Justin Fornal: Rituals, Talismans and Saving the Legacies of Ancient Cultures.

Charles William Steele, Jr is a cave explorer and speleologist who has led and participated in expeditions to many of the longest and deepest caves in the United States, Mexico, and China. He has explored hundreds of caves across North America and Asia and has written two books chronicling his expeditions: Yochib: The River Cave, and Huautla: Thirty Years in One of the World's Deepest Caves. TV shows such as National Geographic Explorer and NOVA have featured his expeditions.Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeGet Bill's books: Huautla: Thirty Years in One of the World's Deepest Caves*Yochib: The River Cave*Hosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com*Michael Reinhart receives a small fee for each book sold via this link.True stories of adventure and exploration Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Justin Fornal is an explorer, writer documenting vanishing traditions in some of the world’s most challenging regions. His work focuses on ancient textiles, traditional foodways, and the material culture of ritual..Justin has led research expeditions across Iraq, Somalia, Haiti, Yemen, Ethiopia, Liberia, the West Bank, and Arctic Greenland. A 2025 Society of American Travel Writers Gold Medal Awardee, his work has appeared in National Geographic, VICE, The Explorers Journal, Adventure Journal, Parts Unknown, and Roads & Kingdoms.Through his nonprofit, the History, Arts, & Science Action Network (HASAN), Justin collaborates with minority communities facing discrimination and genocide, helping them preserve cultural heritage and reclaim their narratives on an international stage.In 2026, Justin launched Sahel by the Sun — a solar-powered crossing of Africa from Dakar, Senegal to Xaafuun, Somalia in a Land Rover Defender — highlighting endangered Sahelian cultures while advancing sustainable exploration. He has been a fellow of Explorers Club since 2011 Justin's website JustinFornal.comInstagram Justin FornalSupport this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.comTrue stories of adventure and exploration Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jacob “Val” Myers is an Appalachian-born adventure athlete with a growing list of accomplishments stretching across the board from ultramarathons, expeditions, published writings, and community service projects. Getting his start working with public lands as a young man in Gorges State Park, Val has hundreds of hours of volunteer service on trail crews and as a fundraiser supporting conservation projects around the country.Val has taken on extreme expeditions in the coldest regions of the world such as Antarctica, the Yukon, Norway, and Alaska since entering the field as an aspiring polar guide in 2022. In parallel to his fascination with wild and rugged spaces, Val has completed multiple mountainous ultramarathons extending over one-hundred miles across the American landscape.Val is currently publishing a book detailing his attempted world record skiing solo and unsupported to the geographic south pole while providing context and honor to the complicated Appalachian landscapes that raised him. When not writing, Val has continued planning for future expeditions, Fastest Known Time (FKT) attempts and is supporting his community through volunteerism.Get Val's new book Blue Ridge - White Desert: A Young Man's Journey Through Appalachia, Antarctica, and the Self Val's website: jacobvalmyers.comVal's You Tube Channel Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com True stories of adventure and exploration Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oscar Scafidi is a travel writer, international educator and risk consultant. Originally from the UK and Italy, he has lived, worked and travelled across over thirty African nations. Oscar tends to focus on difficult destinations and post-conflict zones which do not attract many tourists. His work has included everything from interviewing pirates in Somalia to chasing elephants around the forests of Gabon. Among his many accomplishments, he kayaked 1,300km along Angola's longest river and 750km along Madagascar's longest river.Oscar’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ScafidiTravels/ Social media links:  lnk.bio/ScafidiTravelsKayak The Mangoky Official website: https://kayakthemangoky.com/ Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oscar Scafidi is a travel writer, international educator and risk consultant. Originally from the UK and Italy, he has lived, worked and travelled across over thirty African nations. Oscar tends to focus on difficult destinations and post-conflict zones which do not attract many tourists. His work has included everything from interviewing pirates in Somalia to chasing elephants around the forests of Gabon. Among his many accomplishments, he kayaked 1,300km along Angola's longest river and 750km along Madagascar's longest river.Oscar’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ScafidiTravels/ Social media links:  lnk.bio/ScafidiTravelsKayak The Mangoky Official website: https://kayakthemangoky.com/ Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map: Stories of Adventure and Exploration.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2017, Victor completed the “Explorer’s Grand Slam” which requires climbing the highest peak on all seven of the world’s continents including Mt. Everest and skiing at least 100 kilometers to the North and South Poles. He piloted the first repeated dives to the ocean’s deepest point, Challenger Deep, in the Pacific’s Mariana Trench -- now fifteen times, and in August 2019 became the first person to visit “The Five Deeps,” the deepest point in all five of the world’s oceans. Victor has now personally explored the bottom of seventeen deep ocean trenches and has made three dives to the Titanic including the only solo dive ever made there. He and his team also discovered and surveyed the two deepest shipwrecks in the world: the USS Johnston in 2021 and the deepest, the USS Samuel B. Roberts at 22,600 feet, in 2022. In 2025, the US Navy announced that T-AGOS 26, a new ocean surveillance vessel of the Explorer class, would be named after him.He is also a commercially rated, multi-engine jet, seaplane, and helicopter pilot, a certified submersible test pilot, and recently flew into space on Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket, becoming the first person in history to climb Mount Everest, dive to the bottom of the ocean, and visit space.Victor received his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, a Master’s Degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and received an MBA from Harvard Business School where he graduated as a Baker Scholar. Additionally, Victor served 20 years in the U.S. Navy Reserve as an intelligence and targeting officer, retiring in 2013 as a Commander.Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map: Stories of Adventure and Exploration.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

George McKenzie Jr. is a National Geographic Explorer, award-winning filmmaker, conservation photographer, and educator whose work sits at the intersection of storytelling, science, and community. Born in Guyana and raised in Brooklyn, George did not grow up in wild places—however found his way to them and now dedicates his career to making conservation accessible to people who may not see themselves reflected in it.George is the director and subject of The Book of George, a critically acclaimed short documentary that has screened at major international festivals, including Telluride Mountain film, Banff, and Jackson Wild, where it won Best Short Form Film in the People & Nature category. The film anchors an ongoing impact campaign focused on youth mentorship, conservation education, and representation in the outdoors.His photography and film making document the unseen connections between wildlife, working lands, and the people who steward them. From camera-trapping Florida panthers and photographing endangered plants on the Lake Wales Ridge to telling stories across the Florida Wildlife Corridor and the Okefenokee Swamp, George’s work emphasizes private lands, cultural history, and the human role in conservation outcomes.Beyond storytelling, George is deeply engaged in applied conservation. He collaborates with land trusts, state and federal agencies, scientists, and private landowners on projects related to habitat restoration, invasive species management, prescribed fire, and climate resilience. His work often translates complex land-management science into compelling visual narratives that build public understanding and support.A committed mentor and educator, George works extensively with young people—particularly youth of color—through workshops, school programs, and outdoor experiences that use photography and storytelling as tools for confidence, curiosity, and connection to nature. His approach is grounded in the belief that conservation succeeds when people feel included, capable, and invested.Through his lens, voice, and leadership, George McKenzie Jr. is reshaping how conservation stories are told—centering place, people, and possibility in the effort to protect wild and working landscapes for generations to come.Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeFollow George at his Instagram https://www.instagram.com/georgemckenziejr/ and at his website https://www.georgemckenziejr.com.Hosted by Michael J. Reinhart MichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map: Stories of Adventure and Exploration.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Send us a textCited as one of "20 of the world's most influential photographers" by the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, Peter Guttman is an acclaimed travel journalist, adventurer, author, photographer, lecturer and television personality, winner of the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Exploration and Storytelling, three time recipient of the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year Award, author of nine books and creator of two honored series of hardcover books about magical travel experiences around the world. He created five apps for the iPad and iPhone including the number one bestselling iPad app, Beautiful Planet HD, a groundbreaking showcase of global beauty, named by NBC News one of "eight outstanding educational apps".   Peter has made numerous television appearances (Today Show, CNN Travel Guide, Travel Channel, A&E profiles) discussing his adventures and discoveries.  In addition, he's been a frequent contributor to Conde Nast Traveller, Dallas Morning News, National Geographic Adventure, Outside, BBC.com as well as a national spokesman for Kodak.  He was chosen as a Fellow of The Explorers Club having “directly and substantially contributed to scientific understanding of the world” and cited for the “sheer diversity and thoroughness of his exploration experience”.Support this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeFind Peter’s Books here on Amazon  Follow Peter at his website PeterGuttman.comHis Instagram at  https://www.instagram.com/peterguttman/and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterguttman/Hosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map:  Stories of Adventure and Exploration.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Send us a textJim Clash covers extreme adventure and classic rock. Over three decades of writing for Forbes, Clash, who holds an MBA from Columbia University, has penned four books, most recently Amazon bestseller “Amplified,” about ‘60s music. His first-person stories include supersonic flights in eight separate aircraft pulling up to 9 Gs and flying to 84,000 ft; driving a Bugatti at 253 mph and Indy cars at 200 mph; expeditions to the North and South Poles; summiting the Matterhorn and 23,000-ft. Aconcagua; a C-130 flight through Category V Hurricane Dorian; chasing tornadoes; riding jet skis on 60-ft waves in Portugal; a U-2 flight to the edge of space; bullfighting; being shot point-blank in a ballistics jacket, and more. Interviews include Neil Armstrong, Mario Andretti, John Glenn, Edmund Hillary, Roger Bannister, Grace Slick, Joe Frazier, Chuck Yeager and Edward Teller. For fun, Jim gives 170-mph rides at Daytona speedway. He’s a former director at The Explorers Club.See more of Jim's work at Forbes and on his FaceBook pageGet Jim's books here on AmazonSupport this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map:  Stories of Adventure and Exploration.  #space #JamesClash #biggestwaves #supersonicflight Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Send us a textIn 2015, Rigby embarked on his epic “Crossing Africa” expedition, traveling from Cape Town, South Africa to Cairo, Egypt entirely by foot and kayak. Over two years, he covered more than 12,000 kilometers across 8 African countries.  Along the way, he learns of its people, languages and customs coming away with a deep understanding of the reach cultural diversity of continent.  He then went on to kayak the length of Lake Ontario, bicycle from coast to coast across Canada.  Mario recently returned from a month long stay in Algeria’s Sahara Desert with the nomadic Tuareg.  His next adventure, Expedition Impossible will be to circumnavigate the planet solely through human powered transport and to climb the 7 summits along the way.Rigby is an explorer, athlete, and advocate for sustainable adventure. His mission is to inspire the world to explore responsibly while pushing human potential to new limits.  He has been awarded Explorer in Residence by the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.Follow Mario at his website www.mariorigby.com and on his FaceBook PageSupport this Podcast:  buy me a coffeeHosted by Michael J. ReinhartMichaelJReinhart.com   Whiskey and a Map:  Stories of Adventure and Exploration.  #Africa #MarioRigby #trekking Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.