Travis Smola was born and raised in southwest Michigan and graduated Western Michigan University with a degree in journalism in 2013. He has been published in magazines and newspapers in Michigan, Wyoming, California, Nevada and Texas covering just about everything including local government, crime, sports and special features. A fisherman all his life, he has also been a hunter for almost 20 years. In 2005 he got into geocaching and has been an active member of the geocaching community in southwest Michigan ever since. He is currently writing a book detailing his adventures in the GPS-oriented hobby.