STORY BY COLE GARRISON

An hour before we met with the Gray Line team, Tim and I were still banging out the idea. Normally, the pitch, the script, the story and every detail in between, are secured before you ever walk into the room. But this time, we went into the meeting with literally no idea what the end product would be. This wasn't a story so much as it was a vision of letting experiences create a story.

I mean, travel is about something different for everyone. In my experience, people -- especially local people -- are the only variable to truly make travel real and not pictures in a book or stories on a screen.  Our idea was to travel the world in under a month with four cameras and capture events as they unfolded.  We just needed a little time, some positive vibes and a few beers along the way.  Gray Line’s answer?  They’ve got local, experienced guides providing authentic experiences in hundreds of cities on six continents. There you go.

Thirty minutes into the meeting, we were already talking logistics.  Dane and Rex were in different cities, but the phone call took all of two minutes.  We had our four.

There was nothing surreal about that day. We were going to travel the world, to bounce across timezones like subdivision backyards, on one itinerary spanning three weeks.  And that's just it.  I need to pack.

Prepping + Planning

Tim focused on logistics.  I was on production and gear.  As much planning that went into this experience, I can tell you it wasn't enough.  Our gear had to fit into carry-on bags, because we couldn't risk lost luggage.  We had to be able to fly from the waterfalls lining Argentina's border to the lagoons of Iceland.  From flip-flops to fleece hoodies, we were changing time zones, changing apparel and changing directions on a 24-hour cycle.

This project was risky not only because the end product was TBD, but also because there were so many opportunities for things to go wrong.  As much as there are different temperatures and offerings in these destinations, they also attract different types of travelers.  We were headed to all six continents, but we were also experiencing nearly every type of travel there is: food, architecture, history, adventure, landscape, attractions. We just needed to establish a baseline of clothing and memory storage, enough so we didn't let down Gray Line or ourselves.

The final itinerary was secured a day before takeoff and it was N.O.N.S.T.O.P.  It was a little scary.  A little worrisome.  A lot crazy.  We would get sick.  We would have passport issues.  Our gear would be hit by a rogue wave.  We were a crew of veteran travelers, getting ready to take off on what was sure to be the craziest trip ever.