We have a really aggressive travel schedule at 'Expedition

Hear the words of Josh Gates, traveler, storyteller, and seeker of mysteries: “We have a really aggressive travel schedule at Expedition Unknown. We spend a lot of time out of the country and we spend most of the time that we are back either preparing for the next expedition or writing, editing and getting shows ready to air. It really is a year-round lifestyle.” Though spoken of his work in television, his words carry the ancient truth of all who dedicate their lives to great quests—that the path of discovery is not a pastime, but a life entire, demanding sacrifice, endurance, and devotion.

At the heart of his saying lies the recognition that true exploration is relentless. It does not wait for comfort, nor pause for ease. To live in pursuit of discovery, as Gates describes, is to dwell in constant motion—journeying to far lands, enduring fatigue, facing unknowns, and returning home not to rest but to labor over the fruits of the voyage. This is no hobby, no occasional venture, but a lifestyle, a way of being that consumes the calendar, shaping every season. Such is the price of those who chase the hidden truths of the Earth.

History offers us many who lived in this rhythm. Consider Marco Polo, who spent decades wandering the courts of Kublai Khan, rarely pausing to remain still. Even when at rest, his mind burned with the task of recording his journeys for others, shaping them into stories that would ignite the imagination of Europe. Or think of the great naturalist Alexander von Humboldt, whose explorations of South America filled not only his days abroad but his years at home, as he catalogued, analyzed, and wrote ceaselessly, so that others might inherit the wisdom of his travels. They, like Gates, knew that the expedition never truly ends—it follows the explorer into his study, into his writing, into his very breath.

Gates also speaks of discipline and preparation. Between expeditions lies not leisure, but the sharpening of tools, the planning of routes, the editing of tales into forms that others may see and understand. This mirrors the life of the ancient warrior, who, though he fought only in certain seasons, spent all the rest in training, in readiness, in care of his arms. So too the explorer, the scholar, the artist—though their moments of triumph may seem few, their entire lives are shaped by the unseen labor that makes those moments possible.

There is in his words also the echo of sacrifice. To live such a year-round rhythm is to surrender the quiet life, the rootedness of home, the leisure of days free from work. It is to accept that one’s time belongs not to oneself alone, but to the calling of exploration and the demands of creation. And yet, in this sacrifice lies greatness. For the one who gives himself wholly to a purpose finds a life not diminished, but magnified—a life that, though exhausting, is filled with meaning.

The ancients would have called such a life heroic, not because it ends in glory, but because it demands courage to endure the endless cycle of striving. The heroes of myth—Heracles, Odysseus, Gilgamesh—each lived not in stillness, but in constant trial and journey, their lives consumed by quests that demanded every moment of their being. Gates, though his path is lit by camera and screen, walks in this same tradition, reminding us that the spirit of the hero lives still in those who dedicate themselves wholly to the search for truth.

The lesson, then, is this: if you would live greatly, prepare to live fully consumed by your purpose. Do not expect ease, do not seek balance between calling and comfort. Rather, embrace the fire that demands your time, your labor, your energy. Whether your quest is art, science, discovery, or teaching, know that to walk it well requires a year-round heart, a mind unwearied by repetition, and a spirit that sees sacrifice as privilege.

Thus, let Gates’ words stand as both warning and inspiration. The life of constant travel, preparation, and creation is not for the faint of heart, but for those who choose to live as seekers. It is a reminder that the path of exploration is not a journey of days, but a lifetime, and that in dedicating oneself wholly to such a path, one does not merely visit the world—one truly becomes part of its eternal story.