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Armchair Explorer: Travel and Adventure Inspiration

Armchair Explorer: Travel and Adventure Inspiration

By: Armchair Productions
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 Award-winning podcast featuring interviews with the world’s greatest adventurers, immersive travel documentaries recorded on location, deep dives into cultures around the world, and inspiration for how to life to the fullest. Hailed as “inspiring storytelling” by the New York Times, and “Ear candy for listeners” by the Washington Post, past guests include Conrad Anker, Ed Stafford, Kristine Tompkins and many more legends of travel and adventure.© 2023 Armchair Explorer Social Sciences Travel Writing & Commentary
Episodes
  • CONNECTION: Real-world ‘Yellowstone’ Ranchers and Rodeo Legends at the Pendleton Roundup

    CONNECTION: Real-world ‘Yellowstone’ Ranchers and Rodeo Legends at the Pendleton Roundup
    Aug 19 2025
    “The first time I entered here I was 18 years old…I'd always heard about the Pendleton Roundup, it's just iconic. I was driving in thinking, I've made it, you know, I've made it” “You can name any sport, basketball, football, whatever. [Rodeo] just isn't that way. These events started and evolved from ranching. They've molded it into a sport, and that's just outta cowboy try. I have a ranch, Pat has a ranch, and for the people that watch ‘Yellowstone’, that's a lot like his place.” Welcome back to Pendleton, Oregon, home of the world-famous Roundup that we covered in a previous episode. While saddle broncs bucked and thousands cheered outside, we snuck into a storage room for kegs and liquor to interview two absolute legends in rodeo. Butch Knowles of the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame, 1988 Olympics USA Gold Medal Team, who spent decades broadcasting with the NFR. And Pat Nogle, a bulldogging champion with a collection of medals and records that stand to this day. The conversation was full of bawdy tales and laughter, but also deep introspection on what western culture means to actual ranchers like them, and also to the 50,000 fans that come to Pendleton every September. LET ‘ER BUCK! If you haven’t already, go back and listen to ‘Let ‘er Buck! Broncos, Steers, Whiskey & Beer at the Pendleton Roundup.’ And remember, you can see all of this yourself! Go to PendletonRoundup.com for details and take our advice: book early! Plan your next Oregon adventure at TravelOregon.com Thank you to the guests featured on the show: Pat Nogle and Butch Knowles This series was produced by Armchair Productions, the audio experts for the travel industry. Find out more at armchair-productions.com Brian Thacker led our pre-production, Charles Tyrie assisted on audio editing, and the episode was recorded by Jason Paton who also wrote and co-produced along with host Aaron Millar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    18 mins
  • CONNECTION: Living Adventurously with Alastair Humphreys

    CONNECTION: Living Adventurously with Alastair Humphreys
    Aug 15 2025
    Alastair Humphreys is a legend in the world of adventure. If you haven’t heard of him, here’s a few of things he’s gotten up to over the years … “Aged nine, he completed the 20 mile Yorkshire 3 Peaks challenge, then the National 3 Peaks in 24 hours aged 13. At 15 he cycled off-road across England … Then after leaving school, he cycled from Pakistan to China, Land’s End to John O’Groats, Turkey to Italy, Mexico to Panama and across South America. He ran a charity project in the Philippines and the London marathon dressed as a rhino.” And that was before he left school! This episode picks up the story after he graduated university - and don’t worry it doesn’t stop. Our ‘CONNECTION’ episodes are deep dive interviews with some of the most inspirational and influential people in the world of travel and adventure. Whether you're looking for an epic saga about a cross-continental bike trip or the wildest story about playing the violin you've ever heard, you're going to enjoy this episode about the many types of adventure that exist, how we can have them, and why we need them. FIND ALASTAIR Follow him on Instagram @Al_Humphreys. Find his latest book, Local, wherever books are sold (though we recommend ordering from your local bookshop!). Follow him on Instagram @Al_Humphrey to see what he’s up to now, and sign up to his free newsletter at AlastairHumphreys.com where you can also find information on all his books, podcasts and more. SOCIAL Share the show with your friends! Subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening, follow @armchairexplorerpodcast on Instagram and Facebook, check out Armchair Explorer's website, armchair-explorer.com, and learn more about APT Podcast Studios on their website at APTpodcaststudios.com. CREDITS This episode was produced by Armchair Productions. Find our other shows at armchair-productions.com. Aaron Millar presented the episode and Charles Tyrie did the audio editing and production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    59 mins
  • CONNECTION: The Lost Treasures of AlUla

    CONNECTION: The Lost Treasures of AlUla
    Aug 4 2025
    In this series, we’re going to take you on a journey into the heart of one of the most ancient kingdoms on Earth. Located in the northwestern corner of Saudi Arabia, Alula is an oasis in the desert layered in 200,000 years of human history. But, until recently, it was closed to outsiders, and to this day only a handful of visitors have ever been. If you haven’t listened to our three-part on location documentary series, the Elements of Alula, scroll back in the feed and check it out: hot air balloon crashes, stargazing with bedouins, curious camels with a taste for microphones … It's a lot of fun. But today, we’re sharing a special bonus episode from that series. Because AlUla was closed to outsiders for so long, the archeology that’s happening there is unearthing incredible treasures we had no idea even existed. Jonathan Wilson: Arts and Culture Administration Senior Manager at the Royal Commission for AlUla is going to share some of those secrets with us today. And just to set the scene: we’d just got back from an afternoon riding Arabian horses through the desert. It was an incredible experience, but it was hot - so we stepped inside Jonathan's office where archeologists were working day and night to document the treasures of this lost kingdom of alula … this is the tour he gave us, and the interview we did afterwards. FIND OUT MORE Our on-location documentaries are designed so that you can experience everything we did in this episode. Find out more at ExperienceAlula.com. Check out @experiencealula on Instagram, Facebook and X more inspiration and ideas. CONNECT WITH US If you enjoy the show, please subscribe on whatever podcast player you’re reading this on right now. Go on, do it. It means you get to choose what episodes you listen to, rather than the algorithm guess (wrongly) and kick us off your feed. Following the show on socials will definitely maybe bring you good travel karma! Instagram: @armchairexplorerpodcast Facebook: @armchairexplorerpodcast Armchair Explorer is produced by Armchair Productions. Aaron Millar wrote and presented this episode show, Jason Paton did the audio editing and sound design. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    31 mins
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