Where it began…
Hello, fellow adventure seekers! I’m Julius Ragnar, the founder of The Hiking Challenge, I am a born-and-raised Icelander with a deep-rooted passion for the great outdoors and a flair for aesthetic design. A graduate from the Reykjavik Academy of Visual Arts, I further honed my business skills at Reykjavik University, sharpening my ability to combine creative and strategic thinking. But let’s take a step back to where it all began…
Growing up in Iceland, nature was my playground. My childhood was a whirlwind of glacier hikes, volcanic explorations, and northern lights chasing. This love for adventure became the lens through which I approached life and design.
One day, after a exhilarating hike up to the peak of Mount Esja, an idea sparked in my mind. As I looked at the trail map, I found myself wishing for a more interactive way to track my hiking journey, something that married design and adventure.
Drawing on my skills from visual arts school, I set to work, transforming my apartment into a design studio overrun with sketches of Iceland’s hiking trails. Countless cups of coffee and many crumpled sketches later, the first Hiking Challenge poster came to life.
Incorporating intricate design elements, each trail was represented as an illustrated landmark, waiting to be revealed by the scratch of a plastic pick. It wasn’t just a poster; it was an interactive, visually appealing record of my adventures, a testament to the beauty of Iceland.
The posters quickly became a hit amongst my friends and then took the Icelandic outdoor enthusiast community by storm. The overwhelming response was humbling. It was then I realized that this wasn’t just about Iceland or me. This was a universal desire for hikers across the globe – to record, remember, and relive their journey.
And so, with a suitcase full of posters and a heart full of hope, I went on my mission to share this innovative concept with the world. The Hiking Challenge had evolved from a personal project to a global movement, encouraging people to embrace the beauty of their journeys, one scratch-off trail at a time.
Today, I’m thrilled to bring this passion project to you and cannot wait to see where your trails lead. Let the Hiking Challenge begin!
