Ole and Ane looking out at the sea, Madeira
Boone, North Carolina  ·  Danes in the World

Ole & Ane

Masters of Geography. World Citizens.
Adventurers. Storytellers. Beloved.

80+ Countries
6 Books Written
89 Years Young
2 Children
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Ole and Ane laughing together in Cotacachi, Ecuador

Cotacachi, Ecuador

Their Story

A Life Lived Fully

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Ole and Ane have spent a lifetime doing what few dare to dream: going everywhere, seeing everything, and writing it all down. Born in Denmark and rooted for decades in the mountains of North Carolina, their story is one of restless curiosity and deep love — for each other, for the world, and for the people in it.

Ole built his career as a Professor of Geography and Planning at Appalachian State University, where he shaped generations of students who learned to see the world the way he did — as a living system of culture, climate, and human possibility. Ane brought her own warmth and intellect to every journey they shared.

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page."

— St. Augustine

Together they have visited over 80 countries across six continents. Even well into their eighties, Ole and Ane continue to live and explore with remarkable spirit — renting homes in Cotacachi, Ecuador and the island of Madeira, Portugal. This site is a celebration of their extraordinary life together.

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80+
Countries Visited
📚
6
Books Published
🎓
2
Children
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89
Years of Living Fully
Adventures

The World Remains
Their Classroom

From the temples of Myanmar to the wine terraces of Madeira, from the streets of Montevideo to a rented house in the Ecuadorian Andes — Ole and Ane have not merely visited the world. They have lived in it.

These are some of the places that shaped them, moved them, and made it into their writings.

Ole contemplating on the volcanic coast of Madeira
2016 60 Days
The Equatorial Journey

Around the World in 60 Days

In early 2015, Ole and Ane set out on an extraordinary journey along the equatorial band — crossing the UAE, Singapore, and Vietnam in the first leg, then on through the Andaman Islands, Myanmar, Thailand, and Japan. Sixty days. Two volumes. A lifetime of stories. This wasn't tourism. It was two career geographers reading the world the only way they knew how — from the ground up, with eyes wide open.

Ane on the dramatic Madeira peninsula with green cliffs behind her
Portugal MAD Madeira
Atlantic Portugal

A Home in Madeira

They didn't just visit Madeira — they rented a house and stayed. Both serious wine enthusiasts, Ole and Ane share a deep passion for the island's remarkable wine culture — Ane forging connections with vineyards abroad and crafting her own wines at home, Ole channeling that immersion into a full-length guide covering Madeira's storied fortified wines, emerging table wines, history, and terroir.

Ole and Ane laughing at their rented home in Cotacachi, Ecuador
Ecuador COT Cotacachi
The Andes, Ecuador

Life in Cotacachi

In the shadow of an ancient volcano in Ecuador's highlands, they became temporary residents of Cotacachi. Their observations became Ecuadorians Encounter Obamaland — a sharp-eyed account of what Americans look like when seen from the outside.

Street mural in Montevideo, Uruguay — photographed by Ole Gade
Uruguay MVD Montevideo
South America

Six Weeks in Montevideo

Six weeks in one of South America's most underappreciated cities. Montevideo Life in 2016 captures daily rhythms, small surprises, and the quiet revelations that only come from staying long enough to feel like a regular somewhere.

Their Writing

Six Books. Six Worlds.

Ole and Ane have turned a lifetime of travel into a shelf of first-hand accounts — part scholarship, part memoir, entirely alive.

North Carolina
North Carolina: People and Environments
A comprehensive portrait of North Carolina's extraordinary diversity — climate, water resources, environmental quality, economy, and people. A work Ole co-authored, bringing the same scholarly rigor to his home state that he'd applied to continents the world over.
Appalachian State University Press · Co-authored
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The World · Volume I
Around the World in 60 Days, Vol. I
The first half of an extraordinary equatorial journey in January–March 2015 — UAE, Singapore, Vietnam — seen at ground level by two lifelong geographers with everything to notice.
2015
View photobook →
The World · Volume II
Around the World in 60 Days, Vol. II
The journey continues through the Andaman Islands, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, and Japan — vast cultures observed by two people trained to see what others miss.
2015
View photobook →
Atlantic Portugal
The Wines of Madeira
A deep, affectionate guide to Madeira's legendary fortified wines and emerging table wines — told through history, culture, and personal discovery. Born from months lived on the island itself.
Madeira, Portugal
Read online →
South America
Montevideo Life in 2016
Six weeks of quiet, sharp observation in Uruguay's elegant capital. A portrait of a city that rewards those who stay long enough to look beneath the surface.
Montevideo, Uruguay · 2016
View photobook →
The Andes
Ecuadorians Encounter Obamaland
What does America look like when seen from Ecuador's highlands? Written in Cotacachi, where Ole and Ane lived as outsiders — and found themselves seen clearly for the first time.
Cotacachi, Ecuador
Read online →
The Gade Family
Ole and Ane Gade with their two children, luggage ready for the next adventure
Luggage packed and ready — Ole and Ane with their children. Always another adventure on the horizon.
Through Ole's Lens

A Geographer's Eye

Ole has carried a camera across 80 countries — from film in 1980s China to digital on the cliffs of New Zealand. These are some of his favorites.

Mono Lake tufa towers mirrored in deep blue water, California
Mono Lake, California
Grand Canyon at golden hour, Arizona
Grand Canyon, Arizona
Ole and a friend at rest, Scandinavia
A Quiet Afternoon, Scandinavia
A woman beside a lotus flower, Southeast Asia
Lotus Garden, Southeast Asia
Fishing harbor on the Pacific coast of Ecuador
Fishing Harbor, Ecuador
Milford Sound fjord with snow-capped peaks, New Zealand
Milford Sound, New Zealand
A winding road through the high desert, American West
Open Road, American West
A young Chinese girl in a blue sweater, smiling — scanned film, 1980s
Young Pioneer, China
Children waving in a Chinese schoolyard — scanned film, 1980s
Schoolyard, China
Ole on the Madeira coast, sepia
Madeira Coast
Ole and Ane together in a cave on the lavadas of Madeira
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"Two people, one compass, and the beautiful conviction that the world is worth knowing."

Ole & Ane Gade  ·  Boone, North Carolina  ·  Born in Denmark