IO_Summer20

Inside Outdoor | SUMMER 2020 26 By Gerald Baldino Epic Trails Goes off the Beaten Path I f there’s one thing outdoor audi- ences are thirsting for right now, it’s adventure. At this point, most of the world has been on lock- down for about half a year, with limited opportunities to get outside and explore beyond local parks and trails. One program that has been provid- ing relief for restless adventurers dur- ing this slow period is Heliconia’s Epic Trails ¸ a backpacking media project and Telly Award winning TV and digital series that was ranked as one of the top adventure shows to watch in 2020 by the Washington Post . Epic Trails — which recently wrapped up its third season — chron- icles the global adventures of host Eric Hanson, a hiking guide and avid wilderness explorer well known in the backpacking community. The show has visited hiking destinations in Jordan, Fiji, Peru, New Zealand and Dominica, to name just a few locations. We caught up with Hanson for an inside scoop on the show. “I love what Epic Trails is about,” Hanson explained. “It’s kind of the op- posite of the super extreme content that we see a lot of these days, hiking thousand-foot cliffs and things of that nature. This is a travel show where anybody could theoretically participate. For example, a 70-year old watching the show could be inspired to go out and explore. It kind of breaks down some barriers and makes it a little bit more accessible for the audience.” Yet, the content of Epic Trails runs much deeper than just hiking. The show is similar in some ways to the food adventure series Parts Unknown , featuring the late Anthony Bourdain. In fact, the goal was to model the show around Parts Unknown but with a focus on the outdoors. “Bourdain used food as a way to experience places and people, and that’s what we’re trying to do here with Epic Trails ,” Hanson said. “We want the show to be more than just watching me hike, because that’s only so interesting. We really want to combine a lot of other elements and make it an impactful pro- gram where people are learning, laugh- ing and getting the full experience.” One of the best examples of this came during the first episode of sea- son two back in June 2019, when Hanson and the Epic Trails crew trav- eled to Papua New Guinea — a rural and isolated island in the South Pacific where the only way to get around is by boat, plane or on foot. “I think that content really summed up everything we are trying to do as a show,” Hanson said. “It’s a place that a lot of viewers don’t necessarily know much about. Papua New Guinea has a really unique and interesting culture and a fascinating landscape, and it was really an amazing experience.” For Hanson, the highlight of the episode was interacting with the local people. “We had an opportunity to film in a village where they had never hosted white people before,” Hanson said. “To host a group of outsiders was a big deal for this village. They have Media project highlights the world’s top hiking destinations Hanson in the Peak District, U.K. Brand Watch