Welcome to my journal

Do you ever feel the urge to pull away from something, even when it has brought your joy or satisfaction in the past, because it seems too hard or overwhelming? You’re not alone – I am with you on this.  Full days. Commitments. The hours of email. Meetings that create more deliverables but no time to […]

When we our lives feel heavy and insurmountable – adventure offers us a pathway forward.

It is all too easy to let life’s chaos reign and control our time and as a result, sadly, our relationship with our kids. It is all too easy to let life’s chaos reign and control our time and as a result, sadly, our relationship with our children. Adventure offers a catalyst for change: deepening […]

“I am exhausted. This is exactly what I needed.” These are the words Andrew said at the end of the second day of our traverse through the Superstition Mountains outside of Phoenix, AZ. As the sunset over the desert, painting the towering Weaver’s Needle in a bath of pink light, over a gentle warm evening […]

This post was originally written for, and published by, Oars and Alps. Matt Walker spends 100 days a year in a tent. As a psychologist and international mountain guide, he spends much of that time leading men on climbing expeditions, helping them reconnect with a sense of adventure. While nearly all of his clients find these […]

Four days in the wilderness. The freedom of taking a long walk. Last October I took a four day walk with a man who was looking for a hard reset in his life. Time to step away from the burdens and demands of his everyday and take stock of where he was headed, realign his […]

Gratitude is the clearest transmission of you. Gratitude may be the most profoundly potent emotional state within the human experience. It serves as a catalyst, evoking a positive and curious perspective, while also synchronizing the multitude of facets of our lives. And gratitude is the greatest equalizer when pain, suffering, and overwhelm cast a long […]

I remember with absolute clarity the first time I went on expedition in Alaska.  Arriving in late April, my partner and I drove from Anchorage to the hamlet of Talkeetna, packed our three weeks of food and gear into a small plane with skis for landing gear, took off into Denali National Park and landed […]

I have blood streaming down my arm and into my jacket. My hands are jammed into the crack above my head, my legs are stretched out as wide as I can manage with my feet pressing against small divots on the granite wall, I am sweating bullets, and breathing so rapidly I fear that I […]

The patriarchy is a load of shit and it’s time to dismantle it. I’m saying this from my perch of privilege and you’re probably rolling your eyes. “Someone shut this white guy up.” “Matt, it is not your time to speak, here.” “Man, you better be quiet before you put your foot in your mouth.” […]