Can Lesley Carter Make Her Son The Youngest Child to Visit Every Continent?
Lesley Carter is the owner of Bucket List Publications. She’s stepped foot on every continent and visited more than 100 countries. From piloting a fighter jet to diving with great white sharks, she’s crossing off her bucket list every day. Now that she has two children, her focus has shifted to bucket list adventures that include them. Her current bucket list goal is to make her son, Max, the youngest child to visit every continent.
Maxwell Smith was born on April 13th, 2020. Even before his birth, Carter had record-breaking plans in the making. Her goal was to make Max the youngest child to visit every state in the United States. The plan was to travel by car to every state in less than three months. Carter made arrangements in every state and planned each day to make her goal a reality. Then, the unimaginable happened. The pandemic completely derailed her goal. With world-wide travel restrictions, she needed a new plan.
Now that restrictions are lifting and travel is possible, Carter’s new bucket list dream is to make Max the youngest child to visit every continent. The current record-holder is 7 years old, and Max is now 2-years- old so there is some wiggle-room.
The first continent, North America, is covered because it’s where they call home. Max has already been to USA, Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Bahamas, and Haiti.
The second continent on their list is Asia. With plans to visit Dubai in April, that will be complete before the summer. Atlantis, The Palm and Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach will provide them a starting point to explore Dubai. There is a direct flight from Dallas, Texas to Dubai with Emirates so a 12- hour flight will bring them to their destination with minimal effort. The time-change will be difficult, but manageable.
The third continent planned is Africa, which will be crossed off the list in June with a visit to Uganda. Africa Adventure Safaris will take them on a 5-day safari with highlights including Queen Elizabeth National Park, Lake Mburo National Park, and Entebbe.
Fourth on the list is Fiji to explore the Oceania portion of the journey. Then, Europe will be the fifth continent. Both continents will be completed before the end of summer, 2022. That just leaves South America and Antarctica. South America is easy to reach with direct flights from Dallas on a daily bases. Antarctica will be the most difficult continent to reach, especially since most cruises only accept children ages 8 and above.
Carter plans to partner with a cruise line in December, 2023 to arrive on the final continent before Max is four years old. It’s a lofty goal, but Carter believes that the more unrealistic you are with your dreams and goals, the more you are able to achieve.
