For some reason, I imagined it would be MUCH more expensive to hire an alpine guide for the day in France. Something about all the cheese he’d have to bring along. But I guess I was wrong. Over at this site, it looks like you can actually get a guide for just $54 a day. That’s not bad for your own hard-core dude who helps you get up the hill. And for women, your own hard-core dude who looks like Matthew Mcconnaughey
Paradise Lost
There is a well-known syndrome in travel called the Lonely Planet effect. This is not a syndrome in the sense that someone is afflicted with it…not like, say Asperger’s Syndrome. But what I’m talking about it the matter of how we so often as a traveling species love our places to death. Lonely Planet, the Bible of so many travelers, has always billed itself as the authority of how to get to those far off and away places that others don’t go. But the sheer publication of information, directions, places to eat and stay, about such places, then unleashes the hordes of us that venture to them and, usually, ruin them. By ruin, I mean where lots of tourists go, there will inevitably follow lots of knick-knack salespeople to sell them stuff, lots of cheesy hostels and hotels that want to capture their dollars. You know the problem. It’s everywhere.
This topic actually came up in the conversation I had with LP’s Don George and he rightly defended the guide series. But still, what to do ?
Well, I found a nifty little editorial in the LA Times about this topic. The writer, Bill Stall of the opinion section, discusses mostly the way that Backpacker and Outside Magazines ran certain spots for the best hikes, best [laces to mountain bike, etc., and takes them to task for these rankings and how they inevitably lead to legions of visitors who can spoil them. I’m not sure I totally agree, and I’m also not sure keeping any place safe from tourism is possible. It seems a part of human nature in a crowded, affluent society to want to visit places unvisited by others, and so to visit them….hence a circle of destruction. What to do ?Dunno. Maybe start thinking about visiting the moon.
Next Stellar Stop – Bohol, Philippines
Bohol is a place of unusual familiarity for me. Almost all my Pinoy and Pinay friends speak highly of the island if not above some of the other thousand islands. And I know one day I’ll be able to walk the lands and sail the seas with my brethren and sistren from my birth country, but until that day comes I’ll just have to make due with their reports and various others on the net like this Stellar feature.
Whitney Weis gives the facts on the island paradise becoming popular with nature tourists because of its eight distinctive regions. To the right you’ll find one of them pictured. Known as the Chocolate Hills visitors come year round even when the mounds aren’t so chocolate looking. For diving fanatics there are really a couple of great finds in Bohol, or should I say off of Bohol. Balicasag has some of the best diving in the entire Philippines according to her notes and Cabilao is perfect for adventurers wanting to go head-to-head with the hammerheads that frequent the waters. There’s much more to this 60-mile long Asian jewel, but you’ll need to see the Stellar piece for the rest. It wouldn’t be fair of me to tell you all here and besides I’ll have my stories to share one of these days.
Alps Panos
As a fan and frequent poster here about panoramic photographs, I wanted to bring to your attention a series here from the Alps. These are superbly shot by Jan Zieba. Although they do not go 360 degrees around, the scenery depicted here is breath-taking to say the least. There are shots of mountains, glaciers, lakes and oceans…amazing landscapes. Some really fine work.
GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of July 30
What a week! Not that all weeks aren’t a little something special here at Gadling, but you know. Maybe you don’t know? Maybe you missed all of our goodies this week? Maybe you missed only a few? Tsk-tsk. Well here’s a few to review:
5. Builda Yurt:
Of all things seen on Gadling – why would I point to this Builda Yurt blurb? Because I agree with Erik. Because Yurts are cool. Besides it’s a fun plug on the Yurt craze and if you’ve been paying attention you’d know that the holidays are just around the corner. Is a Yurt on your wish list? Should be.
4. Balkan Odyssey Part 16: Ulcinj, Montenegro:
Gotta love how Neil keeps every detail coming from his last adventure to the Balkans. He started with Albania and has worked his way into Montenegro with this post. More specifically, he describes the waiting-to-be-discovered beach resort that is Ulcinj. If you have to ask why – then you need to check out this excellent piece. The pictures are phenomenal.
3. Top Haunted Hikes:
Reading about some of our National Park’s top haunted trails really spooked me out. I wouldn’t want to imagine what walking the path of one on a dark starry night (lost, without a map, and a coyote’s howl) in the distance would be like. Spine-tingling indeed. Yosemite, Big Bend and Grand Canyon are all there. See what other parks made the haunted list.
2. Transparent Kayak:
See-through canoe-kayak, yeah – insanely awesome. Erik points out a fine piece equipment in the gear world and though it ain’t too cheap makes you want to start saving for one. Seats two people and it is really transparent. Check it out.
1. Havasupai:
With this one you almost wish Neil didn’t go running his trap about how grand the Havasupai Canyon located about 40 miles from the Grand Canyon is, but at the same time you’ve somehow placed it high on your list of destinations to go. If it sounds too hot for you to trek to these days, then you obviously weren’t put onto the cool blue Havasu Creek. Miss this piece again and that’s just your loss pal.