|

Top 5 Caribbean Adventures, Dive Bonaire

As leaves blanket my backyard in suburban Boston, my mind turns to the warm weather locales of the Caribbean. Next week, I’m excited to be blogging live from that lush paradise known as St. Lucia. To get you in the mood, I’m going to devote this week to my Top 5 Adventures in the Caribbean, always a favorite at ActiveTravels. 

 
A mere decade ago, Bonaire was known only to scuba enthusiasts—a coveted gem discussed in hushed conversations with other serious ocean lovers (types who come out of the water with seaweed in their hair). Now that the secret is out, travelers are learning that nature thrives here both above and below the water. The reef’s proximity to shore is ideal for divers and snorkelers who want to swim with blue and yellow queen angelfish and orange trumpetfish in waters with visibility of 100 feet or more. Bonaire’s semi-arid landscape is home to some 200 types of birds, including one of the world’s largest colonies of pink flamingoes, numbering some 15,000. Overlooking one of the island’s loveliest beaches is the Harbour Village Beach Club. Heinekens and gouda are the sustenance of choice on this Dutch colony, but if you prefer gourmet, go with the resort’s La Balandra Beach Bar and Grill.  
 

Similar Posts

|

Favorite Travel Days 2011, Sea Kayaking Sheepscot Bay, Georgetown, Maine

 

North of Freeport, Maine, fingers of land dangle down from coastal Route 1 to create miles of sheltered bays to paddle. One of my favorite spots is Georgetown, where last June, I rented a room at Coveside B&B and had Seaspray Kayaking deliver an oceanworthy kayak to their docks. Careful not to start or end near low tide (or I’ll be digging for clams in the muck), I paddled south past the lobster boats to the Five Islands Lobster Company wharf. On the way, I spotted ospreys sitting atop their oversized nests, seals popping their heads out of the water like periscopes, and the distinctive orange beak of the American Oystercatcher. Yet, the reason this little jaunt makes my list of top five favorite days is the kayaking north on Little Sheepscot River, sheltered from the surf by MacMahan Island. The boulder-strewn shoreline is draped in seaweed and topped with velvety moss, creating a soothing, shady retreat in the late afternoon hours. An image that I remember vividly more than six months later. 
|

Nova Scotia to Restart Ferry Service from Maine Next Summer

Great news out of Nova Scotia yesterday with the announcement that the province of Nova Scotia has signed an agreement with Nova Star Cruises to re-establish round-trip ferry service between Portland, Maine, and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, starting May 2014. The ferry service ended in 2009, forcing New Englanders to drive through New Brunswick to reach Nova Scotia, making the trip far more arduous. As part of the agreement, the Province of Nova Scotia will provide Nova Star Cruises with up to CDN $21 million of financial support over seven years to assist the company with re-establishing the ferry service. Nova Star will leave Portland each evening at 8 pm EST and arrive in Yarmouth at 7 am AST the next morning. The ship will depart two hours later and arrive back in Portland at 5 p.m. local time. If you’re considering visiting Nova Scotia, PEI, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland, this might be the summer. 

 
|

Dream Trips 2010, Mountain Biking Bend, Oregon

Working these past 20 years primarily as an outdoors writer, it’s hard for me to admit that I’ve never been to Bend, Oregon, one of the renowned outdoor hubs in America and a mecca for serious mountain bikers. North, Middle, and South Sister Mountains rise 10,000 feet above town, forming part of the Cascade Range. Due north is Black Butte, one of the region’s many cinder cones that create a volcanic landscape unparalleled in the U.S. outside of Hawaii. I plan to bike on the Butte Loops Trail as it circles Black Butte on old logging roads that have been closed to motorized vehicles and are now part of the roads-to-trails program. Then I’m heading to the eastern part of the state to hike in the Oregon desert with my travel writing buddy, Eric Lucas.
 

|

January Newsletter Now Available at ActiveTravels.com

This summer, Four Seasons will be opening their new Orlando property within the gates of the Walt Disney World resort. Talk about the best of both worlds. You can spend the day at Disney, then return to the property for a much-needed couple’s massage at the spa. Kids will love the water slides, lazy river, climbing wall, and activity center on an island built for them. Parents can unwind on the links of the Tom Fazio-designed Four Seasons championship golf course or sip a cocktail by the adults-only pool. At night, head to the rooftop steakhouse to see the fireworks display. 

 
The Four Seasons Resort Orlando is just one of the many new properties, cruises, and tours we discuss in our latest newsletter. Marlon Brando’s dream of a sustainable Polynesian resort will finally open in July on what was his private Tahitian atoll, Tetiaroa. Silversea Expeditions will launch their new ship in the Galapagos Islands this month. Micato Safaris designed a dream itinerary for families headed to Kenya and Tanzania next summer. Check it out. If anything looks intriguing, please contact us at ActiveTravels.com to discuss and book. 
 
Enjoy the weekend and keep active!
 
Steve 
 
|

The Caves and Monkeys of Barbados

The allure of Barbados has always been the stretch of soft white sand on the west coast that serves as a welcome mat for the warm aquamarine waters of the Caribbean Sea. Yet, it’s the ecological wonders in the northern and eastern section of the island that make Barbados an intriguing island destination. At Harrison’s Cave, you hop on a tram that slowly ambles into the dark corridor of limestone coral. The 100-foot high Great Hall is teeming with stalagmites and stalactites, the color of a creamsicle. Even more impressive is the crystal-like formations found in the Rotunda above pools of rushing water. Next stop is the Barbados Wildlife Reserve, home to green monkeys that were first brought to the island as pets of slave traders in the mid-17th century. The monkeys tend to be shy, so you have to be still. There are also flamingos and pelicans drinking from the shallow ponds, toucans that blurt “hello” from inside an aviary, and peacocks who squawk at the slow moving red-footed tortoise. You finish with a swim on one of those blissful beaches.

|

Favorite Fall Outings in New England, Visiting Weir Farm, Connecticut

Sort of ironic that the only time I’ve ever been published in National Parks Magazine, the National Parks are closed due to a government shutdown. When congress gets their act together, be sure to visit the 60-acre Weir Farm National Historic Site. This serene pastoral setting in southeastern Connecticut, an hour’s drive from Manhattan, is home to the only national park unit devoted to American painting. Century-old barns and a homestead still stand, stone walls are built around fields of swaying grass, and a large pond is lost in a canopy of tall maples and birches. They would become the fodder for J. Alden Weir’s ambitious body of work. Weir’s early paintings reflect an appreciation for the scenery of rural life—dogs sleeping in the tall grass, his wife Anna sitting on the steps that lead to the house. By the latter half of the 1880s, he began to show an interest in painting landscapes, possibly due to the influence of his friends and fellow painters, Childe Hassam and John Twachtman, who often visited the farm to fish and paint the grounds. These weren’t the grand theatrical landscapes of his American predecessors, Thomas Cole and Frederick Church, but intimate portrayals of pasture, thickets of trees, barns, and meandering stone walls. Have a look and don’t forget the sketchbook. 

 
Photo by Tim Washer/FLICKR

Leave a Reply