Traveling the world, with people from around the world
The grand experiment
For about 20 years, I planned to see the world by sea, under sail. After my children left "the nest" and went on to pursue their dreams in music and business, I realized I did not have to delay my own dream any further. As much fun it may be for some to count their money and hit a little white ball into a hole on weekends, this was never my vision of how to spend life, as pleasant as country clubs can be; I've been a member of one or two, I get it.
So with my two beautiful children Whitney and William, out on their own, the time came, and it came right after COVID lockdowns, when my urge to break free was uniquely intense; perhaps you can relate. I also didn't want to just check out of civilization; I'm a people person and the thought of living alone on a boat was never remotely appealing. I then realized there was potentially something even bigger here -- sharing it with as many people as possible, and getting to experience, firsthand, indigenous and unique cultures from around the world -- while they still existed -- ON the boat as well as OFF. My many years of personal and professional travel have shown me the horrifying rate of homogenization of global culture and the destruction of national identities. The clock is ticking and it's accelerating.
Going back to junior high school, I was inspired by the Robert Frost poem, "The Road Not Taken." It haunted me, pushing me to do unconventional things, all the while existing within the ultimate conventional world -- suburbia. As much as living in suburbia seemed to be the goal many of us inherited, and one which, seemingly, most American people wish for themselves and their children, it's a fairly limited construct, high price tag, and equally high opportunity cost of not experiencing other things in life. It's NOT a geographic location I'm referring to either; it's the conventional life. So, after having spent 5 decades in that framework, it ceased to provide any meaningful personal growth or inspiration. Something had to give. Perhaps it was time for the "other road. "
I went on a popular website where owners and crew can find each other for jobs and deliveries, and posed a new kind of question -- who wants to join me from other nations and assemble a team to see the world together? I asked for at least a three month time commitment, and anticipated maybe getting a few responses. I got over 150 and stopped counting.
This first crew, or "Original Crew," has been worth every decision I made. They selflessly helped me prepare the boat, establish norms for running her, and have provided more joy and humor than I could have ever wished for. I will be eternally grateful to each one of them. I am in no rush to see any of them go. But go they will, they do have their own lives. Yet I plan to continue, and will need to fill those vacancies with more amazing people.
I get asked a lot about what the goal is, in terms of where we will go. I like to journey with a broad stroke plan but stay open to anything that makes sense at the time. First steps are to cross the Atlantic, enjoy the Caribbean, and then head south to explore South America. And then around. Will we circumnavigate? Perhaps once or twice. Perhaps not. Who knows what will happen, really.
Given how many people we wish to share this with, from 6 nations -- and many more to come -- creating this channel seemed the most efficient thing to do. We truly hope you enjoy, and perhaps find your own courage to take the other road. You can see in our boat design we have a fork in the road, within the Compass Rose, and the green road is the one we are on now. It's actually an ocean, but you get the point!
We now have six nations on LESS TRAVELED. We always proudly fly the national flag of each member. I can't wait to see which national flag flies next. We will post here each time we know the departure date of crew members and seek to bring on new people together.
Thank you so much for enjoying this journey with us.
Ken