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When a Bore is Not a Bore, Tidal Bore Rafting in Nova Scotia

I just spent the morning writing about a tidal bore rafting adventure I took this past September in Nova Scotia. What’s tidal bore rafting, you ask? When the Bay of Fundy, home to the highest recorded tides in the world, floods one of the rivers that feeds the mighty bay with billions of tons of seawater, it creates a massive wave. Yet, on the Shubenacadie River, where I sampled the sport with Rafing Canada, the tidal bore is merely the start of the adventure. The surge of water causes the flow of the river to reverse directions and create standing waves. The motorized raft slams into a succession of waves, often in excess of 8 feet, as you’re trying hard to hang on to a rope in this waterlogged version of a rodeo. Completely drenched, you can’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. If you do get tossed, you simply land on soft mud, a cushiony welcome mat for the brackish water. It’s great fun for the whole family. Minimum age is 12.
 

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Biking the Emerald Necklace to View the Fog Sculptures

I’ve always visited one Emerald Necklace park at a time, say a stroll around Jamaica Pond or through the century-old maples and gardens at Arnold Arboretum. And that’s pretty much how the great landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmsted, intended-to treat each one of his verdant urban oases as a jewel. But when the Emerald Necklace Conservatory decided to display five works of Japanese fog artist Fujiko Nakaya across all their green spaces, I decided it was time to connect the dots and bike most of the seven-mile long stretch from Olmsted Park to Franklin Park. On display until October 31st in Boston, "Fog x FLO" is a unique treat, where fog is spewed out of nozzles at specific times to create a hazy display through the woods or on the water. 

 
We parked at Willow Pond at Olmsted Park and biked along a trail to Leverett Pond, just in time to see the fog rolling out on the water, reflecting the clouds above. That whet our appetite for the rest. We retraced our steps past Willow Pond and up to Jamaica Pond to eye the next fog display on the beach. Stick to the sidewalks and bike lanes to reach Arnold Arboretum, the only real tricky part of the bike ride. It’s worth the effort to view "Fog on the Hill," an 8-minute spray of immense fog that goes off on the hour. We watched as the fog rolled down the hillside, splintered with sunshine. Then we were off to our final stop, Franklin Park, on newly paved bike trails and a bike lane the entire way. Here the fog spews out into the ruins of a building Olmsted originally designed the structure as a field house to use as a changing room or view the sports on the adjacent fields. A mile later, I was downing a Santa Fe Salad at The Dogwood, across from the massive Forest Hills T Station. My reward for all the biking. A wonderful outing, especially on a Sunday! 
 
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Riu Palace Peninsula Week—The Rooms

When I tell people that I work as a travel writer, their usual response is “wow, what a dream job.” 99% of the time, they’re right. Yesterday, I had one of those 1% days where it was dreadful. I awoke at 4:30 am to catch a 6:30 plane out of Boston’s Logan Airport, which was supposed to connect in Miami and reach my final destination of Cancun. Usually an easy morning of travel. We board the flight and are about to fly away when the pilot discovers an electrical problem. We head back to the gate where my flight is now delayed two hours…Then delayed another three hours…Then cancelled. I’m lucky that my wife is a travel agent who booked me on a 2:30 flight to Miami. All the other flights to Miami were already overbooked for the Holidays. 

 
I grab lunch and do some work, when I hear over the loud speaker that all passengers on the cancelled must go downstairs to baggage claim, grab their luggage, and rebook it again at the departure counter. The self-service counters at American Airlines are now a chaotic mess, with countless people waiting on line after using the computer to get their boarding passes. I wait and I wait once again on the long security line. The flight to Miami was a breeze. Unfortunately, when we arrived in Miami, there was no gate to pull into, so we’re delayed. By the time I get off the plane, I only have 20 minutes before my flight to Cancun leaves. As I depart, I hear “this is the final call for American Airlines, Flight 2139 to Cancun, Mexico.” With at least 20 pounds of computer equipment in my backpack, I sprint like a Marine to my gate, which feels like it’s a mile away (those elliptical machine workouts at the gym finally paying off). I’m covered in sweat when I reach the next flight, but remarkably the gate is still open. I beg the flight attendant for a glass of water and he looks at me like it’s a major inconvenience. I finally make it to Cancun, 8 hours later than I was supposed to arrive, only to find out that my luggage is still back in Miami.
 
Then I reach the stylish lobby of the new Riu Palace Peninsula, all lit up for the Holiday festivities, and I can finally breathe again. When I drop my trusty backpack off in the room, I was delighted to spot the king-sized bed, the sunken Jacuzzi tub, the pleasant blue and white décor. A fruit plate was waiting, along with all the rum, vodka, and cervezas I needed to take the edge off. The liquor was certainly appealing, but another reason I love an all-inclusive property is that the restaurants stay open late. So I went downstairs to have dinner, my first fish tacos, guacamole, and refried beans of the week. Ambled over to the theater to watch the scantily-clad dance troupe work their way around a couple Bob Fosse tunes. Then took the elevator to the 17th floor and that king-sized bed. I slept wonderfully and awoke to the morning sun lighting up the Cancun sands and the shimmering Atlantic waters. Ah yes, back to my dream job. 
 
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My Favorite Day Hike in Nova Scotia

“Probably not going to see a moose today,” said a park ranger at the beginning of the Skyline Trail. “It’s a hot day and they’re lying low in the brush,” he added. Not that it matters. The Skyline is one of the most glorious hikes in the Maritimes, a great overview of the breathtaking terrain displayed at Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Listening to bullfrogs and a woodpecker hammering away, we took a serene stroll through a boreal forest lined with buttercups. Every now and then we would get a glimpse of the sea in front of us and look back at the mountains and the carpet of forest. Then you reach the piece de resistance, a series of steps and platforms that reward you with magnificent vistas of the water and the circuitous road rising through the velvet green hillside that’s one of the best coastal drives in North America, the Cabot Trail. After our fill of the scenery, we made our way back down and said goodbye to the park ranger. Less than a 5-minute walk from our car, we heard loud ruffling to our left and spotted a mother moose and her two young calves chowing down on the foliage. Some days, you can get your icing on the cake. 

That afternoon, we signed up for a zodiac tour with Captain’s Mark’s Whale and Seal Cruise in nearby Pleasant Bay and were treated to the bounty of sealife. Within 5 minutes from the dock, we spotted the graceful arch and fin of a minke whale, one of 40 minkes we probably found over a 2-hour span. Adding to the pleasure was a colony of gray seals popping their heads out of the water like periscopes, harbor porpoises, a bald eagle perched on a tree high atop a bluff, and the frightening tentacles of a lion’s mane jellyfish. Then we drove another hour on the Cabot Trail to the Keltic Lodge, where we downed pints of Big Spruce Regatta Red Ale while staring at the massive bluff they call Cape Smoky jutting out into the Atlantic. Not a bad day. 

(Photos by Michael Berger)





 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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The Latest Changes at Utah Ski Resorts for the Upcoming Season

Utah’s 14 ski resorts had a record-breaking ski season last winter, welcoming 4.5 million visitors. The big news this year is the opening of the ultra-sybaritic Stein Eriksen Residences at Deer Valley. The 39 condos and 15 houses will feature ski-in/ski-out access, panoramas of the mountains, indoor and outdoor pools, fitness center, restaurant and lounge area. An hour north of Salt Lake City, the new Whisper Ridge is billing itself as the largest backcountry ski resort in North America. It features Cat skiing and boarding at over 60,000 acres of private ski terrain. At night, you can crash in one of their ten comfy mountaintop yurts. Over at Snowbird, the newly refurbished Creekside Lodging will now be the home of all ski and snowboard lessons, eliminating the need for a shuttle back and forth to the slopes. 
 
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Ciclismo Classico Debuts New Bike Trip to Nova Scotia

A little over an hour west of Halifax is the growing wine region of Annapolis Valley. Once a footnote among grape-growing regions, the rolling green countryside now boasts 14 wineries that produce crisp cool-climate whites, decadent icewines, and Champagne-style sparkling wines that are attracting international attention. The college town of Wolfville is the gateway to the Annapolis Valley, where Victorian mansions have been transformed into bed and breakfasts. Similar to Napa or Sonoma Valley, an ideal way to see the wineries is via a bike, connecting the dots on quiet backcountry roads. Now Ciclismo Classico is doing just that, guiding a weeklong tour September 19-25, during the height of fall foliage. Along with Wolfville, you’ll be biking to another one of my favorite towns, Lunenburg. This seaside community is one of only two cities in North America dubbed a UNESCO World Heritage Site (the other being Quebec City). What UNESCO found fascinating was the fact that Lunenburg was a perfectly planned British colonial settlement, a 48-block grid designed in London and plopped down on the coast of Nova Scotia in 1753. Cost is $2795 per person and includes bike rentals, guides, lodging, and all the lobster, Digby scallops, and clams you can stomach. 

 
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A Moronic Move in Maine

In 1995, I was hired to write a book called Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England. My task was to partake in as many outdoor adventures as possible both summer and winter and write about that experience. Seemed pretty simple for the five southernmost states in New England. Then there was Maine. Just the thought of traversing close to 3500 miles of coastline had me second-guessing my decision. An even more absurd task was trying to find the hidden gems in Maine’s vast interior. I needed help, so I contacted Nancy Marshall Communications, the public relations firm that was hired by the State of Maine’s Office of Tourism to work with media.
 
Much to my delight, I would quickly learn that few people know Maine better than Nancy Marshall and none are as impassioned about its travel opportunities. Nancy divulged everything, from the French chef working the stoves at Chesuncook Lake House to a Registered Maine Guide who would bring guests at the Rangeley Inn on a 5 am paddle to view moose to the small B&B in Georgetown that specialized in sea kayaking.
 
Since that fateful day, I would work with Nancy and her amazing team of Charlene Williams and Kevin Gove on more than 100 stories on Maine for The Boston Globe, Yankee Magazine, Outside Magazine, Sierra and many other publications. Just this past year, I would snowmobile and see the Northern Lights in Aroostook County, sail Linekin Bay, and visit the Cushing house that inspired Andrew Wyeth’s famous “Christina’s World.” All of those story ideas came from the people at Nancy Marshall Communications.
 
Now I have learned that after 20 years on the job, as of last week, the Maine Office of Tourism will replace Nancy Marshall Communications with a PR firm from New York. Oh sure, there will continue to be travel stories about Portland, Freeport, Camden, and Bar Harbor, locales New Yorkers know best. For those of you who work in the travel industry in the rest of the state, the Maine government just threw you off the Penobscot Narrows Bridge.
 

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