Jalousie Plantation resort brings solar golf carts to St Lucia

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Okay, it’s not exactly a cure for cancer, but any initiative that does cut down on fossil fuel reliance still resonates with me. So, I was pretty excited to see that the Jalousie Plantation has adopted a hybrid solar-powered golf cart to move guests around on its 192-acre property … with no carbon emissions! This is among the first of these environmentally-friendly golf carts in the Caribbean, and the goal is for this quirky little vehicle to replace the oil-dependent carts and minibuses that currently carry passengers around Jalousie.

This measure is reflective of Jalousie parent company Kor Hotel Group’s “Second Nature” program, which consists of several eco-friendly measures across its holdings. Kor’s properties are encouraged to source local produce, arts and other supplies to cut down on food-miles (or other “product-miles”) in an effort to reduce carbon emissions while contributing to economic growth in the community.

“We want to play our part at The Jalousie Plantation in supporting the environmentally-conscious initiatives of Kor and the new hybrid solar-powered golf cart is seen as a first step in helping us to do this,” Jalousie’s General Manager, Rodrigo Caldeira said.

The golf cart has a photovoltaic cell on its roof, which takes St Lucia sunshine and turns it into the electricity that makes the cart move. In the event of rain, the cart can be plugged into an electrical outlet to have its battery charged.

“Eventually all of the vehicles we use at Jalousie will be gasoline-free and this will help us to lessen our emissions of greenhouse gases which are having a tremendous impact on eco-systems around the world and contributing to climatic change and global warming,” Caldeira said. “The new cart also significantly reduces noise pollution and makes a great contribution in our efforts to reduce our consumption of fossil fuels and in ensuring our operations are environmentally sustainable.”

Isla Viveros will keep the riff-raff away

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Golfers, vacationers and anyone looking to fly under the radar will have a new place to go in May. Grupo Viveros has sunk $300 million into the Viveros Resort on Isla Viveros (Viveros, Viveros, Vivieros … sense a theme?), and in a few months, this small, once uninhabited island off the coast of Panama will be home to a five-star resort community.

Forty-five of the 200 homes being built on the island have already been purchased, but the 140-room hotel on the island’s northern beach may be a reasonable, if short-term, alternative. The hotel won’t be open until 2010, but for now, you can always dart out there and take in a round of golf on the new course. Another hotel – for those who like to chase little white balls – is in the works as well.

Need more exclusivity? Spa facilities, upscale dining and a 300-slip marina and yacht club are on the agenda. Also, a private runway will ensure that you won’t have to mix with the proletarians.

Mark your calendars!

Destination on the edge: golf on the DMZ

by Tom Johansmeyer on

The small golf course in Panmunjom is often called the most dangerous in the world. Nestled between North and South Korea – which are technically still at war – sending a ball off the fairway means that it probably won’t be retrieved.

Welcome to the strangest place on earth. Panmunjom is the heavily militarized “truce” village straddling the Military Demarcation Line that cuts down the middle of the Korean peninsula’s Demilitarized Zone. The most famous image from this corner of the world, of course, is that of soldiers squaring off across from each other, each rigid and ready for the worst. Not far from this scene of perpetual anxiety, worries turn to backswings and short games.

Camp Bonifas, the U.S. military installation in Panmunjom, is home to a one-hole golf course, mostly for the benefit of service members stationed in this dangerous spot for a year at a time. The 192-yard par three “course” is free to anyone interested in playing but is generally unavailable to outsiders. Once you’re on Camp Bonifas, according to Erica (who prefers to keep her last name private), it’s pretty easy to find “The World’s Most Dangerous Golf Course,” as the locals call it. There isn’t much of anything on this army post, and there are only so many places you can go.

“It’s a fairly flat one-hole course,” Erica recalls, “so it serves as a novelty, not as somewhere to play an actual game.” The location, however, is what makes it unusual. “There isn’t anywhere else in the world that one can golf while gazing across the world’s most armed border. It’s surreal to say the least.”

I can see why she feels this way. As you approach the golf course, the sign that welcomes you announces with no equivocation: “DANGER! DO NOT RETRIEVE BALLS FROM THE ROUGH LIVE MINEFIELDS.” Never have the implications of shanking a drive been so severe!

If you’re up in Panmunjom for the DMZ tour, don’t plan to squeeze in a few rounds, however short they may be. But, if you’re getting ready to spend 12 months of your life in the Joint Security Area (well, 11 months, as you’ll have 30 days of leave), bring a putter and a nine iron. That’s all you’ll need.

[Photo via Nagyman on Flickr]

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Delta adds 7,000 seats to Augusta, GA for Masters

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Every April, golf fanatics descend on Augusta, GA to sneak a peek at the best-manicured lawn in the country. The Masters Tournament fills hotel rooms and keeps local bartenders busy. If you haven’t been through the airport down there, then you have no idea why Delta has decided to add 7,000 seats between Augusta and its Atlanta hub, not to mention daily service to LaGuardia and JFK in New York. This 50 percent increase in seating capacity is necessary. There aren’t many flights into Augusta from anywhere. So, for a week and a half every April, the rules have to be changed.

According to Bob Cortelyou … yes, the Bob Cortelyou (senior vice president of network planning at Delta), “you talk about the Masters, no airline is better positioned to carry fans from around the world to this premier sporting event than Delta.” And, since Bob Cortelyou says it, it must be true!

When you are flying home, don’t get to the airport too early. Dining options are extremely limited, and you are guaranteed to be bored out of your mind. I only flew through once, and it was a drag. Of course, an event like the Masters is bound to force more people through that airport in a week than these folks see all year. Do the math: small airport + much larger crowds than usual = miserable you. Bring a book. Hell, bring two.

For Fitness, Albuquerque, New Mexico is Number One.

by Jamie Rhein on

Albuquerque, New Mexico has hit number one in Men’s Fitness magazine’s top 10 list for the city where the people are the fittest. I’m not surprised. I used to live there and it seemed every weekend there was some charity race, bicycle ride, swimming event or another enticement to get one’s body in motion. This Sunday is the Sweetheart Run to benefit Big Brothers/Big Sisters, for example.If you go to the Albuquerque Roadrunners website you’ll find a calendar that lists each month’s local, area and national runs.

One organized cycling race I found is the Lobo Classic, March 3-4. For other cycling events, check out New Mexico Cycling. There are also mountain-biking trails a-plenty.

With the Sandia Mountains to the east and the mesa to the west, in the winter it is often possible to go cross-country or downhill skiing and golfing on the same day. The east side of the mountains stays snowy at the top often well into March while down in the city, the temperatures are generally warm enough to comfortably run and bike ride year-round.

Hiking in the Sandias is as easy as grabbing a water bottle and a snack and driving to the edge of Albuquerque where some of the trail heads are. Try the Pino Trail. In minutes, after a couple of switchbacks, the rush of life is left behind. I seem to remember that this trail will link with another one that heads to the top, and once there—what a view! For a list of Sandias hikes try this link from the Great Outdoors.

One of my friends suggested one summer that we hike up the mountain before dark and hike down by the full moon. Neat idea but we didn’t take into account that the moon has to crest the mountain before it lights up the trail. We had to wait at the top until well after midnight before it was light enough to see to hike down. Luckily, the guy who managed the gift shop let us hang out there after we bought T-shirts since the ones we had on were soaked with perspiration. After dark the temperature does a nosedive-another small factor we forgot.

If you are in Albuquerque and want to get fit, be warned, the city is a mile high and the top of the Sandias is a mile more. Drink plenty of water and take time to get acclimated to the altitude.

Here’s a guide to more outdoor activities that Albuquerque has to offer.