JG
AO: What was your childhood dream job?
JG: My father is a retired deep sea diver, so I grew
up with a real love for the ocean. For many years,
I was an aspiring marine-biologist. Then, I saw
Raiders of the Lost Ark and everything changed.
There’s a reason my son’s middle name is “Indi-
ana.”
AO: What first inspired your love of travel and ex-
ploration?
JG: I think it was a combination of my parents and
a love of movies. My father’s work took him all over
the world, and my mother is from the U.K. So, from
an early age, we were traveling abroad, and I got
this sense that the world is a really vast, mysteri-
ous place. I was also a Spielberg nut. JAWS,
Raiders, Close Encounters; 80s movies in general.
I could probably quote every line from The
Goonies or Back to the Future. I just fell in love
with the realization that ADVENTURE is out there.
AO: What’s the scariest situation you’ve ever en-
countered while in another part of the world?
JG: I was once filming aboard an old, Russian air-
craft when the roof ripped off in flight. It was a di-
lapidated Antonov biplane, and I was riding in the
cockpit with most of my crew in the main cabin.
Suddenly, there was this BANG, and the roof was
gone. When you’re in an airplane and then sud-
denly you’re outdoors…something has gone seri-
ously wrong with your flight. Thankfully, the pilot
was a total pro. He yelled out to me over the howl-
ing wind, “We must go back!” No shit, I thought,
let’s do that.