About Arie Hoogerbrugge — A Life Built One Kilometre at a Time
My name is Arie Hoogerbrugge, and the life I live today, pretty deep in the jungles of Belize, is the result of decades of discipline, reinvention, real-world experience, and a few failures. I’ve built businesses, driven transport trucks across North America, cycled thousands of kilometres through extreme environments, and ultimately created a life rooted in adventure, solitude, and daily discipline.
This is the story of how I got here.
Early Life, Curiosity & Entrepreneurship
I was born on May 18, 1973, in Grimsby, Ontario, and grew up with two younger brothers, Jason and Ryan. From an early age, I was drawn to reptiles, amphibians, and animals. By high school, I kept over fifty species of reptiles and amphibians in my parents’ basement—an obsession that eventually became a career.
In 1995, I founded Reptiles Unlimited, a wholesale company supplying reptiles, feeder animals, and private-label products to pet stores across Ontario. I later opened The Reptile Store in Hamilton, complete with a reptile party room that hosted thousands of educational birthday parties. These early businesses taught me reliability, reputation, and the discipline required to build something from the ground up.
⭠ A 7ft African Rock Python in my bedroom back from my high school days (around 1991-92). Still one of my favorite snake species.
Long-Haul Trucking — The Hardest, Most Demanding Job of My Life
In 2013, after a few setbacks in life, needing a new direction, I enrolled in an AZ truck-driving course. Through a family relation, I was hired on at Voortman Cookies, which ran a specialized operation, servicing grocery stores via independent distributors. Inventory was stored in public storage units, many not designed for a 70-foot vehicle. All my coworkers had 20–30+ years of driving experience; I had six weeks of driving school. Navigating storage units, rain or shine, day or night, snow and ice, tested everything I had.
I regularly drove to New York City, eventually transitioning to Colorado, then Miami, and then to California, but also traveled throughout the Lower 48 and every major city in America and across Canada. Backing a truck and trailer through a narrow storage unit gate on a main artery in New York City during rush hour was stressful beyond words!
I often said, “While you eat, I am driving. While you sleep, I am driving. While you spend time with loved ones, I am driving.”
Truck driving becomes your life — you give up almost 95% of your life. Over 6½ years, I drove about 1.2 million km (30 times around the planet), delivered nearly 400 loads, and moved roughly 13 million pounds of cookies by hand. In all my work experiences, driving a truck was the hardest, most formidable, challenging, stressful, and most rewarding accomplishment of my life.
Bike Touring – Experiencing Adventure and Life on a Whole Other Level
My first long-distance bike tour came in 2011, which was 6,500 km across Western and Northern Canada over 14 weeks. It changed me—but it was only the beginning. This experience taught me how to really sacrifice on a daily basis to reach my goals.
After a broken engagement in 2019, I decided to rebuild myself physically and mentally by cycling from Canada to Belize. From November 12, 2019, through the next two years, I biked 26,000 km (16,156 miles) during the 2019–2020 Canadian winter through Atlantic Canada and Quebec (coldest night – 24°C/-11°F), across Canada, and down through the US all during Covid-19. Continuing down the Mexican Baja (regular temperatures of 46°C/115°F for a month) and continued all the way through Mexico to Belize, arriving at my home in Belize on November 25, 2021.
This journey became the backbone of my memoir; I am currently writing: From Scrubbing Toilets to Living in the Jungles of Belize One Kilometre at a Time.
Life in Belize — Real Jungle Living
I first visited Belize in 1997 and was immediately drawn to its wildlife, jungle, and endless sense of adventure. Today, I live in Scotland Halfmoon, within the Community Baboon Sanctuary—home to one of the highest densities of Black Howler Monkeys in the world.
This isn’t bushcraft survival. This is real work, daily living in a remote Belize jungle environment. Since settling permanently in Belize, I’ve worked hard every day to build infrastructure and cultivate a space for like-minded individuals who might also want to live in the jungle.
As I did during my bike ride, I continue to document my daily experiences in my blog series. Living in the Belize jungle has allowed me to fully embrace an adventure-focused, non-conformist lifestyle, where every day offers new experiences for growth.
Reflections & Philosophy
I live simply, intentionally, and with a focus on experiences over possessions. Adventure, challenge, discipline, and hard work drive my life. While my path has been unconventional, it has taught me the value of persistence, self-reliance, and living boldly.
Through my blogs, I share my journey — from long-distance bike tours to jungle wildlife encounters — hoping to inspire others to pursue their passions and embrace life with courage and curiosity.
Qualifications Earned the Hard Way
My credibility is built on what I’ve lived, not what I’ve read:
- From the Founder of multiple businesses, including reptile education and wholesale operations
- To scrubbing toilets in a factory
- To 6.5 years as a professional long-haul truck driver – 1.2 million km driven across North America
- A two-year, multi-country bike tour from Canada to Belize, through a Canadian winter to scorching deserts
- Four years and counting of hands-on experience living in the Belize jungle
- Experienced knowledge with discipline, isolation, goal-driven living, and personal sacrifice
- Currently working on a memoir documenting twelve years of transformation
I don’t share and teach theory — I share and teach what I’ve lived.
Why I Share My Story
Most people want change, but don’t know where to start. My life proves that with discipline, hard work, and resilience, you can build a reality that once would have felt impossible.
Whether you want to:
- explore jungle living
- redesign your lifestyle
- preparing for a life change goal
- or prepare for your first long-distance bike tour
…I’m here to share what I’ve learned, one kilometre at a time.