DAVE "ODYSSEUS" STAMBOULIS
Dave Stamboulis is a true world nomad. Born in Greece, raised in San Francisco, and for the last 30 years, has called Japan, Nepal, and Thailand home. Dave spent 7 years bicycling 45,000 kilometers around the world, subsequently writing an award-winning book (Odysseus’ Last Stand) that launched a career as a travel writer and photographer. He took up mountaineering, trekking and climbing in every major mountain range on the planet, from the Himalayas to the Andes, Patagonia, the Alps, the Ruwenzoris, the Pamirs, and other off-the-beaten-path destinations.
In 2020, Dave and his wife (and fellow Six Moons ambassador) Raquel were spending three months in Colombia and decided to jump over to Cuba for a two-week trip when Covid broke out, forcing them to abandon all their gear in closed Colombia and go to the U.S. They replaced all their old heavyweight equipment with new lightweight gear, and decided they better go test it out, first doing the Colorado Trail, followed by the Arizona Trail, and then completing a full 2654 mile thru-hike of the PCT in 2022. 2023 found them embarking on more far flung adventures, including a traverse of Oman’s Hajar Mountains, a thru hike of Turkey’s Lycian Way, and an epic crossing of Zanskar and Kashmir's Warwan Valley. Their bucket list for this year includes the Kumano Kodo, Kanchenjunga, and Peaks of the Balkans. When not on trail, Dave spends way too much time being pickier about which IPA he’ll drink, and hopelessly trying to lighten his load.
Website: Dave Stamboulis
Instagram: @stamboulisd