Step back in time in Peru’s Ollantaytambo

by Kraig Becker on

In the heart of the Peru’s Sacred Valley, 60 miles to the northwest of Cusco, sits a city whose history dates back to before the 15th century. Ollantaytambo was built by the Emperor Pachacuti after he conquered the area, and the ruins of his ancient palace still dominate the landscape.

Today, Ollantaytambo is a destination that continues to be a draw to adventure travelers who come to Peru to trek the Inca Trail or visit Machu Picchu. The city offers access to some great trails of its own, and mountain biking, white water rafting, and rock climbing are just a few of the other activities that visitors can enjoy.

But the real draw to the city are the ancient ruins which often serve as a warm up for Machu Picchu. Many travelers make day trips to Ollantaytambo to acclimatize to the altitude, (the city sits at just over 9000 feet) and wander the cobblestone streets past the Fotress on Temple Hill and up the terraced mountainside. They take in the Temple of the Sun, which is impressive despite the fact that it was never completed, and they explore the nearby quarries where the Incans mined the stone that would be used in the construction process of the royal estate.

To find out more about Ollantaytambo, check out this article from CNN.com. The story has more details on the the items I wrote about above, as well as thoughts on where to eat while in town, where to catch the train to Machu Picchu, and more. If you’re heading to Peru, don’t miss out on this gem in the Sacred Valley.

Summer snow-tubing at Keystone Resort

by Tom Johansmeyer on

With the hot summer sun beating down on me, I actually start to miss winter. But, when that brisk chill turns into relentless cold, I start to think in the other direction. The Keystone Resort has found a way to give you the best of both. This summer, it will be the only resort to offer snow-tubing. Yes, you can roll around in – and glide on – the cold white stuff in July and August.

Keystone’s Adventure Point will offer two lanes of snow every Wednesday through Sunday this summer, from 10 AM to 2:30 PM, as long as the snow lasts. Each guest can spend $25 to get a one-hour tubing session with unlimited runs (including gondola rides up the mountain).

“With the success of the tubing hill in the winter, we wanted to try and offer our guests a unique and fun experience by tubing on the snow during the summer,” said Matt Hoover, tubing hill manager at Keystone Resort. “It’s definitely summer time here at Keystone, but at our high altitude we can offer the best of both worlds to give guests an unforgettable on-mountain experience this summer.”

Not far away, you can still hit the usual summer activities in Keystone, including the bike park (the River Run Gondola will take you back to the top), with an unlimited mountain biking season pass costing only $299. and, be sure to grab a meal at the mountaintop Alpenglow Stube and Der Fuondue Chessel. Everything tastes better at 11,444 feet.

DreamTours makes your cycling adventures a reality

by Kraig Becker on

Have you ever wanted to go on an epic cycling expedition? Perhaps explore the Serengeti by mountain bike or maybe ride the Silk Road? Perhaps you’ve always wanted to go on a cycling adventure to some remote place, but just weren’t sure how to prepare or handle the logistics. If so, you’re luck, as DreamTours is here to help!

DreamTours comes to us from the same team that organizes the annual Tour d’Afrique, an annual ride from Cairo to Cape Town, crossing 7500 miles of African wilderness in the process. The concept behind DreamTours is simple, come up with a great idea for your cycling adventure, post it on the DreamTour website and invite friends, family, and cycling buddies to vote on the concept and weigh in on the idea. If you get enough people to join your tour, the DreamTeam will handle all the logistics and make the adventure a reality. The best part, you’ll get to ride for free!

The DreamTour website acts like an online forum for adventure cyclists. Once you create your account, you’ll be able to post your ideas for cycling adventures, vote on the tours posted by others, and leave comments or questions about those trips. If you see one that looks interesting, you can elect to join the tour, or recruit riders to join your adventure, and you’ll soon be off and riding. If your tour sells out, you’ll get to go along for nothing, or you can choose to apply your discount to the entire team, saving everyone money in the process.

With the DreamTour team taking over the planning process, there will be nothing left for you to do but train for your cycling adventure. Once they have everything organized, and the logistics in place, you’ll simply hop a flight to your destination, and hit the trail.

Mountain biking from Canada to Mexico

by Kraig Becker on

The 2745 mile long Tour Divide mountain bike race got underway last Friday, with 42 riders setting out from Banff in Alberta, Canada on a 3+ week long odyssey along the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route that will end when they reach the border of Mexico at Antelope Wells, New Mexico.

The race requires the competitors to be completely self sufficient while out on the trail, carrying all of their food, water, and gear with them, although they are allowed to stop in towns along the way for resupply. The region is quite remote however, and riders will go more than 100 miles between resupply points at times. They are also responsible for their own navigation, as the trail is not always well marked, and there are no official course markers.

The Great Divide Mountain Bike Route is the longest unpaved bike path in the world. The trail winds its way through Alberta and British Columbia in Canada, as well as Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico here in the States. The quality of the trail varies greatly as well, ranging from old backcountry roads to narrow, barely maintained, single track. Riders that complete the course will have climbed more than 200,000 feet over its length from start to finish.

The race is expected to take roughly three weeks to complete, with most riders averagng about 16 hours per day in the saddle. Over that time, they’ll face muscle crushing climbs, pass through wilderness thick with mountain lions and grizzly bears, and deal with weather that can change for the worse at a moments notice. And since the race lacks entry fees or prizes of any kind, the riders will be doing it just for the adventure.

15 Great Mountain Vacations

by Kraig Becker on

The U.K. based online magazine Wide World launched at the beginning of May, and is already building a library of good content for adventure travelers and outdoor enthusiasts. The articles vary greatly in subject matter and include an interview with free diver Sara Campbell, a look at the world’s toughest race, and a growing collection of gear reviews.

One of the feature articles is of particular interest for travelers, offering up 15 amazing mountain trips from around the globe that will give you something to do at altitude even in the summer. Some of the locations on the list are amongst the most famous mountaineering communities in the world, each well known for offering a range of outdoor adventure activities.

For instance, Chamonix, France appears on the list, and during the winter, the famous mountain town is filled with visitors looking to take advantage of the best skiing and climbing in Europe. But during the summer months, those crowds vanish, leaving one of the world’s best outdoor playground virtually deserted. Sitting at the base of Mont Blanc, the tallest mountain in Western Europe, Chamonix gives easy access to some of the best alpine hiking, mountain biking, and kayaking found anywhere.

The other locations on the list are just as impressive, and each offers its own unique mountain activities. Some are great paragliding destinations, others offer horseback riding, rafting, fly fishing, and more. Most of the locations are in Europe and North America, with Queenstown, New Zealand being the lone exception. Any one of these mountain escapes would make a great getaway for anyone still looking for summertime fun.