The Story
Life is an adventure.
Life is an adventure. And I have leaned in; taking off at 17 to backpack the Middle East and Africa; moving for my first job to Flin Flon Manitoba, where I canoed on glassy lakes, flew in bush planes and spent time on a First Nations’ reserve; and living in Latin America for close to 10 years as a journalist.
Having kids was an opportunity to explore the world together, and we jumped right in, snorkeling with whale sharks off the coast of Yucatán, hiking Japan’s Kumano Kodo trail, and kayaking with orcas and visiting a master carver with the Kwakwaka’wakw people in North Vancouver Island.
Atacama Desert, Chile, 1994
Teotihuacan Pyramids, Mexico, 2017
Whether as a backpacker, foreign correspondent or with my kids…
…I have always looked for those kinetic experiences, and the stories that others missed. It takes time – a lot of time – to unleash one’s imagination, do the research, and plan the kind of active traveling I love to do. But boy, is it worth it.
And then one day, it just hit me: maybe I can share this with other people. The pandemic made many of us rethink what matters most, and for me, it is the importance of reconnecting with our natural world, ourselves, and each other. An adventure travel platform, done right, can do that: it can challenge us, broaden our thinking, and ground us in a way few things can. For more on karibu’s story, read Andrea’s article in Harrowsmith magazine.
That is karibu’s mission.
The name has several meanings; it’s the Swahili word for ‘welcome,’ and is inspired by Caribou, the French Canadian and Algonquin name for the North American reindeer. Caribou hold a special place within the Canadian identity. Their habitat spans the entire length of this huge country, and they are central to the traditions and cultures of First Nations throughout Canada.
The woodland caribou, which rely on large tracts of old growth boreal forest to live, are critically endangered, and in some places, are on the verge of extinction. They are a bellwether of how we care for nature and the planet. They are relying on us to take better care.
Andrea Mandel-Campbell
Wild, Sublime Vancouver Island
Kayaking, Killer Whales & the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw
From CAD $5,840 or US $4,300 | 6 days
Dive Deep Into Newfoundland
Hiking, Humpbacks, Foraging and Storytelling
From CAD $5,850 or US $4,350 | 8 days
Canadian Geographic Guided - Wild, Sublime Vancouver Island
From CAD $6,620 or US $4,875 | 6 days
Big, Bold, Beautiful Ontario
Canoeing the Canadian Shield
From $2,875 or $2,100 USD | 6 days