Scott’s Adventures

These are stories of Scott’s adventures through life, like riding a bicycle around the world, being the Cultural Ambassador to Argentina and…  hopefully, many more, big and small. I invite you along for the ride to discover, learn and become a better person and make the world a better place.

The Big Dipper rises over El Capitan. Tiny dots of light on El Capitan white and orange lights reveal the location of climbers at night.

Constellation of Climbers

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.
Waymo ride Dennis and Scott

The future is here!

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.
Boarding Pass Artemis II moon

NASA is going back to the moon, and I’m going along for the ride!

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.
An old overexposed photo of Gertrude Ederle pictured swimming in the English Channel.

Notes to our future selves

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.
The Kon-Tiki is a balsa wood raft with a rectangular shape with a large square sail displaying a stylized face design. The raft is made of giant balsa logs tied together with rope on top of which sits a small cabin. The ship is decorated with various flags, including Norway, Peru and the United States.

Kon-Tiki — a book that changed my life

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.
Tripe and intestine soup Tanzania

What is the grossest thing you ever ate?

Here is a fun bonus chapter from Falling Uphill that I thought I would post online as part of my 25th-anniversary celebration. My book was getting long, so I cut this chapter because I didn't think it matched the tone I was going for. However, I do think it is one of my funnier stories, and it showcases just how odd we humans are.
Totality during the 2024 Solar Eclipse looking like a diamond ring.

Totality or Bust

Total solar eclipse. My zero-star review. Haha. Get it? I've traveled the world, seen the Great Pyramids, climbed more than halfway up Everest, seen a wild Bengal tiger, and so much more. But truly a total solar eclipse was the most amazing, mind-blowing, skin-tingling thing I've ever seen.
Scott Stoll wearing an embarrassingly tight swimsuit.

Harnessing the passion to swim one mile

A story about getting fit both physically and mentally to swim one mile. I also share the process that I created to harness different types of passion. Did you know there is more than one kind of passion? I didn’t. In retrospect, it’s a similar process that I used to cycle around the world. And, it’s a process that you can use to achieve your goals, too.  
Delicate Arch panorama at Arches National Park, Utah. The arch sits next to a bowl underneath a beautiful sky.

Charged by a bull in Arches National Park

My girlfriend and I were returning from a three-mile hike to see Delicate Arch, the most photographed landmark in all the national parks. The sun had set, and we had a few more minutes of twilight when a loose bull crests the trail ahead.
Cycling up the Worlds Steepest Hill

Did you break a world record?

Many years later, this question is still one of the most common questions about my journey around the world on a bicycle. Did you break a world record? The short answer is yes and no. In this article, I'll explain the rules for circumnavigating the globe according to Guinness World Records, and, more importantly, how we are all setting our own personal records every day.
Sunspots on a Jamaican sunset

The real Jamaica

Another mis-adventure. I’m more of a misadventurer than an adventurer. Though I may look like a bumbling fool, I love the surprise of leaping before I look. However, often I get much more than I bargained for as I do in this Jamaican adventure.
Archaeology dig Scott Stoll 20220730

Archaeologist for a day and a lifetime!

I went on an archaeological dig uncovering the history of the Hopewell Native American Culture. The dig also dug up some memories of my great-grandmother and old childhood fear that I finally get to lay to rest.