Self-Heating Dinners

by Neil Woodburn on

Eating a hot meal while camping can sometimes be a huge hassle–especially if you are backpacking and have to trek in fuel and camping stoves.

My friends and I eat pretty well when we backpack, but the hassles of cooking–and the cleanup–can sometimes ruin an otherwise enjoyable evening. And if it happens to be raining, forget it! Cooking in a tent is a very bad idea.

I’m always on the lookout for tasty, quick, and easy food ideas for backpacking and was therefore somewhat pleased to hear about Quick Cuisine. These package meals come with a nifty button that automatically heats up the meal in ten minutes when pressed. And they don’t need to be refrigerated.

I’m not sure what type of mini-nuclear device powers up these meals, but I’m rather impressed with the concept. The big question, however, is does it taste good? I’ll find out soon enough. Quick Cuisine is currently only for sale in Europe but will hit the American market in the next month or so. Available flavors will include Beef Stew, Chili con Carne, Ravioli with Tomato Sauce, and Paella.

That’s four nights of meals, folks!

Miami Herald On the Caribbean

by Adrienne Wilson on

Trying to decide on the Caribbean island that’s best for you? I know, the decision can be a toughie, but shouldn’t be too much of a strain. The Miami Herald features an excellent piece highlighting noteworthy hotels, environmental aspects, restaurants and the basic ‘why’ you should come questions all there to help you plan. Ready to go nude? Try visiting St. Maarten’s Orient Beach to score your full body tan. Need a good reason to head over to St. Lucia? If beautiful beaches aren’t enough, grab a sunset cocktail at Ladera and just lounge to the sweet sounds of island music. Whether it’s live or from the stereo I’m sure there will be some coming from somewhere. Oh, and there’s my personal island favorite – Trinidad & Tobago. If you can’t make it for Carnival next year try planning a week long getaway to hike and bird watch. There’s always a blissful thing to do in Trinidad & Tobago – if you ask me. See the Miami Herald for all their spicy Caribbean island recommendations.

U.S. National Parks from Coast to Coast

by Adrienne Wilson on

Perhaps this site has made the Gadling pages before, but at the same time I’m willing to bet we’ve somehow managed to look over this fine jewel packed with National Park info. A buddy of mine who happens to be good pals with one of the creators of the USA-C2C venture pointed it out to me a few days back and after accessing the very thorough and detailed information, I must recommend that anyone with an interest in National Parks bookmark this page – NOW. Having toured almost all of the 358 National Parks, National Historic Site, National Battlefield Park, National Battlefield and National Monument officially recognized by the National Park Foundation within the United States, Michael and Gabrielle have created a highly dynamic ranking system for each, all on one site. (Very easy to navigate through as well.) The park museums, ease of access, ranger to tourist ratio, and park facilities are all critiqued for each and every park including anything else imaginable. I look at the amount of work placed into this project and I am baffled. With around 29 more parks left, once this project is fully finished I’m sure it is going to spread like wildfire. Maybe we’ll get lucky enough to see it in a paper / book version perfect for the backpack on long summer or fall road trips.

Yosemite as Art

by Erik Olsen on

I picked this one up from a great Web site on he National parks called Park Remark, and this could be a cool event for folks who love both art and the National Parks. The Autry National Center is currently hosting a cool-looking exhibit called “Yosemite: Art of an American Icon“, which features lots of paintings of, you guessed it, Half Dome and El Cap and the whole Yosemite Valley….sans traffic clogged roads, smog and fat kids holding their wieners…the BBQ kind, I mean. You can check out the exhibit website to see what it’s all about. It’s actually quite well done with audio narration around some of the many prints and paintings on display. Bierstadt is covered, but oddly, I saw no Ansel Adams…I’m guessing those photos were either too expensive to get or they couldn’t get permission because an Adams exhibit is already on the road somewhere.

Don’t Drink the Water

by Iva Skoch on

The famous River Jordan, described as a raging or “violent” river in the Bible, is now just a sad trickle of raw sewage and agricultural runoff. Even on the site where John the Baptist performed the ritual on Jesus, Kasr Al-Yahud (near Jericho), the river is now “an opaque, brown, sluggish” mess.

Apparently, Israeli water diversions, started in the 1960s, have been a large reason for the ninety percent drop in flow over the years. However, Syria and Jordan are also to blame. Now, a planned, joint Syrian-Jordanian “Unity Dam” threatens to do even more damage by stopping the river’s largest tributary, the Yarmuk, and possibly completely drying up the river in parts.

Rather than the “original” spot four miles north of the Dead Sea, most religious pilgrims have had to move their re-enactments of the baptism to Yardenit (near Alumot, near the Sea of Galilee), over 60 miles away to the north, to the only clean-water spot: a lonely 3km stretch on the 200km river.