PENGUINPOST29 - Flipbook - Page 27
NATURE
“I
have been an outdoors travel
guide for hiking and cycling tours
for well over 20 years, and have
seen firsthand how adventure and the great
outdoors transforms people’s lives in ways
they could not even begin to imagine. It is
a job that I feel blessed to have, and which
has taken me to phenomenal places – the
orange cliff faces of the Grand Canyon, the
distant mountains of Nepal, the verdant
roads of Kerala in India, rainbow mists of
Victoria Falls, the slopes and daunting peak
of majestic Kilimanjaro, the Inca citadel of
Machu Picchu in southern Peru and of course
the awe-inspiring stark beauty of the Fish
River Canyon.
People have often told me I should write
about my experiences. Firstly, for interest’s
sake, but also to make this knowledge and
experience available to people who are
setting out on similar adventures and need
some assistance … or perhaps just a push
out the door.
When I hiked the iconic Fish River Canyon
for the first time, I saw how difficult it was
to obtain relevant information about the
hike; in terms of preparation, training, hiking
gear, food, transportation, border controls
for Namibia as well as detailed guidance for
the actual hike itself. I put out feelers as to
whether people might find a single volume
with the necessary information helpful, and
the idea of writing an inclusive book about the
hike was enthusiastically received on all fronts.
THE PENGUIN POST MARCH/APRIL 2024
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