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Celebrate the 125th Anniversary of the Trustees

It was wonderful to be at the Crane Estate Saturday night to hear Megan Hilty and the Boston Pops Orchestra perform at one of the most majestic spots in Massachusetts, the Grand Allée. The gala celebration commemorated the 125th anniversary of The Trustees of Reservation, the nonprofit conservation organization that maintains over 100 sites in Massachusetts and has a yearly membership of more than 125,000 people. The Crane Estate is one of the gems in the Trustees’ collection. Another one is Naumkeag, the recently renovated Stockbridge estate, which will be hosting a free open house this coming Friday, August 12th. The celebration continues throughout 2016. An exhibition, From the Sea to the Mountains: The Trustees 125th Anniversary, is currently on view at the Boston Public Library through August 28. Starting September 18th at World’s End, artist Jeppe Hein will install a reflective structure made of mirrored posts of differing heights whose form mimics the shape of the surrounding drumlin formations. On Columbus Day, October 10th, Massachusetts’ residents will gain access to all Trustees sites for free. So if you haven’t join in the festivities yet, you still have a chance. 
 
(Photo by Amy Basseches) 
 
 
 

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One Helluva Climb

39 year-old Dan Nevins lost both his legs in Iraq. Neil Duncan, 26, had both his legs blown off in Afghanistan driving over a buried explosive in 2005. Kirk Bauer, 62, lost one of his legs in Vietnam. Together, the trio just finished climbing to the peak of 19,334-foot Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa. If you’re doing the math at home, that’s three men with a combined one leg they were born with. The six-day climb was part of Wounded Warrior Sports Challenge, a series of extreme adventures aimed at permanently disabled veterans. Designed by Disabled Sports USA, out of Rockville, Maryland, the company holds the same belief as me that adventure is the best form of therapy. Along with mountain climbs, they also feature a 26-mile run in the desert of New Mexico, scuba, sailing, and a 100-mile bike trek. Kudos to Dan, Neil, and Kirk for not only attempting but making it to the top!
 

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Backpacking the Fundy Footpath in New Brunswick

One of my favorite Canadian adventures was an assignment I had for Backpacker magazine and later, The Boston Globe, to backpack the Long Range Traverse in Newfoundland’s Gros Morne National Park. Led by Bob Hicks, owner of Gros Morne Adventures, the 4-day trek took us to spine-tingling vistas of landlocked fjords and atop snowcapped peaks where the caribou and moose far outnumber other backpackers. An equally impressive backpacking excursion is along one of the last stretches of wilderness on the Atlantic Seaboard in New Brunswick. Overlooking the Bay of Fundy, the Fundy Footpath is a moderate to strenuous 24-mile trek that crosses a river, skirts the beach, and goes up and down a dozen or so ravines, rewarding backpackers with breathtaking views of the rugged shoreline. Camping at primitive sites, moose, caribou, and bald eagle are common sightings. 
 

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Hong Kong, Bangkok, and French Polynesia in the March ActiveTravels Newsletter

In the March issue of the ActiveTravels newsletter, we discuss our recent travels to Hong Kong and Bangkok. When we weren’t downing copious amounts of dim sum, we were checking out the art scene, the food markets, and the temples where residents were preparing for the Chinese New Year celebrations. We also experienced 5 of the best hotels in the region. We now only bring carry-on luggage because we change hotels every two days to experience as much as possible of what our clients will encounter during their stays. Also in this issue is a deal on cruising French Polynesia and the family friendly delights of a relatively new Montage resort just outside of Savannah, Georgia.

Tonight, we’re heading off to Spain to visit our daughter who is studying in Barcelona. We’re also seeing Granada, Ronda, our nephew in Seville, and Madrid. We’ll be back April 8th with more of the best topical travel content you’ve come to expect from ActiveTravels. Thanks again for your interest. 
 
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Scintillating St. Martin

On St. Martin, French and Dutch cultures merge to create one of the most cosmopolitan islands in the Caribbean. The two nationalities have been living in peaceful coexistence since 1648. After a breakfast of croissants and café au laits in Marigot, walk along the winding alleys behind the harbor and soon the seaside village starts to feel like a town on the French Riviera. Boutiques, restaurants, and small markets line the streets. On Rue de la Liberte, the latest French fashions can be found. A must stop for all foodies is the Gourmet Boutique on Rue de l’Anguille, to snack on Brie and Camembert cheeses, Godiva chocolates, fresh baguettes, and the tastiest jambon (ham).  
 
Blink and you might miss the fishing village of Grand Case at the northern tip of St. Martin. This is the St. Martin of yesteryear, where ramshackle houses intermingle with more than a dozen French seafood restaurants, many overlooking the bay. Ask for an ocean view table and watch the waves roll ashore as you’re served fresh lobster or red snapper Provencal under candlelight. Dutch Sint Maarten is where everyone goes to work off their French meals. The open-air dancefloor at Cheri’s Cafe is located in Maho Bay.  Next door is Casino Royale, one of the handful of casinos on this half of the island.  
 
The French Rivera flavor extends to the Orient Express resort, La Samanna. Walk out of your two-story whitewashed villa onto Baie Longue, home to some of the finest pearly white sands in the Caribbean. If you choose the right suite, you can sun bathe atop your terrace or around a private plunge pool. Perched on a hill overlooking the curve of the beach, the restaurant is known for its collection of over 10,000 bottles of wine. Also indulge in the new spa, nestled in a quiet courtyard of palms.
 

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Biking to Giverny

The past six weeks, I’ve been home less than six days, traveling on assignment to Newport, Cape Cod, Maine, New Brunswick, Paris, and London. Thankfully, I’ll be on my back deck most of August writing stories based on these trips. This week, I want to delve into some of the highlights of these recent excursions.

Those of you with a love of art history know Giverny as the home of Claude Monet. Less than an hour by train from Paris, you can make the pilgrimage to Monet’s home and his spectacular Japanese water garden inundated with day lilies, the inspiration for many of the works that hang on the walls of the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and other impressive collections of Impressionism around the globe. Fat Tire Bike Tours escorts riders from Paris’ St. Lazare train station to the quaint village of Vernon. Once you arrive, you head to an outdoor market to stock up on picnic food–soft, creamy Reblochon cheese, slices of yummy Rosette de Lyon sausage, duck liver pate, warm baguettes from the neighborhood boulangerie, juicy strawberries and apricots, and a bottle of wine to wash it down. After passing out bikes, our guide Andrew led us to the banks of the Seine River where we watched a family of swans swim as we dug into our goodies. Then we were off on an easy 5km bike trail that connects Vernon with Giverny. We entered the picturesque hamlet and were soon walking over that Japanese bridge seen in many of Monet’s works. The whole trip took from Paris took about 8 hours and cost 65 Euros per biker, a perfect day trip for our family of four.
 

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Climb Mount Shasta, California

When a five-year-old sketches a perfect triangular cone of a mountain, they come pretty damn close to drawing Mount Shasta. Standing 14,162 feet tall, this snow-clad Northern Californian beauty (a 4-hour drive from Sacramento) can be seen from a 100-mile radius.  To reach its prominent summit, however, is no easy task.  Even in the summer months, you’ll need crampons and an ice ax.  These can be rented locally or you can opt to go with Shasta Mountain Guides who will teach you how to best trudge in snow as they accompany you on the trail. The 6.1-mile, 6,000 vertical feet climb starts at a stone building the Sierra Club calls Horse Camp. You might wish you were on a horse as the South face trail rises sharply past the frozen shores of 10,000-foot high Lake Helen to the icy slopes of the 13,000-foot high Red Banks. This is where your ice ax comes in handy since Red Banks has a good 35-degree grade. Reach the summit and you’ll be treated with views of 10,457-foot Lassen Peak, the Three Sisters in Oregon and the other volcanic peaks that make up the Cascade chain. Give yourself 13 hours for the uphill climb and a mere 1-2 hours for the descent, where you simply slide down on your ass.  The French have a lyrical name for this exhilarating downhill journey, glissade.  
 

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