Photo of the Day (07.13.08)

by Jeremy Kressmann on

Doesn’t this look blissful? Flickr user Bernard-SD took this shot at Yosemite National Park. Summer is one of the best but also the most crowded times at our country’s national parks, so it’s refreshing to see a great nature shot with nary a human to clutter the view.

Bernard’s photo is great not only for the scenery but also because it’s nicely framed. I like how the lone hiking path cuts across the foreground, winding off into unknown. The tree on the right is also a nice counterpoint to the gorgeous waterfall on the upper left. Just imagine yourself hiking down this peaceful path, the vista of the park’s mountains looming in the distance.

Have a great travel photo you’d like to share with the world here on Gadling? Add it to our Gadling pool on Flickr and we might pick it as our Photo of the Day.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park: 75th anniversary in 2009

by Jamie Rhein on

The only time my family on either side of my tree has had a reunion was when my dad’s side converged at Fontana Village near Fontana Dam for a week. In the midst of the Great Smoky Mountains, this was a gorgeous place to spend time.

The drive there was filled with winding roads and vistas. Next year marks the 75th anniversary of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Seventy-five years ago, from donations collected from the public and private sectors, the land in North Carolina and Tennessee that now boasts 800 miles of maintained trails, 1,500 black bears, plus elk and deer, became property for the public to enjoy.

If you can’t make it to the anniversary celebration, there are planned activities throughout the spring, summer and fall every year. This summer is filled with them. Here’s the link to the interactive calendar that highlights what is happening on specific days. I adore ranger programs. I’ve never seen a bad one.

To kick off the 75th anniversary, there is a nifty Web site that highlights the upcoming activities and the park history. The interactive timeline that dates back to pre-1900s is particularly cool. For example, did you know that Clarence Darrow visited here in 1925 when he was in the midst of the Scopes “Monkey” Trial?

Along with the park itself, the neighboring communities also have events planned to celebrate the beauty in their midst. Knoxville, Tennessee has several. From what I can tell, events will be added as the year goes on, so keep checking back.

If you have been to the Great Smoky National Park and want to add to the legacy, there’s a feature, “Smokies Family Album” where you can share your photos.

The big weekend Anniversary Weekend is June 13-15. 2009.

Jesus travel: Eating in the land of milk and honey

by Jamie Rhein on

Right after I posted about the Jesus Trail in Israel that meanders for 40 miles through the land where Jesus walked, I received my daily missive from Intelligent Travel. There was the post “What would Jesus eat?” Now, that’s a pairing combo–eating and walking.

Travel writer, Andrew Evans just returned from Israel armed with details on food that have a biblical basis. While you’re walking along the path that Jesus might have wandered, pop into the eateries he suggests and you’ll have some mighty fine meals.

Evans tells which restaurants serve what and gives a bit of a background history of some of the foods, many that date back to the time of Jesus or earlier.

Eucalyptus is in Jerusalem and Muscat Restaunt and The Organic Kitchen are at the Mizpe Hayamim Health Resort overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

Here are some of the foods Evans mentions eating, although some of them are from markets he visited along the way:

  • yellow lentil soup with hyssop
  • lamb braised with pomegranate
  • tilapia with lemon butter sauce and baked vegetables
  • sage tea (thought to cure jet lag)
  • pumpkin-filled Bukharian pastry
  • pickled green almonds,
  • black Persian lemons
  • Yemeni yogurt balls
  • bread sprinkled with olive oil and herbs

The Jesus Trail

by Jamie Rhein on

Here is a bit of low impact tourism that can provide you with some exercise, a history lesson–and a walk similar to one that Jesus might have made.

Instead of hopping on a bus to be taken to certain holy sites to see places where Jesus did his ministry, there is a walking option.

This go-at-you-own-pace trip is along a 40-mile path that brings you to sites like: Nazareth where Jesus grew up as a boy; the Arab village of Kana–where Jesus turned water into wine; the sea of Galilee, Mount of Beatitudes where it is thought Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount; and to the location where it’s said that Jesus turned two fish and five loaves of bread into enough food for the multitudes.

There are sites important to Islam as well.

According to Laurie Copans who took the trip, it has appeal, partly because of the interactive quality. Listening to birds, feeling the breeze, and experiencing the topography adds meditative and reflective elements to the travle experience.

As one of the people interviewed for the article said, “The more intimate you become with the land, the more intimate the land becomes to you–the smells, the feel, the hills.”

The tricky aspect of this trail is that it’s not marked. Here are your options for doing the trip without getting lost.

  • Hire a tour guide
  • Download a Global Positioning System that coordinates with Jesustrail.com, or
  • Pick up a Map–but with the trail not marked, I say hire a tour guide.

For more details and contact information about how to follow the Jesus Trail, read Copan’s article. The photo is of Galilee from Mount Beatitudes by hoysameg on Flickr.

Gadling Gear: Deuter Futura 28 Backpack (Warning: Not for Heavy Packers)

by Tynan on

In the (very near) future I’m going to write a comprehensive article about why and how to pack light, so make sure you’re RSSed up and ready for that in the next week or two.

Consider this the prequel. The most important part of packing light is the bag, and I’m proud to say that I’ve found the ultimate bag for packing light, the Deuter Futura 28.

I found the Deuter Futura 28 by accident. I was at Whole Earth Provisions in Austin, Texas, getting ready for my 10 month trip around the world. I needed a bag.

I looked at the North Face bags, the Osprey bags, the Arcteryx bags, and all of the other usual suspects. None of them stood out.

As I was about to leave I saw a bag tucked away in the far corner. It was pushed back into the rack so that only someone obsessively evaluating every single bag would find it. That’s me.

I had never heard of Deuter, so I assumed they must be some no name budget brand. After just a few minutes of examination, though, I realized just how wrong I was. This was the ultimate bag for the light packer.

What makes the Deuter so unique?

First, and most striking, the Deuter has an “AirComfort” suspension system. In a nutshell this is a lightweight steel spring frame that pushes the bag off of the back and creates an airspace between the wearer and the bag. Sweaty back? Not anymore.

Besides keeping you cool, the AirComfort system also makes the bag more comfortable to wear by creating a bit of a suspension system. It’s not bulky and heavy like a camping backpack, but it serves much of the same function.

An unadvertised benefit that you only discover through real world use is that you can put the bag straps-down in a puddle or wet surface and it won’t seep into the bag and drench everything.

The Deuter has two openings, one at the top and one at the bottom. That means that your days of digging way deep into the bag trying to find something at the bottom are over. There’s also a divider in the middle that, once zipped, separates the bag into two compartments, one on top of the other.

I leave my bag in this configuration most of the time. It makes it easy to use one compartment as a stuff sack for stuff you won’t use often (rain gear, cot, etc), while leaving the other compartment nice and easy to work with.

A rain cover is built into the bottom of the pack in it’s own little pocket, ready to be used as soon as you need it. Unzip and pull it over the bag. There is a tether so that you can’t lose it.

The mesh pockets on the sides are excellent. This is a good example of the thought that was put into this thing. They stretch way far out so that you can put big things in them (a small sleeping bag in one case), but have good elastics and nylon straps to hold in even a very small water bottle.

There is a sleeve for a hydration pouch in the main compartment. I hate those things, but the sleeve is perfect for keeping a 12″ laptop in. The laptop ends up well protected between the stuff you’ve packed and the AirComfort suspension.

All of these features are enough to make the Deuter the perfect bag, but what really pushes it over the edge is the quality, both in design and build.

The bag is tiny by most standards, smaller than the iconic LL Bean or Jansport school backpack, but is so well laid out and so devoid of useless space wasters that I am able to pack for 10 months in it and still have enough room to hold four apples and some nuts for snacks.

The materials are all very durable. I’ve put my bag through a pretty thorough thrashing and it still looks brand new.

The bottom line is that Deuter 28 is the perfect bag for any serious traveler who wants a solid balance between capacity and mobility.

If you really can’t fit everything in there, they make much larger versions as well.

Deuter is a German brand that seems a lot more popular outside the US. It can be bought at some outdoor stores as well as Amazon. A hint if you find it at a local store – if you ask they will give you weighted bean bags to try the bag out with some weight in it.