Thanks for visiting to learn more about us and our Trekking the Planet expeditions.
Prior to our first Trekking the Planet adventure, we journeyed to over 40 countries on six continents, most of it using independently organized itineraries. A highlight of our early travels was taking our then 13 and 10-year-old children on a four-month, around-the-world trip, visiting five continents. We called this trip Cosmos. This journey included several overland segments, covering significant portions of Africa, India, and Australia by ground.
We saw how these trips impacted our children. So after 25 years in the IT industry, we took early retirement with the twin goals of seeing the world and giving back.
In 2012 we embarked on a 424-day around-the-world Trekking the Planet RTW journey to raise geo-literacy in K-12 students. If you are an educator, learn more about our materials here. Since our around-the-world adventure, we have spoken at numerous schools and civic groups about geography and travel. Our hope is to instill a greater curiosity about the world in others, especially in young people.
We continue to travel with a commitment to authentic adventures, an active lifestyle, and sustainability. Hiking has been a part of many of our trips, and we have completed overnight treks in countries on all six of the world’s populated continents.
Our U.S. journeys have ranged from backpacking on the Arizona Trail and the entire Pacific Crest Trail, to a hike to all 21 California Missions, and an epic road trip to 27 national parks. Overseas, we have completed village to village treks in multiple European countries, including a Camino de Santiago route and a hiking journey across Switzerland.
This year we are hiking the historic Via Francigena route in England, Switzerland, and Italy, totaling 800 miles.
Sandy is a published writer, and Darren is an experienced endurance athlete. When we aren’t traveling, we spend time at our home in Palm Desert, California.
New to Trekking the Planet?
Along the right-hand side of most pages, you will find our Take Me To section. Here you can view any of the topics below. Take a look at what interests you to learn more about our Trekking the Planet journeys:
 | Trekking the Planet RTW: Learn about our original TTP journey, in which we traveled to 53 countries on six continents over a 14-month period. Read about the culture and natural significance of our expedition. |
 | Trekking the Planet Via Francigena: This year we are trekking the historic Via Francigena route in England, Switzerland, and Italy, totaling 800 miles. During the medieval era, pilgrims used the route to walk to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. Today’s trail roughly corresponds to the route of Sigeric the Serious, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who walked to St. Peter’s around 990 AD and kept a journal of his travels. |
 | Trekking the Planet PCT: In 2016 we hiked 1,828 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail. We returned in 2019 and 2021 to complete 618 more miles in California and Washington. Finally, in 2023 we completed the rest of the trail. Read about the natural highlights of our travels. |
 | Trekking the Planet California Missions Trail: During 2023 we trekked the 800-mile California Missions Trail to visit the 21 missions that were established by Spain between 1769 and 1823. As we hiked, we learned about the cultural significance of the missions and viewed California’s diverse natural beauty. |
 | Trekking the Planet Arizona Trail: During the past four years we trekked about 500 miles of this 800-mile national scenic trail, including hiking rim-to-rim through the Grand Canyon. |
 | Trekking the Planet British Isles: In 2022 we circumnavigated the British Isles to trek 700 miles over a four month period. We traversed some of the region’s iconic national trails on eight multiple-day hikes. Along the way, we visited cultural attractions, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, national parks, and Areas of Outstanding Beauty. |
 | Trekking the Planet Europe: In the summer of 2018 we traveled to Europe to trek 500 miles in seven countries over a three month period. As we completed four multi-day hikes, we focused on the cultural and natural significance of the places that we visited. |
 | Trekking the Planet NPS: During 2017 we traveled to 27 U.S. National Parks over a 4 1/2 month period. Our focus was on visiting some of the lesser-known parks and hiking as much as possible to discover the unique natural beauty of each place. |
 | Preparation and Insights: See how we plan our expeditions and navigate through each journey's logistics. This category also features our impressions and insights as we travel around the world. We also provide a behind-the-scenes look at what it is like to be on the road for an extended period of time. |
 | Education Materials: Use our Geography Navigator to search through our 60 Education Modules, Destination Dispatches and Expedition Videos that we published while traveling around the world. |
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