Adventure Travel
One-Click Activity & Lodging Searches on Revamped Appalachian Mountain Club Site
Have you checked out the re-launch of the Appalachian Mountain Club's (AMC) Outdoors.org Web site yet? The new version offers a "one-click" activity search for thousands of AMC activities, guided programs and volunteer opportunities. Everything from current trail conditions at AMC's New Hampshire and Maine destinations to news about outdoor recreation and conservation are now updated continually. You can use "one-click" lodging to check availability at AMC lodges and huts.
...Ultimate 4-Month, Well-Paid Dream Job for One Skier or Snowboarder
Here's a dream - and well paid - vacation for one adventurous skier or snowboarder. The Canyons resort in Park City, Utah, has announced an amazing contest.
"Not only will we pay you a salary ($40,000 for four months) but, we'll put you up for free - at a suite at the Waldorf Astoria, no less, and give you full VIP treatment including heli-skiing, avalanche training, spa treatments and full gear!" In exchange, the winner must blog and send out videos a few times a week, participate in various activities and shadow employees in various departments, such as ski patrol and lift operations.
...The 'No More Sore Neck' Travel Pillow
Especially when you travel on tiny planes that take you to more exotic destinations, or spend hours on a bus to reach the spot where a trek begins, this uniquely shaped travel pillow is a real neck saver. For the first time, after waking up from a nap during a plane ride my neck wasn't sore from being stretched too far over the side of an inflatable pillow. Read my review for the details.
Bachelor's Adventure Travel Blog Entertains
You never know what to expect in Blane Bachelor's weekly adventure travel blog at ShermansTravel. One week she's writing about her experience entering the Fig Leaf 5K (a nude race) and another on what it's like to tackle a natural obstacle course in the Dominican Republic. Her adventure travel blogs come out once a week.
Soaring Skydivers Show Skills & Artistry at Competition
You don't have to skydive to enjoy the 2010 U.S. Parachute Association National Skydiving Championships, Sept. 10-24, at Skydive Chicago. Hundreds of top sky divers will take the plunge and push their skydiving skills to the max while competing for medals. During the Formation competition, 4-way, 8-way and 16-way teams will create patterns in the air as they skydive toward the ground. Creativity is awarded during the Artistic Events competition, which includes freeflying and freestyle.
...Adventure Travel Consumers Spent More Than $89 Billion Last Year
A new study by researchers at George Washington University's International Institute of Tourism Studies, conducted in partnership with the Adventure Travel Trade Association and Xola Consulting, estimates that consumers spent more than $89 billion worldwide on adventure travel in 2009. The study notes that jungle tours, whitewater rafting, climbing and eco-trips are all parts of adventure tourism, which is a rapidly growing segment of the tourism market and a viable economic opportunity for countries seeking to develop tourism.
...Win Annual National Parks Pass & Gift Certificate to Merrell
Five national park packs loaded with national park gear and information are being given away in the Passport to Parks Sweepstakes. The contest comes from the National Park Foundation, which has teamed up with Sunset magazine and Merrell. Each prize package includes a $200 gift certificate to use at any Merrell store or at www.merrell.com; a Merrell "Search" backpack; an "America The Beautiful - The National Parks and Federal Recreation Lands Annual Pass"; a copy of Fodor's Official Guide to America's National Parks - National Park Foundation edition; and more. For more details and a link to enter the contest visit Adventure Travel Contests, Giveaways and Sweepstakes.
Gear Junkies 'Best of Show' Awards Choices for Adventure Travelers
Gear junkies will find something to lust for in this list of soon-to-be-released innovative products. A lightweight device that stores enough kinetic energy while you hike to power your iPod, a one pound one ounce double-wall tent for one person, and upgraded CamelBaks. The Gear Junkie picked these items after spending four days and doing some early product testing at the annual Outdoor Retailer trade show held in early August in Salt Lake City.
...Removal of the Galapagos Islands From UNESCO's Sites in Danger List is Controversial
The recent decision by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee to remove the Galapagos Islands from the list of Sites in Danger is controversial. According to an article on ouramazingplanet.com, 15 of the 21 WHC member states voted in favor of the move, among them France, Mexico, Jordan, South Africa and Barbados. The article noted: The decision goes against the recommendations of UNESCO, the United Nations body that, along with outside experts and scientists, monitors sites on the WHC's danger list. "The state of conservation report presented by UNESCO did not suggest that the site should be removed from the danger list, that was a decision the committee made," said Sue Williams, a UNESCO spokesperson, who said the WHC members are government representatives, free to accept or reject UNESCO's recommendations.
...Unbiased Hotel Review Site Includes Local Adventures
Although it's mainly a hotel-review Web site, Oyster.com members also offer some excellent insights into adventurous activities in the locales where they are staying. Oyster.com reviewers are paid, regular property rates are paid and property managers do not know reviewers are coming. On the Photo Fakeout pages, reviewers' photos side-by-side with a promotional photo show you what photo retouching has hidden in some promo images.
...4,000-Mile-Long Amazon River Walk Finished Monday
After collapsing on the second-to-last day of his 4,000plus -mile-long and 28 month journey, earlier today Ed Stafford jumped into the ocean. It was a dip signifying that he had finally walked the entire length of the Amazon River! An expedition leader and writer by profession, Stafford's blogs, the videos and the photos on his Walking the Amazon Web site reveal the experiences, joys and rough times during this amazing trek than had never been accomplished before. During his journey, Stafford walked with hundreds of locals who joined him for a few miles or more along the way, fellow expedition leader Luke Collier for the first three months, and Gadiel ("Cho") Sanchez Rivera, who finished the journey with him.
Multi-Purpose Padded Liner Shorts Promise Sore-No-More Bottoms
If you like to go bicycling on weekends and wind up with a sore bottom, check out the padded Canari gel liner shorts, which you can wear under cargo pants or regular shorts. It's a good choice for weekend warriors and people who don't bike often because the liner shorts are less expensive than most padded biking shorts. They can also be used horseback riding and motorcycle riding. Read my review, written after using them while mountain biking in the Scottish Highlands.
...Don't Throw That Nature Valley Bar Wrapper Away
If you nibble on the Nature Valley energy bars while mountain biking or hiking, stash the wrappers in a bag and when you've collected several toss them in an envelope. For every wrapper you send, the company will give ten cents to the Nature Valley National Parks Project. The money will go toward improvements at Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Canyon National Park and Biscayne National Park in Florida.
...South Africa is Tops for Adrenalin Junkies
Now that the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup is history, you can find plenty of discounted (from luxe to inexpensive) trips to South Africa. Adrenalin junkies will love this country where adventure travel experiences are only limited by how much your body can handle. In addition to taking a safari (in a jeep or on the back of an elephant) you can go ziplining, fly a MIG jet, horseback ride among vineyards and much more. You can also hurtle toward the water during a bungy jump from one of the world's highest bridges, fly a MIG jet, surf in barrel tubes, dive with sharks, and go kloofing, canyoneering, abseiling and sandboarding. If you enjoy extreme adventures, South Africa is the place to visit.
...Experience a Farm Stay in Switzerland
Farm stays in Europe offer a way to interact with locals and see a foreign country from a unique perspective. Greg Witt, a Guest Adventure Travel Guide, learned to milk cows and pan for gold, while staying at a farm in Entlebuch, Switzerland, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and one of 20 Swiss nature parks. Here's what he had to say about personally exploring this traditional way of life in Switzerland. Farm stays can be arranged in many European countries.
...Off-the-Beaten-Path Adventure Travel Trips on Sale
Intrepid Travel, a niche adventure travel company that focuses on taking travelers off the beaten track to more than 90 destinations around the globe, is turning 21. To celebrate, now through August 31, Intrepid is offering 21% off all trips departing before September 30.
...Couch Potatoes Will Get Adrenaline Shots at The Adventure Blog
If adrenaline highs serve up the same buzz as a double espresso or a can of Red Bull but you don't want to leave your computer, check out The Adventure Blog. Author Kraig Becker does a terrific job of scouring the Web then passing links on to us, so we have easy access to a grab bag of extreme adventures.
...Have You Seen These Amazing Extreme Summer Adventures Photos?
National Geographic online has put up a series of wonderful - and amazing - extreme adventure photos. Rock climbing on a mind-bending wall, plunging over a waterfall in a kayak, and surfing a 16-foot-high wave are just some of the extreme activities. Have you had any of the adventures in these images?
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Donate Old Gear to Help Keep the Homeless Warm
Have you upgraded tents, sleeping bags and bought new high-tech clothes, then tossed the old gear into a closet or the garage? The homeless man, woman or family you may have seen lying under thin blankets as you walked by on a cold day could be a lot warmer wearing that older down jacket hanging in your closet.
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