Meeting Peter Heller–25 Years Later

When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey, Peter Heller was my pal who lived in Brooklyn. He used to come out and visit us, and they called us ‘city mouse and country mouse.’ I have just reunited with this old friend, who I haven’t seen since 1980, we are traveling together in Chile.

I didn’t know what I’d think about Peter now, after only hearing bits and pieces through relatives about what he was doing. He’s a writer and adventurer, truly so, he goes on long assignments to write stories for Outside and National Geographic Adventure magazine. Despite being a big-name writer who has won two Lowell Thomas awards, the best thing about Pete is that he is real. He is inquisitive, funny, thoughtful, well read and listens as well as he talks. He is a gentle man who sees the fun in everything, and is still curious about the world and the people he meets.

It has been wonderful getting to know him again after all of these years, and to realize that we’ve picked up right where we left off. But this time we’re a little grayer and wiser, and we’re not sleeping in bunk beds at my parent’s house.