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Learn to Sail This Winter off Captiva Island

South Seas Island Resort on Captiva Island, Florida, (right next door to the better known Sanibel Island) will once again be offering three and five-day Learn to Sail packages for those looking to earn sailing certification while on vacation. Overseen by the renowned Colgate’s Offshore Sailing School, the courses can be taken in a fast-paced three-day curriculum with full eight-hour days or a more relaxed five-day schedule in half-day sessions. We prefer the latter, so you have time to bike through the alligators at Ding Darling National Wildlife Refuge, look for seashells on the spanking white Gulf Coast beaches, and search for manatees in the waters. Rates for the three-day Learn to Sail package start at $1,350 per person including the sailing certification course, resort accommodations, textbooks, Colgate Day Sailing certification, diploma and logbook, based on double occupancy. Courses are open to all skill levels, minimum age seven with adult.

 

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Chasing Icebergs in Newfoundland

Some of us chase after the morning train to get to work. The more indulgent will chase down that shot of bourbon with a pint of Guinness. And the truly intrepid? They follow Ed English as he chases icebergs. Come May, it’s not unusual for villages on the east coast of Newfoundland to wake up to a mountain of electric blue ice the size of a 15-story building.  The icebergs calve from the glaciers of western Greenland and begin a slow 1900-mile journey south with the Labrador Current on a route dubbed Iceberg Alley. English, co-owner of Explore Newfoundland, takes sea kayakers up to Quirpoon Island, the northernmost point of Newfoundland, to get as close as possible to the huge crystalline structures before they float away. An added bonus are the pods of humpback, minke, and occasional beluga whales who feed in Iceberg Alley as they make their way north. 
 


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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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New at ActiveTravels

Today marks my 400th blog entry. To all of my subscribers, I want to thank you for sticking with me. To everyone else, you can simply go through the list of categories on the home page to find biking, green travel, lodging, family adventure, and many more topics that interest you. In the upcoming month, I’ll be updating the Go Play section of the website to include much more content on the outdoors from previously published articles that will be useful as a reference for any upcoming trip. I’ve also started to add video to my YouTube page and I’m working on a Facebook fan page that will be updated often. You can also follow me on Twitter at @ActiveTravels and visit Everett Potter’s Travel Report, where I’m a weekly contributor. Thanks again for checking in!
 

Travel to Martinique this January with Yogaway Retreats

Guest Post by Amy Perry Basseches

If you are thinking how much you’ll miss summer weather come January, consider heading to Martinique, January 13-20, 2019, for a week of sun, fun, yoga, beaches, snorkeling, good food, and great company. Nonstop flights from JFK and Providence on Norwegian Air are cheap (less than $300 RT). ActiveTravels’ friend Checka Antifonario of Yogaway Retreats is organizing a group which will stay at L’Impératrice Village Résidence Hôtelière in Les Trois Ilets, on the southwestern coast of the island. Still part of France, Martinique is located in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The Cultureist wrote an article last year, "5 Reasons Why Martinique Should Be On Your Bucket List," highlighting the fresh fish, beaches, rum, adventure, and Mount Pelee on the island. Throw in yoga with an instructor we know and love and you’ll have a memorable winter escape. I plan on going and hope to see you there!
 
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Get Lost on the Lost Coast

Six miles south of Benbow, in Leggett, California, Pacific Coast Highway or Hwy 1 comes to an abrupt end. Highway 101 will pick up the slack and hug the shoreline north of Arcata on a picturesque drive of headlands rising from the Pacific as you drive to Orick. But that still leaves 80 miles of wilderness shoreline, not easily accessible from any highway. Called the Lost Coast, it is the longest undeveloped coastline in the continental United States. Yesterday, we took the twisting and turning Bryceland-Thorn Road from Redway to the remote village of Shelter Cove. At this small coastal community, houses hug the shoreline backed by flanks of forest and high headlands that make up the King Range National Conservation Area. Backpackers can take the rugged 25-mile Lost Coast Trail, while day-trippers should head to the crescent-shaped black sand beach. Fishing trawlers were docked in the bay, also popular with stand-up paddleboarders and several surfers. If you want to leave behind the woes of modernity and de-stress on a serene stretch of Californian coast, consider spending some time at the Inn of the Lost Coast. 
 
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New Pod Hotel to Open in Manhattan in June

I just got word that a second pod hotel, The Pod 39 Hotel, will be opening in the Murray Hill section of the city in June. The 367-room hotel will be located in a 17-story building at 145 East 39th Street, between Lexington and Third Avenues. I stayed in the first Pod Hotel on East 51st Street after it opened and, while I thought the space was adequate even at a meager 60 to 120 feet, I was woken up in the middle of the night by all the people coming and going to the shared bathroom. Pod 39 will remedy that problem by having private bathrooms in all guestrooms. The $119 starting rate will also offer guests access to the rooftop lounge and use of the mounted iPads in the lobby. A projection wall of guest photography will also be showcased in the lobby. Rooms feature a bed, flat-screen television, desk, drawers, and bathroom, and very little space for anything else. But c’mon, we’re talking Manhattan. How much time do you really want to spend in your room besides sleeping? For single travelers and couples, it’s a great deal. The owners also have plans to expand to Boston, Chicago, Philly and DC. 

 

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