Hello GenTravelers!
We all know that family history work isn’t typically known for burning tons of calories, right? If it did, most of us would be as thin as bean poles since we spend so much time doing it. However, how many of you read the recent story in FamilyTree magazine about David Venner walking about 50 miles “in the footsteps of his forebears”? (see the May 2018 issue). I thought it was a fabulous idea, because I’ve had similar ideas of my own. Someday I’d like to bike the 365-mile Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor since a lot of my ancestors worked on the canal.
David Venner says this about his experience:
“Walking through our ancestors’ ‘home country’, rather than driving to each farm, village or town where they lived, is an ideal way of seeing the country as they would have seen it, of actually experiencing the half-hour walk to school or the five-mile walk to the nearest market town.”
I’ve also heard of people making the same pioneer trek that their ancestors previously took – mapping out, as closely as possible, the actual route. I think taking the same ocean voyage that my first immigrant ancestor might have taken would be an awesome GenTraveling experience. What else? Let me know if you have any fabulous ideas for “walking in your ancestral footsteps”!
So, are you planning your GenTraveling yet? Where do you plan to go? Be sure to share your GenTraveling Bucket list on our Bucket List Page. GenTraveling: It’s the Real Deal Thrill!
GenTraveling 