Travel in the footsteps of famous explorers

Early practitioners in photography relied on heavy cameras, glass plates and flash powder to capture the mountain views of the American West.

William Henry Jackson, an American explorer and photographer, joined Ferdinand Hayden’s 1871 geological survey, photographing some of the West’s most iconic sights, including Yellowstone geysers and the Rocky Mountain canyons. Another photographer, Carleton Watkins, worked in a similar spirit further west. His mammoth-plate views of Yosemite, made from glass plates measuring 18 x 22 inches (46 x 56cm) and weighing 4lbs (1.8kg) each, were breathtaking. The iconic landscape photography of both men helped shape public opinion on nature preservation and played a crucial role in establishing national parks in the United States.

You can walk into those vistas today. Travelsphere’s Epic Wonders of the National Parks is a natural fit for anyone inspired by these explorations. With expert guides, you’ll travel in comfort through Yellowstone’s geyser country, peer into the depths of the Grand Canyon, and stand before Yosemite’s Bridalveil Fall.

A mountaineer and explorer, Willi Rickmer Rickmers led and organised expeditions across Central Asia in the early 20th century. He was also a pioneering skier and contributed to the development of winter sports in Austria.

In 1897, he married C. Mabel Duff Rickmers, a mountaineer and trained Orientalist, who would accompany him on his expeditions. He made many expeditions to Central Asia and contributed significant research to the glaciology of the region. In 1913 and 1928, he led the Alai-Pamir (C. Asia) Russo-German expeditions, successfully carrying out the first precise surveys of part of the NW Pamirs and determining the length of the Fedchenko glacier, Tajikistan – the largest glacier outside of the polar regions.

On Travelsphere’s Silk Road Adventure: The Five ‘Stans’, you’ll visit desert forts, blue-tiled madrasas and broad mountain valleys. See Registan’s shining mosaics, Bukhara’s domes and horses grazing in Kyrgyz alpine meadows. It’s a journey Rickmers would recognise – now with modern comfort.

One of the most famous female explorers of her age, Fanny Bullock Workman, defied Victorian gender constraints. She was a pioneering mountaineer and led multiple expeditions with her husband, William Hunter Workman. They embarked on extensive cycling tours of Europe and India and led numerous expeditions into the Himalayas. She set several women’s altitude records, wrote books and produced meticulous maps and photographs of their findings. She was also a fierce advocate for women’s rights and was famously photographed holding a “Votes for Women” newspaper on the Siachen Glacier in the Karakoram in 1912.

The mountains she explored still attract today’s adventurers. Travelsphere’s Incredible India & Nepal: Culture, Wildlife & Ancient Wonders showcases the subcontinent’s highlights – from Agra’s majestic Taj Mahal and Delhi’s lively streets to Kathmandu’s prayer-flagged squares.