Tim Cope
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Tim’s Story
Adventure. Culture. Wilderness.
If you must rush, rush slowly
Tim Cope is renowned for immersive journeys that champion the people of remote lands he travels through. Whether riding horses on historic nomad trails across the great Eurasian steppe, guiding trekkers on bespoke expeditions through the Altai Mountains of Mongolia, or in the throes of writing a book, he is driven by a deep passion for adventure as a vehicle to learn from ancient cultures, history, and wild places. Tim speaks Russian, is a qualified wilderness guide, best selling author, has worked for nearly two decades as a professional speaker, and has collected international accolades for his journeys, writing, films, and work in adventure tourism.
Adventure Calling
Tim is best known for his ambitious odyssey riding horses on the trail of Genghis Khan – a 10,000km journey from Mongolia to Hungary across the great Eurasian Steppe. Australian Geographic billed this ‘one of the greatest journeys of modern times’ and awarded Tim the Australian Adventurer Of the Year. For this journey he was also recognized by National Geographic (USA) as an adventure honouree and ‘cultural ambassador.’
At the beginning of the journey, Tim could barely ride a horse, but three and a half years later he made world headlines when he rode onto the banks of the Danube, along with his three horses and trusty canine companion, Tigon. Through the innumerable challenges he faced Tim drew inspiration from the nomadic people of the steppe who offered friendship, wisdom, and taught him about the extraordinary history of nomad societies and the complex issues facing their culture in the modern world.
Tim’s previous documented adventures include rowing a wooden boat 4,500km through Siberia to the Arctic Ocean, and riding recumbent bicycles across Russia to China. He received recognition from Australian geographic for both of these journeys as Young Australian Adventurer of the Year, and Spirit of Adventure Award respectively.
Outdoor Steward
Tim shares his love for the outdoors and remote cultures through storytelling and guided immersions
Writer
Tim developed a passion for descriptive, non-fiction writing in childhood. Over time his writing became joined at the hip with his fascination for adventure, culture and history. The critically acclaimed On The Trail Of Genghis Khan was a bestseller in Australia and published world wide by Bloomsbury. His most recent work was Tim & Tigon (PanMacmillan) for young adults.
Documentary Film Maker
In 1999-2000, Tim and his co-adventurer Chris Hatherly, both 20 years old at the time, set off to ride recumbent bicycles across Russia to China. They captured their journey on video camera, leading to Tim’s first documentary: Off the Rails: On the Back Roads to Beijing. Subsequently, he co-produced, and filmed the series The Trail Of Genghis Khan. This was a production for ARTE in Europe, and a six part TV series for ABC in Australia.
Wilderness Guide
At the age of nineteen Tim quit his law degree –after just one semester- and took up an opportunity to train as a wilderness guide in Finland. The course had an emphasis on being reliant on knowledge of the natural environment. Through this process Tim learned to interpret the landscape through the prism of the ancient culture.
Since 2008 Tim has been travelling to Mongolia annually to lead unique journeys that focus on both immersion in the nomad culture as well as the remote landscapes. Tim leads bespoke, customised journeys as well as publicly scheduled expeditions with World Expeditions.
Speaker
Tim has spoken at hundreds of educational, corporate, and festival events in Australia and abroad, and has developed a reputation for drawing on his many experiences to weave a tale of triumph, heartbreak, and deep learning. Tim is exclusively represented by Saxtons in Australia.
Sponsors
Many sponsors have partnered with Tim over his many journeys, including Iridium Satellite Solutions, Saxton Speakers Bureau, Australian Geographic, Internetrix, Mountain Designs, and Dick Smith Foods among many others. This support, ranging from products and services, to finance and moral support has been instrumental in allowing Tim to not only pursue his journeys but share them with the wider public.
Spelean Australia
Tim is a brand ambassador for Spelean Australia, the exclusive distributor in Australia of MSR, Thermarest, and Petzl outdoor gear. Spelean has a long history of supporting Tim’s adventures stretching back to the year 2000. Look out for Tim’s updates on new release gear supplied by Spelean.
Fuji X Photographer
Tim has been supported by Fujifilm since 2004 when he set out on the trail of Genghis Khan by horse. Back then, Fujifilm supplied the transparency film and development for his photographs – many of which can be seen in Tim’s gallery. Nowadays Tim is a Fujifilm x-photographer, and has been using Fujifilm’s excellent digital, mirrorless camera range for a decade.
Mako Sunglasses
Mako sunglasses Australia has been supplying Tim with high quality eyewear since 2012. Tim has tested these glasses over many years as a professional guide and is a passionate supporter of such a high standard of eye protection. Look out for product reviews on his blog and social media.
As a professional guide, speaker, author, and adventurer, Tim is always open to endorsements, ambassadorships, branding campaigns, and sponsorships, particularly in relation to anything that supports environmental sustainability values, adventure equipment and clothing, culture, and travel. Please reach out if you are interested in working with Tim.
Leading Wild
In 2015 Tim was asked by Ikea in Australia to not only speak at their national management conference but facilitate it in a remote, off-grid location. Tim chose the Victorian alpine country, where he arranged for the conference to be held in a remote eco-lodge. The three-day conference included a day of mountain hiking, a presentation, great locally-sourced food, and an opportunity to unplug from the digital world. The feedback was overwhelming – not only was the conference memorable and unique, but the staff were able to connect more deeply, and productively in that environment in three days than they normally would in three months in the normal workplace.
Based on this, Wilderness Conferencing was born – an opportunity for businesses to run a tailored conference in a comfortable yet remote environment with a range of adventure activities to choose from.
Tim grew up on a hobby farm in West Gippsland, Victoria, Australia as the eldest of four children and the son of Andrew & Anne. Andrew was a lecturer in outdoor recreation, and introduced Tim and his siblings to the outdoors from a young age. Surfing, bushwalking, paddling, and cross country skiing in the diverse landscapes of Gippsland were an integral part of growing up.
In 2006, while Tim was in Ukraine on his horseback journey to Hungary, Andrew was killed in a car accident in Australia. He was 56 years old. Tim’s mother, Anne, a career primary school teacher continues to live in Gippsland.
At present, Tim lives in Melbourne and travels to Mongolia annually.
Awards & Accolades
- 2024 Contracted as expedition consultant and fixer for BBC documentary, My Epic Camel Adventure with Gordon Buchanan.
- 2018 Royal Society for Asian Affairs ‘Special Award’ in recognition of ‘exceptionally outstanding and unusual achievement in Asia in any sphere, including service to humanity, contribution to science, the extension of knowledge, innovation, individual ingenuity and resource, personal effort and courage, endurance, fortitude or contribution to culture.’
- 2017 Grand Prize, New Zealand Mountain Book Festival for On The Trail Of Genghis Khan: An Epic Journey Through The Land Of The Nomads.
- 2016 Nairamdal (friendship medal) from the president of Mongolia in recognition of work in celebrating and promoting Mongolian nomad culture internationally.
- 2015 Mongolian Government tourism excellence award. Mad an honorary ambassador for Mongolian Tourism internationally.
- 2014 Shortlist for the Australian Book Industry Awards, Non-fiction category for ”On the Trail Of Genghis Khan: An Epic Journey Through the Land of the Nomads”
- 2013 Grand Prize, and Best Adventure Travel literature at the Banff International Mountain Book and Film Festival for the book: ”On the Trail Of Genghis Khan: An Epic Journey Through the Land of the Nomads”
- 2010-2012, multi International Awards for film ‘On the Trail of Genghis Khan.’ Awards include: Peoples Choice Award, Banff (Canada), Peoples Choice Award, Wanaka (New Zealand), Prize of the Jury, Graz, (Austria), Grand Prize, and Best Mountain Culture Film, Vancouver (Canada), National TV Award, Domzale (Slovenia), Best Adventure Film, Bansko (Bulgaria), Best Adventure Documentary, Prague (Czech Republic), Best Adventure Film, Teplice (Czech republic).
- 2011 “Tour of a Lifetime” recognition by National Geographic Traveller for his ‘In the Footsteps of the Nomads’ trek with World Expeditions.
- 2011 Banff Centre For Creativity Fleck Fellowship. A three-week book writing fellowship in the Banff artist colony, Canada.
- 2007 National Geographic Adventure Honoree presented in Washington DC recognizing Tim as “Cultural Ambassador who traced the journeys of Genghis Khan 6,200 miles across Mongolia to Hungary.”
- 2006 Australian Geographic Adventurer of the Year Award. Tim was flown in from the Ukraine during his unfinished epic by horseback from Mongolia to Hungary to be awarded what is perhaps the most prestigious adventure award on Australian soil.
- 2005 Acceptance as fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, London. This followed a nomination in the midst of journeying through Kazakhstan on horseback.
- 2002 Outside magazine USA inclusion in the top 25 young athletes/explorers in the world in December 2002 under the age of 25.
- 2002 First Prize in the Graz Film Fesitval (Austria) 2002, for the documentary ‘Off the Rails: On the Back Roads to Beijing’
- 2001 Australian Geographic Young Australian Adventurer of the Year in recognition of Tim’s epic 5,000 kilometre rowing journey down the Yenisey River through Siberia to the Arctic Ocean.
- 2000, Australian Geographic Spirit of Adventure Award 2000, in recognition of his “Cycling Siberia” expedition together with Chris Hatherly.
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