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Top 5 Dream Days of 2018, Sailing to Anegada in the BVIs

My barometer for an authentic travel experience is one that plants you squarely in the present where your mind can’t drift to other thoughts and worries. This was certainly the case aboard the 41-foot Island Karma last February when we made the crossing from Virgin Gorda to the remote British Virgin Island of Anegada. Sailing at a speed over 8 knots, the boat was on its side, heeling over in the blustery tradewinds. But under the competent helm of my friend, Josh, and the watchful eye of our Captain, "Boss," I never panicked. With the occasional splash aboard to keep me alert and very much alive, I was relishing the adventure at hand. After 2 hours, we finally reached this sliver of land lined by sparkling white beaches and surrounded by the most spectacular turquoise waters I’ve seen since diving in French Polynesia. We pulled up to a mooring, motored the dinghy to land, and caught an open-air taxi to dreamy Cow Wreck Beach, passing rambling goats and cows along the way. We arrived at a long stretch of desolate sand and a small beachfront bar, planted our bums in Adirondack chairs, took out our books, and started to read. Ahh, sun, sand, sea, sky, serenity. 

 

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Memorable Spring Bike Rides, Walla Walla, Washington

Not so long ago, Walla Walla was known for its sweet tasting onion. Yet, as of late, this community of 40,000 has been transformed by the grapevine, now boasting more than 80 boutique vineyards. Talented chefs have also made the move to this fertile valley, happy to get their produce from the local farmer and to have their meals washed down with award-winning cabernets and syrahs. The relatively level terrain in the southeastern corner of Washington offers a web of backcountry roads through vineyards and fields of wheat, onions, and peas that are perfect for road bikers. Unlike Napa, with its close proximity to San Francisco, there are no limos or buses filled with wine tasters to blow exhaust your way. Indeed, the closest city is sleepy Spokane, 155 miles to the north.  Ride south of town to view the 6,000-foot snowcapped peaks of the Blue Mountains, making sure to stop at Pepper Bridge, Northstar, and Zerba Wineries to try the complex, yet aromatic red wines, which, depending on the vintage, can hint at black cherry, pepper, even licorice.  
 
Follow me live on location next week, when I bike through Niagara-on-the-Lake with Butterfield & Robinson!
 
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Davis, California, Leading the Way in Cutting Carbon Emissions

Located near Sacramento, Davis, California, is a city of just over 65,000 people that’s perhaps best known as the first city in the country to create bike lines on their streets. Well, yesterday, they just upped the ante by announcing their intent to cut the community’s carbon emissions by up to 50 percent by 2013. Using the tenets of David Gershon’s book, “Low Carbon Diet: A 30-day Program to Lose 5,000 Pounds,” Davis is creating EcoTeams, peer-support groups to help households reduce their emissions. Cool Portland (Oregon), Gershon’s first pilot program, helped reduce carbon emissions of each household by 22 percent or 6,700 pounds. 50 percent seems ambitious, but kudos to Davis and Gershon for giving it a shot!
 

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Favorite Fall Foliage Travels—Cannon Beach, Oregon

Only a 90-minute drive from Portland, Cannon Beach is where the mighty timber of the Pacific Northwest meets the long stretch of beach from California, offering the best of both worlds. First stop is towering Haystack Rock, which stands tall in the shallow waters, inspiring awe from all who stroll hand-in-hand on the hard-packed sand. Be on the lookout for the resident pod of grey whales off the Oregon coast which number around 200. Then drive over to nearby Ecola State Park and take a hike in this Emerald Forest, where massive 300 year-old Sitka spruce trees have trunks as wide as a redwood. The woods soon recede, replaced by sandstone bluffs, pink colored beaches and the great expanse of the Pacific. Make your way south, stopping in the fishing community of Bay City for small, tender Kumamoto oysters on the half shell at Pacific Oyster. Dessert is creamy blackberry ice cream at Tillamook Cheese Factory. Spend the night in affordable Manzanita, where rooms at the Spindrift Inn are as low as $109 a night in the months of September and October. 

 
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Maine’s North Woods National Monument Is Now a Reality

Today marks the official 100th anniversary of the national park system. To coincide with the centennial, President Obama announced yesterday that Roxanne Quimby’s 87,654 acres located just east of Baxter State Park will make the list as the North Woods National Monument. On Tuesday, Quimby’s nonprofit, Elliotsville Plantation Inc., transferred her ownership to the U.S. Department of the Interior. Long a proponent of creating a national park in Maine’s North Woods, Quimby, the co-founder of Burt’s Bees skin care products, has been a contentious figure in the region ever since I’ve been reporting on Maine. In a Boston Globe Magazine story on the AMC entering the Maine woods in 2004, Quimby’s name came up time and time again. Locals were worried that the AMC would restrict land use for snowmobiling, logging, and hunting. That never happened. Instead, the AMC introduced Maine’s glorious interior of vast forest, mile-high mountains, secluded lakes, and long rambling rivers to thousands of people who never heard of it. This summer I had the privilege of joining forces with Northern Outdoors and Maine Huts & Trails to help promote the Maine woods. If creating a national monument helps to promote the region to the world and finally gives the largest chunk of wilderness in the northeast the recognition it deserves, then I’ll happily celebrate with a pint of Baxter Stowaway IPA. 

 
 
 
  
 
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Arizona Week—Hiking Phoenix’s Piestewa Peak

I always bring hiking boots when traveling to Phoenix, because it’s arguably the best city in the country for day hikes. There are some 200 miles of trails in the Phoenix park system including short summits like Piestewa that are ideally suited for a 2-hour lunch break. We started our climb around 11 am and we were back at the trailhead at 12:45 pm. That’s not to say it wasn’t a thigh-burner, especially the last part of the trail which steeply ascends the craggy 2,608-foot peak (total elevation gain is 1190 feet). Even on a weekday, the trail was crowded as we made our way up the dirt and rock path past every type of cacti imaginable—tall saguaro, barrel, hedgehog, pincushion, jumping cholla, and prickly pear. Vistas of the Phoenix skyline opened up below us as we passed an ironwood tree. Soon we were up on the summit, eating lunch while enjoying the views of the surrounding ridges and the valley below. I once penned a series of stories for Health Magazine on Urban Adventures, the best workouts outside the gym in cities across America. Climbing Piestewa Peak would be a good option.

 
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Expert Led Tours to Vietnam with Trails of Indochina

If you’re headed to Thailand, Bali, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, or Myanmar with ActiveTravels, chances are you’ll be traveling with Trails of Indochina, our preferred supplier in Southeast Asia. Depending on your interests, be it adventure, culture, history, or food, they always seem to design an authentic itinerary with passionate guides. In 2018, they’re introducing Expert Led Tours to Vietnam with either a renowned artist, photographer, or Vietnam Vet. These are group tours around the country scheduled to depart on specific dates. Exploring Vietnam’s Arts and Handicrafts will be led by artist Sandrine Llouquet from October 15-22. Highlights include lacquer painting demonstration at Hanoi Fine Art University, a Feng Shui lesson at the Temple of Princess An Thuong, and a private Vietnamese art history lecture at Salon Saigon. Insight to a Veteran’s Vietnam Experience will take place September 24 to October 5, led by Chuck Searcy, a US Army veteran and current International Advisor to Project RENEW. You’ll explore the sites of the 1968 Tet Offensive throughout Hue and visit the site of the former Demilitarized Zone that separated the north and south. Discovering Vietnam Through the Lens will be held September 3-13 under the helm of photographer Etienne Bossot. You’ll participate in workshops at each destination while capturing the bustle of Bac Ha market in Sapa and the exquisite natural beauty of Vietnam. If interested in any of these trips, please let ActiveTravels know. 

 

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