Author Archive: Scott Stoll
Scott Stoll
My claim to fame is that I rode a bicycle around the world and wrote some books. More about me.
Late at night in Yosemite, I mistook a cluster of lights for a constellation. They were actually climbers resting on El Capitan, suspended in hammocks above the valley floor. The real Big Dipper hung upside down overhead, turning the whole scene into something unforgettable.
We often take breathing for granted, but our bodies process 8,300 liters of air every day to get the oxygen we need to survive. In this article, I show the math and compare this amount to how much a tree produces, and how much a car burns. This is part of my Global Oxygen Depletion series.
I think butterflies are one of the most amazing animals on Earth. And you can raise them right in your own backyard. Plant milkweed, watch tiny striped caterpillars grow, and witness the miraculous transformation from chrysalis to butterfly. Along the way, you’ll explore big questions about migration, instinct, and nature’s hidden mysteries. You might even find one in yourself.
Riding in a fully driverless Waymo in the Bay Area felt like stepping into an episode of Star Trek. Here's what it was like when Dennis and I took a ride. And, yes, this the Dennis who accompanied me halfway round the world.
A bicycle interrupts a Wild West posse in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, revealing how progress arrives, and people struggle to adapt. In this latest article from my series Bicycle Quotes Explained, I examine a quote from the classic movie (based on a true story about notorious bank robbers) and explain how the bicycle changed the world.
Once again my name will be aboard the ship. And if I'm lucky, I will be chosen to attend the launch and promote this pinnicle of human apsiration.
Aquatic deoxygenation is accelerating worldwide, prompting scientists to propose it as a new planetary boundary. But the ocean’s 2% oxygen loss reveals an even bigger, overlooked threat: most of that oxygen outgasses into the atmosphere, masking the true rate of atmospheric decline. This article breaks down the science, the math, and why these hidden feedbacks may push Earth closer to an additional tipping point no one is talking about.
Travel offers far more than beautiful views. In this article, I explore the unexpected benefits of travel—from surprises and life “lessens” to memories, emotions, and inspiring people. These are the deeper rewards that continue paying dividends long after the journey is over.
While visiting my parents’ home, I found an old note I’d written to myself: “I hereby declare I will swim the English Channel!” I had forgotten all about it—forgotten the dream, the confidence, and the young man who believed he could do anything. I never swam the Channel, but holding that note reminded me of something more important.
Did you know that given one problem, there are 16 different possibilities of who or what to blame? I didn't, and it has changed how I view life. I outline a process to identify a problem. (It's more fun to blame things.) But, you can use it as a creative process to identify a new area of opportunity. Also download the free PDF worksheet.
The goal of a travel budget is NOT to spend as little as possible. The goal IS to spend intentionally on what matters most to you.
I've distilled decades of travel experience into a practical tool that helps you calculate what your journey will really cost.
The first true adventure story I read was Kon-Tiki, and it was then that I realized I could go on my own adventure. I didn't know the Kon-Tiki still existed until I arrived in Norway.