Elite Traveler March-April 2017

elite traveler MAR/APR 2017 49

and dry is essential, even in hot environments like Namibia – it can be baking in the day and freezing at night. It’s reassuring knowing that warmth is tucked away in your backpack.

From left to right: Matthew Robertson, founder; Momentum Adventure’s bespoke Land Rover Defender; ice caves in Iceland; Vancouver Island

What’s left on your bucket list? It’s still a mile long. There are so many things I’d love to see and do, and so many I probably don’t even know about yet. Every day I see something new and think, “wow, wow, wow!” I’d love to go surfing in Samoa – the people there are so welcoming. We’ve just taken on an amazing place there – surfing, paddle boarding and cooking with the locals on the beach, putting hand-caught lobsters straight on the fire… It’s about as good as it gets. the Sami guide Neil Gustav. We were in the wilderness, sitting around a fire eating fresh reindeer, and he had this incredible knife. It was carved out of reindeer horn, and the blade had been hand-folded. It was a work of art; he’d probably spent the best part of a month engraving it. He saw I was having a great time with it and said, “I’d like to give this to you.” It was a really special moment for me. I still use it on trips today – the thing is bulletproof, and it’s got a lot of wonderful memories attached. New ventures We’re launching Momentum Off-Road, which is dune buggying in amazing remote locations. We’re going to California, the Sahara, Iceland, Spain and Holland. People can take part in an off-road race in an exclusive $300,000 vehicle. It wasn’t on Best souvenir I was in the Arctic, traveling with

“I don’t think there’s ever a bad adventure. An adventure is leaving your comfort zone,

and when things don’t go to plan, it actually heightens the experience”

my bucket list, but I was given the opportunity recently, and it was mind-blowing. It left me smiling from ear to ear.

Matthew Robertson founded Momentum Adventure in 2005, and he has been creating exclusive journeys in remarkable environments ever since, momentumadventure.com