February 26, 2025 • 56 mins
This week, I had the chance to talk with Peter Moore. He’s an amazing journalist, former editor of Men’s Health, and someone who has had some incredible experiences. We talked about his journey in writing and travel, and it was a really fun conversation.
Here’s what we talked about:
- Peter’s time as editor of Men’s Health and helping the magazine win awards.
- His experience interviewing former President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House.
- His travels around the world, including a trip to India with Matt Damon.
- Peter’s love for backpacking and exploring new places.
- How he recently discovered cartooning and how he uses it in his writing.
Don’t miss this episode for some great insights and inspiring stories!
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Road2Elsewhere by Peter Moore | Substack
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Link to all things Not in a Huff Podcast: https://linktr.ee/notinahuffpodcast
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
I interviewed the president first and you know I spent about an hour sweating in a park across from the White House
(00:06):
Thinking I can't believe I'm going in there to talk to the president of the United States
I mean, I've interviewed a ton of celebrities in my life, but nobody's a celebrity like the president is
Welcome to not in a huff with Jackson huff where we interview newsmakers
storytellers and all-around interesting people sit back relax
(00:27):
Unless you're driving and enjoy the show. Here's Jackson
I am Jackson huff. This is not enough. Thanks so much for joining me as always really appreciate this week's being with Peter Moore
Now Peter is an amazing guy. You know, I I had him on mainly to talk about travel
I've had a lot of travelers on before he's been to a lot of really really amazing places. He kind of
(00:53):
specializes in
in backpacking he actually was a
editor for backpacker magazine
so
Great guy to talk to about travel as I as I told him I had someone on who did a lot of
Hiking and backpacking on the West Coast in Oregon and Washington. I had on
Early on in the podcast somebody who had hiked the entire Appalachian Trail, which is on the East Coast
(01:19):
So him based in Colorado
I thought this would be a great a great person to talk about the middle of the country to kind of meet in the middle there
And and he certainly did talk about that
but I'll tell you this conversation gets really really awesome because what I didn't really know ahead of time is that he
used to be the editor of
(01:40):
Men's health magazine. So we talked about some of the travels that he's done because of that he went to India and
Traveled with Matt Damon and then we talked about him and his interviews
He's done for Men's Health magazine with former President Obama and Michelle Obama
Talked all about just what that was like going to the White House and interviewing the what was the current president
(02:05):
Really really awesome. Obviously that is quite the experience
No matter what your your political leanings are to be able to go into the White House to interview a president is is
Really cool. We're gonna talk about like I said travel his experiences
Interviewing some of the coolest people out there when it comes to just fame level
(02:25):
We're gonna talk about his kind of his new passion that is in being a cartoonist
He he still writes articles, but he includes
Pictures that he's drawn along with those to to supplement what he's writing
So I really think you're gonna enjoy this one
I really really enjoyed speaking with that with Peter here is Peter Moore. So more. How are you? I'm doing great. Thanks
(02:48):
How about you? I'm good. I'm gonna let you do the heavy lifting right out the gate. Just introduce yourself
Well, my name is Peter Moore and I'm a writer and cartoonist
I live in Fort Collins, Colorado and I come out of a long career as a
Magazine and book writer and editor. I love it. We're gonna unpack all that for sure and I want to kind of start
(03:09):
I guess the big thing we're gonna talk about today is your travels
You've done a lot of that and then your your journalism career
I guess tell us how you got involved in in both before we kind of unpack some of the cool things you've done in them both
Yeah, my dad was a
Devoted to the National Geographic. It was the first magazine that I ever read, you know, even before I could read
(03:34):
I was looking for the photographs and not geo and my dad would be reading
National Geographic and say I want to go there and that's how we ended up
touring Switzerland and two Volkswagen Beetles when I was I had a big family four brothers mom and dad
Traveled around Switzerland and France and Italy in these two Volkswagen Beetles, you know
(03:59):
We were always going off on adventures to the Grand Canyon
To Cape Cod, Nantucket. So I was you know raised as a traveler
You know, even when I was probably six years old we drove from Connecticut to Wyoming
Which took us three days and I was vomiting most of the way because I was facing backward in the station wagon that we had
(04:21):
at the time
But even vomiting all the way to Wyoming. I still thought it was super cool to arrive at Yellowstone
So, I you know, I guess you could say travel has been in my blood
My journalism career came about I was an English major in college
If you can believe that you know back in the day when you could be an English major and you know still expect to have a
Good life, but early on I decided that you know
(04:45):
I just felt like I needed to make some money and have a legit career rather than you know
sitting alone in my room and working on bad novels, so
Right after I graduated my dad had a contact for me with a
With an editor who was working on a project about American history and he needed somebody, me, to write American history in
(05:07):
100, 250 word bursts and that was how I began my career as a writer and editor
And you know, I soon jumped into magazines and you know worked for some very large legendary
magazines like Playboy and Men's Health
And Backpacker
So, you know, it's it's been a great career and I'm very grateful to have had it
(05:28):
You know, I've always say that working as a writer and editor is like the career equivalent of a liberal arts education
You're always learning something new
I think that's awesome. And I love that, you know, the the passion came from National Geographic
I feel like I've talked to a lot of travelers and I feel like everyone mentions that at some point
Actually a few weeks ago
I interviewed a guy who had been to a hundred plus countries
(05:51):
And his other kind of side thing was that he collects National Geographic and you know, he showed me on camera that he has
Issue number one almost through the whole thing
So I feel like that sparked a lot of people's interest in travel that that National Geographic magazine, hasn't it?
Yeah, I mean it shrinks the world for you. It brings it to your doorstep once a month
I love Nat Geo and you know, I can remember one time my dad was reading about whales and that's how we you know
(06:18):
Like what family actually goes to the country of whales, but we were staying in a hotel on the you know
On the ocean front in Wales traveling around, you know
My dad recited Crossing the Bar Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem that was based that that he wrote when he was staying in Barmouth
That's the kind of full rap cultural experience I would get I got out of being my dad's son
(06:40):
Yeah, well, I got a a different experience with whales and the other thing that I would get is
I would get a different experience with whales and the other kind of whales when I'm seeing National Geographic and and seeing you know
Whales on the cover there made me want to go somewhere where I could see you know, do a whale watching tour
So that that sent me to Iceland like five years ago. So we both have different whales that we've we've
(07:05):
Tried to go see right? Yeah. Well, I've seen them off of the
The tip of Cape Cod. I've seen them off of Nantucket
And there's all those Nathaniel Philbrick books that talk about whaling and the history of that
I'm a big fan of those books as well. So I'm with you on the whale watch
I like it and I want to kind of talk about you talked about how you you've written for backpacker magazine
(07:28):
So you've done you've got at least a little bit of interest in in the world of hiking and I thought you you may
And I and I should ask you beforehand because this may not go as well
But you may have kind of that perfect middle ground because I've talked to two people that have done big hikes
I talked to someone who did the entire Appalachian Trail. So we're talking East Coast
(07:48):
I talked to somebody who did like a trail from California to Washington. So I've got West Coast
I know you've done a lot of writing like in Colorado
So if you can if you're split in the middle and doing a lot of your your backpacking in like Colorado
Then it's perfect there, but I don't know if that's the case. I'm your perfect guest
I've done a ton of
(08:09):
Hiking trips. I'm kind of an expert if you would allow me to say that about the 10th Mountain Division huts
Which are a circle of 25 or 30 huts that are in, you know
The central mountainous region of Colorado and it's been kind of a lifelong pursuit for me to go to as many huts of those
As possible. So I've done a lot of backpacking a lot of
(08:31):
Amazing hikes in Colorado. So if you want to talk Colorado mountains, I'm right there for you
Yeah, so what kind of hiking do you do? Are you somebody who does these day trips?
Are you the the really really adventurous ones like I've talked to before that, you know go out for
Weeks on end and completely rough it. What's that look like?
Hey, I'm a hiker, but I'm not crazy. I you know, I like to have a shower every couple days. So
(08:54):
You know, most of my backpacking trips have been in the week or shorter
Variety which is about the right length of time for me. I haven't felt any need to walk from Maine to Georgia or vice versa
But I have a dot. I've done a lot of the Appalachian Trail. I've done a lot of the Continental Divide Trail in Colorado
so
(09:15):
I just like to be out there and then you know
After a decent interval go to a restaurant and then take a shower
That makes sense. What's the because I feel like you know, obviously
People know about the the scenery and they and then they know the hard parts of obviously this the
The trek is is difficult. So we know the good we know
(09:35):
Potentially the bad but there's something to be said obviously for for physical activity
But the thing that I've taught when I've talked to hikers before that they really talk about is kind of just the
Mental health aspect of being out there. I don't know whether you travel you hike
You know with a large group or you hike alone, but
What have you gained when it comes to just you between the ears being able to go out and be in nature?
(09:58):
Well, you know, I just wrote a piece for backpacker
Called is death a good hiking buddy and the idea being
How does the the threat to you enhance your experience being in the great outdoors and mostly what I was writing about and thinking about there
Was a a two-day hike I took to climb Long's Peak in Colorado, which is kind of a notorious peak because
(10:26):
You know three or four times a year somebody will fall off a cliff while they're climbing Long's Peak and I was
I was really aware while I was planning this trip that you know, it could be my last hike
I didn't want it to be that in my preparation match with the
Anxiety there and in fact, I made it up to the top of Long's Peak
(10:48):
It was an amazing final two mile hike to get up there because very often I was teetering on the edge of cliffs and
You know climbing up refrigerator sized rocks and you know looking down into the valley below which was a thousand feet below my ankles
So that kind of threat for me as long as I'm prepared for it as long as I'm
(11:10):
I've recruited good hiking buddies, which I did on that hike. I feel like the risk involved can bring a big reward in the
Feeling of accomplishment that you have but also the feeling of attentiveness you have when you're on the trail
Meaning if I don't be very careful with these footholds and handholds
I could fall into the valley and that would be it and you know
(11:33):
I would really not look forward to experiencing that final five seconds of climbing
As I was hurtling toward the earth
Yeah, I would imagine so. I don't know if I would make the best hiker because it took about 30 years to realize it
But you know I was hiking, walking along the edge of the Grand Canyon in Arizona
(12:00):
And I realized I got a little bit I think I might be a little afraid of heights. I don't know if I would be your best hiking buddy so don't bring me along
You know everybody finds their challenges in life that they're suited for. I'm not an acrophobe or a norgoraphobe so being in the great outdoors is usually great for me
(12:22):
Yeah, well I want to talk beyond hiking. Let's expand out into the entire world and let's talk about some of your favorite travel stories
You've already talked a little bit about road tripping as a kid and going to Wells and going to Wyoming
Let's set aside some of the cool people that you've met because we're going to get to that one here in a second but some of your favorite travel stories
(12:45):
Yeah, so when I was working at Men's Health magazine I really was in a pretty good position there
You know my work was appreciated. I was high on the masthead so I could do pretty much whatever I wanted
So I talked to my boss into letting me go to Nepal for three weeks
(13:06):
So I recruited a bunch of hiking buddies and flew into Kathmandu which is one of those legendary places
My whole life long, not that I knew a lot about Kathmandu but it was like I want to go there just because it sounds so freaking exotic
So I flew halfway around the world to get to Kathmandu and then we did a trek into the mountains of Nepal
(13:34):
It was called the Langtang Goseikunda trek meaning that the end point of one part of the trek was in Langtang
About nine months after I got back from that trek that was the epicenter of a huge and devastating earthquake in Nepal
So that I had just been through the back country of Nepal with an amazing guide and a group of my buddies
(14:02):
We spent a couple of days in Langtang so I felt like going to tea houses and restaurants there and just walking around on the streets
I felt like we got to know a lot of people whose lives were about to be devastated
I haven't been back to Langtang yet but I keep on waiting hoping I can find a magazine that will send me there
But that was the most spectacular exotic thing I'd ever done including getting blown around a lot by a typhoon
(14:30):
That happened to wander into Nepal even though it wasn't supposed to be there
Which was a lot of misery for a lot of days but there's something about misery that really fixes a trip in your mind
I think of Nepal and misery and the high mountains of Nepal all in a blur for me right now
(14:54):
Two things to ask about that one I thought this trip was going to maybe not completely the peak of Everest but like base camp
You didn't do all of that
Actually that was the original goal is to go into Everest base camp
But that involves you've probably heard about the airstrip in Lukla
(15:15):
Which is like the world's only airstrip that goes uphill because if you can't stop the plane you'll plunge off a cliff on the other side
It's a very dangerous airport so we spent a couple of days waiting at the airport in Kathmandu for our flight out to Lukla
There were no flights going it was far too dangerous the weather was too bad to go there
(15:40):
So then we cooked up a different track with our guide and that's how I happened to go to Langtang and a lake called Gozai Khunda
Yeah I've heard all about that airstrip I actually I forgot I don't know if I call this a hike or I call it more of a mountaineer
But I interviewed the youngest female to ever summit Mount Everest and she talked all about that airstrip for sure
(16:05):
Other question when it comes to going to Kathmandu I guess a moment of levity on that on that flight how many times did you listen to the Bob Seeger song?
Okay I don't want to shock you or anything but I don't even know the Bob Seeger song about Kathmandu
Really? It literally says I'm going to Kathmandu if I ever get out of here that's what I'm going to do so it would have been perfect
(16:28):
Okay yeah Bob Seeger and me I'll check it out but thanks for the reminder
You're welcome it's only about 40 years old so you had a couple chances but you'll I'm sure you'll listen to it now it's almost perfect
So you got to go back now just so you can listen to the song as you're heading there
Yeah okay you know I listen to the song maybe I'll book a flight
There you go I want to ask you now because you know I've talked to a lot of travelers and most of them won't answer this question
(16:54):
But you had it on your list so apparently you're going to what's your favorite place you've ever went?
Well you know I know this is a boring response but right after I graduated from college I didn't have any immediate plans
So I signed up for French language lessons at the Allianz Francaise in Paris
(17:15):
And you know it remains the most exciting transformational destination that I ever went to
Because I was you know just a couple months removed from walking across the stage with my diploma and my English major
No idea what I was going to do in life and I felt like I kind of needed to hit the pause button and think
(17:40):
Like who am I? What does the world mean to me? What kind of jobs am I going to be looking for?
I didn't want to just like jump right into some office somewhere or some job that I didn't love
I needed to figure it out a little bit and by hitting the pause button and spending six months in Paris
My French got a lot better I ate a lot of really good food and I also I felt more grounded
(18:07):
Like that I had an adventure and I was going to use it as a springboard into an adventurous life
And Paris worked for me that way and I still love to go back there
And you know I was in ecstasy while watching the opening ceremonies for the Olympics last summer
Because there's so many of the places that I knew and loved in Paris
I came up on that montage of the athletes going through Paris on the river Seine
(18:32):
So that is my number one go-to place I love the French language I love French food
I'm a major cheese eater all those things line me up as kind of a perfect tourist in France
I love that and you you answer that one pretty easily let's let's go on the flip side
You know I never I'm not going to ask what your least favorite place you've been to
(18:54):
Maybe some place that you're like I've been I don't need to go back
Gosh you know I'm a pretty appreciative traveler
Okay I've got one for you everybody loves to go to Las Vegas I don't love Vegas
It's too artificial it's a city that's built on water that they stole from other places like Colorado
(19:17):
There's that whole mafia angle to it
Casinos are big horrible places where people spend way too much money that they don't have
I don't like the whole idea of Las Vegas as a place people go to misbehave
I'm not a misbehaving person
You know what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas for me because nothing happens in Vegas
(19:39):
Except for cheap food and wonder why all those people are wasting their money gambling
So that's my big negative Vegas you can have it
I'll take it because I'm going to Vegas in 10 days
I go every February but no I'm not I'm not the typical Vegas person
I actually we have a family member who lives there and so it's a really cheap trip for us because we don't pay any
(20:04):
We just play to fly there
I like to collect like the one dollar chips so that sends me to all these different casinos to look at them
But I normally go for a week and I probably spend about $40 gambling so I'm not somebody who spends a bunch of money
You can get out and go to Death Valley and we go to some of the national parks in Utah
(20:26):
So there's a lot to do around there but yeah if you're just wasting time not ever seeing the daylight in the casinos
I agree it wouldn't be all that much fun
You know and I should say that I myself have used Las Vegas as a jumping off point for lots of adventures
That's where my family and I started you know a big loop that we did through the national parks starting at the Grand Canyon
(20:52):
And Bryce and Zion, Capitol Reef, all the big ones that you can reach easily from Vegas
But I thought it would be hilarious to have this amazing natural experience and then spend two nights in Vegas on our way out
And it was in fact hilarious both of my sons are big poker players
(21:14):
They weren't allowed to play in Vegas because they're too young but they really dug the vibe of the casinos
We ate like I said a lot of cheap food because that's part of how Vegas runs
And it was pretty hilarious to have an entirely unnatural experience after having two weeks of major nature
I can only imagine that for sure yeah in a much smaller scale I did that
(21:41):
We went out to Death Valley one day and you know saw all of all that's to be offered there really really cool place
And then we immediately came back and did a tour of the neon sign museum
So from Death Valley to millions of neon lights it was interesting so I like that
I like the way you travel that sounds great
(22:02):
For sure for sure so you know you mentioned one of your favorite travel memories
I've got to ask you because you didn't mention this but you've talked about it in some of your writing where
Tell us you peed into a volcano what's going on there?
Yeah right after see right after I graduated from college I had friends who had entered the Peace Corps
(22:26):
And they were serving in Congo so you know I thought would I ever have a better opportunity to travel in Africa
Than to go visit friends who were actually you know hunkered down in the west the east coast of east part of Congo
So I flew to Nairobi traveled overland with them through Uganda to get to the east part of Congo
(22:50):
And then we got there everybody was abuzz because this volcano called Nirogongo had just erupted
And it was probably 40 miles from where my friends were serving so you know pretty quickly we put it on our agenda
We're going to go to Nirogongo so we traveled there by bus we hire a local guide you know he was probably about 4 foot 5 inches tall
(23:19):
He was a Tutsi I think the Tutsis are the small ones the smaller it's you know it's a group of people who are small in stature
This guy was you know was absolutely an amazing physical specimen he carried our packs for us
He you know he made sure that we made it back from this trip but anyway he set up camp for us
(23:41):
Maybe a mile away from where the volcano is erupting so we had our breakfast that morning including plenty of coffee
And then walked into the volcano and you know in the morning nature calls
So you know I kind of shooed my friends off and you know I unholstered to take a leak
And it was the most astonishing thing in the world because the crust of the earth there where the volcano was erupting
(24:09):
Maybe was 2 feet thick very porous so you know my pee immediately soaked right into the ground
There was a brief pause and then this cloud of urine steam flew up around me
And it was just like the most surprising thing that ever happened to me while urinating
(24:30):
And it was also just cool because there were streams of lava all around us
The air was thick with sulfur smoke which smelled terrible but I felt like the aslbub or the devil might appear at any moment
It was really a kind of primordial experience and also yes a primordial pee
You know I've asked a lot of questions and I've also been asked a lot of questions in 200 episodes
(24:57):
But it would take me a while if somebody asked me what is the craziest experience you've had while peeing
But you've got one right on the ready so I like it
That's the story of my life you know to make something really great out of something you know kind of every day
Yeah and I another thing that you I know kind of focus on that I really really enjoy speaking to people with about
(25:21):
Is you know in your travels you also really like to experience the cuisine and I'm huge on you know food brings people together
And you know I did a whole episode with the guy that created diners and drive ins and dives about just how crazy the cuisine in the United States is
About mixing everything together we don't really have our own true cuisine
(25:44):
So I just love talking about you know kind of that and I you know in my travels I've dealt with that a lot where you have traveled solo several times
And just being invited you know to sit with people and learn about cuisine I think that's a huge thing
Huge long-winded question of just asking about some of your favorite cuisine you've had while traveling
(26:07):
Yeah so one time I was in in Fort Myers near Fort Myers visiting a buddy of mine who is the the novelist Randy Wayne White
He he publishes a series of books called Doc Watson I believe it's Doc something anyway so I was there with Randy and
(26:28):
You know he said you want to get some oysters and I was like I love oysters sure I'd love to do that and he said no
Do you want to go out in my boat and get some oysters so we put together you know all of our snorkeling gear
Went out onto the bay outside of Fort Myers and he has some favorite oyster places and the oysters tend to grow
(26:50):
Near the mangroves because they find good places for them to attach so you know we we took his motorboat out
He sent me over the edge and with a hammer in a in a pry bar which you know did a good job of dragging me to the bottom of the ocean
Kind of troubling but I was able to dislodge a chunk of oysters it was about the size of our head of my head
(27:16):
And you know bring it back up to the surface Randy hoisted me back up over the gunwales of the boat
And we spent 45 minutes hammering away at the oysters and cracking them open with the oyster cracker and believe me
Those squirmy fresh live oysters in that boat you know we bought he brought cocktail sauce and lemons to squeeze on them
(27:39):
It was about the most delicious thing I've ever eaten where those oysters straight from the ocean bottom
But that's just that's just one of my my food tales I'm a major chow hound I love to eat
So it's kind of amazing that I don't weigh 300 pounds but I'm grateful that I don't
Yeah we could that could have been a perfect little bow tie where you talked about you just talked about
(28:04):
Going to the bathroom by a volcano we're talking about oysters you live in Colorado I thought this was going to be oysters of the Rocky Mountain variety
Now you know I've never had Rocky Mountain oysters but I'm I mean I'm a carnivore I eat all kinds of things
The whole the idea of eating bull testicles does not appeal so I think that you know there are only two foods that I try to avoid
(28:29):
Bull testicles successful so far and okra I mean I like it in gumbo but that's about the only way
So you know every other food I'm for it testicles okra forget it you know I'm with you with the okra and I can eat it in gumbo too
I was just in in New Orleans and I can handle it in a gumbo but yeah I'm not an okra fan
(28:50):
The only food I try to avoid is olives I hate that like the plague I'd eat anything else I actually have had Rocky Mountain oysters
And breaded and dipped in cocktail sauce it's pretty good so you you can try it
Yeah even even okra tastes good fried so yeah
They certainly do let's let's kind of cover let's let's get into I told you not to mention some of the interesting people that have
(29:20):
You've dealt with on your travels and in two of those people one was Matt Damon I think that you were you were doing
I don't know whether it was during your men's health time or whether it was Barack Obama that you were dealing with during that time
But talk about both of those stories just throwing out that you either traveled or did a piece on Matt Damon and Barack Obama is is not nothing
(29:44):
Yeah it was two of the cool things that have happened to me in my life yeah so with Matt Damon it was yeah I was the editor of Men's Health magazine
And so I would be fielding a certain amount of phone calls from press people etc.
Making proposals as to who we should put on the cover of the magazine and one day this guy from LA called up and said
(30:05):
You know hey Peter we were wondering if you would like to travel to India to do a cover story for Men's Health on Matt Damon
And we had never put Matt on the cover of Men's Health he's obviously a guy who a lot of guys admire including me
So it didn't take a long time for me to say let's see now do I want to go to India with Matt Damon the answer was yes
(30:28):
I went through a whole rigmarole because I was in kind of a hurry to pick up my visa to be able to fly to India
So you know I actually had to sneak into the Indian consulate in New York
I was at the end of a line of 300 people getting visas one day and I was pretty sure I wasn't going to make it at the front of that line
(30:49):
So I had the bright idea to go in the back door of the building where the consulate was
Walk up eight floors to where the Indian consulate was located at that time and knock on the door the back door of the consulate
And somebody opened it and said yeah and I said yeah I need to come in so I walked in I cut the line of 300 people got my visa stamped
(31:10):
And two days later I was flying to India and I eventually ended up in Mumbai which is in southern India
I'm sorry in Chennai in southern India and I walked into the cafeteria in this hotel and you know somehow you just don't expect to walk into the cafeteria and see Matt Damon sitting there
He waves me over super friendly guy and we spend a week traveling around to visit places that his charity water.org was servicing
(31:39):
So it was super cool to be obviously hanging with Matt he's a natural storyteller
People I guess I must have at least some resemblance to Matt Damon because people thought I was his brother traveling with him obviously his older brother
But it was just one of those kind of amazing experiences getting to know somebody who's very much in the public eye
(32:05):
You know I was more used to seeing him as Jason Bourne than I was as my travel companion
But you know there are benefits to traveling with Matt Damon and it gets you in some places that you wouldn't get into otherwise
Sure and I feel like traveling it's either would be easier or harder with someone like that especially in India where I feel like you can be Matt Damon or you can be Joe Schmoe
(32:28):
You know the Indian people really like to meet Caucasian people from America so it's kind of an interesting thing where you're famous regardless
So that was probably you I feel like you would have gotten some stares regardless of who you're with so you're like is this because it's Matt Damon or is it because I'm here?
Yeah I was co-famous with Matt Damon for exactly one week
(32:51):
Yeah then we resumed our normal lives and you know and I'm nobody and he's somebody but he was a great guy
His charity water.org is an amazing one and is bringing water to people all over the world you know so it's a crucial element for life
And you know I give Matt a ton of credit for throwing himself in on that
(33:14):
While you were talking I typed in Matt Damon I get hopefully maybe I'll interview interview him sometime and this will this will make him upset but I always get him and Mark Wahlberg confused
They're back and forth to me but yeah I know who Matt Damon is
Somebody I don't confuse with somebody else talk about how you something with Barack Obama
(33:35):
Yeah so I was you know again this is during my men's health days and I was sitting at my desk I was preparing to go out for a run that day at lunch because exercise is mandatory if you work for Men's Health Magazine
So I just thought well why don't I just send an email off to the White House press office proposing Barack Obama for the cover of Men's Health obviously super fit guy
(33:59):
He was a candidate for president at that time I knew that he was having trouble finding men who would vote for him women were all over Barack Obama but men were like maybe not
So I made the pitch Men's Health goes out to 20 million men in the US is read by 20 million men in the US every month
(34:23):
The the president or candidate Obama is a physically fit guy. He kind of belongs on the cover of Men's Health and you know I'll be so I went out for my run I sent off the email went out for my run came back and there was an immediate response saying oh yeah absolutely
(34:44):
We want him to be on the cover of Men's Health then a couple years later. You know again it was Obama care was much in the news at that point people were debating health care a lot and I thought this is a great a moment.
This is a great opportunity for me to repitch the president again the White House responded immediately and they added a cherry on top they said well you guys do women's health right I said yeah they said well you want to talk to Michelle Obama too.
(35:12):
So in the course of two weeks one summer you know I went to the White House twice once to talk to the president and the second time to talk to the first lady and I was like pinching myself the whole time it's like don't they know who I am but they invited me anyway because I worked for a big magazine and it was you know among the most treasured memories of my journalism career.
(35:35):
That's awesome. Yeah, don't they know who you are you're Matt Damon's brother right.
Yeah, my brother with a different name and a different mother, but yeah, that's right. Well that's cool and what what I guess what it what was that like I mean you obviously it was a surreal experience but did you I mean how much time did you get what what were you, what were you talking about
(35:56):
with both of them. Yeah, so I interviewed the president first and you know I spent about an hour sweating in a park across from the White House, thinking, can't believe I'm going in there to talk to the president of the United States I mean I've interviewed a ton of celebrities in my life
but nobody's a celebrity like the president is. So I walked up to the, you know, those little guard houses that you see on the West Wing and said, I'm here for a meeting with the president. They took my name. Yes, head right in Mr. Moore.
(36:26):
So, I spent some time hanging out in the, in the press room. They finally called me upstairs and I was hanging out with the president's press aids, and you know finally the phone rang, you know, we're ready for for Peter now.
And I was sitting and looked down this very long hallway in the White House. You know it was lined with portraits of presidents and busts of important people, but way down at the end of the hallway, I can see this lanky black man leaning against, you know, a desk and
(36:57):
a bunch of staff members there. And it was just like, it was a view I never expected to have with, you know, Barack Obama directly in front of me, and I was walking arduously took forever to walk down this long hallway, but the president stood up and shook my hand
and said, I'm happy to see you again, meaning that his AIDS had prepped him for the fact that he had I had already spoken during his campaign. So, you know, I was I was returning to Barack Obama, but having the president walk ahead of you and throw open the
(37:32):
Oval Office was just like a room I never expected to find myself in. They showed me to a chair, you know, you know that chair where like the ambassador sits when he's talking to the president. That was a chair I was in.
And I remember looking at the president's face and right over him was one of those fancy grandfather clocks that they have in the Oval Office and I thought, oh my god I need to make the most of my time here.
(37:55):
So, I probably had 20 minutes with the president, which, you know, given that he's president for four years at a time, that's actually quite a long time for me, and I was loaded up with questions about about health care in the US, his own personal
experience of it is experience with his mom in in what he hoped Obamacare would mean to the men who read men's health.
(38:20):
And, you know, depending on how you feel about Barack Obama, it wouldn't surprise a lot of people to hear that he was super thoughtful and gracious answering my question.
We talked a little bit about his own wrestling match with a being a smoker, and, you know, in in how hard it is to quit that and the sympathy that he has for people who are trying to do that and in general, just realizing that health is a fraught subject for so many
(38:48):
people, especially in our country, and he was trying to do something about it. So it was an amazing time, I had to get home and bang out the cover story and in a couple of days, which was a challenge.
But, you know, I also had a lot of fresh memories of how cool it was to be sitting in the Oval Office with Barack Obama.
For sure. Did you get, did you get any pictures and you had every many memories other than in your mind.
(39:10):
Yeah, I've got a photo, it's not nearby here, like, I can hold it up for you right, you know, a picture of, of me sitting looking kind of like amazed with the president gesturing and mid conversation and I've got that photo up in my living room,
and I was amazed with a photo of Michelle Obama with her arm around me. And it's not just that she had her arm around me, she was kind of digging her hand into my right hip.
(39:41):
So you can see like where the shirt is creased and I thought, well I made a good impression on the first lady because she was giving me a major side hug there.
Yeah, I love that. Are you at all involved with men's health, men's health anymore.
I'm occasionally they threw me out in 2015, because I was making too much money I was the editor, they were having budgetary problems so that was it for me.
(40:05):
But I was ready to leave men's health at that time anyway I worked there for 20 years at the, at the point that they let me go. And, you know, I had other adventures in life that I had to go pursue.
So, thank you very much men's health, I'm out of here and so I was.
I was just wondering if they're going to be putting our current president on the cover for for for health reasons.
(40:28):
Yeah, it would be a whole different story with with with President Trump for sure.
Yeah, all sorts of mental and physical health things that we could explore with him, but from what I understand it at least. He doesn't drink alcohol.
So, so that's one health benefit in his favor.
No, that's that's true and I'm not surprised to hear the thoughtfulness of, of President Obama you know I've talked to a lot I talked to a guy that was the was in the White House press corps and through like four presidents and regardless of what people's
(41:03):
personal opinions are, you know, he had been from HW all the way through Trump. And, you know, it's no it's no question that Obama is probably the most thoughtful whether you agree with any of his thoughts that's that's that's another thing entirely.
Yeah, let's let's let's talk about.
I want to kind of go into a little bit more about your, your travel and how it coincides with with journalism.
(41:33):
I guess I want to ask you, do you, given that you've done a lot of travel for pieces and traveling the way you then had to to write a story about it.
Has helped your travel experiences or heard it, you can, I can see it both ways where, you know, it really makes you notice every little thing because you know you're going to have to write about it again.
(41:56):
Or the other side of.
I can't just sit back and enjoy things because I've got to think of how does this work for my story has, is this going to fit into my piece.
And how does it work for you to write about kind of coming to terms with getting to travel but also having to document it.
You know, I do a lot of travel that I'm not writing about as well. So, you know, I'm, I've sat in many beautiful places, drinking a margarita thinking, I am so glad not to be working now, but it almost, you know, it's an echo of what I was talking about with
(42:32):
that. There's a certain level of anxiety that I have.
Whenever I have a story that I have to write. So that makes me prepare for a trip in a whole different way, meaning I'm seeking out sources beforehand asking what's important about the trip.
I'm going to be talking about to other people who've taken in the same trip that I have.
So they can give me any tips that they might have. And then when I'm on the trip. You know, I'm a walking eyeball. It's like, I'll talk to anybody. I want to get a ton of perspectives, you never know who's going to share an anecdote with you that
(43:01):
is going to work perfectly for the lead of a story. So, it's a different kind of reconnaissance that I do before I'm writing a travel piece than I would do when it's just, you know, my wife and me cruising on the Danube, you know, we went on a cruise last
September down the Danube from Budapest, finally made it to Istanbul. And that was more about, you know, the food on the ship, the wine steward with his endless pours, the cool people that we met on board and plus being in a part of the world I'd never been to.
(43:38):
So that is a very relaxing thing for me, as opposed to if I'm doing the story.
I really want to nail all the details, so that I can bring them back to people will be reading about for me and make the make the destination vivid. And I'm used to processing things through my writing.
(44:01):
I've been a journal keeper my whole adult life, six million words worth. So I'm always documenting everything that's going on in my life. And when I'm doing travel journalism, it's just heightened, because I'm bringing it out to an audience that with any luck will want
to know what I've done.
And we talked about, obviously some of the big pieces that you've done you know interviewing the president traveling with Matt Damon going to Nepal all these things I'm sure got a lot of eyeballs just because of, you know, their major pieces with major players involved
(44:38):
I always like to ask people, you know that do something on artistic. What's your favorite thing that you've done that maybe didn't get the recognition that you felt like it deserved you spent a lot of time, whether it was thinking about it or you spent a lot
of time researching it's been a lot of times in your travel, and it just doesn't, you're really proud of it but maybe very few people saw it.
(45:02):
You know, I don't know if this perfectly fits in the category you're talking about but probably three or four years ago I made a transition to adding artwork to what I do meaning sketches drawings cartoons.
And at that time I pitched backpacker on a story called the best point seven ounce addition to your hiking gear. And of course that point seven ounces was a pencil.
(45:32):
And I talked about how, as I developed my skills as an artist, how bringing artistic materials pencils watercolors paper, my iPad, and I pencil.
And those things, incorporating those into my travel kit has made a huge difference about what kind of traveler I am, because, you know, I tended, you know, you go to Nepal and you're on a track and every day you're moving through, you know, 10 miles on the track
(46:03):
and it's like being bombarded with sensation, as opposed to when I go on a hike now, and I have my pencil and paper with me. I'll find that comfortable log to sit on in front of an amazing view and document it so that I'm sitting there.
You know, could be for 15 minutes could be for an hour depending on how complicated the drawing is to really take in what I'm seeing and filter it through my own artwork. And I feel like it's kind of an underappreciated travel technique is to go someplace
(46:36):
and draw it. And the first time I ever, I ever saw anybody do that was I was on a family wedding, and my sister in law, brought her little watercolor kit and was said it was seated in this really cool town square in San Antonio, rendering it in
watercolor, and I think that moment looking over her shoulder and seeing how she was filtering this amazing city scene in front of her. I thought, I want to do that, and it launched me in a whole different direction in my career, which has been super gratifying.
(47:10):
And also I feel like it's improved me as a traveler as well.
I like that a lot and you've, you've kind of incorporated my next question into things that is about your, your, your, if you weren't interesting enough now that you're you're also a cartoonist but I want to know a little bit about more about what
that means obviously you, you got inspired from somebody who was doing watercolor talked about traveling and in drawing what you see but how exactly do you incorporate that into, whether it's your your pieces or I don't know whether it's always
(47:43):
the only drawing when you're also writing, you know words with it or whether that's ever just kind of the entire work or what's that look like.
Well, you know it's it's something I'm trying to move into now, and you know, I was known as a health editor and you know the guy who talked to Obama. So, it was.
And I still get a lot of assignments that way but I'm trying to do is transition into the ones that, like the backpacker piece would be not only me writing about the destination I've been to, but would incorporate my drawings into it as well.
(48:15):
So, you know, after I got into this for a little while, a friend of mine recommended that I go on sub stack, which are you familiar with the blogging platform sub stack.
Yeah, so I have a sub stack it's Peter more sub stack calm, and I used it as a leverage point for me to show my artwork and my writing at the same point at the same time.
(48:38):
And, you know, I had, like a lot of people I kind of dribbled along for a couple years with 100 or 200 subscribers and, you know, it was felt like possibly a waste of time, except for it quickly grew into my travel cartooning
portfolio. So I was able to then turn around to is a very big online newspaper in Colorado called the Colorado Sun, and based on all the, all the stuff that I did accumulated in in Peter more sub stack calm, I was able to say to her.
(49:11):
I'm a writer and a cartoonist, you can see my work here. What I want to do is to make fun of living in Colorado for Colorado for the Colorado Sun, and I, you know, picture on a few ideas.
She got back to me in a couple days and said we would love to have you do this. So the first cartoon I ever did for the Colorado Sun was.
(49:34):
There's a major and at the end of September, there is the time of the elk rut, where the bull elks are gathering together harems of lady elk impregnating them they're pregnant all all winter, and then they give birth in the spring.
And it occurred to me that it was a funny idea to think of all of the tourism that's involved in watching the elk rut is really a massive invasion of privacy if you're an elk.
(50:01):
So I did a cartoon based on the idea that it is highly improper for human beings to go watch some other species mate, how would we feel if elk came into our bedrooms and watched us mate, we wouldn't like it.
So I did this cartoon for the Colorado Sun. The readers loved it and launched me into my professional careers cartoonist, and I never did actually, I might have forgotten to mention to the editor who hired me that I had never done anything like this before.
(50:33):
But the reader response was immediate and so good that, you know, I know I'm now I'm a cartoonist and columnist for the Colorado Sun, and based on my work there.
Front Range NPR, which it's always a big deal to have an NPR gig hired me as a commentator and animator. So you can see my work on k unc.org slash Peter Moore, where I, where I do funny commentaries on, you know, again,
(51:02):
various topics about life in Colorado, but put animations with it, which is, you know, a huge bonus for their social media people, because that's a great way to to gain eyeballs and clicks.
If you can put an animation with what you write. So all that has been a thrill for me how that's developed. It's been a lot of fun.
And really at this point in my career, I just want to have fun.
(51:25):
I think that's really really amazing for sure I feel like I can't help but think there's a joke in there somewhere if you are already a cartoonist for NPR somebody who's a cartoonist fit for radio I don't know what that's what that means right.
Yeah, I am a face fit for radio and I'm also a animator fit for radio to robust website so lots of people come there to see him listen to my work to.
(51:49):
For sure. So yeah, I feel like you're, you're doing a great job of kind of moving into those those next questions and that the kind of the last one is just, we talked a lot about your, your career and it's expansive but where where are you sitting now it sounds like you,
you do the cartoonist thing for the Colorado son you do the NPR thing.
(52:12):
Where's Peter more right now. Well, you know, part of the reason why I launched my sub stack was I was trying to convince a book agent.
To take on an illustrated memoir that I wrote during the covert time or began writing during covert. So, really what I would love to do is the key is to maintain these cartooning and drawing and writing gigs, while I also launch a, a series of memoirs that are based on
(52:37):
my travels. One of my most popular posts on sub stack was a post called Vincent and me and was about a trip that my wife and I took in France, basically chasing Vincent Van Gogh all over the country, everywhere we went had a Van Gogh angle to it.
And I had a funny idea on my sub stack was that I was going to figure out who in Van Gogh's circle actually killed him.
(53:07):
When he was in San Rumi.
And I thought, you know, there's nothing as inconvenient as a living artist because he's going to want to be paid himself. Once he's dead, then he can become one of the all time greats as Van Gogh did.
(53:30):
So it may not seem funny to be writing about Van Gogh's sister in law murdering him, but it was, you know, 40,000 people saw that that post stated on sub stack and it really launched me into a whole new realm there.
I think I could ask you questions for, for at least double the amount of time we've already talked but no I really really appreciate your time in wrapping things up. Shout out anything you want to shout out whether it's your your page on the sun whether it's your sub stack to shout out all your
(54:01):
connection points. Yeah, I would love it if people look me up at Peter more sub stack calm all of the work that I do eventually ends up there.
So that's the best way to get a look at, you know, a traveling cartoonist, if that such a thing exists, I'm him, and you can see it on sub stack.
Yeah, well thank you so much, Peter. Thank you. You're welcome.
(54:24):
Hi, I'm Peter Moore, absolutely amazing guy you this was a conversation that I knew what I was getting myself into but I don't think I knew just how cool it would be. I knew that he was a cartoonist I knew that he was a writer in the past I knew that he had traveled to a lot of really
that was enough for me and and just to hear so much more. I, I guess I kind of knew that he had some kind of connection with Matt Damon and with Barack Obama. But I don't think that I knew just how, how cool it was I don't think I knew that he was the editor of
(54:57):
the magazine that's, that's pretty awesome I think I just kind of glazed over that apparently but that that makes this interview even more amazing. I think you can, you can hear my excitement just in listening and and in talking with Peter, I couldn't even imagine what
it would be like to drive up to the White House and say I'm here for my interview with the president. That would be quite the undertaking for sure. I sure that went really really awesome Peter is an amazing amazing guy.
(55:28):
So I'm going to leave out all of his, his links I know that he's got a sub stack all that kind of stuff the links to all things Peter Moore will be in the show notes. This your first time listening or you haven't already go leave a five star rating on Apple or Spotify, leave a written
review on Apple helps a ton. Go follow along on Instagram and on TikTok not enough podcast, not enough for Jackson up on Facebook all those places but we'll see you next week.
(55:55):
This has been Not in a Huff with Jackson Huff. Thank you for listening. Be sure to join us next time where we will interview another amazing guest who is sure to make you laugh or make you think, or hey, maybe even both. But until then, keep being awesome.
I interviewed the president first and you know I spent about an hour sweating in a park across from the White House
(00:06):
Thinking I can't believe I'm going in there to talk to the president of the United States
I mean, I've interviewed a ton of celebrities in my life, but nobody's a celebrity like the president is
Welcome to not in a huff with Jackson huff where we interview newsmakers
storytellers and all-around interesting people sit back relax
(00:27):
Unless you're driving and enjoy the show. Here's Jackson
I am Jackson huff. This is not enough. Thanks so much for joining me as always really appreciate this week's being with Peter Moore
Now Peter is an amazing guy. You know, I I had him on mainly to talk about travel
I've had a lot of travelers on before he's been to a lot of really really amazing places. He kind of
(00:53):
specializes in
in backpacking he actually was a
editor for backpacker magazine
so
Great guy to talk to about travel as I as I told him I had someone on who did a lot of
Hiking and backpacking on the West Coast in Oregon and Washington. I had on
Early on in the podcast somebody who had hiked the entire Appalachian Trail, which is on the East Coast
(01:19):
So him based in Colorado
I thought this would be a great a great person to talk about the middle of the country to kind of meet in the middle there
And and he certainly did talk about that
but I'll tell you this conversation gets really really awesome because what I didn't really know ahead of time is that he
used to be the editor of
(01:40):
Men's health magazine. So we talked about some of the travels that he's done because of that he went to India and
Traveled with Matt Damon and then we talked about him and his interviews
He's done for Men's Health magazine with former President Obama and Michelle Obama
Talked all about just what that was like going to the White House and interviewing the what was the current president
(02:05):
Really really awesome. Obviously that is quite the experience
No matter what your your political leanings are to be able to go into the White House to interview a president is is
Really cool. We're gonna talk about like I said travel his experiences
Interviewing some of the coolest people out there when it comes to just fame level
(02:25):
We're gonna talk about his kind of his new passion that is in being a cartoonist
He he still writes articles, but he includes
Pictures that he's drawn along with those to to supplement what he's writing
So I really think you're gonna enjoy this one
I really really enjoyed speaking with that with Peter here is Peter Moore. So more. How are you? I'm doing great. Thanks
(02:48):
How about you? I'm good. I'm gonna let you do the heavy lifting right out the gate. Just introduce yourself
Well, my name is Peter Moore and I'm a writer and cartoonist
I live in Fort Collins, Colorado and I come out of a long career as a
Magazine and book writer and editor. I love it. We're gonna unpack all that for sure and I want to kind of start
(03:09):
I guess the big thing we're gonna talk about today is your travels
You've done a lot of that and then your your journalism career
I guess tell us how you got involved in in both before we kind of unpack some of the cool things you've done in them both
Yeah, my dad was a
Devoted to the National Geographic. It was the first magazine that I ever read, you know, even before I could read
(03:34):
I was looking for the photographs and not geo and my dad would be reading
National Geographic and say I want to go there and that's how we ended up
touring Switzerland and two Volkswagen Beetles when I was I had a big family four brothers mom and dad
Traveled around Switzerland and France and Italy in these two Volkswagen Beetles, you know
(03:59):
We were always going off on adventures to the Grand Canyon
To Cape Cod, Nantucket. So I was you know raised as a traveler
You know, even when I was probably six years old we drove from Connecticut to Wyoming
Which took us three days and I was vomiting most of the way because I was facing backward in the station wagon that we had
(04:21):
at the time
But even vomiting all the way to Wyoming. I still thought it was super cool to arrive at Yellowstone
So, I you know, I guess you could say travel has been in my blood
My journalism career came about I was an English major in college
If you can believe that you know back in the day when you could be an English major and you know still expect to have a
Good life, but early on I decided that you know
(04:45):
I just felt like I needed to make some money and have a legit career rather than you know
sitting alone in my room and working on bad novels, so
Right after I graduated my dad had a contact for me with a
With an editor who was working on a project about American history and he needed somebody, me, to write American history in
(05:07):
100, 250 word bursts and that was how I began my career as a writer and editor
And you know, I soon jumped into magazines and you know worked for some very large legendary
magazines like Playboy and Men's Health
And Backpacker
So, you know, it's it's been a great career and I'm very grateful to have had it
(05:28):
You know, I've always say that working as a writer and editor is like the career equivalent of a liberal arts education
You're always learning something new
I think that's awesome. And I love that, you know, the the passion came from National Geographic
I feel like I've talked to a lot of travelers and I feel like everyone mentions that at some point
Actually a few weeks ago
I interviewed a guy who had been to a hundred plus countries
(05:51):
And his other kind of side thing was that he collects National Geographic and you know, he showed me on camera that he has
Issue number one almost through the whole thing
So I feel like that sparked a lot of people's interest in travel that that National Geographic magazine, hasn't it?
Yeah, I mean it shrinks the world for you. It brings it to your doorstep once a month
I love Nat Geo and you know, I can remember one time my dad was reading about whales and that's how we you know
(06:18):
Like what family actually goes to the country of whales, but we were staying in a hotel on the you know
On the ocean front in Wales traveling around, you know
My dad recited Crossing the Bar Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem that was based that that he wrote when he was staying in Barmouth
That's the kind of full rap cultural experience I would get I got out of being my dad's son
(06:40):
Yeah, well, I got a a different experience with whales and the other thing that I would get is
I would get a different experience with whales and the other kind of whales when I'm seeing National Geographic and and seeing you know
Whales on the cover there made me want to go somewhere where I could see you know, do a whale watching tour
So that that sent me to Iceland like five years ago. So we both have different whales that we've we've
(07:05):
Tried to go see right? Yeah. Well, I've seen them off of the
The tip of Cape Cod. I've seen them off of Nantucket
And there's all those Nathaniel Philbrick books that talk about whaling and the history of that
I'm a big fan of those books as well. So I'm with you on the whale watch
I like it and I want to kind of talk about you talked about how you you've written for backpacker magazine
(07:28):
So you've done you've got at least a little bit of interest in in the world of hiking and I thought you you may
And I and I should ask you beforehand because this may not go as well
But you may have kind of that perfect middle ground because I've talked to two people that have done big hikes
I talked to someone who did the entire Appalachian Trail. So we're talking East Coast
(07:48):
I talked to somebody who did like a trail from California to Washington. So I've got West Coast
I know you've done a lot of writing like in Colorado
So if you can if you're split in the middle and doing a lot of your your backpacking in like Colorado
Then it's perfect there, but I don't know if that's the case. I'm your perfect guest
I've done a ton of
(08:09):
Hiking trips. I'm kind of an expert if you would allow me to say that about the 10th Mountain Division huts
Which are a circle of 25 or 30 huts that are in, you know
The central mountainous region of Colorado and it's been kind of a lifelong pursuit for me to go to as many huts of those
As possible. So I've done a lot of backpacking a lot of
(08:31):
Amazing hikes in Colorado. So if you want to talk Colorado mountains, I'm right there for you
Yeah, so what kind of hiking do you do? Are you somebody who does these day trips?
Are you the the really really adventurous ones like I've talked to before that, you know go out for
Weeks on end and completely rough it. What's that look like?
Hey, I'm a hiker, but I'm not crazy. I you know, I like to have a shower every couple days. So
(08:54):
You know, most of my backpacking trips have been in the week or shorter
Variety which is about the right length of time for me. I haven't felt any need to walk from Maine to Georgia or vice versa
But I have a dot. I've done a lot of the Appalachian Trail. I've done a lot of the Continental Divide Trail in Colorado
so
(09:15):
I just like to be out there and then you know
After a decent interval go to a restaurant and then take a shower
That makes sense. What's the because I feel like you know, obviously
People know about the the scenery and they and then they know the hard parts of obviously this the
The trek is is difficult. So we know the good we know
(09:35):
Potentially the bad but there's something to be said obviously for for physical activity
But the thing that I've taught when I've talked to hikers before that they really talk about is kind of just the
Mental health aspect of being out there. I don't know whether you travel you hike
You know with a large group or you hike alone, but
What have you gained when it comes to just you between the ears being able to go out and be in nature?
(09:58):
Well, you know, I just wrote a piece for backpacker
Called is death a good hiking buddy and the idea being
How does the the threat to you enhance your experience being in the great outdoors and mostly what I was writing about and thinking about there
Was a a two-day hike I took to climb Long's Peak in Colorado, which is kind of a notorious peak because
(10:26):
You know three or four times a year somebody will fall off a cliff while they're climbing Long's Peak and I was
I was really aware while I was planning this trip that you know, it could be my last hike
I didn't want it to be that in my preparation match with the
Anxiety there and in fact, I made it up to the top of Long's Peak
(10:48):
It was an amazing final two mile hike to get up there because very often I was teetering on the edge of cliffs and
You know climbing up refrigerator sized rocks and you know looking down into the valley below which was a thousand feet below my ankles
So that kind of threat for me as long as I'm prepared for it as long as I'm
(11:10):
I've recruited good hiking buddies, which I did on that hike. I feel like the risk involved can bring a big reward in the
Feeling of accomplishment that you have but also the feeling of attentiveness you have when you're on the trail
Meaning if I don't be very careful with these footholds and handholds
I could fall into the valley and that would be it and you know
(11:33):
I would really not look forward to experiencing that final five seconds of climbing
As I was hurtling toward the earth
Yeah, I would imagine so. I don't know if I would make the best hiker because it took about 30 years to realize it
But you know I was hiking, walking along the edge of the Grand Canyon in Arizona
(12:00):
And I realized I got a little bit I think I might be a little afraid of heights. I don't know if I would be your best hiking buddy so don't bring me along
You know everybody finds their challenges in life that they're suited for. I'm not an acrophobe or a norgoraphobe so being in the great outdoors is usually great for me
(12:22):
Yeah, well I want to talk beyond hiking. Let's expand out into the entire world and let's talk about some of your favorite travel stories
You've already talked a little bit about road tripping as a kid and going to Wells and going to Wyoming
Let's set aside some of the cool people that you've met because we're going to get to that one here in a second but some of your favorite travel stories
(12:45):
Yeah, so when I was working at Men's Health magazine I really was in a pretty good position there
You know my work was appreciated. I was high on the masthead so I could do pretty much whatever I wanted
So I talked to my boss into letting me go to Nepal for three weeks
(13:06):
So I recruited a bunch of hiking buddies and flew into Kathmandu which is one of those legendary places
My whole life long, not that I knew a lot about Kathmandu but it was like I want to go there just because it sounds so freaking exotic
So I flew halfway around the world to get to Kathmandu and then we did a trek into the mountains of Nepal
(13:34):
It was called the Langtang Goseikunda trek meaning that the end point of one part of the trek was in Langtang
About nine months after I got back from that trek that was the epicenter of a huge and devastating earthquake in Nepal
So that I had just been through the back country of Nepal with an amazing guide and a group of my buddies
(14:02):
We spent a couple of days in Langtang so I felt like going to tea houses and restaurants there and just walking around on the streets
I felt like we got to know a lot of people whose lives were about to be devastated
I haven't been back to Langtang yet but I keep on waiting hoping I can find a magazine that will send me there
But that was the most spectacular exotic thing I'd ever done including getting blown around a lot by a typhoon
(14:30):
That happened to wander into Nepal even though it wasn't supposed to be there
Which was a lot of misery for a lot of days but there's something about misery that really fixes a trip in your mind
I think of Nepal and misery and the high mountains of Nepal all in a blur for me right now
(14:54):
Two things to ask about that one I thought this trip was going to maybe not completely the peak of Everest but like base camp
You didn't do all of that
Actually that was the original goal is to go into Everest base camp
But that involves you've probably heard about the airstrip in Lukla
(15:15):
Which is like the world's only airstrip that goes uphill because if you can't stop the plane you'll plunge off a cliff on the other side
It's a very dangerous airport so we spent a couple of days waiting at the airport in Kathmandu for our flight out to Lukla
There were no flights going it was far too dangerous the weather was too bad to go there
(15:40):
So then we cooked up a different track with our guide and that's how I happened to go to Langtang and a lake called Gozai Khunda
Yeah I've heard all about that airstrip I actually I forgot I don't know if I call this a hike or I call it more of a mountaineer
But I interviewed the youngest female to ever summit Mount Everest and she talked all about that airstrip for sure
(16:05):
Other question when it comes to going to Kathmandu I guess a moment of levity on that on that flight how many times did you listen to the Bob Seeger song?
Okay I don't want to shock you or anything but I don't even know the Bob Seeger song about Kathmandu
Really? It literally says I'm going to Kathmandu if I ever get out of here that's what I'm going to do so it would have been perfect
(16:28):
Okay yeah Bob Seeger and me I'll check it out but thanks for the reminder
You're welcome it's only about 40 years old so you had a couple chances but you'll I'm sure you'll listen to it now it's almost perfect
So you got to go back now just so you can listen to the song as you're heading there
Yeah okay you know I listen to the song maybe I'll book a flight
There you go I want to ask you now because you know I've talked to a lot of travelers and most of them won't answer this question
(16:54):
But you had it on your list so apparently you're going to what's your favorite place you've ever went?
Well you know I know this is a boring response but right after I graduated from college I didn't have any immediate plans
So I signed up for French language lessons at the Allianz Francaise in Paris
(17:15):
And you know it remains the most exciting transformational destination that I ever went to
Because I was you know just a couple months removed from walking across the stage with my diploma and my English major
No idea what I was going to do in life and I felt like I kind of needed to hit the pause button and think
(17:40):
Like who am I? What does the world mean to me? What kind of jobs am I going to be looking for?
I didn't want to just like jump right into some office somewhere or some job that I didn't love
I needed to figure it out a little bit and by hitting the pause button and spending six months in Paris
My French got a lot better I ate a lot of really good food and I also I felt more grounded
(18:07):
Like that I had an adventure and I was going to use it as a springboard into an adventurous life
And Paris worked for me that way and I still love to go back there
And you know I was in ecstasy while watching the opening ceremonies for the Olympics last summer
Because there's so many of the places that I knew and loved in Paris
I came up on that montage of the athletes going through Paris on the river Seine
(18:32):
So that is my number one go-to place I love the French language I love French food
I'm a major cheese eater all those things line me up as kind of a perfect tourist in France
I love that and you you answer that one pretty easily let's let's go on the flip side
You know I never I'm not going to ask what your least favorite place you've been to
(18:54):
Maybe some place that you're like I've been I don't need to go back
Gosh you know I'm a pretty appreciative traveler
Okay I've got one for you everybody loves to go to Las Vegas I don't love Vegas
It's too artificial it's a city that's built on water that they stole from other places like Colorado
(19:17):
There's that whole mafia angle to it
Casinos are big horrible places where people spend way too much money that they don't have
I don't like the whole idea of Las Vegas as a place people go to misbehave
I'm not a misbehaving person
You know what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas for me because nothing happens in Vegas
(19:39):
Except for cheap food and wonder why all those people are wasting their money gambling
So that's my big negative Vegas you can have it
I'll take it because I'm going to Vegas in 10 days
I go every February but no I'm not I'm not the typical Vegas person
I actually we have a family member who lives there and so it's a really cheap trip for us because we don't pay any
(20:04):
We just play to fly there
I like to collect like the one dollar chips so that sends me to all these different casinos to look at them
But I normally go for a week and I probably spend about $40 gambling so I'm not somebody who spends a bunch of money
You can get out and go to Death Valley and we go to some of the national parks in Utah
(20:26):
So there's a lot to do around there but yeah if you're just wasting time not ever seeing the daylight in the casinos
I agree it wouldn't be all that much fun
You know and I should say that I myself have used Las Vegas as a jumping off point for lots of adventures
That's where my family and I started you know a big loop that we did through the national parks starting at the Grand Canyon
(20:52):
And Bryce and Zion, Capitol Reef, all the big ones that you can reach easily from Vegas
But I thought it would be hilarious to have this amazing natural experience and then spend two nights in Vegas on our way out
And it was in fact hilarious both of my sons are big poker players
(21:14):
They weren't allowed to play in Vegas because they're too young but they really dug the vibe of the casinos
We ate like I said a lot of cheap food because that's part of how Vegas runs
And it was pretty hilarious to have an entirely unnatural experience after having two weeks of major nature
I can only imagine that for sure yeah in a much smaller scale I did that
(21:41):
We went out to Death Valley one day and you know saw all of all that's to be offered there really really cool place
And then we immediately came back and did a tour of the neon sign museum
So from Death Valley to millions of neon lights it was interesting so I like that
I like the way you travel that sounds great
(22:02):
For sure for sure so you know you mentioned one of your favorite travel memories
I've got to ask you because you didn't mention this but you've talked about it in some of your writing where
Tell us you peed into a volcano what's going on there?
Yeah right after see right after I graduated from college I had friends who had entered the Peace Corps
(22:26):
And they were serving in Congo so you know I thought would I ever have a better opportunity to travel in Africa
Than to go visit friends who were actually you know hunkered down in the west the east coast of east part of Congo
So I flew to Nairobi traveled overland with them through Uganda to get to the east part of Congo
(22:50):
And then we got there everybody was abuzz because this volcano called Nirogongo had just erupted
And it was probably 40 miles from where my friends were serving so you know pretty quickly we put it on our agenda
We're going to go to Nirogongo so we traveled there by bus we hire a local guide you know he was probably about 4 foot 5 inches tall
(23:19):
He was a Tutsi I think the Tutsis are the small ones the smaller it's you know it's a group of people who are small in stature
This guy was you know was absolutely an amazing physical specimen he carried our packs for us
He you know he made sure that we made it back from this trip but anyway he set up camp for us
(23:41):
Maybe a mile away from where the volcano is erupting so we had our breakfast that morning including plenty of coffee
And then walked into the volcano and you know in the morning nature calls
So you know I kind of shooed my friends off and you know I unholstered to take a leak
And it was the most astonishing thing in the world because the crust of the earth there where the volcano was erupting
(24:09):
Maybe was 2 feet thick very porous so you know my pee immediately soaked right into the ground
There was a brief pause and then this cloud of urine steam flew up around me
And it was just like the most surprising thing that ever happened to me while urinating
(24:30):
And it was also just cool because there were streams of lava all around us
The air was thick with sulfur smoke which smelled terrible but I felt like the aslbub or the devil might appear at any moment
It was really a kind of primordial experience and also yes a primordial pee
You know I've asked a lot of questions and I've also been asked a lot of questions in 200 episodes
(24:57):
But it would take me a while if somebody asked me what is the craziest experience you've had while peeing
But you've got one right on the ready so I like it
That's the story of my life you know to make something really great out of something you know kind of every day
Yeah and I another thing that you I know kind of focus on that I really really enjoy speaking to people with about
(25:21):
Is you know in your travels you also really like to experience the cuisine and I'm huge on you know food brings people together
And you know I did a whole episode with the guy that created diners and drive ins and dives about just how crazy the cuisine in the United States is
About mixing everything together we don't really have our own true cuisine
(25:44):
So I just love talking about you know kind of that and I you know in my travels I've dealt with that a lot where you have traveled solo several times
And just being invited you know to sit with people and learn about cuisine I think that's a huge thing
Huge long-winded question of just asking about some of your favorite cuisine you've had while traveling
(26:07):
Yeah so one time I was in in Fort Myers near Fort Myers visiting a buddy of mine who is the the novelist Randy Wayne White
He he publishes a series of books called Doc Watson I believe it's Doc something anyway so I was there with Randy and
(26:28):
You know he said you want to get some oysters and I was like I love oysters sure I'd love to do that and he said no
Do you want to go out in my boat and get some oysters so we put together you know all of our snorkeling gear
Went out onto the bay outside of Fort Myers and he has some favorite oyster places and the oysters tend to grow
(26:50):
Near the mangroves because they find good places for them to attach so you know we we took his motorboat out
He sent me over the edge and with a hammer in a in a pry bar which you know did a good job of dragging me to the bottom of the ocean
Kind of troubling but I was able to dislodge a chunk of oysters it was about the size of our head of my head
(27:16):
And you know bring it back up to the surface Randy hoisted me back up over the gunwales of the boat
And we spent 45 minutes hammering away at the oysters and cracking them open with the oyster cracker and believe me
Those squirmy fresh live oysters in that boat you know we bought he brought cocktail sauce and lemons to squeeze on them
(27:39):
It was about the most delicious thing I've ever eaten where those oysters straight from the ocean bottom
But that's just that's just one of my my food tales I'm a major chow hound I love to eat
So it's kind of amazing that I don't weigh 300 pounds but I'm grateful that I don't
Yeah we could that could have been a perfect little bow tie where you talked about you just talked about
(28:04):
Going to the bathroom by a volcano we're talking about oysters you live in Colorado I thought this was going to be oysters of the Rocky Mountain variety
Now you know I've never had Rocky Mountain oysters but I'm I mean I'm a carnivore I eat all kinds of things
The whole the idea of eating bull testicles does not appeal so I think that you know there are only two foods that I try to avoid
(28:29):
Bull testicles successful so far and okra I mean I like it in gumbo but that's about the only way
So you know every other food I'm for it testicles okra forget it you know I'm with you with the okra and I can eat it in gumbo too
I was just in in New Orleans and I can handle it in a gumbo but yeah I'm not an okra fan
(28:50):
The only food I try to avoid is olives I hate that like the plague I'd eat anything else I actually have had Rocky Mountain oysters
And breaded and dipped in cocktail sauce it's pretty good so you you can try it
Yeah even even okra tastes good fried so yeah
They certainly do let's let's kind of cover let's let's get into I told you not to mention some of the interesting people that have
(29:20):
You've dealt with on your travels and in two of those people one was Matt Damon I think that you were you were doing
I don't know whether it was during your men's health time or whether it was Barack Obama that you were dealing with during that time
But talk about both of those stories just throwing out that you either traveled or did a piece on Matt Damon and Barack Obama is is not nothing
(29:44):
Yeah it was two of the cool things that have happened to me in my life yeah so with Matt Damon it was yeah I was the editor of Men's Health magazine
And so I would be fielding a certain amount of phone calls from press people etc.
Making proposals as to who we should put on the cover of the magazine and one day this guy from LA called up and said
(30:05):
You know hey Peter we were wondering if you would like to travel to India to do a cover story for Men's Health on Matt Damon
And we had never put Matt on the cover of Men's Health he's obviously a guy who a lot of guys admire including me
So it didn't take a long time for me to say let's see now do I want to go to India with Matt Damon the answer was yes
(30:28):
I went through a whole rigmarole because I was in kind of a hurry to pick up my visa to be able to fly to India
So you know I actually had to sneak into the Indian consulate in New York
I was at the end of a line of 300 people getting visas one day and I was pretty sure I wasn't going to make it at the front of that line
(30:49):
So I had the bright idea to go in the back door of the building where the consulate was
Walk up eight floors to where the Indian consulate was located at that time and knock on the door the back door of the consulate
And somebody opened it and said yeah and I said yeah I need to come in so I walked in I cut the line of 300 people got my visa stamped
(31:10):
And two days later I was flying to India and I eventually ended up in Mumbai which is in southern India
I'm sorry in Chennai in southern India and I walked into the cafeteria in this hotel and you know somehow you just don't expect to walk into the cafeteria and see Matt Damon sitting there
He waves me over super friendly guy and we spend a week traveling around to visit places that his charity water.org was servicing
(31:39):
So it was super cool to be obviously hanging with Matt he's a natural storyteller
People I guess I must have at least some resemblance to Matt Damon because people thought I was his brother traveling with him obviously his older brother
But it was just one of those kind of amazing experiences getting to know somebody who's very much in the public eye
(32:05):
You know I was more used to seeing him as Jason Bourne than I was as my travel companion
But you know there are benefits to traveling with Matt Damon and it gets you in some places that you wouldn't get into otherwise
Sure and I feel like traveling it's either would be easier or harder with someone like that especially in India where I feel like you can be Matt Damon or you can be Joe Schmoe
(32:28):
You know the Indian people really like to meet Caucasian people from America so it's kind of an interesting thing where you're famous regardless
So that was probably you I feel like you would have gotten some stares regardless of who you're with so you're like is this because it's Matt Damon or is it because I'm here?
Yeah I was co-famous with Matt Damon for exactly one week
(32:51):
Yeah then we resumed our normal lives and you know and I'm nobody and he's somebody but he was a great guy
His charity water.org is an amazing one and is bringing water to people all over the world you know so it's a crucial element for life
And you know I give Matt a ton of credit for throwing himself in on that
(33:14):
While you were talking I typed in Matt Damon I get hopefully maybe I'll interview interview him sometime and this will this will make him upset but I always get him and Mark Wahlberg confused
They're back and forth to me but yeah I know who Matt Damon is
Somebody I don't confuse with somebody else talk about how you something with Barack Obama
(33:35):
Yeah so I was you know again this is during my men's health days and I was sitting at my desk I was preparing to go out for a run that day at lunch because exercise is mandatory if you work for Men's Health Magazine
So I just thought well why don't I just send an email off to the White House press office proposing Barack Obama for the cover of Men's Health obviously super fit guy
(33:59):
He was a candidate for president at that time I knew that he was having trouble finding men who would vote for him women were all over Barack Obama but men were like maybe not
So I made the pitch Men's Health goes out to 20 million men in the US is read by 20 million men in the US every month
(34:23):
The the president or candidate Obama is a physically fit guy. He kind of belongs on the cover of Men's Health and you know I'll be so I went out for my run I sent off the email went out for my run came back and there was an immediate response saying oh yeah absolutely
(34:44):
We want him to be on the cover of Men's Health then a couple years later. You know again it was Obama care was much in the news at that point people were debating health care a lot and I thought this is a great a moment.
This is a great opportunity for me to repitch the president again the White House responded immediately and they added a cherry on top they said well you guys do women's health right I said yeah they said well you want to talk to Michelle Obama too.
(35:12):
So in the course of two weeks one summer you know I went to the White House twice once to talk to the president and the second time to talk to the first lady and I was like pinching myself the whole time it's like don't they know who I am but they invited me anyway because I worked for a big magazine and it was you know among the most treasured memories of my journalism career.
(35:35):
That's awesome. Yeah, don't they know who you are you're Matt Damon's brother right.
Yeah, my brother with a different name and a different mother, but yeah, that's right. Well that's cool and what what I guess what it what was that like I mean you obviously it was a surreal experience but did you I mean how much time did you get what what were you, what were you talking about
(35:56):
with both of them. Yeah, so I interviewed the president first and you know I spent about an hour sweating in a park across from the White House, thinking, can't believe I'm going in there to talk to the president of the United States I mean I've interviewed a ton of celebrities in my life
but nobody's a celebrity like the president is. So I walked up to the, you know, those little guard houses that you see on the West Wing and said, I'm here for a meeting with the president. They took my name. Yes, head right in Mr. Moore.
(36:26):
So, I spent some time hanging out in the, in the press room. They finally called me upstairs and I was hanging out with the president's press aids, and you know finally the phone rang, you know, we're ready for for Peter now.
And I was sitting and looked down this very long hallway in the White House. You know it was lined with portraits of presidents and busts of important people, but way down at the end of the hallway, I can see this lanky black man leaning against, you know, a desk and
(36:57):
a bunch of staff members there. And it was just like, it was a view I never expected to have with, you know, Barack Obama directly in front of me, and I was walking arduously took forever to walk down this long hallway, but the president stood up and shook my hand
and said, I'm happy to see you again, meaning that his AIDS had prepped him for the fact that he had I had already spoken during his campaign. So, you know, I was I was returning to Barack Obama, but having the president walk ahead of you and throw open the
(37:32):
Oval Office was just like a room I never expected to find myself in. They showed me to a chair, you know, you know that chair where like the ambassador sits when he's talking to the president. That was a chair I was in.
And I remember looking at the president's face and right over him was one of those fancy grandfather clocks that they have in the Oval Office and I thought, oh my god I need to make the most of my time here.
(37:55):
So, I probably had 20 minutes with the president, which, you know, given that he's president for four years at a time, that's actually quite a long time for me, and I was loaded up with questions about about health care in the US, his own personal
experience of it is experience with his mom in in what he hoped Obamacare would mean to the men who read men's health.
(38:20):
And, you know, depending on how you feel about Barack Obama, it wouldn't surprise a lot of people to hear that he was super thoughtful and gracious answering my question.
We talked a little bit about his own wrestling match with a being a smoker, and, you know, in in how hard it is to quit that and the sympathy that he has for people who are trying to do that and in general, just realizing that health is a fraught subject for so many
(38:48):
people, especially in our country, and he was trying to do something about it. So it was an amazing time, I had to get home and bang out the cover story and in a couple of days, which was a challenge.
But, you know, I also had a lot of fresh memories of how cool it was to be sitting in the Oval Office with Barack Obama.
For sure. Did you get, did you get any pictures and you had every many memories other than in your mind.
(39:10):
Yeah, I've got a photo, it's not nearby here, like, I can hold it up for you right, you know, a picture of, of me sitting looking kind of like amazed with the president gesturing and mid conversation and I've got that photo up in my living room,
and I was amazed with a photo of Michelle Obama with her arm around me. And it's not just that she had her arm around me, she was kind of digging her hand into my right hip.
(39:41):
So you can see like where the shirt is creased and I thought, well I made a good impression on the first lady because she was giving me a major side hug there.
Yeah, I love that. Are you at all involved with men's health, men's health anymore.
I'm occasionally they threw me out in 2015, because I was making too much money I was the editor, they were having budgetary problems so that was it for me.
(40:05):
But I was ready to leave men's health at that time anyway I worked there for 20 years at the, at the point that they let me go. And, you know, I had other adventures in life that I had to go pursue.
So, thank you very much men's health, I'm out of here and so I was.
I was just wondering if they're going to be putting our current president on the cover for for for health reasons.
(40:28):
Yeah, it would be a whole different story with with with President Trump for sure.
Yeah, all sorts of mental and physical health things that we could explore with him, but from what I understand it at least. He doesn't drink alcohol.
So, so that's one health benefit in his favor.
No, that's that's true and I'm not surprised to hear the thoughtfulness of, of President Obama you know I've talked to a lot I talked to a guy that was the was in the White House press corps and through like four presidents and regardless of what people's
(41:03):
personal opinions are, you know, he had been from HW all the way through Trump. And, you know, it's no it's no question that Obama is probably the most thoughtful whether you agree with any of his thoughts that's that's that's another thing entirely.
Yeah, let's let's let's talk about.
I want to kind of go into a little bit more about your, your travel and how it coincides with with journalism.
(41:33):
I guess I want to ask you, do you, given that you've done a lot of travel for pieces and traveling the way you then had to to write a story about it.
Has helped your travel experiences or heard it, you can, I can see it both ways where, you know, it really makes you notice every little thing because you know you're going to have to write about it again.
(41:56):
Or the other side of.
I can't just sit back and enjoy things because I've got to think of how does this work for my story has, is this going to fit into my piece.
And how does it work for you to write about kind of coming to terms with getting to travel but also having to document it.
You know, I do a lot of travel that I'm not writing about as well. So, you know, I'm, I've sat in many beautiful places, drinking a margarita thinking, I am so glad not to be working now, but it almost, you know, it's an echo of what I was talking about with
(42:32):
that. There's a certain level of anxiety that I have.
Whenever I have a story that I have to write. So that makes me prepare for a trip in a whole different way, meaning I'm seeking out sources beforehand asking what's important about the trip.
I'm going to be talking about to other people who've taken in the same trip that I have.
So they can give me any tips that they might have. And then when I'm on the trip. You know, I'm a walking eyeball. It's like, I'll talk to anybody. I want to get a ton of perspectives, you never know who's going to share an anecdote with you that
(43:01):
is going to work perfectly for the lead of a story. So, it's a different kind of reconnaissance that I do before I'm writing a travel piece than I would do when it's just, you know, my wife and me cruising on the Danube, you know, we went on a cruise last
September down the Danube from Budapest, finally made it to Istanbul. And that was more about, you know, the food on the ship, the wine steward with his endless pours, the cool people that we met on board and plus being in a part of the world I'd never been to.
(43:38):
So that is a very relaxing thing for me, as opposed to if I'm doing the story.
I really want to nail all the details, so that I can bring them back to people will be reading about for me and make the make the destination vivid. And I'm used to processing things through my writing.
(44:01):
I've been a journal keeper my whole adult life, six million words worth. So I'm always documenting everything that's going on in my life. And when I'm doing travel journalism, it's just heightened, because I'm bringing it out to an audience that with any luck will want
to know what I've done.
And we talked about, obviously some of the big pieces that you've done you know interviewing the president traveling with Matt Damon going to Nepal all these things I'm sure got a lot of eyeballs just because of, you know, their major pieces with major players involved
(44:38):
I always like to ask people, you know that do something on artistic. What's your favorite thing that you've done that maybe didn't get the recognition that you felt like it deserved you spent a lot of time, whether it was thinking about it or you spent a lot
of time researching it's been a lot of times in your travel, and it just doesn't, you're really proud of it but maybe very few people saw it.
(45:02):
You know, I don't know if this perfectly fits in the category you're talking about but probably three or four years ago I made a transition to adding artwork to what I do meaning sketches drawings cartoons.
And at that time I pitched backpacker on a story called the best point seven ounce addition to your hiking gear. And of course that point seven ounces was a pencil.
(45:32):
And I talked about how, as I developed my skills as an artist, how bringing artistic materials pencils watercolors paper, my iPad, and I pencil.
And those things, incorporating those into my travel kit has made a huge difference about what kind of traveler I am, because, you know, I tended, you know, you go to Nepal and you're on a track and every day you're moving through, you know, 10 miles on the track
(46:03):
and it's like being bombarded with sensation, as opposed to when I go on a hike now, and I have my pencil and paper with me. I'll find that comfortable log to sit on in front of an amazing view and document it so that I'm sitting there.
You know, could be for 15 minutes could be for an hour depending on how complicated the drawing is to really take in what I'm seeing and filter it through my own artwork. And I feel like it's kind of an underappreciated travel technique is to go someplace
(46:36):
and draw it. And the first time I ever, I ever saw anybody do that was I was on a family wedding, and my sister in law, brought her little watercolor kit and was said it was seated in this really cool town square in San Antonio, rendering it in
watercolor, and I think that moment looking over her shoulder and seeing how she was filtering this amazing city scene in front of her. I thought, I want to do that, and it launched me in a whole different direction in my career, which has been super gratifying.
(47:10):
And also I feel like it's improved me as a traveler as well.
I like that a lot and you've, you've kind of incorporated my next question into things that is about your, your, your, if you weren't interesting enough now that you're you're also a cartoonist but I want to know a little bit about more about what
that means obviously you, you got inspired from somebody who was doing watercolor talked about traveling and in drawing what you see but how exactly do you incorporate that into, whether it's your your pieces or I don't know whether it's always
(47:43):
the only drawing when you're also writing, you know words with it or whether that's ever just kind of the entire work or what's that look like.
Well, you know it's it's something I'm trying to move into now, and you know, I was known as a health editor and you know the guy who talked to Obama. So, it was.
And I still get a lot of assignments that way but I'm trying to do is transition into the ones that, like the backpacker piece would be not only me writing about the destination I've been to, but would incorporate my drawings into it as well.
(48:15):
So, you know, after I got into this for a little while, a friend of mine recommended that I go on sub stack, which are you familiar with the blogging platform sub stack.
Yeah, so I have a sub stack it's Peter more sub stack calm, and I used it as a leverage point for me to show my artwork and my writing at the same point at the same time.
(48:38):
And, you know, I had, like a lot of people I kind of dribbled along for a couple years with 100 or 200 subscribers and, you know, it was felt like possibly a waste of time, except for it quickly grew into my travel cartooning
portfolio. So I was able to then turn around to is a very big online newspaper in Colorado called the Colorado Sun, and based on all the, all the stuff that I did accumulated in in Peter more sub stack calm, I was able to say to her.
(49:11):
I'm a writer and a cartoonist, you can see my work here. What I want to do is to make fun of living in Colorado for Colorado for the Colorado Sun, and I, you know, picture on a few ideas.
She got back to me in a couple days and said we would love to have you do this. So the first cartoon I ever did for the Colorado Sun was.
(49:34):
There's a major and at the end of September, there is the time of the elk rut, where the bull elks are gathering together harems of lady elk impregnating them they're pregnant all all winter, and then they give birth in the spring.
And it occurred to me that it was a funny idea to think of all of the tourism that's involved in watching the elk rut is really a massive invasion of privacy if you're an elk.
(50:01):
So I did a cartoon based on the idea that it is highly improper for human beings to go watch some other species mate, how would we feel if elk came into our bedrooms and watched us mate, we wouldn't like it.
So I did this cartoon for the Colorado Sun. The readers loved it and launched me into my professional careers cartoonist, and I never did actually, I might have forgotten to mention to the editor who hired me that I had never done anything like this before.
(50:33):
But the reader response was immediate and so good that, you know, I know I'm now I'm a cartoonist and columnist for the Colorado Sun, and based on my work there.
Front Range NPR, which it's always a big deal to have an NPR gig hired me as a commentator and animator. So you can see my work on k unc.org slash Peter Moore, where I, where I do funny commentaries on, you know, again,
(51:02):
various topics about life in Colorado, but put animations with it, which is, you know, a huge bonus for their social media people, because that's a great way to to gain eyeballs and clicks.
If you can put an animation with what you write. So all that has been a thrill for me how that's developed. It's been a lot of fun.
And really at this point in my career, I just want to have fun.
(51:25):
I think that's really really amazing for sure I feel like I can't help but think there's a joke in there somewhere if you are already a cartoonist for NPR somebody who's a cartoonist fit for radio I don't know what that's what that means right.
Yeah, I am a face fit for radio and I'm also a animator fit for radio to robust website so lots of people come there to see him listen to my work to.
(51:49):
For sure. So yeah, I feel like you're, you're doing a great job of kind of moving into those those next questions and that the kind of the last one is just, we talked a lot about your, your career and it's expansive but where where are you sitting now it sounds like you,
you do the cartoonist thing for the Colorado son you do the NPR thing.
(52:12):
Where's Peter more right now. Well, you know, part of the reason why I launched my sub stack was I was trying to convince a book agent.
To take on an illustrated memoir that I wrote during the covert time or began writing during covert. So, really what I would love to do is the key is to maintain these cartooning and drawing and writing gigs, while I also launch a, a series of memoirs that are based on
(52:37):
my travels. One of my most popular posts on sub stack was a post called Vincent and me and was about a trip that my wife and I took in France, basically chasing Vincent Van Gogh all over the country, everywhere we went had a Van Gogh angle to it.
And I had a funny idea on my sub stack was that I was going to figure out who in Van Gogh's circle actually killed him.
(53:07):
When he was in San Rumi.
And I thought, you know, there's nothing as inconvenient as a living artist because he's going to want to be paid himself. Once he's dead, then he can become one of the all time greats as Van Gogh did.
(53:30):
So it may not seem funny to be writing about Van Gogh's sister in law murdering him, but it was, you know, 40,000 people saw that that post stated on sub stack and it really launched me into a whole new realm there.
I think I could ask you questions for, for at least double the amount of time we've already talked but no I really really appreciate your time in wrapping things up. Shout out anything you want to shout out whether it's your your page on the sun whether it's your sub stack to shout out all your
(54:01):
connection points. Yeah, I would love it if people look me up at Peter more sub stack calm all of the work that I do eventually ends up there.
So that's the best way to get a look at, you know, a traveling cartoonist, if that such a thing exists, I'm him, and you can see it on sub stack.
Yeah, well thank you so much, Peter. Thank you. You're welcome.
(54:24):
Hi, I'm Peter Moore, absolutely amazing guy you this was a conversation that I knew what I was getting myself into but I don't think I knew just how cool it would be. I knew that he was a cartoonist I knew that he was a writer in the past I knew that he had traveled to a lot of really
that was enough for me and and just to hear so much more. I, I guess I kind of knew that he had some kind of connection with Matt Damon and with Barack Obama. But I don't think that I knew just how, how cool it was I don't think I knew that he was the editor of
(54:57):
the magazine that's, that's pretty awesome I think I just kind of glazed over that apparently but that that makes this interview even more amazing. I think you can, you can hear my excitement just in listening and and in talking with Peter, I couldn't even imagine what
it would be like to drive up to the White House and say I'm here for my interview with the president. That would be quite the undertaking for sure. I sure that went really really awesome Peter is an amazing amazing guy.
(55:28):
So I'm going to leave out all of his, his links I know that he's got a sub stack all that kind of stuff the links to all things Peter Moore will be in the show notes. This your first time listening or you haven't already go leave a five star rating on Apple or Spotify, leave a written
review on Apple helps a ton. Go follow along on Instagram and on TikTok not enough podcast, not enough for Jackson up on Facebook all those places but we'll see you next week.
(55:55):
This has been Not in a Huff with Jackson Huff. Thank you for listening. Be sure to join us next time where we will interview another amazing guest who is sure to make you laugh or make you think, or hey, maybe even both. But until then, keep being awesome.
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