Being involved in the Outdoor Industry, I often get to meet some extraordinary people. I want to share with you the stories of some of the amazing people I meet such as Gregg Treinish and Deia Schlosberg. You may know Gregg and Deia as the couple that trekked across the entire length of the Andes. They are now about to embark on another walkabout, this one closer to home.
In 2006, Gregg and Deia set out on the trek of a lifetime across the spine of the Andes in South America. With no real maps of the region, the two basically had to make their own route out of llama tracks, old Inca roads and forgotten paths finger pointed by locals, while remaining lost most of the time. Enduring everything from 16,000 foot passes, typhoid fever, dysentery, and lack of food, the couple reached their final destination two years and 7,800 miles later. The trip earned them a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Award in 2008.
This summer, Gregg and Deia now hope to hike a remote section of the Rocky Mountains in order to ascertain why certain animal migration paths are broken. Scientists have determined that the triangle between the Northern Continental Divide, Greater Yellowstone and Salmon-Selway ecosystems is one of the most important areas on Earth for maintaining intra-species diversity. Yet grizzly bears and other animals have stopped heading to Salmon-Selway.
Working together with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Gregg and Deia will attempt to hike the 450 mile route between Yellowstone and Salmon-Selway this summer. The plan is to follow the most likely animal migration path and document the fences, roads and other obstacles in the way of safe wildlife movements. They would also like to gain a perspective from local landowners on how they can peacefully coexist with wildlife in the region.
Gregg is a Biology student and Deia a Master's candidate in Science and Natural History Filmmaking at Montana State University. The pair will gather scientific data throughout their expedition while documenting the journey for a film to highlight the reasons for lack of wildlife movement between Greater Yellowstone and Salmon-Selway. You can follow Gregg and Deia on their trek this summer on their new website: Connecting The Gems.
Across The Andes from Gregg Treinish