Two hundred years ago, a group of unique and fearless men of various nationalities, struck out west, and in the processes, opened up the wild American west. Commerce and fur trading fueled and funded these expeditions.  They blazed new trails, discovered new lands unseen by immigrants to the Americas, and started in motion the Great Western Migration.  Over the next 70 years, hundreds of thousands followed in the footsteps of these Mountain Men, creating towns where they once camped, and naming these towns, and the surrounding mountains and rivers and lakes after these early explorers.  Names like Jim Bridger, Kit Carson, John Wesley Powell, Peter Skene Ogden, Jedediah Smith, and Etienne Provost became legends even while they still lived.

Nicollet said that one of these men were “certainly worth ten”.  Provo, Utah, near where I live, was named after Etienne Provost, who was one of the first white men to see the Great Salt Lake.  Provost was called, while he was still alive, "L'Homme des Montagnes--man of the mountains".

On an annual basis, these explorers would meet together in a Rendezvous – a meeting or a gathering – to trade, to re-supply, to swap stories, and to share knowledge of their explorations.  Even though they were competitors, they still found value in getting together.

This week, at Know More Media, we are having our own type of Rendezvous.  We have asked some of the early pioneers in the blogosphere to join us here at the Know More Media network and swap stories and share knowledge.  These men and women have blazed new trails with new technology, new business models, and new mindsets.  They have helped lead the transformation and democratization of media and publishing and we have no doubt that many countless others will walk in their footsteps.

We have reached out to many of these early pioneers and some of them have graciously agreed to join us and share with us this coming week.  We recognize that there are a number of the trailblazers are so busy with their own expeditions, that they were not able to participate.  We completely understand.

We have, however, been able to line up an impressive line-up of guest authors this week, both here on the Know More Media blog and on a number of blogs through out the network.  Each day we will post who has joined with us and help point you to their posts.

First up, on the Know More Media network, is the erudite Chartreuse, quoted by the New York Times and loved by the folks at Rocketboom.  Our Jason Boog, of ThePublishingSpot, said “It's rare that somebody comes along with such a distinctive voice, especially in the technology/business end of things.”  We are thrilled to have Chartreuse at the top of the lineup.

We are really excited about this week and what we will learn from these Men and Women of the Mountains.