Meet Chris Desmond | Engineer & Content Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris Desmond and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
I am originally from Pittsburgh PA. I was always an active kid but it was not until 2016 (when I moved to Colorado) is when I immediately got the hiking bug and fell in love with the outdoors.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I actually went to school for plastics engineering at Penn State. Was definitely a rigorous degree but thus far has been very rewarding. I spent 7 years on the manufacturing side learning how various plastic parts were made, designed and the costing of them. I am now a sourcing manager for a medical device company and still utilize my degree. I would say there is burnout in most careers, engineering has definitely had some stressful moments in the past 10 years in the industry. While I am passionate in the engineering and sourcing industry, traveling the world and being outdoors is something that makes me happy too. So I decided to use the social media platforms to inspire people to get outside and explore this beautiful world, and all this can still be done while having a 9-5 job. So that’s been my main focus to provide my audience tips and travel hacks and showing people hidden gems and epic adventures around the world, that would love to seem people be inspired and venture out on their own as well!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I have been in Denver 8 years now. All my friends know i’m an avid hiker, so I typically show them some fun hikes within 2 hours of Denver. My top 3 that I show them are The Loch Lake Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park, Green Mountain West Trail in Boulder or Silver Dollar Lake near Georgetown, CO. My friends are big foodies and so far pretty happy with the food scene in Denver. I like to show them RiNo and LoHi areas. Recently took my friends to Senor Bear and we LOVED it! Then we checked out Avanti for a drink overlooking the Denver skyline. Also a big fan of Golden, CO and showed them one of my favorite breweries, New Terrain Brewery. And then another food stop at the Golden Mill, which my dog loves as well with the large outdoor patio and I treat him to a ice cream pup cup!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I really was just posting travels and outdoor adventures just for fun. Then one day in 2022 one of my videos went viral and saw others utilizing social media as a income stream and thought I would give it a try. I have now partnered with 10+ outdoor brands and went on an all-paid press trip to Patagonia so far.

Website: https://beacons.ai/cdesmondtravel

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cdesmondtravel/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZPaHyWz8c9nd4M002WZeTQ

Image Credits
All taken by myself