Yellowstone sets new record for visitors in June

by Kraig Becker on

It seems that the sluggish economy isn’t preventing Americans from traveling this summer, at least not to one of our favorite adventure destinations. The National Park Service announced earlier this week that more than 694,000 people visited Yellowstone in June, an increase of 7.9% from last year, and a continuation of a recent trend that has seen travelers flocking to the park.

In 2009, Yellowstone set an attendance record with nearly 3.3 million visitors making the trip to the America’s first national park. But it seems that mark is already in jeopardy in 2010, as every month this year, save May, has seen an increase in traffic. With July and August, the park’s two busiest months, still to come, it seems that the Park Service will have another very successful year on its hands.

With all of the spectacular natural beauty that is found in Yellowstone, it is easy to understand why it is so popular. The park is famous for its amazing mountain vistas, impressive waterfalls, sprawling canyons, and of course its geysers, with Old Faithful being the most famous of all the attractions. Yellowstone is also home to plenty of wildlife ranging from elk and bison to wolves and bear, making it one of the best places in all of North America to watch wild animals.

If you’re still undecided about where you want to travel to this summer, perhaps you’ll add Yellowstone to your itinerary. It’s a classic American destination, and a must see for any traveler.

[Photo credit: Daniel Mayer via Wikimedia Commons]

Woman begins canoe trip from Seattle to San Diego

by Kraig Becker on

Margo Pellagrino describes herself as “a stay-at-home mom who doesn’t do a very good job at staying home.” That seems an apt description considering she has just set off on a epic canoe trip that will see her paddling from Seattle to San Diego over the next couple of months, while raising awareness about the health of the world’s oceans.

Margo started her journey on July 3rd, and over the past few days she has paddled across Puget Sound, down the Juan De Fuca Strait, and out into the Pacific Ocean. From there, she’ll turn south, with the intention of paddling her outrigger canoe all the way to San Diego, a distance of more than 2500 miles. Along the way, she’ll make planned stops in a number of cities and towns, where she hopes to spread the word about the importance of the oceans to the overall health of the planet, and how we can all do small things on a day-to-day basis that will help protect them.

This isn’t the first long distance paddle for Margo. Back in 2007 she made the journey from Miami, Florida to Camden, Maine, a distance of over 2000 miles, by canoe. She followed up that adventure in 2008 with another journey, this time along the Gulf Coast, going from Miami to New Orleans. Those trips helped to reinforce her love of the oceans, and her desire to help raise awareness about how their health can effect the rest of the planet.

You can follow Margo’s progress by reading her latest entries to her blog and tracking her via GPS. She’ll be making regular updates along the way, sharing her adventure, and message, with the rest of us.

[Photo credit: Margo Pellagrino]

Take a cycling tour with Trek Travel

by Kraig Becker on

If you’ve been watching the Tour de France this week, you’ve no doubt seen Lance Armstrong and the rest of Team Radioshack riding their beautiful Trek bikes as they’ve rolled across the Netherlands, Belgium, and of course France. Perhaps it has even motivated you to dust off the Huffy and hit the road yourself. But did you know that Trek offers cycling tours to exotic places around the globe? Tours that would put you on one of their amazing bikes, while exploring a country like you never have before.

Trek Travel offers adventurous and active cyclists a host of options to pedal their way across Europe, North America, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. These trips have a little something to fit everyone’s needs, including private tours, group excursions, and custom made itineraries. Additionally, the tours can be geared for families, as well as riders of a wide variety of skill levels ranging from beginner up to avid cyclists. Accommodations can be at the luxury level or a simple, no frills option to fit a variety of budgets too.

One of their most popular offerings is the Lance in France Tour which are actually going to be taking place during the Tour, as fans of the sport follow Armstrong and the other riders on two different legs, one in the Alps, and the other a ride from the Pyrenees to Paris. The highlights of those two tours include not only getting to watch the Tour de France, but ride some of the popular stages in the mountains as well.

Of course, it is too late to sign up for either one of those rides, but other cycling tours include the Tuscany Explorer which sends riders on an amazing trip through Italian wine country, and the Yellowstone and Tetons Multisport, which combines cycling and kayaking in one of the most iconic national parks in the U.S. My personal favorite would be the mountain biking tour through South Africa and Zambia.

One of the best parts of these tours is that you can be as active or inactive as you want. You decide how much you want to ride on any given day, and if you’re feeling a little tired (or hung over!) from the night before, you can take it easy on the team bus or at your next lodge, while your companions spend the day in the saddle. You’ll also get to ride some of the best Trek bikes in their catalog. The road tours will put you on a Madone, not unlike what Lance himself rides, while mountain bikers will be treated to a similar level of off road machines.

If you’re looking for a unique and active way to take a trip, perhaps a cycling tour is just what you need. It truly is a perfect way to see the sights while cruising through some of the world’s best landscapes. Check out the Trek Travel catalog for some excellent travel opportunities.

[Photo credit: Trek Tours]

Expedition school preps potential explorers

by Kraig Becker on

Are you an adventurous traveler who has ambitions of exploring the world, but you just aren’t sure how to put the unique expedition of your dreams together? If so, then perhaps Mark Kalch’s Expedition School is for you. This 3-day event is designed to give budding explorers all the skills they’ll need to embark on their own solo expedition, no matter what that adventure might be.

The Expedition School will take place August 20th-22nd in the Pyrenees of the south of France, near Bordeaux. The area is the perfect base of operations for the program due to the close proximity of mountains, forests, and rivers that will serve as the weekend’s adventure playground, where attendees will learn whitewater rafting, mountain trekking, and other outdoor skills.

Students at the Expedition School will also learn how to select the proper equipment for their journey, write sponsorship proposal letters, and more. There will be classes on how to document their adventure through the use of photography and video, as well as how to approach the logistics of planning and preparing for an extended expedition into remote places. Attendees will have the opportunity to share ideas and discuss their plans, while working in a team environment designed to simulate the dynamics of an expedition, including packing the van, sorting through the gear, and so on.

Explorer Mark Kalch has plenty of lessons to pass on to his students, most of which he learned on expeditions of his own. Back in 2007 and 2008, Kalch spent several months traveling the length of the Amazon River, from source to sea, across Peru and Brazil, and he recently completed a solo trek north to south across all of Iran.

Kalch is happy to impart his wisdom on potential explorers who attend his Expedition School for just £295 (about $440) for those who don’t mind camping, while the price jumps to £365 ($550) for a shared room. Seems like a small price to pay for the opportunity to network with other adventurers and learn some important skills that could make your expedition a reality.

[Photo credit: Mark Kalch]

It’s the last dam summer at Olympic National Park

by Kraig Becker on

There are big changes in store for Olympic National Park, which is located in the Olympic Peninnorthwest corner of Washington state on the Olympic Peninsula. The park is an interesting combination of Pacific Coast beaches, lush rain forests, and snow capped mountains, with some of the best scenery in the Pacific Northwest. But part of the landscape there is changing dramatically, and by next year it will be altered forever.

In 2011, as part of a plan to remove the Elhwa River Dam, Lake Mills and Lake Aldwell will both be drained, allowing the river to flow freely once again. This is a wonderful ecological move, as it will open up more than 70 miles worth of waterways to let the native salmon swim free, but it will also have an impact on the paddlers who have enjoy kayaking and canoeing through the Elhwa Valley. By next summer, that will no longer be an option.

To celebrate this historic event, the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort and Lake Crescent Lodge are offering the Last Dam Summer Package, which ranges in price from $206-$229, and includes lodging, a box lunch for each person for each day of your stay, water bottles, a waterfall trail map, and informational material about the impact of the dam removal. To book the package, simply use the promo code: OLYLDS10 when booking your stay.

As if getting the opportunity to paddle two lakes that won’t exist next year wasn’t enough of an incentive to visit Olympic, there is also a new trail to explore as well. The recently established Olympic Waterfalls Trail is sure to be a hit with visitors who want to explore all the stunning waterfalls that the park is famous for. The new trail offers a variety of ways to access these natural wonders, including paved, wheelchair accessible trails, scenic forest roads, and traditional hiking trails. Several of the falls can only be reached by kayak or boat as well, which adds even more of an adventurous element to the trip.

To take advantage of the new trail, four of the park’s lodges, which include Lake Quinault Lodge and Kalaloch Lodge, in addition to the two mentioned above, are offering the Olympic Waterfall Trail Package. This option includes all of the same amenities, at the same rates, as the Last Dam Summer Package, but allows visitors to coordinate a multi-night stay across multiple lodges that fall along their route. To take advantage of this deal, use promo code: OLYWFT10.

Both of these deals are good through October 30th. For more information check out OlympicNationalParks.com.

[Photo credit: National Park Service]