I created Trail to Peak in 2014 to share my love of local hiking trails here in Southern California. Since then, my humble blog has grown to include detailed guides of my favorite hikes, comprehensive guides of my backpacking trips around the globe, and thorough reviews of all the gear I use along the way.
It all started for me after finishing my undergraduate degree in 2008 at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. Without knowing anyone or doing any real planning, I packed up my bags and flew to Buenos Aires. I hadn’t really traveled much before heading to Argentina, as I always kept myself busy with studying and football practice. Being a student athlete doesn’t leave much time for wanderlust and vacation. Deep down, exploration was always a part of me. It’s all I really wanted to do. I knew as soon as the plane landed in Buenos Aires, a new chapter was being written. A chapter that would precede countless more.
I’ve now visited 23 countries, and have had the chance to explore Europe’s most talked about cities. In 2012, after finishing graduate school, I walked Camino de Santiago. This has been the most transformative chapter in my travel adventures thus far.
In 2013, I completed the Salkantay Trek to Macchu Picchu and trekked the Ausangate circuit in Peru with my now wife, Julia. It was an incredible experience to explore the Inca legends and folklore. In 2014, we hiked Tour du Mont Blanc, and finished with a mini tour of Eastern Europe. In July of 2015, I fulfilled a dream and thru-hiked the John Muir Trail in my own back yard of California! 2016 was another year filled with adventure. Julia and I spent 10 days exploring a number of cities in Japan. The highlight of that trip was a visit to the holy land of Koyasan.
In 2016, I became a father when Julia gave birth to our first child, a son we named Owen. Owen got to see Yosemite shortly after birth, and quickly completed his first backpacking trip to Havasupai Falls. 2017 was another amazing year. We spent the summer driving around Iceland and saw every corner of the Ring Road! After exploring the ring road, we enjoyed an incredible December trip that took us to Vietnam and Cambodia. We took a lot of road trips and enjoyed a lot of new hikes in 2018, but the highlight of the year was our walk of the 150-mile Camino Portuguese Pilgrimage. In 2019, we took an amazing trip to Thailand with stops in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Chiang Rai.
We took a two year break from international travel due to Covid-19, but returned to Spain in 2022 to complete a walk of the Camino Ingles.
Writing reviews and testing outdoor gear is one of my favorite parts of being a blogger. Let me help get the word out on your great new products.
I can visit your travel destination and provide a quality write up with eye-catching photos and video to build awareness in the travel community.
I’m looking to create lasting partnerships with like-minded companies. Let me know if you have a customized project in mind.
You can also contact me if you’re looking to purchase or license any of my photographs for commercial use or redistribution.
Contact Drew with any questions regarding partnerships, gear reviews, and general inquiries. You can also use this form if you’re seeking to contribute content on Trail to Peak.