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Wednesday, 30 June 2021

Sloth Spotting in Costa Rica

Bel Woodhouse

Standing in the cool misty mountain morning I watched headlights grow larger and brighter making their way up the windy road. It’s 5:30 am and as the truck pulled up Giovanni, our wildlife tour guide, beamed Buenos Diás, good morning. His infectious smile had us all relaxing and even those ‘I’m not a morning person’ people in the group leaned forward to hear what was on the agenda. Our intrepid early bird group of five would start by visiting a place where toucans like to greet the new day before heading to his private reserve. That’s where we would play spot the sloth. Sure enough less than ten minutes later we rattled to a halt and everyone perked up. Giovanni excitedly pointed high up into a nearby tree. The signature bright sunflower of a yellow-throated toucan’s breast was gleaming as the rising suns first rays illuminated the canopy. “It is…

Monday, 01 March 2021

BVI’s Magnificent Virgin Gorda Baths

Michael Kompanik

Sailboats and stretches of palm-fringed beaches with sugar-white sand came into view as our catamaran from St. Thomas approached Virgin Gorda’s Yacht Harbor and Spanish Town. Covering only eight square miles and sparsely inhabited, this third largest of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) is a sleepy, idyllic Caribbean hideaway where goats and cattle own the right of way over island traffic. The island’s fascinating name was christened by famous explorer, Christopher Columbus. In Spanish it means “Fat Virgin.” Apparently to these sea-weary mariners, the island’s shape on the horizon wistfully resembled a curvaceous woman lying on her side. Quite the imagination these intrepid sailors had, but humorously, the name stuck. After a quick processing through British customs, our group of four excited explorers were off on a 15-minute open air taxi ride to the destination we had longed to see — the magnificent geological wonder called the Baths of Virgin…

Tuesday, 01 September 2020

Diving into the Mayan Underworld

Bel Woodhouse

It was a long way down peering over the cliff-like edge into the most beautiful cobalt blue water I’d ever seen. Capturing the sun streaking through it, huge electric blue butterfly wings appeared shimmering. As if by magic. That is how this pristine cenote got its name Mariposa Azul, Blue Butterfly. It’s no wonder the ancient Maya believed these cenotes were sacred places and the entrance to the underworld. There’s an energy surrounding them. As if magic is in the air and anything is possible. Thank all the Mayan gods and goddesses there were long steep staircases leading down to that glorious fresh water because I wouldn’t have had the courage to jump. Not from that height. People do, from about half way down and that still takes courageous soul in my book. This magical Blue Butterfly is one of seven secluded cenotes I experienced that day. All pristine. All…

Friday, 01 May 2020

Safari Without Leaving Home?: Explore.org's Live Cams

Written by Christina Bolton

Explore.org is the world’s largest live nature cam network. Imagine seeing Bald eagles, elephants, gorillas, hummingbirds, giraffes and polar bears from the comfort of your home. You can also watch highlights that others have saved if waiting for a discovery is not your thing. When you do see an animal, you can take a snapshot of the moment to comment on and share with others or download it. From oceans to birds nests to African watering holes to animal sanctuaries, there’s got to be something for everyone. Perfect for quarantining. Northern Lights: Want to check out the northern lights, live? Late at night check out this livecam: https://explore.org/livecams/aurora-borealis-northern-lights/northern-lights-cam African Wildlife: https://explore.org/livecams/african-wildlife/ https://explore.org/livecams/african-wildlife/tembe-elephant-park Baby Pandas (in a park): https://explore.org/livecams/panda-bears/happiness-village-baby-panda-park Kitten Rescue: https://explore.org/livecams/cats/kitten-rescue-cam Pacific Ocean: https://explore.org/livecams/oceans/pacific-ocean

Wednesday, 01 May 2019

The Grand Canyon with a Roof: A Visit to Carlsbad Caverns

Jim Chamberlain

A magical world for your imagination exists 750 feet below the surface of the earth in the Southwestern United States. Formations called The Lions Tail, Breast of Venus, Dolls Theatre, Hall of Giants, the Caveman, the Chandelier, and the Rock of Ages are some of what you can find in the subterranean world of Carlsbad Caverns National Park in New Mexico. The famous comedian Will Rogers said that Carlsbad Caverns was the “Grand Canyon with a roof on it”, when he visited in the 1930s. Painted Grotto My ears popped as I descended the equivalent of a 75-story building in one minute in an elevator from the Visitor Center to the starting point of my adventure into the dark world of the of Stalactites and Stalagmites. There are two ways to reach main cave of the park, the “Big Room”, one is to hike down the switch backed path from…

Thursday, 01 November 2018

Paddle Boarding with Flying Rays in Loreto

Jill Weinlein

While driving to the Villa del Palmar Beach and Spa Resort in Loreto, Mexico, my driver stopped at a view spot to point out the leaping rays. These creatures were jumping six feet high in the air so vigorously above the water, that the slapping sound they made when they fell back into the water could be heard for miles. It was a magnificent show and I wanted to be out in the water to see these creatures up close. Villa del Palmar Beach and Spa Resort is located in a canyon along the Sierra Gigantic mountains and the turquoise waters of Danzante Bay. Each room in the multi-story hotel offers stunning ocean and mountain views. There are three ocean breeze restaurants, five beautiful tile mosaic swimming pools, two tennis courts, a 39,000 square foot luxury Sabila Spa, world class 18 hole golf course and complimentary kayaks and paddle boards.…

Saturday, 01 September 2018

The Road to Kantishna: An Alaskan Grand Slam

Jim Chamberlain

The High One it is called, Denali. The highest peak in the United States soars above the tundra of central Alaska. Seeing Denali is rare as most days it is shrouded in clouds and mist. It is one of the sights of the Alaskan Grand Slam: Mt. Denali, Grizzly Bear, Moose, Caribou, and Dall Sheep. If you see all five during your trip into Denali National Park, the 13 hour bus trip to Kantishna has been worth it. The late July morning was basked in the early glow of a nearly cloudless Alaskan sky. A good omen, I thought as I boarded the Kantishna Experience tour bus. The first thirteen miles into Denali National Park are paved and can be driven by passenger cars but most wildlife encounters occur beyond that limit. You have to take a tour bus or one of the national park shuttle buses into the depths…

Sunday, 01 July 2018

Colombia's Tatacoa Desert: The Ochre Valley of Sorrows

Yuri Drobkov

Have you ever been drenched by a desert rain? The Tatacoa Desert is the place to find one, with its reddish arid expanse stretching from one wall of mountains to another, riddled with sudden drops and numerous cacti. “I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune, sees nothing, hears nothing. Yet through the silence something throbs, and gleams...” ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince The Tatacoa Desert, or the Valley of Sorrows, as it was called in XVI century by a Spanish conquistador, is a massive swath of arid land in the South of Colombia. Located between two Andes ridges – 330 square kilometers filled with incredible vistas and landscapes – and also renowned for its fossils and clear night skies. It doesn’t look like a typical desert one tends to imagine – an endless sea of yellow sand dunes. Depending on the…

Saturday, 01 July 2017

Tidings of Tussac Grass: Falkland Islands

Matthew Hay

I couldn’t place the sound. It wasn’t one I had heard before. It was like the muffled hybrid of a bear’s growl and a dog’s bark; guttural, harsh and unsettling. I stopped dead, my heart pounding. I couldn’t see more than a meter in any direction, surrounded as I was by the 10-foot high tussac grass that covered this landscape, but all around me was movement and commotion. I hadn’t expected to find them here. Not yet. It was too soon. Hoping not to startle my quarry any further I hopped up onto the stool of the nearest tussac stand, giving myself both visibility and vision. All around me southern sea lions bounded with surprising speed through the grass, spooked by the shouts of their fellows and eager to evade whatever threat might be lurking. When they were twenty meters away they congregated and turned to look at me, craning…

Monday, 31 October 2016

From Leh to Lamayuru, India

Rama Shivakumar

Here in the valley of the Indus, the sharp peaks of the Ladakh and Zanskar Ranges pierce the sky like jagged swords. The Indus River flows through the high Ladakhi plateau swiftly, sculpting the greater Himalayan landscape. Fifty million years ago, the Indian plate surged across the Tethys Sea to collide with the stationary Eurasian plate. This dramatic impact resulted a colossal pileup as sediment from the bottom of the sea was thrown up to form Earth’s highest plateaus and mountain ranges. Today, the high desert landscape of Ladakh looks sepia toned in the unfiltered light of the mid morning sun. Mountains of limestone, red sandstone and shale dominate the horizon. We follow the Indus River from Leh to Lamayuru as it curves along the mountain ridges; the foamy white water rapids catching the sun now and then. Several Himalayan villages dot the water’s edge like welcome desert oases. The…

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Sunday, 01 May 2016

Greenland: A Snow-white Pearl

Kira Dalhus

When traveling to Greenland, you are about to discover an invaluable Arctic pearl. No place on earth is similar to the world’s largest island. The landscape is stunning and the inhabitant’s culture is unique and heartwarming. People who find joy in exploring the world, should definitely have Greenland on their travel bucket list. Because of the enormous Greenland Ice Sheet, most of the country is covered by snow and ice. More precisely, the Greenland Ice Sheet takes up more than 80% of the total landmass. The glistening landscape is adorned with beautiful icebergs in every size you can imagine. The smallest are not bigger than a hut while others are the size of skyscrapers. The most fascinating thing about the majestic icebergs is the story each one of them tells. Nature’s development has left its mark on the enormous sculptures so you will not be able to find two similar…

Tuesday, 01 March 2016

Snowed In: An Unexpected Arizona Experience

Jessica Scott

When I told my friends that I was visiting Arizona in January, I was bombarded by responses of jealousy because I would be avoiding the cold winter of Massachusetts for ten days. I was expecting the same. Arizona’s state sign is an image of the sun beaming colors over a bright yellow backdrop. The very thought of Arizona evokes thoughts of sunshine and desert, blue skies and cacti. There is, however, another side of Arizona that can be seen in rare moments in the little known mountains of The Grand Canyon State. My father spent years researching southern parts of the United States where he could spend his winters away from the blizzards of the North East. Not being one for the boring terrain and triteness of Florida, he headed west in search of a more rugged experience, while still enjoying sunshine even in January. Boasting of having the best…

Friday, 01 January 2016

Parque Nacional Conguillio (Conguillio National Park), Chile

Dan Duke

We had the chance to make it to Parque Nacional Conguillio in Chile´s 9th region (Araucania). Conguillio is east of Temuco, situated around Llaima Volcano. This national park has over 15,000 acres and is a UNESCO Biosphere Araucarias Reserve. From Conguillio you have an amazing view of the Llaima volcano (10250 feet above sea level) and access to Lake Conguillio, the Truful River, and Laguna Verde — all of which have good fishing. There are also the Captrén and Arcoiris Lagoons and the Las Araucarias and Las Vertientes paths and the Sierra Nevada. Wonderful flora and fauna abound in all directions. Conguillio features some of the most incredible hiking we've found anywhere in South America. With the crunch of lava rock under foot, smoke on the waters, and ancient sounds in the air, this is the kind of place that will make you lose your context immediately, wondering where you…

Thursday, 30 April 2015

Sunderbans, India and the Royal Bengal Tiger

Shreya Das

Sunderbans: Worth a brisk visit for the sake of a Spectacular Starlit Sky, if not for the Royal Bengal Tiger And why do I say that? Because, contrary to Census reports of about 400 tigers inhabiting the region, in reality these tigers are a rare view (in fact almost nil) in this vast landscape of salty water and mangrove forests. Often, tourist guides can be heard saying that if anyone has ever been successful in spotting a tiger in Sunderbans they are the white skinned tourists (or the Non Indian tourists). This happens primarily for two reasons. Firstly, the population density of tigers is quite low in this vast expanse of estuarine forests and saline mud flats spread across numerous tiny islands. However, in terms of absolute numbers, this region has the highest population of tigers compared to any other natural reserve in the country. Sunderbans cover an area of…

Saturday, 27 December 2014

Traffic Jams on a Sri Lankan Safari

Jo Eckersley

We tourists are steered sleepy eyed towards our jeep and climb the ladder to the high seats like it’s a bunk bed. The engine starts as alarm bells still ring in our heads, and the truck pulls out into haphazard streets. Shops strewn with advertisements peter out to tracks crusted with red mud, and we watch dawn reflected pink in flooded paddy fields. Dusty roads lead to more dust until our jeep suddenly stops at a watering hole, where a wild boar and a buffalo have congregated. The boar takes off on its hairy trotters before long, but the buffalo doesn’t move a muscle. He looks at us, and we look at him. The guide says “dangerous”. We retreat. We haven’t reached the park yet, so we keep driving, until the land opens up into a savannah. From here on we aren’t alone – 20 other jeeps meet us at…

Friday, 31 October 2014

Purling Brook Falls, Gold Coast, Australia

Alexandra Frisby-Smith

He jumps - careless of the winter’s water temperature - into the still, untouched surface of the waterfall’s rock pool like it’s something he’s done countless times before. John Carter’s pile of clothes is dumped in a heap next to the water’s edge. There is no towel, the water is icy cold and the 5 o’clock shadows are starting to cover the rock pool. But this hasn’t stopped him from trading the Gold Coast hustle and bustle for the tranquility of Purling Brook Falls. Perhaps it is the calmness confined within the tall trees and natural rock faces that best encapsulates this remote spot. Purling Brook Falls is about a half hour drive inland from Mudgeeraba on Regency Place. “I try to finish work early and come here at the end of the week to wash off the office cobwebs,” says Mr Carter, standing with water dripping from his solid…

Monday, 01 September 2014

Plaza Blanca, New Mexico

Tom Molanphy

“Anyone who doesn't feel the crosses simply doesn't get that country.” - Georgia O’Keefe My phone scuttled like a beetle across the dash of the Subaru. Expected in Santa Fe hours ago, we don’t know where we ‘re headed. Our mood was worn out but content. We had just completed a southwest loop through Chaco Canyon, Canyon de Chelly , and Mesa Verde. In Chaco, we saw remnants of macaw bones that suggested trading from lands as far as Peru. In Canyon de Chelly, a Navajo guide drew four sacred peaks in the rich valley mud to show the boundaries of “his” people. And the drought in Mesa Verde allowed us to walk right up to cliff dwellings usually blocked by four feet of snow. The memories were as pungent and satisfying as the desert sage that stained my boots. But a tip from a hotel clerk outside Chinle had…

Monday, 30 June 2014

Going with the Lava Flow

Dale Patrick Myers

Navigating the treacheries and discovering new land at one of Earth’s fieriest national parks A towering plume of sulfur-smelling smoke explodes from the crater of this desert landscape reminiscent of the aftermath of an atomic bomb. Pictures of the A bomb detonated in barren Alamogordo come to mind. A tepid breeze blows the sweet scent of jasmine and pushes the sinewy smoke over the devastated plateau that tumbles down into an abyss worthy of Mordor. However, this isn’t 1945 New Mexico or fictitious Middle Earth, and this destructive, smoke-filled scene is not the cause of man or Mt. Doom. This is Hawai’i, and this smoke is belching forth from one of the most active volcanoes in the world, one in which the visitor can get up close and personal. Free-flowing lava, steam vents, and lava benches that can collapse at any moment comprise Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, located 30 miles…

Wednesday, 30 April 2014

Kawah Ijen: The Capricious Crater

Mark Peterson

I’m in the bowels of one of Indonesia’s active and most notorious volcanoes, deep inside its crater, more than 8,500 feet above sea level, crouching, fetal position employed. It’s my only defense against the suffocating sulphuric cloud that has shifted direction and now saturates the air. Even though the skies are crystal clear and the Milky Way is spell-bindingly resplendent above, visibility is down to an inch. For how long, who knows? The toxic smoke encases me. The acid sears my eyes, grates my throat and burns my lungs. Surgical mask and scarf combination guarding my airways: futile. Distant muffled coughs permeate the fog. I dare not attempt another breath. I’m utterly at the mercy of Kawah Ijen and all I can think about is Sherlock Holmes. More specifically, my thoughts are of his creator. I’m thinking what if Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had personally witnessed Ijen late in the…

Saturday, 01 February 2014

Bwindi Jungles' Gorillas

Jake Graffy

So it appears gorillas really are just hairy humans. Trekking into Bwindi jungles ivy entwined heart, it feels for the first time I am exploring not only the motherland of planet earth, but the epicenter of all ancestry, that grows today as modestly as it ever did when we first swung our way out of the trees. Medires, our guide, machetes a route for us between the recalcitrant branches that block the way. Walking beneath the enclosing canopy, unaware and uninterested in a world beyond it, I sweat my way deeper into the jungle, walking on an air of tension that feels like it is hovering above the mulched earth. My mind projects silhouettes shaped liked Gorillas between every tree. Medires informs me we are in only one of two locations that the global population of 400 mountain gorillas can still be found. Illegal poaching and urban sprawl has massively…

Monday, 30 December 2013

Xcalac, Mexico: A Hidden Gem

Clare James

Xcalak, in Mexico’s far south, is the kind of unspoilt gem divers dream about and it’s all thanks to the local fishermen. There are very few places, in our overpopulated world, which retain an atmosphere free from the complications of modern life and tourism. However, these forward thinking fishermen banded together to make their local waters a marine park. The result is extremely healthy coral reef system, mangroves and seagrass beds which support an enormous diversity of marine life, including a large population of the illusive manatee. The story behind the creation of Xcalac Marine Park is an inspiring one. In the late 1990's fishermen saw a dramatic drop in catch numbers. Average fish sizes were also going down and prize fish, like grouper, were becoming rarer. This did not bode well for their future. They realized that the main reason for this decline was that the reef and fish…

Wednesday, 30 October 2013

Journey to the Center of the Earth, Algar de Corvao, Azores

Fran Conley

Going down inside a volcano is not usually on the list of holiday outings. Yet here I was, driving with my lovely Azorean host, Jorge, through the lush green forests of Terceira (so named as it is the third largest island in the Azores) towards the Algar de Corvao to do just that. I fully expected it to be a joke at my expense, expected that my host would turn to me at any moment and say “What-you REALLY believed we were going to go inside a volcano?!!!” We would then laugh heartily at my gullibility, slap each other on the back in good humor and go participate in one of Terceira’s more attractive activities such as whale watching on the sapphire blue oceans, visiting the beautiful Monte Brasil or Praia dos Biscoitos, wine tasting in the Museu do Vino or strolling along the Rua de Se. However, the moment…

Sunday, 30 June 2013

Gorillas & Orangutans

Alex Jones

I had always dreamt of seeing this planet's rarest primates for myself, and this dream was becoming increasingly urgent with the knowledge that they may only have a few years left: with fewer than seven hundred mountain gorillas and only a few thousand orangutans left in the wild, time is running out for our close cousins. I decided to take a trip across two continents, top and tailed by big hairy monkeys. The endangered orangutan lives only on two Southeast Asian islands, Sumatra and Borneo. Its population has decreased by eighty percent in the last twenty years alone. Incredibly vulnerable to habitat loss, the orangutan's future looks bleak as Indonesia's rapid development and accompanying deforestation continues apace. Around half of the world's few remaining mountain gorillas inhabit the remote Virunga mountains. The Virungas are a strip of forest-clad volcanoes, spanning Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo. These countries have…

Thursday, 28 February 2013

Valencia, Spain: The City of Arts and Sciences

Julian Worker

It would be disingenuous to call the Parque Oceanografico an aquarium. Shielding your eyes from the reflections all you see above ground is the wonderful, wavy white roof of the entrance building, designed by Felix Candela and the Wetlands dome and pools where the penguins and seals entertain the crowds by eating fish thrown by the park staff. This would disguise the fact that visitors are taken on an underwater voyage around the world’s main marine ecosystems, which can last the whole day if the visitor sees the dolphins, seals, and penguins. This voyage takes place mainly underground, which can be a blessing in the late summer when the temperatures hit the high 30s and the blue skies are never ending. The ecosystems range from the Red Sea to the Arctic and from the Tropics to Antarctica. There are many different sections you can reach from the entrance building. A…

Tuesday, 01 January 2013

Cave Diving the Cenotes in the Underworld of Mexico

Regina Busse

When you hear Cancun or Playa del Carmen what comes to mind? All-inclusive resorts, powder white sands, and endless amounts of tropical cocktails right? Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula may have originally gained fame through these tourist avenues but the real beauty of the Yucatan lies below it all. In the cenotes. “Cenotes” (say-no-tays) are underground caverns or caves formed almost 6,500 hundred years ago. Millennium’s worth of geographical transformations created these intricate cave systems but climate change filled them in. Now completely submerged in fresh water, scuba diving is the only way to see this lost world. The Yucatan is colored by thousands of cenotes, but we chose to dive, “Dos Ojos”, just outside of Tulum. Translating as, “Two Eyes”, this dive is exactly that. Two portals into two different worlds. Divers UnderGround, the company we chose, specialized in cave diving and made sure to be the first company on site.…

Thursday, 23 August 2012

Taking the Plunge: Scuba in Jamaica

Gary Pearson

Take deep breaths and whatever you do, don’t panic. Scuba diving instructor Sinan Halacoglu conveyed the imperative message prior to my first plunge into the deep blue. “If you panic you are done,” the veteran diver reiterated, his formidable, uncompromising shark-like gaze penetrating my defenses. Though powerful, direct and of the utmost importance, Halacoglu’s message was of little comfort. That should be easy enough, I thought, still trying to absorb other tidbits necessary for a successful maiden dive.Dressel Divers, set in front of the lavish backdrop of the Iberostar Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, provided the opportunity for my maiden scuba dive. The area is renowned for its serene, picturesque landscape. A stark contrast, however, subsists. Within a stone’s throw of the elaborate, ornate resorts, locals’ dwell in rows upon rows of decrepit, structurally unsound houses; a juxtaposition Halacoglu has come accustomed to. “No one cares…

Thursday, 21 June 2012

Nature to Nurture: Tikal National Park

Grace Zhang

Sunlight trickled through the “Jurassic Park”-esque trees intertwining above and on either side of us. Below us the vegetation tangled, roots crisscrossing and undulating through and on the confined hiking trail. With bowed head, I heeded where I stepped and half-prayed that I would not splay out across the forest floor, a victim of the innumerable roots. At midday, the flora reigned as the most treacherous organisms in Tikal National Park. Then, a sound between a howl and an elongated hoot echoed through the forest. “What’s that?” my mother asked our local guide, Milton.“A jaguar,” he responded nonchalantly.“Really?!” He chuckled. “No. It’s howler monkeys. They are calling to each other. Or they call for the rain.”With the powder blue sky and beaming sun above the forest canopy, it hardly seemed a likely day for rain– despite Tikal’s average 1 meter of rainfall. Perhaps the monkeys were wrong today. At least…

Monday, 23 April 2012

Hiking Through Cuba’s Varahicacos Ecological Reserve

Tracy Zhang

Inside my all-inclusive resort on the beautiful Caribbean island of Cuba, I lazed around on the pristine sandy beaches of Varadero for an entire weekend. On the first day, I loved the warm touch of the sun, gently coating my pale skin with its golden rays. On the second day, I napped by the water to the sound of the turquoise waves gently kissing the shore. But on the third day, I woke up feeling trapped in the confinement of the hotel. Despite the sun’s friendly greeting, calling me out to the beach, I could no longer stand the thought of another day of beach volleyball and tanning.Lucky for me, 30 minutes away from the resort was a natural park: Varahicacos Ecological Reserve. Located at the east end of the Varadero peninsula, it is one of the few areas in Varadero that has not been turned into giant resort complexes.…

Friday, 03 February 2012

Crevasses and Ice Caves, Franz Josef Glacier Hike

Abigail Latham

I awoke early on a warm January morning. The sun rose, coloring the sky with washes of pinks and oranges. The streets were deserted apart from a few intrepid travelers who were heading towards the Franz Joseph glacier store. It was from here that our adventure began. Backpackers gathered eagerly, waiting for an experience of a life time. Kit was handed out, tried on, adjusted and packed up, along with personal belongings. Jackets, boots, crampons, all carrying the Franz Josef logo, were passed around with excitement and apprehension. On the advice of a guide I reluctantly donned my shorts, worrying slightly about frost bite. Apparently jeans can easily become water logged and stick to your legs, making you more likely to freeze. Franz Joseph is a picturesque little township on the west coast of New Zealand’s south island. Backpackers flock there to experience a day of hiking on the glacier.…

Saturday, 24 December 2011

Don’t Stand So Close to Me

Brianne Keith

When traveling to the Galapagos, remember: the animals are not afraid of you.Most visitors come to the Galapagos for the experience of being in pristine wilderness—at far as that is possible these days. While the Galapagos are fiercely protected, with high entrance fees, and strict regulations designed to protect the fragile ecosystem, it has evolved into a mix of tourists, Ecuadorian residents trying to carve out a life better than one afforded on the mainland, and ubiquitous tour cruise boats arcing around the archipelago’s shores. It is hardly pristine.Despite our invasion, what remains intact is the strange intermingling of human and wildlife that is possible on the islands. Since no large predators reached the Galapagos, the native animals evolved to have no fear of large creatures. Stepping onto the shores of San Cristóbal, for example, one is immediately engaged in this drama. Hundreds of sea lion pods crowding beaches, sea…

Thursday, 25 August 2011

How to Travel in Broome, Australia and Not Get Eaten, Poisoned, or Killed

Justyna Surowiec

Broome in Western Australia is one of the roads less traveled. Its uncharted red rock deserts, breathtaking white sands, and turquoise waters, laced with stories of Dreamtime from Aboriginals, will have you feeling less like a tourist and more like an explorer. Unfortunatly, Australia also has a penchant for attracting some (possibly a majority) of the deadliest animals on the planet.When to GoBroome is popular amongst Australian tourists and things really pick up during Australia’s autumn and winter (April-September); however, the best time to visit Broome is towards the end of March, when the rainy season is nearing its end and you can secure more affordable hotel and car rental prices, as well as significantly improved weather. Swimming at Broome’s Cable Beach during this time is also not advisable unless you have stinger suits or an interest in pouring vinegar over Box Jellyfish stings. The vinegar only works to disable…

Thursday, 16 June 2011

The Belligerence of Hummingbirds

Frank Izaguirre

The road ahead disappeared in a cloud. Our bus careened along a narrow dirt path that clung to the mountainside. To the right rose a steep slope, covered with trees whose boughs hung heavy with glistening bromeliads. Small rivulets of icy blue water streaked down the mountain, funneling into crude cement drainages that diverted them beneath the road. I sat on the left side, where even more rising peaks of tropical greenery emerged from each thin gray cloud. Eventually, we too passed through the wisps of a cloud, and I could not believe I was in Costa Rica. My semester abroad had just begun, and on the second day the director of our group of students had packed us into a private bus heading to a highland region called Savegre. While other students socialized between themselves, my eyes never left the condensation-covered windows until the director called our attention…

Monday, 25 April 2011

Kearney, Nebraska: Sandhill cranes, but no B&B

Phoebe Bright

Kearney needs a bed-and-breakfast.The 1,500 motel rooms that line its I-80 exit do a good job of housing the convention and event crowds that visit this Nebraska city of 31,000 with its 5,000-seat auditorium midway between Omaha to the east and Scottsbluff to the west.But those motels do next to nothing to put visitors in touch with a place that’s the best thing to come out of a prairie cornfield since husked ears boiled and slathered with butter, or salt-popped kernels that scent movie theater lobbies. Among some 25 others, I lately stood slack-jawed while all the Sandhill cranes that a viewing blind could possibly frame danced and pranced among the 500,000 birds that for six weeks each late winter fly in to bulk up on the previous year’s corn stubble. Nights, they roost along the Platte River while migrating north, same as they’ve done for a hundred million years…

Monday, 25 October 2010

Gator Aid:Alabama’s Alligator Alley gives gators a second chance

John Gifford

Somewhere in the middle of a southern Alabama cypress swamp, Wesley Moore leans over a wire-framed railing and motions toward the creek before him. “This is where Michael Phelps learned to swim,” he says to a group of visitors. The group erupts in laughter, which elicits a grin from Moore. His point has been made, for the creek is about as far removed from an Olympic swimming pool as is possible. It is muddy, heavily vegetated, and full of wild alligators. Each day from mid-January through Thanksgiving, Moore, owner of Alligator Alley in Summerdale, Alabama, introduces visitors to the park’s 150 gators of all sizes. It’s a labor of love and a line of work that he always knew he was destined for. “My grandfather got me started in alligators when I was four,” he says. “I always knew I’d be a gator man.” Lucky for the gators. If it…

Monday, 03 May 2010

Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary, Mombassa, Kenya

Norman A. Rubin

Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary, in the Kwale District of Kenya's Coastal Province, was created in 1933 to preserve a large corridor along an ancient elephant migration route. The aim was to protect the African elephants from poachers. It was opened to the public in 1995 by then Director of Kenya Wildlife Services, Dr. David Western. Mwaluganje Elephant Sanctuary conserves the serene surroundings, rare and endangered African elephants, the moist deciduous forest, riparian vegetation, and other special attractions including a rare cycad forest. Dinosaur Cycads are fan-like plants that evolved around 300 million years ago, and can be sighted while driving across the terrain. The ecosystem in Mwaluganje has rolling hills, steep ridges, cliffs and winding water shades, and a watering hole. It is a forested area of approximately 23,736 hectares, comprised of Shimba forest, Mkongani West, Mkongani North, and Mwaluganje forest that surrounds it.

Monday, 22 March 2010

Untouched Uganda: Lake Opeta's People & Wildlife

Sam D'Cruz

In the Northeastern region of Uganda lies a large, remote, seldom visited lake: Lake Opeta. The lake was designated a national conservation area in 2006 due to its numerous bird species— including the globally endangered shoebill (balaeniceps rex).

Friday, 20 November 2009

Floating Weightless in the Dead Sea

Rebecca Safier

I stood under the white hot sun at the edge of the Dead Sea, hesitating to expose my sensitive skin to the waters of one of the saltiest lakes in the world. An overenthusiastic friend of mine had already run splashing into the water, only to stumble back a few minutes later groaning about intense burning sensations. She had taken off before hearing our tour guide’s warning to slowly submerge ourselves in the water so that we could get acclimated to it gradually and test our skin’s response. After her recklessness, the rest of us took our time. I gingerly took my first step into the salty aquamarine waters. My feet felt fine, and to my relief so did the rest of my body as I slowly walked deeper into the water.

Tuesday, 01 September 2009

Getting Misty-Eyed at Niagara Falls

Kristen Hamill

“I don’t see it. Where is it — down there?” I pressed my face to the car window as we passed over the bridge taking us across the border into Canada. It was close to midnight by the time my plane had landed in Buffalo and we’d made the half hour drive north, but the Niagara Falls are lit up at night, and we were eager to get across for the view.

Sunday, 31 May 2009

Alaska's Grand Glaciers

Jessica Borges

As we sliced through the clouds, Mother Nature’s ice-ridden masterpiece unfurled beneath us, leaving our jaws unhinged and our voices silenced with awe. The chopper soared high above the Alaskan glaciers, giving us time to scope out what seemed like an endless winding ice river, before descending.

Monday, 23 March 2009

Diamond Head Volcano, Hawaii

Jessica Borges

At 762 feet with a panoramic view of gorgeous Waikiki and the Pacific Ocean, it’s amazing to know that where we stood was once a thriving, bubbling lava spout. Diamond Head volcano has been extinct for about 150,000 years and for years has been attracting tourists to Honolulu, Hawaii year-round. Considered a defining feature of the view in Waikiki, the volcanic cone was an attraction we were determined to not only see, but climb.

Saturday, 07 February 2009

Camp Leakey Orangutan Preserve: Kalimantan, Borneo

Pat Drinkwater

Kalimantan, the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo, is known for two main attractions that draw curious travelers to its shores. One, Kalimantan is Joseph Conrad country -- The land of rivers where his romantic stories of Lord Jim and Tom Lingard, Kaspar Almayer and Axel Heist, took place. It was a much different Borneo in those days but there are still plaques everywhere telling visitors that they were standing where Lord Jim once stood. The second appeal to visitors is that Kalimantan is also home to the only red-haired primates in the world. My interest in Kalimantan? Nothing against Joseph Conrad, but I went for the Orangutans.

Sunday, 16 November 2008

Cataloging the Biodiversity of Reptiles and Amphibians in Western Ecuador

Stephen J. Bugaj

It wasn’t quite 9:30 in the morning and I was already wringing wet with perspiration. As we trudged up the steep slope of the mountain, the mud made my footing both arduous and precarious. Moreover, my left insole had an industrial-grade bruise from hiking several days across rocks and hardened mud, and I had several blisters on both feet.

Sunday, 28 September 2008

The Punkva Caves, Czech Republic

Jennifer Miller

I hadn’t driven a car in five months, not since we had traded our’s in for bicycles and began our epic journey around Europe, Western Asia and North Africa with our four children. With trepidation I climbed behind the wheel of the little green Skoda that our friends lent us to visit some of the most impressive caves and the biggest abyss in the Czech Republic. Much to my chagrin the car was a standard, but since my husband lost his driver’s license in Delft, Netherlands, I was now the designated driver. “Don’t worry!” our hostess hollered from the deck, “It’s like riding a bicycle!” Very funny, I thought.

Saturday, 05 July 2008

The Fossil Forest of Calistoga, California

Melissa Carlson

“At length, in a lonely dell, we came on a huge wooden gate with a sign upon it like an inn. "The Petrified Forest. Proprietor: C. Evans," ran the legend. Within, on a knoll of sward, was the house of the proprietor, and another smaller house hard by to serve as a museum, where photographs and petrifactions were retailed. It was a pure little isle of touristry among these solitary hills.”

Monday, 05 May 2008

Mosquito Bay's Bioluminescence, Vieques, Puerto Rico

Melissa Carlson

Paddling our kayaks into the darkness of Mosquito Bay, we felt skeptical. “I don’t see anything,” I said to my traveling companion. “Me neither,” he replied, squinting into the black water. “Just wait,” our guide said. “There’s still some light in the sky. Let’s get a little farther out.” As we obediently followed, something flickered beneath the water’s surface. Then, like magic, they appeared—tiny, blue-green sparkles, a few at first, then thousands twinkling in the wake of our boats and the slice of our paddles.

Tuesday, 04 March 2008

The Kasepuhan Community and Gunung Halimun National Park

Firdaus G Siahaan

The homeland of the Kasepuhan community of south-west Java was designated Gunung Halimun National Park in 1992 and today struggles to maintain their society amidst illegal logging and other threats to their way of life.

Friday, 29 February 2008

Budapest's Thermal Baths

Erin Kuschner

My first encounter with a hot spring spa occurred four years ago when I was living in Budapest, Hungary – a city renowned for its numerous bathhouses. Two large outdoor pools lay before me, with slowly rising steam being the only indication that their water was anything but chilly. As I stepped into the warm spring, I could almost immediately distinguish who were regulars to the scene: groups of wrinkly women in bathing caps, chatting and arguing amongst each other; and older men hovered around chessboards that were built into the bath’s concrete floor. It was undoubtedly a different spectacle than the first introduction of baths to the city, but the atmosphere and purpose remain the same. Here is a place where locals come to chat, to heal, and to soak in the earth’s natural minerals.

Tuesday, 11 December 2007

Samuc Champey and Los Grutas de Lanquin, Guatemala

Scott Schambelan

Halfway between Guatemala’s capital and its border with Belize lies the small mountain town of Cobán and the national park, Samuc Champey. Located in the mountainous Alta Verapaz province, Samuc Champey was a holy site for the ancient Kekchi Mayans and means, ‘Sacred Water.’ Praised for its picturesque beauty, the park’s main attraction is a natural limestone bridge of lagoons that sits atop a mighty mountain river tumbling down a sub-tropical valley.

Thursday, 11 October 2007

Okarito's Endangered Kiwi Birds

Lisa Haneberg

I was walking back from a stroll along the shoreline of the tumultuous Tasman Sea. Huge white frothy waves rolled in fast and tossed the beach rocks smooth. The sea was reclaiming its territory and I needed to move. Giggling as I scurried to miss a wave whose speed I had miscalculated, I felt energized and happy. The mountainous western coast of the South Island of New Zealand (also known as Westland) is wild and unpredictable. Exhilarating! Gazing up at the craggy cliffs, I enjoyed the strong breeze and penetrating sunrays and wondered what the day would bring. I could not have predicted the rare adventure to come later that evening.

Wednesday, 15 August 2007

Australia's El Nino

Elizabeth Gartley

While traveling in Australia you may wonder why all those forecasters are so focused on El Niño (and what is “Southern Oscillation” anyways?). Australia has one of the most distinct climates on the planet, which is due in large part to it’s unique geography. The continent is the driest on earth, and even the temperate regions are prone to drought and brush fires. Australia has a high variability of year-to-year rainfall, which is influenced by Southern Oscillation and El Niño. El Niño – Southern Oscillation (ENSO) causes significant seasonal anomalies all over the globe, but Australia is particularly affected. Australia can experience severe droughts interspersed with extensive wet periods, and possibly increased cyclones, heat waves, and frosts.

Friday, 08 June 2007

Kangaroo Island's Bird Man

Jennifer M. Eisenlau, Ph. D.

When I travel, I usually go alone. I need a guidebook, some on-line research, and a few tips written on cocktail napkins from friends who’ve been where I’m heading. But upon arriving on Kangaroo Island (KI), I knew I needed professional help. Kangaroo Island is only a 45-minute ferry ride crossing from the mainland of Southern Australia.

Tuesday, 24 April 2007

Friends of the Pleistocene: Alaska's Copper River Basin

Toby Bielawski

Out of Anchorage and through the Matanuska Valley, we’d been rolling along the Glenn Highway past mountains and glaciers, but in a steady rain that had us worried. The junction town of Glennallen was drizzly and dismal, nothing more than a gas station and restaurant. For the fifth time, I turned to check the back seat, making sure I had packed my L.L. Bean seam-sealed Gore-Tex parka, and was comforted by seeing its bright orange sleeve sticking out from under the tent and tarps.

Friday, 16 February 2007

The Antarctic Ice Sheet

Isaiah Norton

The continent of Antarctica is covered by a thick sheet of ice, averaging over 2 kilometers deep. This frozen mass holds some ninety percent of the fresh water in the world, although much of the continent is paradoxically very dry. Precipitation levels measured at single-digit centimeters per year are common, making the icy expanse in fact one of the "driest" places on Earth.

Friday, 29 December 2006

Oases in the Sahara: Use of Groundwater for Survival

Dr. Ronald Francis

Since so much of human existence depends on water, how have people survived crossing deserts where there is precious little precipitation?

Thursday, 26 October 2006

Giant Sequoias: Earth's Oldest Living Things

Dr. Ronald Francis

A lot of us like walking in the forest for the sheer simplicity and beauty of it; the peacefulness of the air, the smell of the wood and flowers, the colors and shapes of the various fungi. Yet we also yearn for something unusual in our lives – something removed from the mundane of our favorite forest trolls.

Thursday, 31 August 2006

Snow White Lakes...But No Snow

Dr. Ronald Francis

Your best initial guess is that it is a frozen lake covered with snow. Look again and you see that it is too dry to be snow, and the temperature is not as cold as it should be. In fact you are not looking at snow, but salt.

Friday, 30 June 2006

The Northern Lights

Dr. Ronald Francis

The Northern Lights are one of nature’s most fantastic light shows. They appear as a whitish glow with flickering tints of green and red. They may make wavelike patterns or streak across the sky – a dance of lights.

Monday, 01 May 2006

The San Andreas Fault

Dr. Ronald Francis

The Fault is a dividing line that separates one part of California that is sliding northward from the other part that is sliding southward. If you have one foot on one side of the fault and the other foot on the other side then your body would begin to twist a little bit as the two tectonic plates of the earth slide by each other.

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