to travel to six countries, walk hundreds of miles, and stare death in the face. 

Insightful, evocative, and inspiring. Rosemary’s story is an adventure into the heart of what it means to be human.

FIND ROSEMARY

Get a copy of Rosemary’s book The Singular Pilgrim: Travels on Sacred Ground, online or from your local bookstore. Find out more about her work at rosemarymahoney.net. Facebook: @RosemaryMahoneyWriter

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

“You’re experiencing what you see on TV and the old western movies, the buffalo roaming across the prairie like that. It's that old west tradition that you don't see anywhere else in the world.”

– Matt Snyder, Superintendent of Custer State Park 

Feel the ground rumble and the dust fly as sixty cowboys and cowgirls saddle up to bring in a thundering herd of 1,300 buffalo at the 57th Annual Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup. But we’re not just watching it, we are in the thick of it as we get thrown around on the back of a truck chasing the herd across the wide-open plains. Listen to one of the riders Molly as she cracks her whip and corals the galloping beasts.

We also meet Lakota rider and manager of Bear Butte State Park, Jim Jandreau, who tells us what the buffalo means to the Lakota people, and Molly’s 87-year-old dad, who had just taken part in his 53rd roundup.

Along the way we discover that although the roundup harks back to a different time, the adventurous spirit of South Dakotans that has been a way of life for centuries still lives on. And that spirit is infectious.

Recorded on-location, this audio adventure is designed to do more than just let you hear what it’s like to be there; it’s designed to let you feel what it’s like for real.

Find out more at www.travelsouthdakota.com where you'll find lots of inspiration, ideas and everything else you need to know to plan your great South Dakota adventure.

Thank you to everyone who featured on this show:

-   Jim Jandreau, Bear Butte State Park

-   Molly Olivia, Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup

-   Bob Lantis, Custer State Park Buffalo Roundup

-   Matt Snyder, Custer State Park

-   Kobee Stalder, Custer State Park

-   Lydia Austin, Custer State Park

Produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry www.armchair-productions.com. Written and presented by Brian Thacker. Field recording and audio production by Jason Paton. Executive Producer Aaron Millar. Theme music by the artist Sweet Chap

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

"Half of planet Earth is still completely unexplored...and nobody seems to be paying attention."

When Victor Vescovo learned in 2016 that nobody had been to the deepest point of four of the five's oceans, he was flabbergasted...and he was up for the challenge.

Victor had earned his pilot's license at only nineteen, and he had spent much of his life pursuing adventure. He was one of the only people in the world to complete the Explorer's Grand Slam, during which he climbed to the highest peak on every continent and skied to both Poles. But he had never been far below the surface - and he quickly became obsessed with the idea.

He assembled a world class crew and tasked them with an extremely ambitious mission: Build a deep-sea submersible more durable, safe, and sturdy than anything in existence. Previously, subs had been built to survive one deep-sea dive. But Victor's team needed to figure out a way to replicate it - for at least five dives - if they wanted a shot at breaking this record.

And the mission wasn't purely adventure for adventure's sake. The ocean's depths are quickly becoming more and more critical for climate change science, species conservation, and more, and Victor knew that the science to be found under the surface was something that could be life-changing for the entire globe.

Riveting, inspiring, and terrifying all at once, Victor's story will take you deeper into the truth about our planet than anybody has ever been.

FIND VICTOR

Get a copy of Victor's book Expedition Deep Ocean, written by Josh Young, online or from your local bookstore. You can also catch the docu-series of the same title on Amazon Prime. Learn more about the Five Deeps Expedition at FiveDeeps.com, learn more about Victor's aquatic pursuits at his Caladan Oceanic website.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

For today's 'On Location' episode, we're exploring San Francisco in the most iconic way possible. San Francisco’s cable cars are not only the first in the world – invented here in 1873 – they are also the last. And though they travel at a mere 9.5mph, with the wind in your hair, the bells ringing and track rattling, it feels more like a roller coaster tour of the city than anything else on the road. 

Join us for a whirlwind journey, recorded on location, celebrating 150 years and counting of San Francisco’s cable cars. As we travel, we’re going to stop off at the highlights along the line, revealing the story of the city from its Gold Rush roots to the creativity and diversity that defines it to this day.

We’ll meet Val Lupiz, a legendary ‘gripman’, or cable car operator, for a lesson on what it takes to drive an actual 150-year-old antique. We’ll find a hidden music studio above a gift shop in Chinatown, and listen to a performance of a GuZheng, a more than 2,000-year-old traditional Chinese instrument. We’ll eat fresh seafood in one of the oldest restaurants in Fisherman’s Wharf, drink Mai Tai’s during an indoor monsoon at the Tonga Room, listen to an impromptu poetry recital about cable cars, on the cable car itself, and lots more.

Recorded on-location, this audio adventure is designed to do more than just let you hear what it’s like to be there; it’s designed to let you feel what it’s like for real.

For more information on how you can explore San Francisco for yourself, visit sftravel.com.

Thank you to everyone who featured on this show:

-       Val Lupiz, Cable Car Museum

-       Gimmy Park Li, Wok Wiz Walking Tours

-       Fang-Li (and students Katie and Catherine), Shangri-La Gifts

-       Josh and Michelle, Fairmont Hotel and Tonga Room

-       Tom Creedon, Scomas Restaurant

-       James Morehead, Viewless Wings, Viewless Wings Poetry Podcast

This show was produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry. Find out about all our shows at armchair-productions.com

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

What constitutes a life well lived?

When Darcy Gaechter turned 35, her life was everything she had hoped it would be. She had a loving partner, a rewarding job as a kayak expedition guide, and hard-won fame within the competitive world of whitewater kayaking. By her own measures, she was living the dream. And yet, many of her friends and family looked at her life and saw only what she did not have - a husband, children, a traditional high-paying office job.

Listening to them, doubts began to take root in Darcy's mind. Maybe, she decided, it was finally time to surrender her wild lifestyle and join the more stable - if not more boring - upper crusts of well-behaved society. But before she could do that...she had one final adventure to take.

It was an adventure so ambitious, so wild and deadly and unprecedented, that she believed it could cure her of her seemingly bottomless desire to tackle these quests, to chase the next horizon. And thus, mere months after her birthday, she found herself dipping her paddle into the frigid source waters of the Amazon, ready to kayak through its innumerable dangers - natural and manmade - in the following months.

Whether you're interested in kayaking, Amazonian culture and indigenous history, the interpersonal dynamics of expeditions, or all of the above, this episode is sure to engross you - from beginning to end.

FIND DARCY

Follow Darcy on Instagram @darcygaechter, and hear about her latest projects, events, and more on her website. The book she wrote about her Amazonian adventure is called Amazon Woman: Facing Fears, Chasing Dreams, and a Quest to Kayak the Longest River From Source to Sea. Get your copy today online or at your favorite bookstore (we especially love local bookstores)! Want to kayak with Darcy? Book a trip with her adventure company, Small World Adventures, and enjoy some of the best paddling Ecuador has to offer.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

For this ‘On Location’ episode, we are going to get our boots on and do some hiking. There are 124 named peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park, with most of them over 10,000-feet. When you stand on the summit of one, a sea of peaks surrounds you on all sides. There are few things more exhilarating in life. And for many of us, it’s why we come here.

But it hasn’t always been that way. For thousands of years, mountains were the abode of Gods and monsters, places to be feared and avoided. They became challenges, a piece of indomitable nature that only the bravest of us would dare to tame. Now, perhaps, they are transforming again, from something to subdue to somewhere to escape from the confines of our modern world. 

Today, we’re going to climb a mountain that very few visitors ever do. It’s called Estes Cone. It’s 11,006 feet tall. But this story is about more than just getting our boots in the dirt. It’s about learning to see these Rocky summits with fresh eyes, whether you’re climbing to the top or enjoying the view from afar.

John Muir famously said, "The mountains are calling, and I must go.” We’re going to heed those words, reach for that summit, and listen for the Call of the Mountains.

--

Our ‘On Location’ episodes are funded by destination partnerships. Thank you to Visit Estes Park for making this one happen. They help with production costs, but the storytelling is all ours, and we only ever showcase content we love and think you will too. For more information on how you can experience everything that we did in this episode go to visitestespark.com

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions’ producers Aaron Millar and Jason Paton in conjunction with the creative team at House of Pod. 

Armchair Explorer is back! We're so excited to launch our new season as part of APT Podcast Studios, the newly launched podcast network of American Public Television. As part of our new season, we'll be releasing episodes every week. That's right - Armchair Explorer is now a weekly show!

Between signature episodes, keep your eyes peeled for our brand new 'On Location' episodes, airing every other week. Each of these documentary-style episodes was recorded on location - from the peaks of the Rocky Mountains to the deserts of California - in order to capture the sounds and stories of each place. You won't want to miss out, so make sure to subscribe!

TODAY'S EPISODE

When Rinker Buck decided to cross the Oregon Trail in an authentic 1883 wagon, he had no idea what to expect. "I knew that naïveté was the mother of adventure," he wrote, "I just didn't know how much of it I really had."

For somebody like Rinker, who was interested in the history of the Oregon Trail, there were several easier, faster, and safer ways to explore it. But Rinker wasn't interested in them. He wanted, as he calls it, "the sensual feast of traveling in the open air;" the chance not just to learn about history, but to actually experience it.

And so Rinker, his brother Nick, and their pack of three mules - Beck, Jake, and Bute - set off on a months-long journey that sent them through fields of blooming wildflowers, across turbulent rivers, beneath starry skies, and nearly over the sides of cliffs. And through it all, they came to see America's history - and the history of the West - not as it had been taught in school, but as it really was.

Whether you're an Oregon Trail buff or you've never even played the computer game, this episode is sure to surprise, delight, and thoroughly entertain.

FIND RINKER

Follow Rinker's work through his publisher, Simon & Schuster, where you can also find the link to his book, The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey. And don't forget to check out his latest book, Life on the Mississippi: An Epic American Adventure, which you can find online or at your favorite bookstore (we especially love local bookstores)!

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website.

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Welcome to Armchair Explorer, where the world's greatest adventurers tell their best stories from the road! Hailed as "inspiring storytelling" from the New York Times, each documentary-style episode drops you into the heart of the action - from the heart-pounding to the inspiring, the unusual, the deadly, the hilarious, and the downright jaw-dropping.

Armchair Explorer is now proud to be part of APT Podcast Studios, the podcast arm of American Public Television! Our upcoming season will feature stories from some of the most remote corners of the planet, from diving to the bottom of the Mariana trench to tracking the elusive snow leopard, completing the first kayak descent of the entire Amazon river, and more.

And, every other week, we'll be dropping a brand new "On Location" episode. These award-winning special episodes were recorded in surround sound and captured on location in order to share the stories and voices of destinations around the globe. Join us as we trace the origins of jazz in Tennessee, sail to remote islands in the Florida Keys, go horseback riding with real cowboys in Wyoming, and more!

Learn more about Armchair Explorer at armchair-explorer.com and find APT Podcast Studios at aptpodcaststudios.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

This week, listen to an episode from Armchair Productions' newest series, The Hidden Trails of Oregon!

Join us on the Coastal Adventure Trail for a documentary road trip, following award-winning travel writer Aaron Millar from Florence to Port Orford and beyond. 

We begin at the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, in Florence, for a sand-boarding lesson from world champion rider Gabe Cruz. Then, we head south down the coast, stopping at the sleepy seaside town of Port Orford for wild beaches, windswept headlands, ocean swells and one of the greatest wildlife experiences on Earth. Continuing along the coast, we explore the secret coves of the Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor – perhaps the most spectacular stretch of road in the entire Pacific Northwest – and finish in a forest of giants, fit for a fantasy book. 

Through it all, we’re going to discover why adventure is about more than laughs and gasps - it’s about fostering a deep connection to the natural world, and in doing so, perhaps, a deeper connection to yourself too.

Want to visit Oregon and explore the Coastal Adventure Trail yourself? Find itineraries and more at www.traveloregon.com.

Produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry www.armchair-productions.com.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Our Bucket List episodes showcase the greatest travel experiences on the planet. Today, we’re going to the deserts of Arabia to go stargazing with the Bedouin and learn their secrets of the stars.

This episode is about learning to see the stars through the eyes of a people who have lived in the Arabian desert for thousands of years, and whose very existence, and survival,l was shaped by the night sky.

Recorded on location in our immersive documentary style, this episode is a chance to hear the Bedouin’s stories of the sky. For it is through those stories of love, tragedy and revenge that they passed down the secrets of ancient astronomy. When we look at the night’s sky we see fiery distant suns and orbiting planets. When they look at it, they see poetry, and the whole gamut of human experience written into each far off sparkling light.

Let’s set the scene: We have travelled for two hours into the El Harameal desert, from the oasis town of Alula, in Saudi Arabia, a place that few outsiders have seen before. Blankets and pillows are laid out in the sand, night has fallen, and a young Saudi woman named Badrea begins to speak…

FIND OUT MORE

If you enjoyed this episode, check out our full documentary series which we recorded on location: the Elements of Alula. Our first three episodes: water, earth and air were out last year. It was an incredible trip filled with ancient heritage sites, insane adventures, Arabian horses and one hot air balloon crash that turned out to be the most we’ve laughed on any trip.

Find out more about the destination at ExperienceAlula.com. Check out @experiencealula on Instagram, Facebook and X for more inspiration and ideas.

CONNECT WITH US

If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on whatever podcast player you’re reading this on right now. Go on, do it. It means you get to choose what episodes you listen to, rather than the algorithm guessing (wrongly) and kicking us off your feed.

Following the show on socials will definitely maybe bring you good travel karma!

Instagram: @armchairexplorerpodcast

Facebook: @armchairexplorerpodcast

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“This style of reindeer herding is truly the last of its kind…and I wanted us to be the first group to experience it.”

The Nenets of Siberia’s Yamal Peninsula are among the world’s oldest existing true nomads, making a living by herding reindeer in a place that literally translates to ‘the end of the world.’ And when Christine Amour-Levar learned that she had a third-degree connection to the tribe, she set about arranging an unprecedented trek to accompany them during their southward migration. Five months later, she was leading the largest - and only all-female - group that the Nenets had ever hosted, as they prepared to live, migrate, and journey alongside the tribe for a week.

Cozy up and get ready for an episode where the temperatures reach -100ºF, the Northern Lights guide the way, and the only way to survive is to stick together - and occasionally consume fresh reindeer blood.

FIND CHRISTINE 

Follow Christine Amour-Levar on Instagram (@christineamourlevar) or visit her website at christineamourlevar.com for more incredible stories, photos of her expeditions, and more. You can also find her book, Wild Wisdom: Life Lessons From Leading Teams to Some of the Most Inhospitable Places in the World, online or at your local bookstore. Finally, we encourage you to learn more about her two nonprofit organizations, Women on a Mission and HER Planet Earth, where you can volunteer, donate - or even sign up for an upcoming expedition yourself!

SPONSORS 

Thank you to our amazing sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com.

Also, check out our new show, Hidden Trails of Oregon, which is out now! It's an immersive first-person journey - recorded on location with surround sound audio - across this weird, wild, and wonderful state. You'll hear Aaron go beyond the guidebook to discover the secrets only locals know! Find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you find podcasts.

SOCIAL 

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

"Did you even hear a single word I just said?"

This question, asked of writer Bruce Kirkby one morning by his ten year old son, catalyzed a life-changing journey. Bruce and his wife, Christine, decided to break the cycle of 21st-century distraction by relocating their family - complete with two young boys - to a remote Buddhist monastery in Ladakh, India for three months. But before they would reach the monastery, they would travel for nearly 100 days - via container ship, fishing boats, horseback, and even by foot - to reach this remote valley. 

This episode will whisk you away to a rugged, captivating place filled with even more fascinating people - and it will delight, frighten, inspire, and surprise you at every turn.

FIND BRUCE 

Follow Bruce on Instagram (@brucekirkby) or visit his website at brucekirkby.com to find his photography, previous expeditions, books, and more. You can find Blue Sky Kingdom, his book describing his family's entire journey, at your local bookstore or online!

SPONSORS 

Thank you to our amazing sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com.

Also, check out our new show, Hidden Trails of Oregon, which is out now! It's an immersive first-person journey - recorded on location with surround sound audio - across this weird, wild, and wonderful state. You'll hear Aaron go beyond the guidebook to discover the secrets only locals know! Find it on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you find podcasts.

SOCIAL 

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“You stand at the edge of the boat - and you take a giant stride into the unknown.” 

Today we’re chatting with Pier Nirandara, a bestselling author, film producer, SCUBA diver and underwater photographer. She's dedicated her life to sharing the beauty and importance of this marine world about which we still know so little. With her work in photography, writing, and more, she's also helping to shape a new generation of divers and ocean advocates from all corners of the world. 

In the episode, you’ll hear about the dive that changed her life and stopped her career path in its tracks; how it feels to share the water with some of the world’s rarest, most ancient sea creatures; and why exploring the ocean and encountering marine wildlife is more important than ever. This episode will inspire and move you to consider all the life that exists beneath the water's surface - and what we owe to it. 

FIND PIER 

Follow Pier on Instagram (@piersgreatperhaps) and Facebook, or visit her website at piernirandara.com to find her amazing photography, articles, books, TED Talk, and more. She also leads snorkeling and diving expeditions all around the globe, so if you want to experience some of the adventures you heard in the episode firsthand, you can find those on her website too. 

SPONSORS 

THANK YOU to our amazing sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com.

And thank you to our other sponsor, Juggernaut Wines! Get four bottles of their delicious wines delivered to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. Just head over to juggernautwines.com and use code ARMCHAIR21.

SOCIAL 

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“The best way to travel? Dare to be lonely, lost, and bored.”

Today we’re joined by travel-writing legend Rolf Potts, best-selling author and pioneer of indie travel. Long before the era of contemporary van life and digital nomadism, Rolf’s first book, Vagabonding, inspired countless travelers to forgo expensive, overly planned travel in favor of affordable, spontaneous exploration. And with his new book, The Vagabond’s Way, he’s sharing some of his best stories and pearls of wisdom from a lifetime spent traveling the world - including why you should never trust reviews, how inconvenience can lead to extraordinary discoveries, and why boredom while traveling is a gift.  

Whether or not you’ve already familiar with Rolf, this episode will surprise, delight, and teach you about why we travel - and how we can bring our travels home with us.  

FIND ROLF 

Follow Rolf on Instagram @rolfpotts, or visit his website at rolfpotts.com to find his books, articles, blog, videos, writing courses, and more. You can also find his newest book, The Vagabond’s Way: 366 Meditations on Wanderlust, Discover, and the Art of Travel at your local bookstore or online. There are several stories and reflections in there that we didn’t have time to cover, so we highly recommend you pick up a copy for yourself! 

SPONSORS 

THANK YOU to our amazing sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com. 

And thank you to our other sponsor, Juggernaut Wines! Get four bottles of their delicious wines delivered to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. Just head over to juggernautwines.com and use code ARMCHAIR21. 

SOCIAL 

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

“I jump off buildings and cliffs for fun. And I don’t recommend it to anyone.”

Dive into heart-pounding adventures with Jeb Corliss, one of the world’s most revered BASE jumpers and wingsuit pilots. In this episode, you’ll hear Jeb recount some of his most impactful stories, from the very first time he attempted BASE jumping to the incident that nearly put him off the sport for good. His energy and his vivid storytelling puts you right in the middle of the action - whether you’re plummeting off a 300-foot antenna in the middle of the night or soaring dangerously close to rocky cliffs. So buckle up - you’ll be on the edge of your seat from start to finish.

FIND JEB

Follow Jeb’s adventures on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook @jebcorliss, or visit his website at jebcorliss.net to see his photos, videos, documentaries, and more. You can also find his book, Memoirs From the Edge: Exploring the Line Between Life and Death at select bookstores or on Amazon. There are tons of heart-pounding stories in there that we didn’t have time to cover, so we highly recommend you pick up a copy for yourself!

SPONSORS

THANK YOU to our new sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com.

And thank you to our other amazing sponsor, Juggernaut Wines! Get four bottles of their delicious wines delivered to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. Just head over to juggernautwines.com and use code ARMCHAIR21.

SOCIAL

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

What does it take to really know a place? 

When Jordan Salama arrived in Colombia for the first time, he realized immediately that it was a country that was deeply misunderstood. For a place so often associated with violence, Jordan found himself in a country teeming with rugged beauty, welcoming communities, vibrant music, and astonishing art. 

Jordan wanted to dive deeper. To do so, he heeded the advice of locals, who told him that to really know Colombia, he needed to sail along the Magdalena River. The Magdalena is the beating heart of Colombia’s countryside, flowing all the way from soaring southern peaks to windswept northern shores. And while Jordan suspected that he would gain a deeper understanding of Colombia, he had no idea how profoundly it would change his life. 

Along the way, he befriended people whose passions had carried them both hundreds of miles into the countryside and no farther than their front porch; he slogged through mud and paddled in canoes; he held tightly to wind-whipped kites and spun to music, dancing the lines between fable and reality. 

Whether you already know Colombia or you’re curious to learn more, Jordan's story will open your eyes and touch your heart in unexpected ways. 

HIGHLIGHTS 

- Trek into the far reaches of Colombia’s rugged jungles, traveling to archaeological sites that are only reachable on foot or on horseback 

- Meet the world-famous Biblioburro, Colombia’s one-man (and two-donkey) roaming library 

- Ride the unusual motobalinera, an improvised mode of transport you’ll have to hear to believe 

- Come face to face with nature in a hair-raising encounter with Pablo Escobar’s wild hippos 

- Journey to dreamlike town of Mompox, the fabled inspiration behind Gabriel García Marquez’s Macondo 

- Experience the joys, sorrows, and wonders of Colombia, perhaps the most misunderstood country in the world 

FIND JORDAN 

Follow Jordan’s work at jordansalama.com, where you’ll find links to his articles in National Geographic, The New York Times, and more. You can also find him on Instagram and TikTok @jordansalama19. As you’ll hear in this episode, Jordan is a beautiful writer and his book, Every Day the River Changes, is an incredible read. There are some great stories in there that didn’t make it into the episode, so grab your copy at your local bookstore or online at Barnes & Noble and Amazon! 

SPONSORS 

A HUGE thank you to our new and incredible sponsor, The North Face, for supporting this episode! When you wear The North Face, it’s more than a jacket…it’s the calling to get out there and explore. Find your next fleece, parka, or winter jacket at thenorthface.com. 

And thank you to our other amazing sponsor, Juggernaut Wines! Get four bottles of their delicious wines delivered to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. Just head over to juggernautwines.com and type in the code ARMCHAIR21.

SOCIAL 

Share the show with your friends! Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer's website for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show! 

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

What happens when adventuring goes suddenly, horribly wrong? 

For Jean Muenchrath, what began as a pleasant cross-country ski trip up the John Muir trail quickly spiralled into disaster - and what happened changed her life forever. Journey back in time with us to hear one of the most gripping survival stories that occurred over three decades ago in the heart of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Jean’s story stands as a testament to the power of the mind, the importance of dreams, and the sheer force of will.

Jean and her skiing partner, Ken, spent weeks on the John Muir trail in the middle of winter immersing themselves with nature. They trekked through snow-laden meadows and climbed up towering granite cliffs slicked with ice, enjoying the labour and the peace of nature’s rhythm. But as they neared the end of their journey and prepared to ascend Mount Whitney - the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States - Jean began to fear, intuitively, that something was about to go horribly wrong. And, as we’ll find out, she should have listened to that voice.

This is a story of survival against the odds. But it’s also a story about the power of the mind to overcome even the most difficult and desperate situations that life can throw at us. Jean used her accident as fuel to transform her life in positive ways, and her story will inspire you to face life’s hardships with courage, grace and determination too. Get ready for a near-death encounter at the top of the world.

Highlights:

- Follow the nail-biting story of Jean Muenchrath’s near-death encounter at Mount Whitney

- Ski the 211-mile long John Muir Trail in winter, from its start in Yosemite Valley to its conclusion at the top of Mount Whitney, the tallest point in the Lower 48 states

- Hear what it’s like to survive one of the worst accidents in Mount Whitney’s history

- Hike the Himalayas and watch the sunset over Everest

- Learn what Jean found in the snow when she returned to the scene of her accident, 31 years after it happened

- Be inspired to use the power of your mind, just like Jean did, to follow your dreams and transform your life in positive ways

If you find this story meaningful, please connect with Jean – she’s passionate about getting in touch with her audience and sharing her story.

www.jeanmuenchrath.com | Email: bluevajrasky@gmail.com.

Her book is called If I Live Until Morning: A True Story of Adventure, Tragedy, and Transformation and you can find it on Amazon here ... You’ll get to hear details of her story that we didn’t have time for in this podcast, so we highly recommend grabbing a copy.

THANK YOU to Juggernaut Wines for sponsoring this episode! We’ve got a special deal for

listeners of this show. You can get four bottles – two Cabernet Sauvignons and two Pinot Noirs – delivered to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. One cent! Just head over to

juggernautwines.com and type in the code ARMCHAIR21. Their wine is absolutely delicious and it’s a great way to support the show…that’s what we call a win win!

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook, and check out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!

CREDITS

This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Jenny Allison wrote and produced this episode, along with host and producer Aaron Millar. Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Theme music written by the artist Sweet Chap.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Follow adventurer Arjun Bhogal on a five-year 16,000-mile trek across the entire world. This is an insane story, with more than one life or death situation. But it’s also an incredibly funny one.

Arjun began with his friend Kieran in 2012, with the idea of walking from Cardiff, Wales where they were at university to Cardiff New South Wales in Australia. They thought it would be a 3-year two-man journey, but it turned into a five-year mostly one-man journey – one of the most difficult ever attempted. But what makes this story so brilliant is that Arjun is not an extreme athlete in any way. Believe it or not, when he started, he barely had any hiking experience at all.

Starting your hiking career, walking across the entire world is a preposterous notion. But Arjun made it happen, not through physical endurance, though there was a lot of that. He made it happen through mental toughness, through a relentlessly optimistic and open spirit that saw him make friends everywhere he went and survive near-death experiences that would have sent most of us running home with our tail between our legs.

You’re going to gasp, you’re going to be on the edge of your seat, and you’re going to laugh your head off. Get ready to trek across the entire world.

Who’s the guest?

Arjun Bhogal is an ordinary guy who did an extraordinary thing – and he did it for an incredible reason. Millions of people around the world have little or no access to clean water. Arjun walked across the entire planet to raise awareness and money for WaterAid. Find out more about what they do at www.wateraid.org… and connect with Arjun at www.arjunbhogal.co.uk… or on Instagram @ASBhogal

Refer a friend, win $100!

If you like this show, and you think your friends might too, then you can win a $100 amazon gift voucher. All you need to do is go to www.refer.fm/armchairexplorer type in your email and start sharing with your friends and family. The more referrals you get the bigger the chance of winning. You can even set up while you listen to this episode – it literally takes 2mins! Thank you for helping to spread the word! www.refer.fm/armchairexplorer

Thank you to our sponsor

Thank you to Juggernaut Wines for sponsoring this episode! We’ve got a special deal for listeners of this show. You can get four bottles delivered direct to your home for only 1 cent in shipping costs. One penny! Just head over to www.juggernautwines.com and type in the code ARMCHAIR21. Drinking their wine is a great way to support the show … how cool is that?!

Buy me a pint!

If you enjoy this show, then please consider showing your support by buying me a pint! For less than the cost of a single frothy beverage, you can become a patron of the show with a whole heap of good stuff thrown in. Thank you for whatever you can do it means the world to me. www.patreon.com/armchairexplorerpodcast

Let's Hang out

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook or head over to www.armchair-explorer.com to sign up to our newsletter and get adventure inspiration delivered straight to your inbox twice a month

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Follow acclaimed travel writer Nick Hunt on a journey to walk Europe’s outlands – a piece of arctic tundra in Scotland, a primeval forest in Poland, a desert in Spain, the vast grasslands of the Hungarian steppe. These are outlandish places; wild, remote and untamed; places that shouldn’t exist, but they do.

Like portals in our imagination, these anomalies transport us to faraway regions of the planet. They show us secrets, hidden aspects of our world that would hitherto go unnoticed. They give us glimpses into deep time, and our place in it, and show us, perhaps, the future yet to come. More than anything, they make our world seem larger, stranger and filled with wonder – and that is what great adventures are all about. Get ready to walk among Europe's hidden landscapes ... 

Who’s the guest?

Nick Hunt is a beautiful, thoughtful writer and this is a book you will want to savor. It’s called ‘Outlandish: Walking Europe’s Unlikely Landscapes’ and you can find it anywhere you get your books. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.

Refer a friend, win $100! 

If you like this show, and you think your friends might too, then you can win a $100 amazon gift voucher – and an exclusive armchair explorer t-shirt that’s so exclusive even I don’t have one! All you need to do is go to www.refer.fm/armchairexplorer type in your email, you’ll get sent a link, and then all you need to do is share that link with your friends and family. When they click it and subscribe or follow the show, you will automatically get one referral to your name. Every referral counts as one raffle ticket to win that $100 amazon gift card. Get 10 referrals and on top of entry into the competition you’ll also get that exclusive Armchair Explorer t-shirt worth $25. You can even set up while you listen to this episode – it literally takes 2mins . Thank you for helping to spread the word! www.refer.fm/armchairexplorer

Thank you to our sponsor

Today’s episode is sponsored by Not Lost, a new podcast about finding yourself in places you’ve never been. On Not Lost, host Brendan Francis Newnam ventures to new places, exploring what it has to offer, and then, to really understand what it makes tick, tries to get invited to a stranger’s house for dinner. A friend joins him at each destination, and they drink, dance, and eat their way from Montréal to Mexico City, often learning as much about themselves as the place they’re visiting. Check it out! 

 Let's hang out

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook or head over to www.armchair-explorer.com to sign up to our newsletter and get adventure inspiration delivered straight to your inbox twice a month.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Follow travel writer Shafik Meghji from the Andes to the Amazon on a journey across one of Latin America’s most spectacular countries – Bolivia. 

We’re going to travel from the stark white plains of the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat in the world, to the most biodiverse place in the entire amazon rainforest, we’re going to discover a lost city and a mountain that eats men … but we’re also going to do what all good explorers do and dig deeper.

While traveling up and down to every corner of the country, Shafik realized there was a bigger story to be told – not just about Bolivia, but about us too. Everywhere he went he found a contrast between the ancient and the modern – the unchanging and the acceleration of the new. Bolivia, he realized, lived on the cusp of the past and the future, that knife edge dynamic of push and pull that shapes our world. And the more he traveled, the more he realized that we live on that cusp too.

This is a story for travelers, and it will take you to some of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring places on the planet. But it's also a story for explorers who like to dig down, ask questions and discover the deeper threads of history and society that define a country and our world today.

Who’s the guest?

Shafik Menghji is an award-winning travel writer, author, broadcaster and photographer. His book of this journey is called ‘Crossed off the Map: Travels in Bolivia’. It’s an incredibly well researched and written book and an essential read for anyone visiting or dreaming about a trip to Bolivia. You can find it here or go to www.shafikmeghji.com to find out more. You can also connect with Shafik on Twitter and Instagram @shafikmeghji … Go and hang out, he’s an awesome bloke to travel with.

Buy me a Pint!

If you're enjoying the show please consider showing your support by buying me a pint! The show is free, but it takes many hours to produce, almost all of which is done by one person, little old me. The sponsors cover costs, but not my time. If you like what you hear and think that two episodes a month is worth the price of a single frosty beverage then please go to www.patreon.com/armchairexplorerpodcast.

From just $5 per month you will get you ad free episodes, exclusive episodes not available anywhere else and lots more. Buy me a pint! ... the next round will be on me.

Thank you Sponsors!

Today’s episode is brought to you by Wondrium. Imagine Netflix, but for your brain – a huge audio and video encyclopedia for anything that you might want to learn or are curious to find out about – and you can download it all right to your phone. Go to www.wondrium.com/armchair to get a free no strings attached trial and 20% off the annual price if you like what you hear. 

Let's Hang out

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook or head over to www.armchair-explorer.com to find more background information on this episode 

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Today we’re sharing an episode from the Red Bull podcast: How to be Superhuman.

How To Be Superhuman is about pushing the limits of human potential, from conquering terrifying climbs and kayaking down jaw-dropping waterfalls to swimming the world’s longest rivers, running through uncharted mountain kingdoms, and embarking on solo expeditions to the most remote corners of the globe. In each episode, host Rob Pope and the athlete dive into the physical and mental resilience behind these awe-inspiring feats, offering immersive storytelling and insights into overcoming the world’s greatest challenges.

Today, extreme paraglider Tom de Dorlodot shares his passion for flying among the world’s highest mountain peaks. Hear what it takes to paraglide at extreme altitude, the survival mindset required, and why the spirit of adventure keeps drawing him back to unforgiving terrain.

If you like this episode, you’re going to love the full series. Check it out, where you listen to podcasts!

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

redbull.com

Head to instagram.com/redbulladventure for more superhuman content

FOLLOW US:

Instagram: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠

Facebook: ⁠@armchairexplorerpodcast⁠

Newsletter: ⁠armchair-explorer.com⁠

If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on whatever podcast player you’re reading this on right now. Go on, do it! It helps us grow the show and continue to bring inspiring travel stories your way.

CREDITS:

Armchair Explorer is produced by ⁠Armchair Productions⁠. Aaron Millar wrote and presented the show, Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and sound design. Jason Paton is our lead producer, and our theme music is by the artist ⁠Sweet Chap⁠.

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Follow best-selling travel author Brian Thacker on a unique, mad-cap adventure to three of the remotest countries on Earth. Inspired by the intrepid spirit of explorers of old, Brian decided to tear up the guidebook, switch off the phone and turn up to a country knowing absolutely nothing about it in advance.

He picked three countries at random: the east African country of Togo, the South Pacific islands of Wallis & Futuna and the Central Asian mountains of Kyrgyzstan. He boarded the plane with absolutely no clue of the language, culture, where to stay or what to see. He was simply rolling the dice and letting the universe decide what kind of trip he would have. 

Like his heroes of the golden age of exploration, when much of the world was still undiscovered and no one knew what wonders awaited beyond the horizon, Brian was taking a step into the unknown.

But, unlike those legends of adventure, Brian’s just an ordinary bloke. He wouldn’t be risking his life searching for lost tribes in the Amazon or crossing deadly deserts, he was just traveling, like all of us do, in search of good times, new experiences and the pure joy of exploring this amazing planet. Brian’s story inspires all of us that we needn’t be extreme adventurers to be real explorers, we just need to tear up the guidebook, turn off your phone and step into the unknown.

We’re traveling with …

Brian’s book of this story if called ‘Where’s Wallis: Travels Without a Guidebook’, you can find out more about that and all Brian’s other books at www.brianthacker.tv. Go and check that out, he’s a lot of fun to travel with.

Join the Community

If you're enjoying the show, please consider showing your support by buying me a pint! If you like what you hear and think that two episodes a month is worth the price of a frosty beverage, then please go to www.patreon.com/armchairexplorerpodcast. … you’ll get ad-free episodes, access to our explorer’s community and exclusive content not available anywhere else. Buy me a pint! ... the next round will be on me.

Thank you Sponsors!

Today’s episode is sponsored by Wondrium. Wondrium is like Netflix for your brain, an enormous encyclopedia of mind-blowing audio and video content designed for curious people just like us. I love it and I think you will too. Go to www.wondrium.com/armchair to get a 14-day free trail with access to thousands of hours of audio and video content, from travel guides and documentaries to courses taught by the world’s greatest professors. All for free, no strings attached. Check it out!

Let's Hang out

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook or head over to www.armchair-explorer.com to find more background information on this episode 

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

In this special bonus episode I share a new podcast I am producing and co-presenting. It's called Wanderlust: Off the Page, which is the audio addition to one of my favorite travel magazine on the planet. Wanderlust is all about intrepid destinations, authentic cultural experiences and taking the road less traveled ... which I know you guys love too.

This new show is designed to help you discover the most fulfilling travel experiences on the planet! From culture and history to nature and wildlife, we're going to be taking you behind the scenes of the magazine to go deeper into our favorite destinations and meet the travel writers, experts, and personalities who will bring our stories to life.

Hosted by founding editor Lyn Hughes and special features editor Rosie Fitzgerald, this episode explores the unparalleled beauty of Rapa Nui, or Easter Island. 

Award winning travel writer Shafik Meghji discusses with Aaron Millar the flourishing indigenous culture, the story of how the island was settled, and the experience of exploring such a remote place. 

Check it out, I know you're going to love it!

Subscribe to the show on the links below

APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wanderlust-off-the-page/id1585628173

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/3UhYDK0IAi9OYj7DY8jrYr

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast

Join travel author and naturalist Sara Dykman on a 10,000 mile journey following on the wings of one of the most remarkable migrations in the animal kingdom.

Every spring tens of millions of monarch butterflies travel from their winter hibernation grounds in the Transvolcanic Mountains of Mexico north across the United States and into Canada. It’s a journey of between 2,000 and 3,000 miles. For a creature that weighs half a gram, and measures about four inches, that’s a preposterous distance. The comparative length trip for a 150lb human being would be more than 300 million miles – or roughly 700 round trips to the moon.

But even more baffling is the fact that the butterfly that departs from Mexico will die before returning home. And so will its offspring. It will be left to the fourth generation, the great granddaughter of that original butterfly, to begin the journey anew next spring. How millions of monarchs find their way across a continent to the same specific 12 mountains every year, having never been there before, and with no guide, is still one of the great mysteries of the natural world.

But the journey of the monarchs is getting harder and harder every year. Agriculture and human domestication of the land is reducing their habitat and food sources along the way to barely enough to survive. In undertaking this epic bike ride Sara will also be raising awareness of their plight as she unravels the mystery of this incredible journey.

But this is also a story about us. Through her journey Sara discovered the wonder of the microsopic world all around us, an entire universe in the dirt and fluttering above our heads. Her adventure also reminds us to stop, slow down and notice these small wonders because the more we do so the more amazing our world becomes.

Buy the Book

Sara’s book is called bicycling with butterflies. It’s a fascinating read and well worth a look. You can also connect with her at www.beyondabook.org or @beyondabook on facebook. To find out more about the monarch butterfly migration, why it’s under threat and what you can do to help head to www.monarchwatch.org and www.monarchjointventure.org

Support the Show

If you enjoy this show, then please consider showing your support by becoming a patron at www.patreon.com/armchairexplorerpodcast … the sponsorship covers the cost of production, but not my time. If you love the outdoors and the pure joy of exploring this amazing planet, then please consider helping to spread that message to as many people as possible. Thank you for whatever you can do it means the world to me.

Follow on Social

Follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on instagram and facebook or head over to www.armchair-explorer.com to find more background information on this episode

Free Stuff!

Thank you to wondrium for supporting the show! Go to www.wondrium.com/armchair to get a 22-day free trail, no strings attached, check out as much of their thousands of hours of streaming audio and video as you want. It’s like netflix for your brain, you’re going to love it. 

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out all of our other travel podcasts from around the world

This podcast is part of the Voyascape Network, a collection of some of the world’s best travel podcasts. Explore more at Voyascape.com. For advertising or sponsorship opportunities across the network, see the link below.

Voyascape Podcast Network

Check out the Smart Travel Podcast

This week's show is supported by the new Smart Travel Podcast. Travel smarter — and spend less — with help from NerdWallet. Check out Smart Travel at the Link below:

Smart Travel Podcast