|

Celebrate D’Artagnan’s 30th Anniversary

I recently went to a 5-course meal at the stylish Liquid Art House in Boston to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the gourmet meat and charcuterie purveyor, D’Artagnan. Founder Ariane Daguin, who I last met at a luncheon a decade ago at No. 9 Park, has successfully filled a niche for both chefs and consumers, delivering healthy free-range meats from farmers all over America. For example, the rabbit in the first course, Rabbit Ballotine, created by one of my favorite Boston chefs, Tony Maws, was raised on a farm in Arkansas. Other dishes included duck, bison, and porcelet. Daguin is headed across the country this year to host special 30th anniversary dinners, so be on the lookout in your city. In the meantime head to the D’Artagnan website to see special discounts on many of her meats. 

 

Similar Posts

|

Maine Windjammer Week, The Majestic Maine Coastline

“Heave Ho!” went the cry as all hands pulled down on a thick rope to haul up the mainsail. “Heave Ho!” the crew chanted again and the schooner headed upwind, all sails gleaming white against a cloudless blue sky. The Captain took the wheel as the boat quickly gained momentum passing another anonymous island crowned with pines and rimmed with the ubiquitous Maine granite. Behind us was the vast expanse of the Atlantic, dotted with multi-colored lobster buoys and lined with the only mountains on the coast north of Brazil. The crew were passengers from around America and Europe who delighted in the chance to hoist the sails, bilge the pump, even take a turn at the wheel sailing this big boy.

 
Maine’s 2500-mile stretch of jagged coastline, where long inlets form sheltered bays, is tailor-made for sailing. No other sport gives you the freedom to anchor in a pristine cove, hike on an untrammeled island, and sleep with a lighthouse beacon as your nightlight. There are more than 30 lighthouses in the Windjammer’s cruising grounds, from Mt. Desert Light and Saddleback Ledge, built in the 1830s, to Pemaquid Point, showcased on the backside of the Maine quarter. At night, you’ll anchor under the stars in the calm waters of Pulpit Harbor on North Haven or perhaps Islesboro’s Dark Harbor. Longer trips might stop under the cliffs of Acadia National Park. There’s no better way to see Cadillac Mountain in the summer than from the water, far away from the maddening crowds. Indeed, the fleet could be scattered anywhere from Boothbay Harbor to Bar Harbor. 
 
All of the Captains have favorite anchorages. The Lewis R. French’s Captain Garth Wells looks forward to going to Burnt Coat Harbor on Swan’s Island. “I enjoy talking a walk out to the lighthouse. It’s cozy, protected and I love showing people an island where a year-round population lives,” says Wells. Captain Noah Barnes aboard the Stephen Taber loves pulling into the harbor of Somesville on Mount Desert Island, part of Acadia National Park. “To get to Somesville, you have to sail up a fjord and when you get there you feel as though you’ve shown your guests something extraordinary. By the time we get there, we’re pulling in at sunset and it’s just breathtaking,” notes Barnes. Captain Dennis Gallant, at the helm of Angelique, savors Winter Harbor on the island of Vinalhaven. “It’s stunningly beautiful, quiet, peaceful and off-the-beaten path,” says Gallant.
 
I don’t want to share all their secrets. You’ll simply have to book a cruise and see for yourself. 
 
|

On the Road to Djibouti

This is the time of year when everyone in the travel publishing world comes out with their top choices for travel in 2018. I usually like the Lonely Planet country picks the best. This year, they’ve included Chile, Portugal, New Zealand, and South Africa, all increasingly popular destinations for our clientele right now. I also like the republic of Georgia, which I blogged about earlier this year, and Mauritius, which seems to be the first choice for relaxation after safari in East or South Africa. Lonely Planet always throws in something way off the radar and 2018 is no exception with their choice of Djibouti. Really? If this destination excites you, stay tuned for tomorrow’s blog when guest writer Claudia Danford describes her trip to the Micronesian island of Kosrae. 
 
|

Arizona Week—The Impressive Musical Instrument Museum

When Lisa mentioned to me that there was a museum devoted to music in the northern outskirts of Phoenix, I initially scoffed at the idea, having already been to Cleveland’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Jimi Hendrix Experience in Seattle. Thankfully, she persuaded me to visit the Musical Instrument Museum since it ended up being one of the highlights of the trip. Unfortunately, we didn’t have nearly enough time to view the entire collection in this large building (give yourself at least 2 hours, preferably 3 hours). We went upstairs first to see the exhibitions devoted to music around the world. In the European galleries, display cases are arranged by country. Simply walk up to the Belarus video and your headset will automatically play the indigenous folk music of that country. In fact, the headset was amazing, immediately picking up the music in front of you without having to input numbers. In the United States/Canada gallery, I loved seeing the old clips of Coltrane and Miles in the jazz section, Natalie MacMaster work her fiddle in the Cape Breton display, and Lalo Guerrero singing about his native Barrio Viejo in Tucson, which we had just visited the day prior. Downstairs in the Artist Gallery, you’ll find the piano John Lennon used to write “Imagine,” Stevie Ray Vaughn’s signature guitar which he jams on in a video clip, and wardrobes worn by Johnny Cash, Elvis, and Taylor Swift. Nearby is the Experience Gallery, where you can pound the drums, try the xylophone, and other bizarre metal instruments that seemed better suited for Tibetan monks. A whole lot of fun that’s highly recommended when you’re next in Phoenix. 

 
|

The AMC Huts at 125 Years Young

The 8 AMC huts in the White Mountains are spaced a day’s hike apart. Though not all hikes are created equal. For example, the 7-mile long trek from Galehead to Zealand Falls Hut was a thigh burner with close to 5,000 feet of elevation change, including a grueling uphill climb on the AT from Galehead Hut to the 4,902-foot summit of South Twin mountain. While the 4.8-mile hike from Mizpah Spring to Lakes of the Clouds Hut, if weather is decent, is for the most part a level ridge walk with astounding mountain views all around you. 
 
Whether your legs are weary or feeling strong after your day of bagging peaks, you can rest assured that once you arrive at any of the huts, they are clean and exceptionally well-run by the Hut Crew or Croo as they’re known in these parts. The AMC runs a well-oiled machine. All rooms and bathroom are dirt-free. Lemonade, hot water for tea, and usually a snack like frosted carrot cake is waiting upon arrival. At Galehead and Zealand Falls, we were told by the Croo to find any available bunk bed. Mizpah Spring and Lakes of the Clouds had designated rooms. My wife and I brought bed sheets, which worked fine, but many hikers simply bring a sleeping bag to throw down on the mattress. There are hooks nearby to hang wet clothing (after a day of sweating), jackets, and enough room to store packs and hiking boots.
 
With such a long legacy, you would expect these huts to be small cabins in the woods. 125 years ago, they might have started that way. But the AMC has been revamping these lodgings for years. So now the Lakes of the Clouds has a glorious dining room with floor to ceiling glass windows that overlook the panorama of ridges and peaks. Both Galehead and Zealand Falls offer front porches with more magnificent mountain views. Mizpah Spring’s dining room is a big cavernous space, with high ceiling, where people love to congregate and share hiking stories. At Zealand Falls and Lakes of the Clouds, water is close by to go for a swim or simply cool off those overworked feet. Suffice to say that Joe Dodge, the founder of the AMC huts system knew exactly what he was doing when he chose these locales for his huts. So bite into that fresh baked honey-oat bread and gape in awe at the panoply of peaks, the reward for clambering over rocks and roots all day. 
 
(Photo by Lisa Leavitt)
 
|

Run the Alps All of August

With a fantastic network of trail and huts, and a long history and appreciation of running, Switzerland is a trail runner’s dream. Mountain runners have been weaving their way along alp paths for decades, and are practically exalted here. Few people know these trails better than Doug Mayer, founder of Run the Alps. Mayer wrote me last week, claiming he has designed his most epic trip yet, a month-long adventure in the Alps. The includes a guided run along Switzerland’s remarkable Hardergrat, a trail run along the route of the Tour du Mont-Blanc, and through the Swiss Berner Oberland. You’ll also go behind the scenes at two of the greatest trail races in the world, Sierre-Zinal and the UTMB, and, of course, spend necessary R&R time at classic mountain spas. No wonder Mayer is calling this the greatest trail running vacation ever. 

 
|

New Brunswick Week—A Perfect Day on Grand Manan

In desperate need of an iced coffee, I made the wise choice to stop at the Island Arts Café. Not only was the coffee good and strong, but within moments I was meeting an intriguing mix of locals. There was Wayne who spent the morning on the bay designing a herring weir, a fish trap that lures the herring inside a pen. The McCulleys, who fled Portland and moved here after a mere 4 days on the island. They now rent cottages to primarily writers and professors who desperately need to finish their books in quietude. And my personal favorite, Smiles Green, who just turned 100 this past November and still designs model boats. “Someone called me up to make them a sloop,” says Smiles. "Price is no option he said. So I made that sloop and charged him fifty dollars more than I would have.” 
 
Around every bend on Grand Manan is another vista of the sea and, of course, there are a myriad of ways to get out there. Kenda and Peter Wilcox, proprietors of Sea Watch Tours, will take you over to Machias Seal Island to see the puffins and those caped crusaders of the bird world, the razorbill auks. Kevin Sampson, owner of Adventure High, offers guided sea kayaking tours within the many protected coves that surround the island, where you’re almost guaranteed the chance to spot a minke whale and harbor seals. Yet, don’t be in a rush to go right back out to sea. First take time to luxuriate on terra firma.
 
Yesterday morning I drove along lupine-lined roads to the southern tip of the island, the start of a glorious hike atop a bluff that led from the Southwest Head Lighthouse to a distinctive coastal rock formation locals call Flock of Sheep. The narrow trail snaked over roots and moss though a forest of twisted krumholtz and dwarf pines that cling precariously close to the cliff’s edge. I looked down several times at the boulder-strewn coastline below, quickly realizing that with one misstep I’d never leave Grand Manan. I spotted lobstermen in the distance, but it was the exquisite shoreline that grabbed my attention. Usually, I sprint to the finish of a hike. This time I sat on several benches made of makeshift wood to drink in the stunning view. What’s the rush? 
 

Leave a Reply