One of the Best Travel Decisions I’ve Ever Made
What if we took a step back and looked at running beyond the goal setting, competition, and grind?
What if we saw running for what it can be beyond the challenge – exploration, freedom, community, touching the earth, coexisting with nature, personal growth – and spent time chasing those feelings and experiences?
I never thought I’d find a community I’d share these run values with. But then I did.
I got an email from the race directors of the Midstate Massive Ultra Trail in autumn of 2022, not long after I’d finished their 30-miler in New England. They asked if I was interested in joining them for a pilot trip of their new run tour in Ecuador and described it a little.
Yes.
They spoke of exploration through running and experiencing local culture; from the photos, the nature looked stunning and unlike anywhere I’d been. I didn’t really know what traveling with a group would be like but I trusted them to transform my 10 days of time off into something incredible that I couldn’t have put together on my own.
“I’ve always felt like exploring the world on foot gives you a deeper look at things and lets you feel more closely connected to where you are. Letting the EcoEndurance and La Trocha teams take the lead on this and build a harmonious tour, top to bottom, was one of the best travel decisions I’ve made in 20 years of globetrotting.”
Reaching the scree of a volcano at 14,000 feet makes you want to leap for joy.
EcoEndurance was one of the best travel decisions I’ve made…and here’s why…
They showed us distinctive places I most definitely wouldn’t have found through my own research and, if I had, navigating to most of them on my own likely would have deterred me.
We saw views from local eyes, hitting small trails off the beaten path that traversed the jungles. We ate real foods grown where we were (fresh fruit, coffee, jugos, and plantain dishes that I’ve dreamed of and attempted to recreate at home since). We connected with humans who make heartfelt contributions to the world through their craft (I brought home award-winning artisanal chocolate from a farm in the Chocó bioregion).
And we did it together – our small group quickly became a family. We ran through streams laughing, floated along a rim trail over a crater lake collectively in awe of the beauty, hiked towards the heavens with eyes wide from views of the Andes and volcanos, and ambled through *the* Amazon (a dream of mine that I only realized I was fulfilling once we started that day).
There were layers and layers of meaning to this trip, beyond just what we saw and where we ran, and the memories and photos keep me company on days when I’m feeling a little down.
Faced with the same invite again I’d say yes even faster.
Ask Kate about signing up (and for her discount code)!
