I would have called you insane ten years ago if you had told me that I would be a travel blogger today! And now I find myself here.
Originally intended to be a little travel journal to update friends and family on our global journey, it has developed into something much more. Not only has this unexpected adventure changed my life, but it has also changed Tim, Tyler, and Kara’s.
Pour yourself a cup of coffee (or wine ), settle down, and take in our narrative if you’ve ever wanted to start your own travel blog or just want to know more about it.
Wayfarertrail | trekkerescape | trektrailblaz | travelblissed | triprelonation
THE EARTH TREKKERS IDEA
The concept of Earth Trekkers was “born” in the beginning of 2014. We had already started making preparations to explore the world for a year. Big visions of faraway locations were racing through our brains, an epic route across the world was taking form, and our property was up for sale.
We launched our travel blog at this same period. The purpose of this blog was to record our activities and to inform friends and family about our travels. We thought at the time that Earth Trekkers might grow into something bigger when our global journey was over, but we weren’t sure if that would truly happen.
which brings us to deciding on a blog name.
IDENTITY: WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Choosing a name for a travel blog is an important task. It must be memorable, catchy, and pertinent. Additionally, the name ought to stand out from anything else that is already in use. It becomes a component of your identity and your brand. It’s important not to make this decision hastily.
Tim and I looked over possible names for our website for more than a week. Some, like Waffles and Wine, were plain awful as I look back. Could you imagine, ugh? Although I thought Chasing Elephants was a great idea, I couldn’t afford the $2500 domain name.
We reduced it to 4gortw, which stands for 4 go around the globe, and Earth Trekkers. 4Gortw was succinct and to the point, however for people who are unfamiliar with what RtW is, it would require lengthy explanations. Furthermore, that name wouldn’t really make sense until our big vacation was finished.
Thus, Earth Trekkers emerged victorious.
A NEWBIE’S LIFE AS A TRAVEL BLOGGER
On February 1, 2014, we launched Earth Trekkers with no prior knowledge of website building, blogging, or writing for a readership.
I realized right away how much labor this was going to require. Developing the website’s design and flow took many days. I estimated that writing a blog article would just need an hour or two. Whoa, I was incorrect. composing a post takes hours, and these days, I occasionally spend days composing one. How was I going to homeschool Tyler and Kara while traveling?
Just to have some content for the website, I wrote about our previous journeys throughout the months leading up to the trip. A few of those posts—about trekking in Norway to Trolltunga and Kjeragbolten, for example—remain online and have gained a lot of popularity.
OUR VERY FIRST DISH OF “FAME”
We were interviewed by the Baltimore Sun a week or so prior to our global adventure. Tim and I anticipated appearing on page two or three of the travel section in a little piece. Well, we were in for a wonderful surprise the day before we left on the vacation. We weren’t a minor story, nor were we on page 2. The whole first page of the Baltimore Sun’s travel section featured us. It was mind-blowing!
Also, it brought in a ton of visitors to our website. We had a thousand views in a single day! Though that seems insignificant now, we were only seeing 25 to 75 views per day prior to June 28th. Many new fans from all around the US, not only in Maryland, sent their best wishes along with the website traffic.
Earth Trekkers found themselves briefly enjoying some notoriety. We were thrilled, but we were also a little anxious.
I couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious as we waited to catch the first aircraft of the journey at JFK airport. Suddenly, a large number of people were observing us. There was this extra pressure to succeed in addition to sharing our stories well. Not with all the eyes on you.
And it was among the first things we discovered about trip writing. About whatever we do, we write. We make our destination known. You will all be aware if something goes wrong when we travel, whether or not it was our responsibility. We seem to be under more pressure to travel well, to not miss anything, and to not make mistakes. We should be knowledgeable about our craft, as travel bloggers, right? But that’s not always the case, hehe.
BLOGGING WHILE TRAVELING AROUND THE WORLD
We traversed the globe for 13 months, stopping in 35 nations across 5 continents. I continue to be grateful for that incredible event every day. I consider myself extremely lucky to have been able to have that experience with Tyler and Kara when they were younger. While traveling to new locations was exciting, Tim and I are most grateful for the family time and memories we created.
The Earth Trekkers
It was at this time that I started blogging. The more we went, the more my photography and our articles improved. We gained more supporters gradually but steadily, and we were even featured in the Voice of America, National Geographic, Terp Alumni magazine, and Matador Network.
Ignoring the significance of social media during this period was my worst error. All of it simply escaped me. Perhaps it was because I was forty years old and not one of these effortlessly twentysomething bloggers who Snap and Tweet. On Facebook, I updated frequently, but that was all. We didn’t utilize our Twitter account, and we didn’t post anything on Pinterest or Instagram until seven months after our global trip.
I would have spent a lot more time on social media if I had known then what I know now. It’s crucial for expanding your fan base, establishing your brand, and increasing website traffic.
