Why These Journeys

Vaulthoppercompassrn exists for one kind of decision: choosing the journey you will remember for the rest of your life. Not a weekend break, not a list of fifty places, but the one or two trips that deserve years of anticipation.

We are a small, independent editorial team of writers who have walked, sailed and ridden many of the routes described here. We write long essays because big journeys deserve context, and we pair them with candid planning advice because enthusiasm alone has never got anyone up Kilimanjaro or onto the ship to Tristan da Cunha.

We would rather you take one journey well than ten in a hurry.