Mark Jenkins

“At a certain age [...] you start thinking you might have learned something when you were young if you hadn't already been so smart.”

“Maps are essential. Planning a journey without a map is like building a house without drawings.”

“Wanderlust is incurable.”

“Adventure becomes hubris when it blinds you to the suffering of the human beings next to you.”

“Climbing mountains is an act I happen to love, but it is only one form of adventure. There are thousands. In fact, there's one for every human with the passion to push personal boundaries.”

“Adventure is a path. Real adventure – self-determined, self-motivated, often risky – forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and bottomless cruelty of humankind – and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever again be black-and-white.”

“Maps encourage boldness. They're like cryptic love letters. They make anything seem possible.”