Five Epic Undiscovered Hiking Trails

The ancient Inuit word ‘Tunu’ means the ‘backside’; the local inhabitants use it to describe East Greenland, an untamed land sculpted by forces far beyond the human world. This is a place virtually unvisited by tourists, with its culture deeply rooted in Norse and Greenlandic legend. Surrounded by mountains and deep fjords, there are few places on Earth as remote and pristine. At the same time, the simple lifestyle of the Greenlanders, and their strong connection to nature and to the sea, is omnipresent. East Greenland is a place to have your imagination ignited and your heart captured.

Jordan remains a safe haven in a region of conflict, and has some of the most spectacular landscapes in the Middle East. The new, 400-mile long distance footpath, the Jordan Trail, takes you on a journey past ancient cities, through impressive wadis, and out into the unforgiving heat of the desert. It connects the entire length of the country, from Um Qais in the north to Aqaba in the south.

Banff National Park in the heart of the Canadian Rockies offers some of the world’s best hiking trails, both in summer and in winter. It’s a truly wild place, and whilst the local towns have all the creature comforts you’d expect in Canada – log fires, hot tubs and great restaurants – head a mile or two off the Banff-Jasper highway you’re as likely to bump into a moose or a wolf as another human being.

Hiking across Vito Levu’s rainforest-clad slopes you are rewarded with beautiful swimming holes and the great hospitality of the local villagers. Fiji has so much to offer beyond its white sand beaches; the true soul of this country is found in its rugged interior, yet few visitors come to explore it, partly because it’s hot and very humid. Fiji has a very tight-knit community based mostly around the network of rural villages, where kids are cared for by the entire community. Perhaps it’s this communitarian aspect of their society that makes Fijians so friendly and welcoming to visitors.