Who am I?
Hey! I’m Janneke Wagner, 29 years old, born and raised on the North Sea coast and raised bilingually in Dutch and German. I love pioneering and adventure: both in the mountains and beyond. At sixteen, I moved out on my own and earned my bachelor’s degree at the newly founded Erasmus University College in Rotterdam. Later, I started working for a small—and at the time, still unknown—nonprofit B Corp to help make the business world more sustainable. My colleagues often describe me as positive, calm, and eager to learn.
If you had to draw a caricatured cartoon of yourself, what would it look like?
Think a mix between Heidi and Pippi Longstocking. A thick, tousled, redheaded braid. A thousand freckles spread across two wide grinning cheeks. Dressed in a South German dirndl with mountain boots on.
What drives you in guiding?
What drives me in guide work is the opportunity to travel with a group to the most beautiful destinations and thereby distance myself from the familiar and immerse myself in a new environment. This creates the space to reevaluate or reconsider things from home and rediscover and grow ourselves as human beings. It is also a privilege for me to introduce others to the ancient wisdom of traditional mountain peoples, who still live so in harmony with the opulence of nature and the mutual caring of community. I enjoy creating an experience that strikes a balance between a healthy dose of rest (the Italian “con calma”) and good planning (the German “Pünktlichkeit”). This challenge inspires me and makes guide work especially valuable to me.
Do you have a great anecdote or special wilderness experience worth sharing?
“BZZKKARHGGHHH!!!” We will never forget that moment. During our two-week trek through the Hajar Mountains in Oman, on the last day we were caught in a heavy downpour. Where our path had been 100 meters earlier, a giant waterfall poured down out of nowhere. We took shelter in a cave a stone’s throw away and realized our good fortune as the avalanche of water raced through the gully. We laughed nervously at the unexpected turn nature had given us. This experience stays with me as a reminder of the unpredictability and power of the wilderness and as a lesson to always be careful when traversing mountains in dry climates!
Which wilderness destination is still on your bucket list and why?
Tajikistan is high on my bucket list: it is an unknown and unspoiled country with endless mountains.
Do you have a message for the people reading this?
Come on, let’s get out there! Connecting with nature is so incredibly healthy and enriching for our souls. The wild is our primal environment, and together we’ll find our way through it. So many magical moments await us out there!
