My Own Footprints

Long before I knew the joys of travel, I discovered the freedom that traveling by foot allowed. Before I got my drivers license, much less been on a plane, I became addicted to the freedom I found in trekking long distances.

The first time I ever left the continent, I left to study abroad in Samoa. Prior to this I had been studying political science and interning at the Texas Capitol (I've always been driven to "make the world a better place"), but my time in Samoa turned everything on its head in terms of how I would do that.

When I returned from Samoa, I continued down the path of "self-sustainability" and went to work at a wilderness therapy program in North Carolina. I led backpacking & river trips for at-risk youth in North Carolina, and would later do the same in Georgia as program supervisor.

Eventually I ended up in Hawaii working at a horticulture therapy program, where the curriculum was largely focused on how taking care of your body can improve your cognitive and emotional functions. In my time off, I scrubbed toilets at a hostel so I could save up enough money to travel to Thailand (more walking meditations here).

As I scrubbed the toilets, I had the realization that it was time for me to move into the travel industry. I went to work for American Airlines so that I could see more of the world, despite my limited budget. I explored over 30 countries and learned the inner-workings of the airline industry while learning the challenges and opportunities within each country visited, making connections along the way with tour operators.

This led to a job at a birding (birdwatching) company. I learned how to organize complex itineraries to truly off-the-beaten path locales, as well as how to manage a trip for clients so that their only worry was getting to the airport on time.

From here, I was offered a job as Program Director at an outdoor retail company who had previously bounced back from bankruptcy. Being eager to get back into backpacking/trekking, I willingly accepted. Rebuilding their travel program from scratch, I brought in more money in the year that I was there than anyone in my role had made in years past, and from this, I gained the confidence to go it alone.

My intent behind FIT Treks is to help people travel better by...

1) Making travel affordable and accessible everyone, hosting trips at a fraction of the cost of our competitors

2) Offering personal training and nutrition support to all age groups and abilities-- encouraging anyone and everyone to get outside and get moving.

3) Traveling to locales where our business will promote sustainable practices through eco-tourism

Thanks for reading, I hope to meet you on the trail! Happy Trails, Mandy