Summer at the Ski Resorts

by Erik Olsen on

The snow has all melted and the crowds have left for the beaches, but that doesn’t mean the fun stops at various US ski resorts around the country. Many of the biggest resorts, and a few small ones too, keep their ticket booths open to accommodate outdoor folk in search of warmer thrills.

This piece in CNN takes a look at what some of the resorts are doing this summer to provide opportunities for mountain bikers, campers, fisher folk, golfers, horseback riders, et al. The piece covers most of the big ski states like Colorado, Utah and California and does justice to most of the areas providing this kind of fun. Myself, I’ve always been partial to Mammoth Mountain whose summer mountain biking is epic. Ditto Whistler/Blackcomb, which gets short shrift in the piece.

GADLING’S TAKE FIVE: Week of June 4

by Adrienne Wilson on

Drum roll please… Yes, folks you guessed right! It is time again for our weekly update and though it’s been a little more quiet than usual we’ve still got some goodies out there and here is this week’s list:

5. International Internet Cafés: Type Fast!
For those of us who still haven’t learned how to shut the world we know and the world that knows us back home out and off while on vacation here is a fine blurb on International Internet Cafés. Personally, I try to avoid these as the connections are always cruddy and the rates price out pretty ridiculous on some occasions, but if you’re the type that relies on lightening fast communication to say “hi” to mom rather than snail mailing a post card you’ll want to peek into this piece.

4. Best Stargazing Destination’s in America:
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, no – it’s the stars… When I found this amazing article on stargazing in the U.S. in Nat Geo’s Adventure magazine I wanted to take off to Bryce Canyon and howl at the moon. As bad as it sounds star gazing isn’t something you can do out of your backyard anymore with the increase of light-pollution, but if you’re as passionate about seeing one of the most phenomenal natural light shows taking place every night, you’ll head to this piece and then book your own excursion to see the stars.

3. World Hum Top 30 Travel Books:
If the temperatures start climbing too high becoming a couch potato won’t be so bad provided you’re still taking your mind some place. Start your summer reading off with some of the travel classics found on World Hum’s list. Like Erik who brings our attention to the list, I have a tremendous amount of catching up to do when it comes to some of the fine works mentioned.

2. Traveling Syria:
This one gets picked simply because Syria is a destination we touch on very little and probably one we should blog on more often. For now we have this cool inside look from Outside Magazine writer Patrick Symms to hold us over until we make it there on our own.

1. Hidden Gems: Hell
Go to Hell. Seriously! Willy Volk gets this week’s top nod with his fiery travel tales to Hell and back. Go see for yourself.

Urban Adventures

by Erik Olsen on


Ah, city life. It definitely has its advantages and drawbacks. For me, living in New York City is a boon to one’s cultural experience, but when it comes to the outdoors, well, it’s a pain in the arse, frankly. But there are still places to go and things to do in the big metropolis, and each city has its own sportsy charms. Kayaking on the Hudson is a great thing, as is taking a mini-hike in the wooded parts of Central Park. But you can also bike over the George Washington Bridge and, well, there are things to do to get your heart beating. So that’s what New York is about…what bout other cities?

The Guardian has as fine a list of outdoor adventures in urban zones as I’ve seen in a while. Of course, they cover kayaking, as I mentioned here, and even give some props to our own Manhattan Kayak Company, the folks who probably do the beset job getting you out on the water. But they also talk about some of the more intense urban thrill. For example, how about Hang-gliding in Rio De Janeiro, Bungee-jumping in Vienna or tower scaling in Macao. You’re in luck: all are mentioned here.

So if you’re a city clicker looking for some local adventure give this a look-see.

Best Stargazing Destinations in America

by Adrienne Wilson on

The first time I really saw stars I screamed. I ran out onto the beach calling my travel companion to come look. We had found ourselves a small tent placed in a straw hut on the coast of the Peninsula de Osa in Costa Rica’s south region. As a child I remembered seeing stars, but never like this – they were everywhere. Millions of tiny lights fighting to out shine the other. They were fighting to illuminate the deep, dark, night sky. A surge of emotions filled my body along with the cool, salty, breeze off the ocean’s water. I couldn’t have stumbled upon a more romantic place on Earth and there I was spending it with one of my best friends and travel companions. For the first time on our entire vacation I wished to curl my knees up to my chest and be left alone. If I couldn’t share the moment with a handsome stud then I wanted to have it all for myself. Selfish – I know.

That night I wished on not one star, but many. One of my wishes was for more places to see stars the way I did on that very night, so when I saw the latest Nat Geo Adventure magazine featuring some of the best stargazing in America I snatched it off the shelves. Their June/July issue covers the best and top 50 in North America’s National Parks. Before you discover where to go to sleep, trek, raft or gaze underneath the stars, the article titled Night Rangers discusses a unit of National Park Service folk who are out to protect the night time sky. Their duties are incredible and the story in full is packed with mind-boggling facts. According to the article 99 percent of peoplein the U.S. live under a sky that is considered polluted, which means none of us are seeing the stars for what they’re worth. In addition to light-pollution the article also states, Scientists at the Thiene, Italy – based Light Pollution Science and Technology Institute have predicted that the last truly dark areas in the contiguous U.S. will be gone by 2025. If such is true then we haven’t very long.

Here are some of the best stargazing destinations in America and how to experience them:

  • Lake Tahoe – Take off on a full moon paddle excursion.
  • Bryce Canyon – Spend your summer nights hiking the canyon.
  • Pennsylvania’s Lehigh River – Raft through whitewaters under the stars.
  • Chaco Culture National Historical Park – Use powerful telescopes to stargaze.
  • Carlsbad Caverns National Park – Check out some 300,000 Mexican free-tailed bats as they fly away from the caves and back.

You’ll want to grab an issue of your own if you haven’t already. If you have a favorite stargazing destination you’d like to share – please do. Otherwise I’ll understand.

Kayak Whale Footage

by Erik Olsen on

Folks, we covered this before…or at least we tried to. And we did our darndest to dispel the obvious concern that this was in any way real. This video which was sent to me for the fifth time in a week seems to show a group of kayakers off the coast having a good old time. There is some Japanese chatter in the background, suggesting that this is either in Japan somewhere or is being shot by a group of Japanese tourists). Anyway, all of a sudden a big killer whale leaps out of the water and comes smashing down on one of the kayakers.

Now, those of who sent this and drenched your emails in alarm, please, read this. Do not be afraid. The video is fake. I know, to many of us who deal with video on a regular basis, it is obvious, but to believe me, it is fake. In fact, you have to go no farther than good old snopes to get the low down (the video can also be seen at snopes). The footage is actually spliced together to make a Powerade commercial. Clever, kinda stupid, but apparently convincing to some.

So please, enjoy, but by no means forward this on to people with a note suggesting it is real. You’ll sound silly.