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Look Out for the Vessel Later This Year in Manhattan

When it opens in the fall of 2018, Vessel will be a spectacular climbable installation in the middle of the new Hudson Yards development, which is set to regenerate the city’s Far West Side (previously an industrial zone). The glinting copper structure will be the centerpiece of the Public Square and Gardens and will comprise 154 interconnecting flights of stairs in a geometric pattern. Visitors can ascend the 148-feet high structure via the mile-long network of pathways, with each staircase providing a slightly different perspective on the revitalized neighborhood below.

 

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When to Go on Safari in East Africa

June through September has always been prime time for going on safari in Tanzania, especially if you want to catch the wildebeest migration across the Mara River. I’ve caught the migration from the Kenya side of the river one September as the wildebeests were making their way back south to the Serengeti. Yes, it was exciting seeing hundreds of wildebeests trampling across the river, but it wasn’t as nearly as exciting as seeing that one leopard bringing his kill up a tree. You have to realize that June, July, and August are by far the most crowded months to be on safari in Tanzania and Kenya. Crowds and land rovers lessen once September hits. Indeed, September and October are a special time of year to be on safari in the Mara, Serengeti, or Grumeti. Though I have to admit that I enjoyed being in Tanzania these past two weeks of March. The big rains of March and April were nowhere to be seen and we had the often congested roads of Ngorongoro Crater practically to ourselves. Travel to the Kusini Camp in the southern Serengeti in December, January, and February, and not only will you see an incredible amount of game, but North Americans and Europeans can escape the cold of winter and hit Zanzibar and the other coastal islands for a beach vacation. That sounds like the right move for this Boston boy. 

 
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Sea Kayak the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska

South of Anchorage, the shores of the Kenai Peninsula are glacial-carved inlets where 4,000 foot peaks plummet into the waters below.  Katchemak and Tutka Bays stretch more than ten miles into the forested interior, protected from the nasty glaciers and swells of the Gulf of Alaska. Sea otters, sea lions, porpoises, eagles, and seals use these relatively calm waters as a safe haven, and now sea kayakers are following their lead.  Through the second week of September, True North Kayak Adventures out of Homer organizes three-day adventures into this fjord-like setting. You’ll spend your days paddling under 400-foot waterfalls or hiking up one of the small peaks to get an eagle’s vantage point of the landscape.  At night, you’ll camp on Yukon Island and feast on freshly caught salmon. Trips start at $495 per person, including guides, food, and tents.

I’ll be leaving today on a two-week trip to the Canadian Rockies, starting with a weeklong family adventure jaunt with my friends at Austin-Lehman Adventures. We’ll spend two additional nights in Jasper at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, before taking an overnight train on VIA Rail into Vancouver. After spending three nights in the city, we’ll take a ferry over to Salt Spring Island, a personal favorite of Seattle-based writer and BC travel guru, Eric Lucas. I’ll be back on August 8th with an update on western Canada. Enjoy these two weeks, and, as always, keep active!
 

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Dining and Lodging in Las Cruces, New Mexico

For authentic Mexican fare at an affordable price, it’s hard to top the restaurants in Las Cruces. I loved the ambience and history of dining at La Posta de Mesilla while sipping a house margarita and soaking it all in. Tacos al pastor was the signature dish at nearby Andele, perfectly charred meat topped with homemade salsa from their salsa bar. The huevos rancheros were so good at the homey La Nueva Casita I went there twice. Other highlights include the overstuffed lava burger, washed down with a refreshing pecan ale at the Pecan Grill and Brewery; fish tacos at the spanking new Dragonfly on Main Street (perfectly located for the Saturday Farmers Market); a tasty Greek salad with grilled chicken at Tiffany’s; and the frozen custard hot fudge sundae, topped with local salted pecans, at Caliche’s. I stayed at the Hotel Encanto, an easy drive to all the restaurants and sights in Las Cruces. After a long day of sightseeing and writing, it was great to unwind at their long pool shaded by tall palms and overflowing with monarch butterflies. A little bit of paradise in the desert. 

 
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Still Time to Hit the Beach in New England

Next week, I’ll be discussing my favorite fall foliage activities in the region. Yet, I love September just as much as October in New England. The summer crowds are gone leaving the beaches deserted. It’s been unseasonably warm all week, in the low to mid-80s. With cousins in town from Arizona and my brother in from New York, we took advantage of the warm weather on Tuesday to drive up to a family favorite, Wingaersheek Beach in Gloucester. A mere 45-minute drive from my home and I was sifting my feet in the soft white flour-like sand looking at the gorgeous lighthouse at the point. It was low tide and we walked on a long sandbar almost out to that lighthouse. There were few people on the beach and best yet, there was no charge to enter. When we had our fill of sun, sand, and ocean, we headed to nearby Woodman’s for the requisite lobster roll, steamers, and onion rings. This place always has a long line in summer, but we marched right up to the counter to make our order. The weather is supposed to be warm and sunny the rest of the month so hit the coastline and dip your feet in the ocean one last time. 
 
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Memorable Spring Bike Rides, Biking to Giverny

Next week, I’ll be blogging live from Ontario’s wine country, Niagara-on-the-Lake, on a bike trip organized by Butterfield and Robinson. To get me in the mood, I’m going to devote this week to my favorite spring rides over the years. First up, biking to Giverny.

 
Those of you with a love of art history know Giverny as the home of Claude Monet. Less than an hour by train from Paris, you can make the pilgrimage to Monet’s home and his spectacular Japanese water garden inundated with day lilies, the inspiration for many of the works that hang on the walls of the Musée d’Orsay in Paris and other impressive collections of Impressionism around the globe. Fat Tire Bike Tours escorts riders from Paris’ St. Lazare train station to the quaint village of Vernon. Once you arrive, you head to an outdoor market to stock up on picnic food–soft, creamy Reblochon cheese, slices of yummy Rosette de Lyon sausage, duck liver pate, warm baguettes from the neighborhood boulangerie, juicy strawberries and apricots, and a bottle of wine to wash it down. 
 
After passing out bikes, our guide Andrew led us to the banks of the Seine River where we watched a family of swans swim as we dug into our goodies. Then we were off on an easy bike trail that connects Vernon with Giverny. We entered the picturesque hamlet and were soon walking over that Japanese bridge seen in many of Monet’s works. The whole trip took about 8 hours and cost 75 Euros per biker, a perfect day trip from Paris. 
 

Sampling Exceptional Wine at Niagara on the Lake

I knew the Niagara biking would be stellar and any performance at the Shaw Festival a treat, but to be honest, I wasn’t very excited to try the Ontario wines. Blame it on the annual Canada dinner in Boston each May when Ontario Tourism would bring the sweetest Icewine they could find for us journalists to sample. I admit, I was ignorant and thankfully this past week received a phenomenal education from Ontario wine expert, Erin Henderson. As co-founder of The Wine Sisters with her sister, Courtney, these two professional sommeliers introduce the world to the finest Ontario wines through corporate dinners in Toronto and private tours of the wine region. 

 
Yesterday in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Erin introduced me to two pioneers of the Ontario wine region, Chateau des Charmes and Peller Estates. Both wineries were instrumental in wisely ripping up the Concord grapes that were growing in the region for almost 200 years, better suited for jelly, and replacing them with vinifera from Burgundy, Bordeaux, and the Mosel. More than 30 years later, these vineyards are producing not only world-class Rieslings and Chardonnays, but Cab Francs and Bordeaux blends that have serious nose and body. Since it was International Chardonnay Day yesterday, I’ll discuss Niagara’s whites, which are cool, crisp, often dry, like biting into a green apple off the branch. They were not nearly as cloying as some of the oaky warm-weather variety. Tawse and Stratus Wines both made a chardonnay that could compete with the best of Burgundy. Hidden Bench and Cave Spring Cellars make a Riesling Germans would spew expletives of joy over. Peller has a 2010 Cab Franc that’s a steal at $40 a bottle, with hints of plum and pepper. They also make an Icewine from Riesling that has the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity. I had it with my blue cheese appetizer for lunch, surprisingly not with dessert. 
 
Ontario wines have been hiding in obscurity for far too long. I’d happily purchase a bottle at a dinner in Boston, New York, or Chicago if I could find them on the wine menu. Unfortunately, few of these beauties have international distribution. So you’re just going to have to follow in my footsteps and cross the border to see firsthand why I’m so excited. With lake winds keeping mildew and mold off the vines and the Niagara escarpment sheltering the vineyards from early frost and providing much needed limestone terroir, the unique microclimate has created a Burgundy of the West. I’m happy to be witness to this explosion of good taste.
 
Thanks to Butterfield and Robinson, The Wine Sisters, and Ontario Tourism for a great week. Have a relaxing Memorial Day Weekend. I’ll be back on Monday. 
 

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