THE 6 DEGREES OF EXPLORATION, LIKE THE FAMOUS PEOPLE DO

I think it’s fair to say there are varying degrees of explorers when it comes to travel. Sir Edmund Hillary was a roughing-it kind of guy who endured terrible conditions to see parts of the world nobody outside the local community had seen, and report it back to the rest of the world. Modern explorer Bear Grylls famously endures a lot to make his tv shows. Passengers on the Orient Express or, in a modern context, the Seaborne Venture, are likely not the hardiest of explorers. Just sayin’.

To my sensibilities there are 6 basic types of travelers. Personally I find myself around halfway between hardier explorers like Michael Palin, the former member of Britain’s Monty Python comedy group, and the more genteel Stanley Tucci, who hosts a much more sedate - not luxurious - travel program on CNN. Here is my list of the six degrees of travel, with modern-day celebrity examples of each.

1 - The Rough and Rugged Explorers

Nowheresville

These are the people who put themselves at some risk to accomplish tasks. They blaze new trails.

Coffee guy Todd Carmichael was the first person to hike alone across Antarctica. That’s pretty damned impressive. Just shy of forty days across the continent, enduring sub-zero temperatures and all manner of natural challenges, this is a guy who seeks out challenging journeys and relishes them…once they’re done. I’m sure he’s not too thrilled while shivering uncontrollably in his tent five hundred miles from the nearest other human.

2 - The Out of the Way and Willing to Rough It Explorers 

Summiting Mt Fuji

The OOTWaWoRIEs are the people who put themselves at some risk to go find something interesting, away from the common travel. Hiking in the Andes, or camping on a remote beach on Borneo.  Usually these people are willing to rough it for a period of time, but are less committed to life-threatening adventures in uncontrolled conditions. One of the guests of Bear Grylls’ Running Wild program, for example. More rugged celebrities like Channing Tatum or Julianne Hough - both of whom have been guests on Grylls’ show 

- are an example of this category. Bear might be category 1, but these celebs, rough and rugged as they may be, aren’t quite the same category.

3 - Show Me the Adventure Explorers, and a Nice Dinner to Go Along With It 

The Dining Car, on Ice

This is probably my overall general category. I’m definitely down for a challenging and uncomfortable adventure - I’ve hiked in the Sierra Nevadas and through the California desert, crewed on an overnight sailboat race, and spent time in the cold watching polar bears at a remote scientific outpost - while I also have a real appreciation for the finer parts of travel (and I find myself drifting in that latter direction as I age, and even enjoying categories 4 and 5 depending on the destination). 

I think of tv adventure guy Josh Gates in this category. Yes, he’s hiked through the jungles of South America and gone hunting for the abominable snowman in the Himalayas, but you never really get the impression that it’s genuinely a life endangering situation (though accidents have happened). He’s more about getting off the beaten path and finding something interesting and different along the way. And maybe dinner at a nice restaurant once you get back into town. TV host and author Phil Koeghan falls somewhere between 2 and 3.

4 - Campfires and S’Mores Travelers  

Glamping

There’s nothing like pulling into a campground, setting up the tent and starting a small campfire. Telling ghost stories as the sun goes down and snuggling into a warm down sleeping back. And after a couple of days finding a nice medium-range hotel to shower and get a decent meal. Yes, you’re around nature and enjoying being away from the big city, but let’s be honest, a good bottle of wine and making s’mores is a great way to spend the evening. On a Larger, more exploration level we call this “Glamping.” There’s the illusion of being remote, but we kinda like the trappings of civilization along with us. My wife and I have spent a few trips up to Northern California’s Safari West encampment where we spent several days in relatively luxurious safari tents and ate just down the hill the facility’s rugged kitchen. There’s no real exploration involved, just the experience of clamping surrounded by wild animals in secure pens. Celebrities such as South African tv presenter Jeannie D and actress Kristen Bell and husband Dax Sheppard come to mind.  

5 - Give Me the Modern Conveniences Traveler

This person doesn’t really like roughing it, except maybe occasionally. Like the Holiday Inn, that's pretty rough. 

Hey, there's a great bistro down this way

They prefer a small inn or moderately-priced hotel somewhere convenient to restaurants, attractions, and maybe a natural wonder or two. These people stay at nice places in interesting parts of town, or maybe in a national park. If they’re in town, make it an interesting part of town that they can walk, maybe do some shopping and definitely a good food/pub neighborhood. Something local, not ostentatious, but a place to plug in that hair dryer and a good bed. The above-mentioned Stanley Tucci is definitely this sort of traveler. Much more comfortable in a city scene with local fare and a good martini.

6 - "Oh Buffy, Be a Dear and Point Me to the Spa, Please..."

Martinis and Champagne

Okay, that's a little dismissive, and to be honest I enjoy the occasional over-indulgence. Who wouldn't? These people are about luxury, luxury, luxury. All Lux, all the time.

Fine restaurants, a good massage, and perfectly mixed cocktail. Any nature we see should be from our balcony and maybe from the Bentley as it leaves the hotel. Five star resorts all the way, baby! And if we’re sailing, make sure the yacht has a wide tanning deck and the wait staff to go with it. Yeah, Jeannie D falls into this category as well, as do pure lux celebrities like the Kardassians, Usher, and George Clooney.

So those are the 6 Degrees of Celebrity travel, with a lot of nuance in between. Which category are you - though, like me, you probably change it up depending on your mood. I’ll admit, I’ve been in five of the six. I’ve just never been tempted to hike across Antarctica alone.

That’s just crazy.