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Support the Joy Trip Project on Patreon from James Mills on Vimeo. When you’re in the creative fields it’s never easy to define exactly what it is that you do for a for living. But when you hope to get your friends and fans to support your work financially you really have to get down to it and clearly express what it is that you have to offer.  I’m a freelance journalist who specializes in telling stories about the business, art and culture of the sustainable active lifestyle....

At the heart of every great adventure there is a love story. And for National Geographic Young Explorer Juan Martinez, the long journey from the streets of Los Angeles to the craggy peaks of the Grand Tetons took a romantic turn on the day he met National Park Ranger Vanessa Torres. Both dedicated to introducing a new generation of American citizens to outdoor recreation Juan and Vanessa have begun a life together in service to the wild places they cherish as well as members of their community whose...

Traveling from Madison to Boulder, Colorado my flight was delayed by almost 8 hours. I arrived in Denver two hours after the party started. Adventure athlete and women’s empowerment activist Shannon Galpin was celebrating her birthday at the Bitter Bar. With everyone in town for the Adventure Film Festival dozens of people would be there that I hadn’t seen in too long. Despite my best efforts to lead what might be described as a normal life I keep getting drawn back to all these creative and exciting people...

Professional climbers Majka Burhardt and Kate Rutherford are pulling together a cadre of scientists and filmmakers to help preserve the environment around a high mountain in Africa. Mount Namuli is the second highest summit in Mozambique. With a 2000-foot cliff face it’s a natural destination for these two adventuring women. But add to their mission the opportunity for ground breaking research and a spirited conservation initiative and you’ve got the makings of an incredible story. The Lost Mountain Film Project is a new documentary now under development by...

Sunday mornings after yoga Shamane and I typically head to the grocery store. This week instead of a big shopping we went to Woodman’s on the Westside of Madison just to pick up a few odds and ends. My wife would be eating dinner alone with our two dogs over the next few weeks as I was heading for a month-long assignment in Alaska. As a freelance journalist I have been given the rare privilege of writing a book and documentary film script to chronicle the first all-African-American...

I’ve been told it shouldn’t matter. But as one in a handful of black professionals in the outdoor recreation industry I can’t help being wildly excited. In June the first team of African-American climbers will attempt to reach the summit of Alaska’s Mount McKinley, the tallest peak in North America. Also known as Denali at 20,328 feet this mountain is literally the highest physical point anyone can achieve in the United States. And as metaphors go it is the ultimate realization of the dream Martin Luther King Jr....