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Don’t Swim After a Rainstorm

Even if the sun is shining and the sky is blue, if it rained recently, water quality at your favorite beach might have a high bacteria rate due to stormwater runoff. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, storm runoff is the main reason American beaches saw a 29% increase in closings last summer. Last week, the NRDC came out with its water quality ratings for 200 of the country’s most popular beaches. They include four beaches that have been given “Superstar Beach” status due to perfect test results the past three years. Those beaches are Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, Dewey Beach, Delaware, and Park Point Lafayette Community Club Beach in Minnesota.
 

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Holiday Stocking Stuffer No. 3, Real Food Fake Food, Now in Paperback

In 2012, Boston, a city that prides itself on its fresh seafood was rocked to its ocean-loving core when a two-part expose published by the Boston Globe revealed that a significant number of fish were mislabeled at area restaurants, grocery stores, and fish markets. Diners were served cheap Vietnamese catfish instead of the succulent and more expensive grouper, haddock instead of cod, tilapia in place of pricey red snapper. Indeed, 24 of the 26 red snapper samples tested were some other species of fish. The two reporters went on a fish collecting spree, sending samples of their findings to a laboratory in Canada for DNA testing. The outcome? A whopping 48 percent of the seafood was mislabeled. In his latest book, Real Food Fake Food, writer and friend Larry Olmsted delves much deeper, telling us that that most kobe beef sold at restaurants is indeed wagyu; extra virgin olive oil is rarely that, usually cut with soybean and peanut oil; grated parmesan is almost always fake; and that grass-fed beef was probably drugged and raised in a crowded feedlot. It’s no surprise this book already made many “notable books of the year” lists. For anyone who wants to start off 2018 on the right foot, grab a copy and then buy that olive oil from a trusted supplier Olmsted recommends, like Oliviers & Co. One taste of their olive oil and you’ll never go back to the fake stuff again. 

Have a Happy Thanksgiving! 

 
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Vermont Week, Climbing Mount Hunger

Judging from the three cars parked at the trailhead, all with Vermont license plates, the climb up Mount Hunger is a trail treasured by locals. Once you make it to the 3,538-foot summit (allow 4 hours round-trip), you’ll understand why. The backbone of the Green Mountains stand before you, including those famous ski areas, Killington and Stowe. Like most of Vermont’s trails, the climb starts from the first step, a steady uphill walk that became steep at some stretches. Eventually the beeches, yellow birches, and maples give way to spruces and balsam firs. The bare rocks atop Hunger offer commanding views of the entire state. Mount Mansfield’s chin, nose, and other facial features are visible to the east. Waterbury Reservoir sits in the valley below, fringed by White Rock, Hunger’s next door neighbor. Unlike Camel’s Hump, Mount Mansfield, and the other popular peaks in the Green Mountains, here atop Hunger, one can savor this view all by your lonesome.
 
From Waterbury, follow State Route 100 North to Waterbury Center. Turn right on Barnes Hill Road, left onto Maple Street, and right onto Loomis Hill Road. Bear left atop the hill as the road turns to dirt. Park 3.7 miles from the junction of Maple Street on the right-hand side of the road.
 
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Don’t Overlook Bern When Traveling to Switzerland

We adored our three days in Bern so much that I’m going to write a much larger story on Switzerland’s capital city for Everett Potter’s Travel Report. You can easily spend 3 to 4 days in Bern. We went inside the famous Medieval Clock Tower to see how it works, spent a day on an electronic bike in neighboring Emmental Valley, visited the apartment Albert Einstein lived when proving his Theory of Relativity, and checked out the sinuous building Renzo Piano built to house the works of local talent Paul Klee. Our favorite activity, however, was swimming in the Aare River. Every afternoon, we would walk down the hillside from our wonderful hotel, the Bellevue Palace, to a park where hundreds of people lined the river catching rays. Then we would head down a paved path upriver with a long line of folks who dragged their tubes, rafts, and dry bags. Pick a spot to jump in the cool water and off you go with the strong current. The hardest part is finding a place on the shores to stop and pull yourself out. 

 
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Spicer Mansion to Debut in Mystic in May

Conveniently located halfway between Boston and New York on the I-95 corridor, Mystic has always been a popular stopover to see the beluga whales at the Mystic Aquarium and the former whaling vessels at the Mystic Seaport, a re-creation of a 19th-century seaside village. Then there’s B.F. Clyde’s, the oldest steam powered cider mill in America, Mystic Pizza, and Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream, where homemade ice cream has been served at the same site for over a century. Lodging, however, has always been geared toward families, not adults who crave a bit more sophistication. That will change on May 4 when management of the acclaimed Relais & Chateau property, Ocean House, and Weekapaug Inn in nearby Rhode Island open the Spicer Mansion. A landmark since 1853, the building will return to its Victorian splendor. Expect the same level of service that one finds at the Ocean House, afternoon tea in the grand salon, cocktails at Room No. 9 Speakeasy, and a new restaurant that will offer a seasonal six-course tasting menu. Guests at the Spicer Mansion also gain access to the other two properties and their beaches and spa facilities. 

 
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Backroads to Debut Ocean Cruises Next Summer

Ever since Backroads partnered with AmaWaterways to bring families to the Danube River in 2015, the demand has far exceeded number of available berths. The chance to ride along the river on bike paths during the day though small European villages and then catch up with the cruise for cocktails, dinner, and your room for the week (no packing and unpacking) is ideally suited for all age groups. Now Backroads is bringing their active travel itineraries to the oceans. They are partnering with Lindblad, Un-Cruise, and Ponant on voyages to Alaska, Antarctica, Japan, New Zealand, the Baltic Sea, Galápagos, Iceland and more – totaling 51 departures on 14 itineraries. The bulk of the trips will debut in 2019 but they are already offering one cruise next summer on the National Geographic Explorer, a 10-day multi-sport trip to Iceland. Bike along the shore of a remote fjord on Backroads custom-designed titanium bikes, hike volcanic moonscapes and untamed islands on off-the-beaten-path excursions, and jump in a Zodiac when your naturalist spot passing whales, seals, and rugged cliffs teeming with nesting seabirds like puffins. Contact ActiveTravels for any Backroads itinerary and we’ll be more than happy to find out who already signed up for the trip and if the ages are appropriate for you and your family. 

 
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Bike New England and New York with Great Freedom Adventures

I love an outfitter who sticks to one region of the world and does it well, especially when the owner lives in that region and knows it better than most. Before founding Great Freedom Adventures, Jeanne Rummel ran the Mountains to Sea bike tour across Massachusetts, a successful fundraiser for the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America. Now the Mass native brings riders to her favorite haunts in Northeast, including the North Shore of Massachusetts, Block Island, Vermont, and the often overlooked Hudson Valley of New York. Rummel not only understands the salubrious benefits of a good day’s bike ride, both physically and mentally, but goes out of her way to show visitors a local cheese maker, a historic lighthouse, or the same incredible panorama painted by Thomas Cole and the Hudson River School painters in the mid-19th century. The daily itinerary includes a good dose of biking along with a chance to sea kayak, go on sunset sails, have lobster bakes, and take a necessary break at a local microbrewery. Not a bad way to push the eject button and de-stress!
 

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