Travel reports and advice for families for the best outdoor experiences, including national and state park visits, camping or glamping
It’s only 10 a.m. but I feel like we’ve been going all day. That’s because we left our hotel Tierra Atacama before dawn—I’d never seen such bright stars across the desert sky—on our way to the highest geyser field in the world—El Tatio Geisers at 14,190 feet!
Not just any giant Buddha but the Tian Tan Buddha, the world’s largest outdoor sitting Buddha — some 98 feet tall and weighing 250 tons, his humongous right hand raised to deliver a blessing to all.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention we’re less than a year away from Dec. 21, 2012, the date the ancient Mayan Long Count calendar forecasts will signal the end of all humanity. But experts aren’t convinced and I’m not worried.
I’m just thankful to share this spectacular adventure in paradise with my husband and kids. It’s terrific — and rare — when you can find something you all enjoy, especially as the kids grow older
The good news is it’s not too late to plan a spring getaway (check the rest of my website for ideas) whether you’ve got just a few days or an entire week to spend and there’s still time to find a great deal.
Guest blogger Kasey Austin writes that her “earliest memories go way back to Alaska, everything from ice fishing with my dad to spending time at a remote fly-in camp and hiking trails frequented by moose and other larger than life critters!”
The best part: There is no one telling us what time we have to eat dinner or even where we are going next. Welcome to the alternative to mega cruise ships and fancy resorts.
Snorkel, sail, windsurf or kayak?
We’re at the Bitter End Yacht Club on the island of Virgin Gorda which has been a haven for sailors and yachters for years.
This island—just 3 miles wide at its widest point—is famous for its lobsters that many fisherman here catch by free diving as deep as 60 feet. Sailors like us (we’ve been sailing around the BVI on a Moorings charter Catamaran) make the trip here for the lobsters as well as the spectacular wind-swept beaches.
I can’t believe I’m here. Hong Kong’s famous Victoria Harbor watches as I try to follow William Ng, a 75-year-old Tai Chi master, as he introduces about 20 of us to the ancient art of Tai Chi or “shadow boxing.”
Today we are all diving as a family. The Wreck of the Rhone is just off Salt Island in two big pieces 60 to 80 feet down, but there are many smaller pieces.
“That’s part of the adventure,” says my 25 year old daughter Reggie. “It’s not like we’re at a fancy resort where everything is being done for us.”
When it came time to decide on a family trip for my far flung gang—the first time we’d all be together in more than a year—sailing, with some diving included, was everyone’s top pick.
Reggie and I are already imagining our next dive back home in the much colder, kelp-forested waters of Monterey, California — just a couple hours away from our domicile in San Francisco.
Geologists still argue today how these columns were formed some 140 million years ago. What is known is that a huge amount of volcanic ash and lava spewed forth with the volcano ultimately collapsing and forming a caldera.
This isn’t just any Buddha but the largest outdoor sitting Buddha in the Po Lin Monastery on the island of Lantau. The Monastery was established in 1906—some 100 monks hidden from the tourists still live here
“It is good exercise for all ages,” he says. “When I was child, my parents told me I was so small I needed more exercise so I practiced kung fu and Tai Chi- Kung Fu is fast and Tai Chi s slow and smooth.”
Whether the kids were mine or someone else’s, I realized — sometimes belatedly — that the best times were had when we took our cue from the kids and let their passions-of-the-moment dictate.
DAY ONE — I’ve got my eye mask, three different noise cancelling head phones to try, the iPad loaded with my favorite TV shows, my Kindle loaded with new mysteries, healthy snacks, special socks from SmartWool, neck pillow…have I forgotten anything?
Welcome to Tanzania’s Serengeti National Park, at 5,700 square miles bigger than the state of Connecticut and home to some of the largest prides of lion in East Africa as well as these other animals.