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Snorkeling with Honu at the Fairmont Orchid

I love the location of the Fairmont Orchid on the Big Island. You’re only 30 minutes north of Kona International Airport, 30 minutes west of the rolling green slopes and cattle country of Waimea, and another 40 minutes south of the art gallery town of Hawi on the North Kohala Coast. Needless to say, it’s a great place to cruise to sample the myriad of terrain on Hawaii. When you return to the resort, you’ll be treated to one of the finest lagoons in the state, where the sand slopes gently to a cove sheltered by lava rock. Simply grab snorkel gear at the activity shack and wade into the soothing waters. Lisa and I swam with the colorful triggerfish to a reef where two large honu (green sea turtles) were feeding on the kelp, then gently grooming each other by rubbing barnacles off their shells. A mesmerizing sight that probably happens daily at the Fairmont Orchid. 
 

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The Best of Connecticut Birding

Migrating shorebirds are prevalent along the Connecticut shoreline in late spring and fall. Green backed herons, yellow warblers, snowy egrets, swallows, ospreys, doves, and Canadian geese are just some of the birds sighted at the Connecticut Audubon Coastal Center at Milford Point. Of the 399 species known in Connecticut, over 300 have been recorded at this 840-acre nature preserve. There’s also nesting piping plovers, least terns, American oystercatchers (rare in Connecticut), and both types of night herons. Ask about their naturalist-guided canoe trips to the Charles E. Wheeler State Wildlife Management Area, one of the few remaining wilderness areas on the Connecticut coast.
 

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Destinations to Visit in 2015—East or South Africa

The hysteria over Ebola has persuaded travelers to avoid Africa in the foreseeable future. But here are the facts. The distance from the Ebola outbreak in Liberia to the safari parks of East and Southern Africa is about the same distance as Manhattan to Anchorage, Alaska. Indeed, Madrid, Paris, and London are all closer to the Ebola epicenter than Nairobi or Capetown. Both Kenya and South Africa have stopped all flights to the affected region and so far, there have been no reported cases of Ebola in the eastern or southern part of the continent. With safari bookings dramatically down in 2015, this is the time to go bargain hunting and find deals with African outfitters. They need to fill seats to stay in business. 

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Ending our Trip to Italy in Comfort at Rome’s Hotel Eden

Clients sometimes tell us that they’re not going to be in their hotel room that much, so you don’t have to find a luxury property for us. The problem with that reasoning is that you’re missing out on one of the finest travel experiences. Top-shelf properties provide the best service, comfort, food, and necessary down time you want especially after a long day of sightseeing. After walking miles around the large city of Rome, I can’t tell you how delighted we were to go back to our spacious room at the Hotel Eden, grab the bottle of prosecco, open our balcony doors, and watch green parrots fly back and forth to the monastery in front of us. 
 
Hotel Eden is located in a quiet part of the city, not far from the Villa Borghese Park. There’s so many superlatives about this property that I’m not sure where to start. The view from the 6th floor, where we had a gluttonous breakfast and dinner, had wraparound windows with glorious views of the city. I loved our waiters at breakfast, Marco and Francesco, who gave us a tour around the windows to all the sights below, before serving our perfectly poached eggs. They’ve been working together for 26 years at the hotel and love to tease each other. Our concierge, Anna, found us tickets at the nearby Borghese Gallery when they were sold out, and then reserved a table at an authentic lunch spot where there were no Americans, only Italian families that Sunday afternoon, dining on heavenly grilled artichokes and an antipasto plate overflowing with meats and creamy cheeses that I’ll be dreaming about back home. The mattress was so comfortable it was hard to wake up for that Caravaggio walking tour. Most importantly, it was a special moment to share with my wife after memorable days walking around Rome, coming back to our room, having a drink, and standing on our small balcony to watch the city below. Yes, the place you stay is a very important part of the travel experience. 
 
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Nova Scotia Week: Stand Up Paddleboarding at White Point Beach Resort

With its stunning seascape, sheltered coves, and vast array of sealife and birdlife, Nova Scotia is blessed with some of the best sea kayaking imaginable. I had the good fortune to sea kayak in Cape Breton on my last trip and will be kayaking Lobster Bay from Ye Olde Argyle Lodge tomorrow afternoon. Before that jaunt, however, I wanted to try a sport growing in popularity in the province, stand up paddleboarding. The classic summer retreat, White Point Beach Resort, is best known for the Atlantic Ocean surf that crashes ashore on the 1-kilometer long stretch of beach. Just inside the beach is Doggett’s Pond, a freshwater lake that’s ideally suited for SUP. I ventured out on the water with Glenn Parlee, owner of Liverpool Adventure Outfitters. Glenn’s been in the outdoor recreation business since 1985, taking full advantage of his spectacular locale to take folks biking along the shores of Liverpool, canoeing in the Mersey River, sea kayaking to one of the many desolate off-shore islands, and hiking In Kejimkujik National Park. Yesterday, we skirted the shoreline of Dockett Pond as he showed me some draw strokes, J strokes and sweeps to better guide the sturdy boards. We spent about an hour out on the lake by our lonesome watching a line of ducks swim by our side. The scenery was enchanting, the fragrant pines and paddling invigorating. 

 
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A Perfect Night in Portland, Maine in the Heart of Winter

To celebrate my wife’s birthday, we just spent a blissful night at Portland, Maine’s Pomegranate Inn and a sublime dinner at Fore Street. While the weather outside was frightful, we were cozy inside the Pomegranate Inn, warm near the fireplace. Few innkeepers can juggle modern art with 200-year-old antiques as skillfully as the Pomegranate Inn’s original owner, Isabel Smiles. Her eclectic tastes runs the gamut from faux marble columns and colorful mosaics in the living room to brightly painted walls created by local artists in the bedrooms. In fact, works of art cover the entire staircase and walls of the house, and remarkably, they all seem to fit together. It was hard to leave our room and face the blustery cold, but we didn’t want to miss Fore Street, the James Beard-award winning restaurant housed in a former wartime storage area. In the open-air kitchen, chefs busily sauté dishes on three long tables. Wood grilling local meats and seafood is Fore Street’s forte. We start with roasted Blue Hill bay mussels with chunks of pistachios. For our entrées, we shared Maine scallops, just off the boat, and tender arctic char. Happy birthday, Lis! 

 
 
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Favorite Fall Foliage Travels—Canoeing the Allagash, Maine

In 1998, I had an assignment from Men’s Journal magazine to paddle the 92-mile Allagash Wilderness Waterway in the northern tier of Maine. It was late September, when the summer infestation of mosquitoes and black flies were gone, along with most paddlers. Instead, I found a river ablaze in fall color. An added bonus was that moose were in heat. One night while I was sleeping near the shores, several moose were going at it and I thought I was going to be trampled to death. Besides that little adventure, I had a glorious time venturing down this magical waterway. I went with classic Maine guides, Alexandra and Garrett Conover, who are semi-retired and no longer take folks down the river. Instead, go with a trusted guide like Mahoosuc Guide Service who led me down the West Branch of the Penobscot River in Maine for this Sierra Magazine story.

 

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