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Bermuda’s Pink Sale Offer’s 50% Off Room Rates

Need to get away? If you live in the Midwest or East Coast and just endured temps in the single digits, I would say you’re due. You might want to know about Bermuda’s Pink Sale, where 15 hotels on island are offering a 50% discount. Book from today through January 28 for hotels stays until April 30, 2015. Bermuda has a reputation of being cold in the winter months, but average highs in Jan and Feb are 68 degrees, with temps moving up to 70 and 73 in March and April, respectively. Flights are direct and only 2 hours from New York, Boston, and DC. If you need suggestions on what to do while you’re there, check out my Boston Globe story. 

 

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AMC Reopens Medawisla Lodge After 2-Year Renovation

If you’ve been following this blog over the years, you know I cherish the rare wilderness experience found in Maine’s northern woods. To get lost in this vast land of tall pines, 4,000-foot peaks, and far too many waterways to count, where moose tend to outnumber humans, is an unparalleled experience in the northeast. As part of the Maine Woods Initiative, which I first wrote about for Boston Globe Magazine, the Appalachian Mountain Club has certainly done their part to permanently conserve more than 75,000 acres of land and keep open three historic sporting camps. One of those camps, Medawisla Lodge and Cabins will reopen on July 1st following a major two-year reconstruction project. 

Located in a glorious spot on the shores of Second Roach Pond, Medawisla offers ample hiking, paddling, fly-fishing, wildlife watching, as well as new options for mountain biking and canoe camping. Guests will find a newly built waterfront pavilion, central lodge with water views for dining and programs, as well as nine new private cabins. Medawisla will connect to AMC’s two other Maine Wilderness Lodges, Little Lyford and Gorman Chairback, and the family-run West Branch Pond Camps, through a 130-mile trail network built and maintained by AMC. These trails are open to guests and the general public, and offer a range of lodge-to-lodge hiking and biking adventures. Reservations for AMC’s Medawisla Lodge is now open. Four-course dinner, breakfast, and trail lunch are included in most cabin rates, with linens and hot showers available. Do yourself a favor and get lost in the Maine woods this summer. 
 
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The Tragic Demise of the South African Rhino

Home to the world’s largest rhino population, South Africa recently reported that 820 rhinos have already been killed by poachers in 2014. That’s a dramatic rise from the less than a dozen rhinos killed in 2007. More than half of those killings have occurred in Kruger National Park, home to an estimated 9,000 rhinos. With the cost of rhino horn selling for $65,000 (US) a kilogram in Vietnam, far more valuable than gold, the South African government has no idea how to stop the poaching. Some in the government want to legalize the sale of rhino horn to drive out the ruthless gangs of poachers. About 15 poaching gangs are believed to enter Kruger National Park every day. Rhinos are being captured and relocated to secret protective zones inside the park. Others are sold to private game farms that offer far greater security. If seeing rhinos in the wild appears high on your wish list, you’d be wise not to wait too long. 

 
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Great Late Summer Day Hikes: Climbing Monadnock

Climbing the broad-shouldered peak Henry David Thoreau called a “sublime mass,” Mt. Monadnock, is a rite of passage for many New England children. Just over the border of Massachusetts in southern New Hampshire, Monadnock is less than a two-hour drive from Boston. Its accessibility and locale, smack dab in the center of New England, has made it one of the two most popular mountain ascents in the world going toe-to-toe with Japan’s Mount Fuji. 

 
Early September, when the black flies are long gone and the first hints of fall color can be seen, is the ideal time to bag this 3,165-foot peak. Head up the White Dot trail, one of the steepest ascents, but also one that rewards with you with incredible vistas in a very short time. Above treeline, the forest recedes to form open ledges covered with low-lying shrubs like mountain cranberry bushes. This gives you ample opportunity to rest and peer down at the soft blanket of treetops, small towns with their requisite white steeples, a smattering of lakes and ponds, and farms that fan out to anonymous ridges. Soon you’ll reach the summit, where Thoreau watched in dismay as his fellow mid-19th century trampers inscribed their names in rock. You can still spot names like “T.S. Spaulding, 1853” clearly etched in the stone. 
 
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Kudos to Kyle Maynard

I was working out at the gym last Sunday watching SportsCenter on ESPN, when they featured a fascinating profile of quadriplegic Kyle Maynard. Maynard, 25, was born with arms that end at the elbows and legs that end at the knees. But that never stopped him from doing a damn thing, including wrestling in high school. Thus his motto, “No Excuses.” Several months ago, Maynard raised the stakes when he attempted to climb 19,340-foot Mount Kilimanjaro without prosthetics. Joined by injured American veterans Chris Hadsall and Sandra Ambotaite, Maynard was hoping to raise awareness to the alarming statistic that 18 US Veterans commit suicide every day. After ten grueling days of climbing on all fours over boulders, through snowfields, and avoiding rockslides, Maynard and his team made it to the summit on the morning of January 15th. That should motivate you to go outside and do something active this weekend. If not, you can always hire Maynard, a motivational speaker, to inspire you.
 
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Sea Kayaking Saguenay Fjord with H2Outfitters

Writer Walt Whitman described the waters of Quebec’s Saguenay Fjord as “dark as ink, exquisitely polished and sheeny under the August sun.”  That’s exactly the time of year you’ll be headed to Saguenay on a weeklong camping trip with the highly reputable sea kayaking outfitter, H2Outfitters. From August 13-20, you’ll kayak the length of the fjord as you slice through this St. Lawrence estuary, a Marine Park in Canada, alongside walls of ash colored rock that rise some 1,150 feet.  An added bonus is that this sheltered cove is a rich feeding ground for whales. Humpbacks, smaller minkes, and the cuddly white belugas have all been spotted on past trips. The put-in is located 2 ½ hours northeast of Quebec City and cost is $975 per person, including camping fees, guides, kayaks, and all meals.
 

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The Guild Makes its Debut in Austin

A good concierge is an invaluable resource that I’ve relied on heavily throughout the years for restaurant reccs, maps and city navigation, and sights that only a resident would know, like the Earth Room in Manhattan. That’s the reason why I’m often reluctant to book an AirBnB unless it’s a locale I know well. The Guild, a new concept making its debut in Austin, seems to be the best of both worlds. The Guild leases apartments in vibrant neighborhoods residents live, offering fully-furnished stylish spaces. The bonus: 24/7 concierge service and free coffee and beers at neighboring partner businesses where you just charge it to The Guild’s tab. The Guild currently has 100-plus units in Austin and is expanding into Dallas and Miami by early 2018.

 

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