By Katie Bowles
Tired of being stuck behind a desk all day? So was the writer behind adventure blog Desk to Dirtbag, outdoorsman and climber Ryan (who chooses to leave his last name unknown for anonymity’s sake). After working in D.C. politics for five years, he decided to take a “mini-retirement” at the end of 2012 and began exploring America’s great outdoors. In the process, he started the Desk to Dirtbag blog to write about specific stops on the trip, review gear he had used and share tips he learned along the way.
Desk to Dirtbag’s core message is simple (and displayed proudly on the top of the home screen): “Life is too short to watch it pass by from a desk.” Ryan finished what became known as his “Epic Dirtbag Adventure of 2013″ but wasn’t ready to give up the nomad lifestyle, so on he went to South America, where he is now traveling. Along with the original tips and stories he picked up from the road in 2013, his blog now includes interviews with other travelers, videos and even a travel-hacking guide. Check it out to plan your own trip or simply live vicariously through his.