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Introducing Abercrombie & Kent Destination Management

Just the name, Abercrombie & Kent, evokes images of a mysterious Africa, a hidden continent where one goes searching deep into the bush to find gorillas and lions, only to be pampered at night in the most luxurious tents you’ve ever seen. Having been with A&K on two trips, Kenya and Botswana, I can easily say that the experience exceeds all expectations, creating some of the highlights of my travel career. That’s the reason we at ActiveTravels have no qualms about booking clients with A&K around the globe, including cruises to Antarctica and visiting majestic Machu Picchu. A&K now has 52 offices in 26 countries and can offer the traveler far more than what you might find on their website. For travel advisors, they offer the largest network of luxury destination management companies (DMCs). Translation: we can go to A&K for custom-made trips around the globe, whether it’s a family headed to Rwanda to see the gorillas or 4 couples who want to dine their away around Japan. And you don’t have to mortgage the house to pay for these trips. Unlike some of their guided safaris, which can higher priced, they can work with moderate budgets. That’s why we rely on A&K more and more as our business grows. 

 

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A Magical Day on the Waters of Lac-Saint-Jean and the Metabetchouan River

We woke early on the second day of our trip, packed up our belongings, and biked back to our car parked near the visitors center of Parc national de la Pointe-Taillon. Less than a 45-minute drive later, we were on the southeastern shores of Lac-Saint-Jean ready to stand-up paddleboard once the outfitter O’Soleil opened up shop at 9 am. Offering paddleboards, kayaks, and canoes, O’Soleil is located on an ideal spot on a placid river that can either lead inland or to the expansive waters of that 45-kilometer long by 35-kilometer wide lake called Lac-Saint-Jean. We paddled on the serene river under bridges and past marinas lined with boats to steady our balance and stroke. Then off we went on a wondrous stretch of water, hemmed in by barrier beaches. Soon we were feeling the chop of this massive inland sea as a steady stream of boats filed out to the lake. O’Soleil also rents bikes to sample a stretch of the Véloroute des Bleuets, the 256-kilometer bike trail that lines the shoreline of Lac-Saint-Jean. The 10 km ride past the charming town of Metabetchouan (stop for sublime chocolates at the small artisanal store, Rose Élisabeth) to Desbiens is one of the finest parts of the bike trail.

 
Desbiens is where we would start our second adventure of the day, a whitewater rafting trip down the Metabetchouan River with H2O Expeditions. Owner Sylvain Alarie has rafted down many of the finest rivers in the world like the Colorado, but he always returns to his native Quebec rivers. After spending the afternoon with him on an exhilarating run down the Class III and IV rapids of the Metabetchouan, it’s easy to understand why he comes back. Joined by my buddy, Jeff, and a contingent of six students from China studying alloy engineering at the nearby university in Saguenay, we were in for a treat. The clean waters of the river slice through cavernous walls where tall pines cling to the hillside. A master navigator, Sylvain found the perfect line to attack the most rip-roaring rapids as we shrieked with joy each time the raft rolled up and we met the next drenching wave. It was a thrill ride through exquisite scenery I won’t soon forget. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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Urban Renewal Awards, Spectacle Island, Boston Harbor

One of 34 Boston Harbor Islands that dot the waterfront and are part of a National Historic Park, Spectacle Island had its heyday in the 1840s as a large gambling resort and brothel. As of late, the island was merely a dumping ground for garbage. Then someone had the brilliant idea to create a dike to contain the trash and use the dirt from The Big Dig to reshape the island, providing topsoil for planting trees and other shrubbery.  Today, the heaping mound of soil has created the highest point on the Eastern Seaboard south of Maine. Leaving its smelly past behind, the 105-acre park has a trail system weaving through the interior, beaches to comb for sea glass, and public access by ferry. Local naturalist and Walden author Henry David Thoreau didn’t have Spectacle Island in mind when he spoke of preserving America’s “wild spaces,” but it’s refreshing to see good ole Yankee ingenuity at work.
 

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San Antonio Week—Strolling Through San Antonio Botanical Garden

It reached 90 degrees yesterday in San Antonio, but I kept nice and cool for part of the afternoon on the East Texas Pineywoods path at the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Shaded by tall sycamores and cedars, you loop around a pond, staring on the opposite shores at a circa-1850 log cabin straight out of East Texas. The 38-acre botanical garden is a placid retreat anytime of year, but it’s hard to top the springtime when roses in the Rose Garden, cactus flowers in the Cactus and Succulent Garden and the wine cup, a purple wildflower, on the Hill Country trail are all in bloom. And don’t get even get me started on the sweet-smelling jasmine at Watersaver Lane. I took a big whiff and had a natural high for the rest of the afternoon. A Japanese maple’s leaves were a tad crimson inside the bamboo walls of Japanese Garden. What got my attention, however, was a turtle sunbathing atop a rock formation that resembled a turtle. An architectural highlight was the glass-coned conservatory rooms that house rare palm trees, like the prickly bark of the Zambia palm, lush ferns, desert cacti, even an indoor waterfall. San Antonio offers a slew of intriguing sites, from the Alamo and other missions to the San Antonio Museum of Art, but don’t make the mistake of missing the botanical garden. It’s a gem.  

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Cleveland Rocks!

Last Saturday, my wife and I picked up our son, Jake, at Oberlin College after a weeklong electornic music workshop. Then we hightailed it to Cleveland for the weekend to check out the city. Must-see stops were the Cleveland Museum of Art, whose impressive collection includes noteworthy pieces by van Gogh, Monet, El Greco, and Bierstadt. At the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, we viewed the famous jacket worn by John Lennon on the Sgt. Pepper’s album cover, Michael Jackson’s glove, and my personal favorite, Notorious BIG’s jersey. 
 
Then there were the pleasant surprises like the West Side Market, the historic food market that served a tasty bratwurst on a bun for 4 bucks and a Montrealer crepe that made Jake happy, created with brisket and Emmentaler cheese. West Side Market is located in Ohio City, a cool neighborhood of restaurants and bars like Crop Bistro, set inside the cavernous walls of a former bank. Nearby is Great Lake Brewing Company, a microbrewery that helped gentrify the neighborhood of derelict buildings when it arrived on the scene in the 90s. Also loved the milk shakes and falafels at Tommy’s in Coventry Village and the Italian fare at Mia Bella in Cleveland’s Little Italy. We stayed at a great locale, the Glidden House, a former estate across the street from the Frank Gehry-designed building on the Case Western University campus. We were within easy walking distance of Little Italy, the Cleveland Museum of Art, and the resplendent Cleveland Botanical Gardens, in full bloom upon our arrival. The only thing we missed was a baseball game at Jacobs Field, now called Progressive Field. The Indians were out of town. There’s always next time!
 
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Maine Huts & Trails Week: Day Three, Mountain Biking to the Flagstaff Hut

Charlie Woodworth didn’t take the helm of Maine Huts & Trails to sit behind a desk. He knows these trails in western Maine like the back of his hand, as he showed Lisa and me on Day Three while riding the 11 miles over to the Flagstaff Hut. We would soon learn that he also happens to be a helluva biker, taking the roots, rocks, and turns easily and offering pedaling pointers for us along the way. Much of the land we would be traversing today is part of the Penobscot Indian Reservation, including our first leg, the Sticky Trail, a technical singletrack through a forest of hemlocks.

As we rode, Charlie gave me an update on the progress of this non-profit organization. They currently have 1450 members and their dues go straight to trail maintenance. 4 of the eco-lodges have been built and they plan to continue with construction southwest of the first hut we visited, Stratton Brook Hut, towards Rangeley. Their ultimate goal is to have 12 backcountry huts over 180 miles of trails all the way north to Baxter State Park. Judging from Charlie’s passion and perseverance, along with all the enthusiastic MH&T staffers I met along the way, I have no doubt they’ll achieve that goal. 

We said goodbye to Charlie at the Flagstaff Hut, snagged one of Megan Costello’s heavenly chocolate chip cookies, and exchanged mountain bikes for an Old Town canoe. We were surprised to find that we’d be paddling with a frog that was camping out in the canoe. Canoeing along the shores of Flagstaff Lake, the 4th largest lake in Maine, the mighty ridge of the 4,000-foot Bigelow Mountains soon came into view. Adding to the allure was a bald eagle that flew overhead. The waters were even more magical that evening when we watched a perfect orb of a reddish-orange sun set in the notch between Blanchard Mountain and Pickled Chicken Hill. Living the dream. 
 
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Quick Escape to Portsmouth

While the crowds were in Salem this past weekend to celebrate Halloween, we headed a little father up the road to Portsmouth. Stores, restaurants, and the historic streets were all decorated for today’s festivities, which includes a parade. We dropped our bags off at one of the 10 rooms at the conveniently located Ale House Inn, one of the first Lark Hotels properties to debut (they also manage the Hotel Portsmouth on the other end of town). Then took a short walk over to the Portsmouth Brewery for a pint of their pumpkin ale, rimmed with cinnamon sugar. It went down so smoothly I had to sample another one of their signature brews, the Surrender to the Flow IPA. Afterwards, we headed over to Franklin Oyster House for a selection of New Hampshire oysters, harissa-rubbed grilled shrimp, and fries cooked in duckfat. Saturday was a glorious day of sunshine and seasonally warm temps, so we walked all over town, checking out the piers at Prescott Park, the 17th-century homes at Strawberry Banke, the farmers market at City Hall (snagged the last empire apples of the season), and then strolled across Memorial Bridge into Maine for most likely our last lobster roll of the year at Warren’s (outstanding salad bar to boot). Portsmouth Restaurant Week starts November 2nd, so go check out Franklin Oyster, Portsmouth Brewery, and the James-Beard nominated Black Trumpet at a discount. 

 

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