Episode 209 of The Adventure Podcast features adventurer, writer, and filmmaker, Tom Allen. In this episode, Tom talks to Matt about the wild and winding path that shaped his life on the road. At just 23, Tom left behind a career in web development to cycle around the world with no real plan - a journey that would transform him in ways he couldn’t have imagined. From naïve beginnings and near-disasters to profound moments of liberation, Tom shares what it really feels like to embrace a life of radical freedom. He recounts moments that forced him to question the true value of endless wandering. Along the way, he opens up about falling in love, and the delicate balance between pursuing boundless adventure and choosing deep connection. The discussion also touches on Tom’s shift from pure adventure to purposeful projects, like building hiking trails in Armenia, and his evolving role as both a storyteller and facilitator of others’ journeys. This is a story of bikes, deserts, love, and finding home in unexpected places.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

Chapter Breakdown:

00:00 - Introduction

Matt welcomes Tom and sets up a conversation about adventure, risk, and the unexpected turns of life.

02:30 - From Northampton to Nowhere

Tom recalls his ordinary upbringing and the decision to abandon a career in web development for a round-the-world bike ride.

10:00 - Early Missteps on the Road

The chaos of over-packed bikes, failed routes, and falling-out with friends on the first stretch of the journey.

18:00 - Going Solo

Liberation, loneliness, and the first real lessons of responsibility when Tom finds himself riding alone.

20:00 - Meeting Tenny

Through couchsurfing in Yerevan, Tom encounters Tenny - sparking the love story that would change the course of his travels.

26:00 - Love vs. Adventure

The push and pull between a relationship rooted in Armenian life and the restless call of the open road.

32:00 - Cycling into the Middle East

Tom pushes south through Syria, Jordan, and Egypt, carrying both the thrill of freedom and the weight of leaving love behind.

40:00 - The Yemen Beach Epiphany

Stranded and questioning everything, Tom begins to see the diminishing returns of endless solo adventure.

43:00 - Choosing Connection

Tom returns to Armenia, and reshapes his understanding of what it means to “go forward” in life.

47:00 - From Story to Service

How Tom shifted from personal expeditions and films to helping others access adventure, including his work building trails in Armenia.

1:12:00 - Lessons in Meaning

Adventure, love, identity, and the biggest truths travel has to offer.

1:20:00 - Closing Reflections

Tom’s final words on freedom, purpose, and why he never really “went back.”

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Episode 208 of The Adventure Podcast features writer, adventurer and father, Mark Agnew. Mark is a self-confessed failed adventurer, at least he was, until he became one of the first people to kayak the entire Northwest Passage under human power. This is the second time Mark has been on the podcast. The first was not long after he’d come back from this major expedition, and it’s always fascinating to learn what’s changed in someone’s mind after time has gone by and they’ve had time to reflect. Matt and Mark cover some of the same ground in this episode, but it’s clear that Mark is looking at things differently now. In this conversation, Mark opens up with rare honesty about failure, redemption, and the shifting tide of ego. They discuss the year long court case hanging over him and the expedition. He talks about fatherhood, about needing adventure and feeling guilty for needing it. About rethinking what success looks like, and learning to pursue experience, camaraderie, and meaning, rather than just the finish line. This is a conversation about discomfort, doubt, and quietly rebuilding your inner world. It’s about how adventure can hold a mirror to who we are, and how the version of us that emerges on the other side isn’t always who we expected to become.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-adventure-podcast.

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Episode 207 of The Adventure Podcast features runner and author, Elise Downing. Elise is, by her own admission, not your typical adventurer. She didn’t grow up wild swimming or scrambling ridgelines. In fact, she used to hate the outdoors. But in her early twenties, during a time of deep personal disquiet, she made a decision. She laced up a pair of running shoes and pointed herself at the coastline. What followed was a slow, vulnerable, and deeply human odyssey, running 5,000 miles around the coast of Britain with no real experience, very little money, and only the kind of faith that says ‘I’ll figure it out when I get there.' In this conversation, Elise talks with extraordinary honesty about imposter syndrome, crying in graveyards, running through grief, and the strange awkwardness of coming home after something that should have changed everything, but somehow didn’t. She also speaks to what comes next, how she’s slowly built a life that holds adventure in its everyday edges, and how she’s learned that the most powerful journeys often start not with courage, but with not knowing what else to do. This is a conversation about the long way around. About patience. About learning to move slowly, and gently, and with kindness toward yourself. And about the beauty of having no idea what you’re doing, but going anyway.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-adventure-podcast.

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Episode 206 of The Adventure Podcast features adventurer and amputee, Luke Tarrant. In 2024, Luke was travelling from the USA to Antarctica on his motorbike when he crashed in Colombia. He had to have his leg removed after contracting sepsis and was left fighting for his life. Matt got in touch with Luke after seeing his dad's update post on Instagram, and they quickly became friends and started filming together. All while this was happening, Luke blew up on social media and has gathered a massive following that has completely changed his life in lots of ways. In this episode, they go into the full story. Who was Luke before the crash? What happened? What changed? How has he changed? This episode is raw and honest, and it’s a fascinating blend of two different sides of our world. Luke wasn’t interested in fame before his accident (and spoiler alert, he kind of isn’t now). He just wanted to ride his motorbike around the world get into (mis)adventures. But, as Luke puts it, what’s happened has happened, and now he gets recognised walking down the street. What will he do next? Who knows, but it’s bound to be special.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

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Episode 205 of The Adventure Podcast features adventurer, researcher and storyteller, Lise Wortley. Lise has spent the last few years following in the footsteps of forgotten women. She retraces their paths, as faithfully as she can, right down to the scratchy tweeds and antique kit. No Gore-Tex. No modern boots. Just a deep curiosity for how these women moved through the world, and what they had to say about it. In this conversation, Lise talks about how the project began, the strange intimacy of stepping into someone else’s shoes, literally, and the complicated task of honouring legacy without romanticising the past. They explore what it means to adventure on your own terms, to go slowly, and to find strength in stories that were almost lost to time. This isn’t just about history. It’s about reclaiming the narrative. About softness and solitude and wildness, and about how the most powerful journeys aren’t always the noisiest ones. Sometimes they’re the ones that make space. For memory, for change, and for other people to follow.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

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Episode 204 of The Adventure Podcast features former Royal Marine, adventurer and mental health advocate, Paul Harris. Paul is more commonly known as 'The Warrior Walker' and uses huge walking challenges, covering thousands of miles, to raise awareness for veterans and others battling issues like PTSD. In this episode, Matt talks to Paul about his decision to walk around the UK and how it came from a place of fairly serious trauma. He looks at his life before the walk, as a Royal Marine, a barman and a private soldier. They also talk about why, at the end of his entire circumnavigation of the UK he decided to put his backpack on and do it all again, probably making him the only person to have walked all the way around the UK twice.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

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Episode 203 of The Adventure Podcast features writer, photographer, and documentary filmmaker, Kim Frank. Kim has spent the past seven years immersed in an incredibly complex and emotionally charged story centred around human/wildlife conflict. Her project follows the lives of people and elephants in North Bengal, India—where deforestation, migration, and survival all collide. In this episode, Kim talks to Matt about creative risk, the emotional weight of telling other people’s stories, personal transformation, and the quiet power of persistence. They also discuss the importance and rarity of following through on a wild idea that won’t let you go.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

Photo credit: Jeremy LaZelle

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Episode 202 of The Adventure Podcast features, long distance runner and construction worker, Jack Scott. Over the past few years Jack has grabbed the attention of the British ultra running scene for some stellar achievements that most people in the know thought were literally impossible. In 2024 Jack won the infamous Spine Race, a 268-mile ultramarathon along the Pennine Way, shattering the previous course record by over 10 hours. This isn't a conversation discussing trail shoes or favourite energy gels, instead this episode gives an insight into Jack's mind, attitude and where he finds his motivation. He talks to Matt about his previous gambling addiction and the 'dark and dangerous' place he has learnt to use, his Spine Race losses and win, his training mentality, and the importance of giving yourself time to grow.

For extra insights from the worlds of adventure, exploration and the natural world, you can find The Adventure Podcast+ community on Substack. You can also follow along and join in on Instagram @‌theadventurepodcast.

Photo credit: Wild Aperture Photography

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-adventure-podcast.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.