Gwen Maka

Born in England in 1948, Gwen Maka’s love affair with America and low budget travel began when she stepped off a plane at JFK airport in 1982 with £100 in her pocket, on her way to study underdevelopment on a Sioux reservation.

Ten years later she abandoned her three grown up sons to their fate when a pin stuck in a map took her to Istanbul where she taught English for eighteen months.

Prior to this her lack of long-term strategic planning (and need for cash) led her through dozens of jobs, including potato picking, cleaning, nursing, tree surgery, research assistant, development worker, to obtaining first and postgraduate degrees from the University of East Anglia, and Edinburgh University. She is currently living and painting in Holland.

Books:

Riding with Ghosts

Fascinated by Native American history, Gwen wanted to get close to the earth to witness it first hand. She set out to cycle 4,000 miles solo and unsupported, following the trails from Seattle to Mexico and re-capturing the spirit of her forebears lives.

Riding with Ghosts – South of the Border

Having whetted her taste for adventure, Gwen continues her solo and unsupported cycle ride from Mexico to Costa Rica. A lone woman through bloodstained terrain, they said it couldn’t be done. Gwen is a woman who thrives on challenge; she continues to travel with abandon and guides us through the history and reality of modern day Central America.