Unser Abenteuerteam

Im Jahre 2006 entwickelte sich in Leo´s Kopf eine Idee immer weiter, die später zu Uncharted Philippines werden sollte, auch wenn er zu dieser Zeit eine Viruserkrankung hatte (Ok, es waren nur Magenprobleme aber es war stark genug um ihn ans Bett zu fesseln). Er arbeitete zuvor als Immobilien Designer für Resorts. Sein Job gab ihm die Möglichkeit auch unter der Woche seinen Hobbies wie das Wandern und Tauchen nachzugehen. Leo sehnte sich aber schon bald nach mehr Erfüllung und Aufregung. Als er also kränklich im Bett lag, wurde ihm klar, dass Abenteuerreisen mehr als nur ein Hobby sind und entschloss sich sein Leben dem Abenteuer zu widmen. Ein Jahr später war Leo in Boston Massachusetts, um einen Masterabschluss in Wirtschaft zu machen. Währenddessen feilte er an der Idee ein weltklasse Unternehmen im Bereich Reiseveranstalter auf den Philippinen zu gründen. Weiterhin arbeitete er eine Zeit für Earthwatch in Amerika. In dieser Zeit konnte er wichtige Erkenntnisse in Bezug auf Abenteuerreisen und Nachhaltigkeit sammeln. Nach seinem MBA (Master of Business Administration) zog es ihn nach Bogota um für ein kolumbianisches Abenteuerunternehmen zu arbeiten. Hier lernte er die Feinheiten der Reiseveranstalter- Branche in einem Entwicklungsland und wie diese zu agieren haben. Ende 2010 fühlte sich Leo bereit zurück in sein Heimatland zu gehen, um sein Wissen welches er sich über die Jahre hinweg angeeignet hat, nun in Uncharted Philippines umzusetzen.

Leo verbringt seine Freizeit mit Tauchen, Klettern, Backpacking, Mountain Biking, Kajak fahren, Unterwasserhockey (Google es!), Reisen und Spanisch lernen mit seiner kolumbianischen Ehenfrau und ihrem Hund.

Während sie 2008 ihren Masterabschluss in Business an der Cambridge Universität in Massachusetts machte, stellte sich Cami niemals vor, dass sie mal da sein würde wo sie jetzt ist. Sie war eine Wirtschaftsingenieurin aus Kolumbien, die die meiste Zeit ihrer Vor-MBA-Karriere im Finanzbereich der Versicherungsbranche verbrachte. Sie machte ihren Abschluss mit einem Auge darauf, zur Beratung der Unternehmensstrategie zu wechseln. Jedoch passierten gegen Ende ihres Studiums ein paar unerwartete Dinge. Die weltweite Finanzkrise schlug ein. Sie traf einen Filipino, der sie wieder mit ihrer Liebe zum Klettern und der freien Natur vertraut machte. Sie verbrachte ein Semester in China und verliebte sich in Asien, das Reisen und Chao Fan. Vier Jahre später erwiesen sich diese unzusammenhängenden Ereignisse als Faktoren, die Cami auf den Karriereweg von Uncharted gelenkt haben. Cami ging nach Kolumbien zurück, nachdem sie ihren MBA erhalten hatte, und verbrachte zwei Jahre in der Business- und Personalabteilung und im Marketing. Während dieser Zeit machte sie mit ihrem philippinischen Freund mehrere Abenteuertouren, bevor sie letztendlich heirateten und auf die Philippinen zogen. Camis Leidenschaft für das Reisen und Entdecken neuer Dinge machten ihr klar, dass ein Bürojob nichts für sie war. Also entschloss sie sich auf das Konzentrieren ihrer Talente, Uncharted Philippines zu unterstützen, das beste Abenteuerreiseunternehmen in der Region zu werden, während sie ihrer Leidenschaft für neue Erfahrungen, dem Entdecken neuer Plätze und dem Kennenlernen verschiedener Länder und Kulturen nachging.

Cami ist eine erfahrene Taucherin, Wanderin, Bergsteigerin und Rucksacktouristin. Ihre Lieblingsdinge auf den Philippinen sind die Korallenriffe, das einheimische Kunsthandwerk und die Hausmannskost wie z.B. sisig und dinuguan.

Zean likes to bite off more than he can chew. This is most applicable when it comes to food as he can easily gorge down a meal that's good for 3 persons. But other than his voracious appetite for anything edible, he moreover has a big hunger and thirst for new and exciting experiences.

Zean took up Biology in college, hoping to someday become a doctor. But his forays into mountaineering and other outdoor activities changed all of that, and he eventually decided to pursue other "less confining" occupational options. His professional history thereafter became as colorful and diverse as the many places he's been to. Zean has worked in widely different fields, including environmental conservation (whereby he worked as a marine biologist and lived on an island), finance, arts and literature (he was once a dancer and theater actor), education, and information technology. The only thing that remained constant was his passion for travel, adventure, and the outdoors. His itch was just too irrepressible that he left a lucrative and stable office job at an IT company for the freedom and challenges of a freelance career.

Having helped set up the Uncharted company from the get-go, Zean has likewise put up his own creative media business which allows him to indulge in his interests in photography, writing, web development, and graphic design. He is also a scuba diving instructor and likes to spend his free time hiking, rock climbing, freediving, and surfing. Needless to say, he also loves to eat.

Ana grew up with leopards, lions, elephants and hyenas. Her father was assigned in Zambia for work and she spent her childhood happily swimming in lakes and going on safaris and picnics in the land of dangerous beasts. Growing up so close to wild animals prepared Ana perfectly for her future job working with the Uncharted Philippines team. Ana's childhood in Zambia also instilled in her the love of the outdoors. There was nothing to watch on TV so she entertained herself outside, riding her bike and playing volleyball in the African savanna.

In early high school Ana and her family moved back to the Philippines. She spent a couple of years in Baguio City where she enjoyed hiking in the mountains and following streams to waterfalls. Ana went to Manila for college where she took up Accounting and joined the volleyball team. After graduation Ana spent 14 years in Customer Service in one of the country's largest banks. It was there that she met her husband who was (pretending to be) a client at the time. They got married after a whirlwind romance of two months and are currently enjoying their second decade together. After her banking career Ana spent several years in the BPO industry before joining Uncharted Philippines. Her organization skills, many years of experience in customer service, love for the outdoors, and affinity with animals make her our ideal Operations Manager.

Ana enjoys biking and going to the beach with her husband. They are big on road trips and have driven all the way from Ilocos Norte to Davao in three days, taking turns on the wheel and dutifully keeping each other company by sleeping in the passenger seat.

Though Dax has always been a nature-lover and has a post-graduate degree in Environment and Natural Resources Management, he got his first dose of extreme outdoor adventure and physical torture challenge during his stint with the Philippine Navy. After Dax left the Navy he entered the security and safety industry and handled projects for some of the best island resorts in the country. His work required him to spend much of his time on islands and beaches (poor guy) and the outdoors became a major part of his life and livelihood.

In 2012 Dax established his own security consulting firm and he was also an operations officer for a commercial diving company. As if his work protecting people and executing complicated dives wasn't exciting enough, Dax also joined Uncharted Philippines as a trip leader. Leading trips enables Dax to commune with the wild and the sea (two of his great loves) and gives him a chance to show off his beloved country to other people. It also gives him eager audiences for his many interesting life stories. As trip leader Dax makes sure that our tours have the things that he values: excitement, safety, physical challenge and lots of nature.

Dax (whose real name is Jeffrey by the way; like a Navy SEAL he has a cool nickname that fits his personality better), is a family man with a wife, four kids and 20 pairs of Vibram Five Fingers.

Don't be alarmed if you think you see blood in Jody's mouth while hiking with him. He's not bleeding from exhaustion. In fact, while you might be catching your breath, Jody probably hasn't even broken a sweat. Jody has been hiking in the Ifugao mountains since he was a kid and the area's trails are as challenging to him as your neighborhood's sidewalks are to you. The red liquid in his mouth is not blood; it's the juice of a palm tree seed (commonly known as betel nut) that he loves to chew.

Jody is a Banaue local and knows the region's people, customs and culture intimately. He is also very interested in foreign cultures and can speak a surprising amount of French and a smattering of other languages. Living in the small town of Banaue opens up the world to Jody and he is friends with hundreds of people from every corner of the globe. When Jody is not guiding people in the mountains he can be found at a guesthouse that he helps run, on the road riding his tricycle or at home with his young family.

If you've ever seen photos or videos of Ifugao men in their traditional attire racing wooden scooters down a hill at breakneck speed, chances are you’ve seen Marvin before. He's part of the Banaue Wooden Scooter Racing Team and his photo has graced many magazines and newspapers. Yes, Marvin is a sort of celebrity, but he is a tough one – you need to be if you ride a scooter with zero shock absorption at 50 kph on bumpy roads. Many things attract Marvin to scooter racing – the speed, the rugged action, the adoring fans – but it's the tradition and culture associated with the race that is most important to him. Marvin is very proud and knowledgeable of everything Ifugao and he exudes this pride and knowledge when he takes guests around his home region. Get past his infectious smile and you will find a serious devotee of Ifugao culture and history.

Aside from being a racer, celebrity and trip leader, Marvin is also a double major in IT and Tourism.

Jonathan has a gift. No matter what he is doing his hair is always impeccably styled. On the most challenging and rugged trails he looks like he just got out of the salon. In fact, only moments after a swim or putting on a hat Jonathan's hair is already back to its usual form.

Aside from his hair Jonathan has two more things that are always in perfect order: his pleasant attitude and desire to show his guests a wonderful time. Jonathan's grin is as constant as his coiffure and he goes out of his way to ensure that his travel companions wear similar smiles. Though always smiling he takes his job very seriously. From reading to learn more about different cultures to attending various skills training seminars, Jonathan is constantly improving himself as a trip leader. A proud Ifugao and a multi-skilled guide, Jonathan is the ideal person to show you around the Banaue region and surrounding areas.

When not leading trips or styling his hair Jonathan helps run a guesthouse in Banaue and chews betel nut with his friends.

He won't admit to it, but Jhonas is a rock star among tour guides in Coron. Ok, maybe not a rock star but definitely a TV star – he has been on national television thrice, taking celebrities around his beloved Northern Palawan. Jhonas is historian, storyteller, environmentalist, outdoorsman and chef rolled into the ideal island expedition leader.

Jhonas finds beauty, excitement and inspiration in nature. He is an avid photographer, a motocross rider and an excellent cook, and nature provides his subjects, playground and ingredients. Not surprisingly, Jhonas devotes a lot of time on activities that help preserve the environment for future generations.

Jhonas leads our boat expedition in Northern Palawan and shares his passion for nature, culture and cooking with his lucky guests. In his leisure time he likes to play basketball and soccer and go trekking.

Joe became a mountain explorer not for sport but for art. He has been a bonsai artist since 2003 and took to the mountains in search of yamadori which are naturally occurring bonsai. Yamadori are highly prized by bonsai enthusiasts but Joe came to realize that taking them from their natural habitat is wrong. Like other wild plants yamadori are essential to their ecosystem and are more valuable in nature than in a pot. Joe turned to sustainable bonsai art and now rescues hedge plants and other bonsai material that are threatened by construction and development around Palawan.

Joe grew up in Manila but was seduced by the adventure possibilities of Palawan and now lives in Puerto Princesa as a professional guide. He is known as a walking information desk (for being both knowledgeable and talkative), a gym rat who gets into a Zen state while pumping iron, and an endurance junkie who crosses open seas in a kayak. Despite his impressive physical and mental attributes Joe considers his being "sensitive, conscientious, reliable and compassionate" as his key strengths as a Trip Leader. (We'd say his being a drama queen is his greatest strength but this is his profile so what he says goes...)

Joe enjoys making gourmet meals in remote wilderness and at high altitude. He is the happy husband of a wife who taught him how to bake and the proud father of a daughter who dreams of becoming a marine biologist.

Jhon drives carefully on our adventures but in his younger days he drove aggressively – to the basket. Jhon went to college on a basketball scholarship and played professionally in the Philippines and Malaysia. After his career on the hard court, Jhon, holder of an accounting degree, worked as a manager for several different companies. But Jhon's other passions in life aside from basketball are cars and driving so after several years of employment he decided to set up his own private transportation company. Jhon now has a thriving business with several vehicles of different sizes (all of which are big enough to fit his sizeable frame) and he has done so much driving in the Philippines that it would be a challenge to find a road in the country that he has not been on.

In his leisure time Jhon is still occupied with basketball and driving. He coaches high school students on the court and likes to go on road trips with his wife to discover quaint towns and new destinations.

Dondon makes a living from taking care of the needs and wants of VIPs, celebrities and divas and making sure that they are completely happy. No, we're not saying Uncharted Philippines' customers are divas. Aside from leading tours for us, Dondon also works as an events and logistics organizer for singers, actors and other famous people. As one can imagine, he is no stranger to demanding and quirky clients. Meeting strange requirements and addressing wacky concerns is a regular part of Dondon's work with VIPs and he gives every client and event his 100%. Fortunately, you don't need to be a celebrity to enjoy Dondon's exceptional customer service and attention to detail – you just need to join him on an adventure. Leading trips for Uncharted Philippines lets Dondon indulge his love for traveling and the outdoors, and it is the kind of people-oriented work that he enjoys. Dondon's diverse professional background also includes being a trained caregiver and a certified air-conditioning technician; those skills help him stay caring and cool at all times.

Dondon is a family man with three kids, the lucky beneficiaries of his love for cooking exotic food.

Since the Philippines is an archipelago and even its largest land mass, Luzon, is often referred to as an island, every Filipino, even the worst landlubber, is technically an islander. Stephen, however, has saltwater running in his veins, takes Vitamin Sea daily, and is a true islander by anyone's standard. He grew up on Cuyo, a small island in the middle of the Sulu Sea that is over 350 kilometers away from the nearest city of Puerto Princesa. Swimming in the sea and enjoying beautiful beaches were part of everyday life for Stephen in his remote island home. He eventually moved to the city to study in the state university but continued to spend most of his time in nature, adding rainforests and mountains to his explorations. The Palawan mainland is one of the most biodiverse places in the country and Stephen, with his great curiosity about different species, was like a kid in a candy store.

Stephen has a degree in Hospitality Management and is now an experienced tour and trekking guide. He spends much of his time on trails, either guiding people or backtracking to study some weird organisms more closely. He is an avid birder and wildlife photographer. Stephen is also a legendary snorer, but, predictably, does not believe it.

EJ is a perfect example of how one trip can alter the course of your life. He took up Psychology in one of the country's top universities, a practical choice for people looking to pursue lucrative corporate careers. After graduating EJ joined a friend on a trip to the mountains of Tarlac. He was an avid photographer and was on the trip to take photos and document his friend's solar electrification project for Aetas, the indigenous people of that area. What started as a trip to practice his hobby of photography turned into a full-blown non-profit career in the span of a few months. For the next two years EJ helped run Project Liwanag (liwanag means light), a charitable organization that brings a sustainable source of electricity to Aeta communities. You can learn about Project Liwanag on their website: https://www.projectliwanag.org/. In those two years EJ not only learned how to work hard without getting rich, he also showed a lot of visitors around the project areas, sharing with them the beauty of the land and culture of its people. He realized that he really enjoyed taking guests to different places in the country, giving them an appreciation not only of its famous landmarks but also of its people.

EJ continues to be a Core Team member of Project Liwanag but now has time to indulge his love for traveling and guiding by leading adventures for us. He is a talker and loves telling stories that make trips a lot of fun for his guests and for himself. Now if that’s not making great use of a Psychology degree then what is?

Two things are common among many members of the Uncharted team: a love of adventure sports and a college degree. Jonel is no different. He's a serious outdoor athlete and uses trail running, freediving, rowing and climbing mountains to get himself Ironman race ready. He also has a business degree with a major in Marketing. What make Jonel stand out, however, are two things that he lists as his special skills in his resume: driving and baking. Jonel is cooler than usual, a cross between The Transporter and The Cake Boss.

Jonel was born in Bulacan, spent his childhood in Bicol, and now lives in Palawan where he says his heart belongs. He describes his love for nature as "extreme" and spends most of his time either enjoying it or helping to protect it. He also enjoys meeting travelers from all over the world, which makes leading trips for Uncharted the perfect job that combines his passions for nature and exploration with his innate interest in people. Too bad he doesn’t go on car chases or bake 20-layer cakes on our trips, but it's good to have those skills on tap if ever we need them.

Like all of Uncharted's trip leaders Rich is an experienced outdoor adventurer and loves nothing better than being out in nature. His "type" of fun, however, often leans towards the 2nd . Type 1 fun, of course, is the kind of fun that is enjoyable while it is happening, like eating ice cream or riding a roller coaster. Type 2 fun is not actually fun in the moment; it's only fun when it's over and you think back on it. In fact, Type 2 fun can be downright miserable while it is happening, like tracking reptiles through thick rainforest where everything wants to bite, scratch or cut you. But payoff of Type 2 fun is often amazing, like photographing a rare and beautiful lizard, and that makes the hardship worthwhile and "fun". This is Rich's idea of a good time.

Rich credits his masochistic recreation preference to being the son of a carpenter and a teacher. We're not sure why. Perhaps he received old school discipline with 2x4s and rulers and he enjoyed it? More likely it's because from his parents he learned a strong work ethic that values hard work and learning. Rich has a business degree with a major in Marketing and spent 3 years working at a fast food chain and an island resort. That was not fun for him but he learned a lot. Now he is a full time adventure guide in beautiful Palawan where he has lived his whole life. Rich enjoys every moment of his job and claims not to work anymore. Who can be happier than a guy who doesn't work and thinks everything is fun?