Adventure travel means something different to everyone. What we consider a great adventure isn’t the same as what may appeal to others. And that’s part of the thrill of creating your own adventure traveler lifestyle… to each their own.
Following is our story of how we evolved from adventure travel dreamers into seasoned adventure travelers. And we’re here to tell you that you can do it as well.
Too many people are hung up on labels today. Being an adventure traveler is meant to be fun, not a competition and certainly not an activity that should involve stress.
For a person that has never travelled before, stepping onto the plane for the first time is a great thrill and navigating through the streets of Paris can seem like an overwhelming and exciting experience.
The more you travel, the more adventurous you become. I remember our first trip to Europe. Just trying to work the public telephone to call my sister was an event. While we were figuring out the train system, we felt like we were on the greatest adventure of our lives. We had never done anything like it before. We were taking the train along the Rhine River in Germany watching a landscape filled with castles and vineyards and we were so excited.
As we traveled more, the adventures became more extreme over time. It all started with baby steps.
After our trip to Europe, we booked a trip to Thailand. It was our first time in Asia and we certainly experienced culture shock. We didn’t need to do anything more other than walk the streets of Bangkok to have a great adventure, but once the initial shock wore off we were ready to explore.
Soon we felt brave enough to venture out to a National Park and ride an elephant. We then took the overnight train to explore the northern town of Chiang Mai and we even rented a motorcycle to explore one of Thailand’s southern islands.
By the end of our first five weeks in Thailand, we knew that we were addicted adventure travelers and each trip we added something new from our bucket list.
It took 10 years of travel before we became known as adventure experts. Becoming an expert adventure traveler doesn’t happen overnight. It happens over time and with each travel. We didn’t even notice that we were doing anything special.
By the time we cycled down the continent of Africa in 2008, we had already racked up an impressive resume of adventures.
Over the years, leading up to the trip that changed our lives, we took scuba diving lessons and became certified rescue divers. We learned how to lead sport climbing routes and we had summited South East Asia’s highest peak. We hiked through jungles, taken part in exotic festivals like Thaipusam and Songkran and we had lived our dream of snowboarding in the Swiss Alps.
After cycling 12,000 km and winning the world’s longest cycling race, the adventure has continued. We trekked to Mount Everest Base Camp, made it to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro, bungee jumped and flew a stunt plane in New Zealand, studied Muay Thai kickboxing and traveled to nearly 50 countries around the world.
Each adventure feels as exciting as our first trip to Europe. That was a giant adventure for us and we have slowly built on that over the years.
With each new activity, we are more comfortable. What seemed extreme a decade ago is normal for us today. Riding a bike through Africa has prepared us for our latest adventure: The Mongol Rally.
To most people, driving 16,000 km through 15 countries seems outrageous. Especially when some of those countries are Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Russia and Mongolia. But now that we have conquered cycling 12,000 km, this is a natural progression and we are excited for our latest epic trip.
We aren’t saying to people that their first trip outside of their own country should be a car rally around 1/3 of the earth, we are saying do what makes you feel comfortable. It may be exciting to simply rent a car and drive through Tuscany.
And we aren’t saying that your first safari should be a trek through the jungles of Uganda to spot gorillas. Instead, take an organized tour to the Serengeti. You will love your adventures more if you take it slow.
Over time you will find yourself in the enviable position of being called an adventure traveler. We started out thinking that it would be so cool to be one of those people that we saw on TV – the ones that were introduced as world explorer or adventurer. We didn’t think it would ever happen to us, but it did.
And we are here to tell you that you can do it too.
Dave and Deb are an adventure couple that have been full-time adventure travelers since 2009. With over a decade of world travel, they have hiked, biked, paddled and climbed their way through nearly 50 countries. They share their adventures on their travel blog ThePlanetD.com through photos and words where they tell the truth about travel – the good, the bad and the unexpected. Their Motto is “Anyone Can Do it.”