Active Travel

9 Worst Summer Vacation Destinations

mvalenti — Thu, 08 May 2008 23:52:40 GMT

Newsweek recently posted a great article on their site about unhealthy destinations for a summer vacation.

Detroit and Memphis topped the list, more for murders and thieves than for being bad for your health.

Three cities in Southern California captured the 3rd, 4th and 5th positions: Long Beach, Riverside and LA. The American Lung Association claims these cities have the worst pollution-ridden air (surprise, surprise).

Phoenix and Houston are too hot, Florida restaurants have trouble maintaining health codes and Lexington, KY is bad for allergies.

As enticing as these places normally sound, I don't think it will be hard to stay away from them this summer!

Although, strangely enough, Riverside--which is probably the most unappealing location on the list--happens to have a quarry where local climbers go to get a good workout close to home. Not even the rotting garbage and decomposing dogs can keep climbers from getting on granite.

Small Steps Toward Better Air in Beijing

mvalenti — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 00:05:18 GMT

According to a news update from the official website of the Beijing Olympics, a city official released a statement outlining specific measures that will be taken before and during the games to help improve air quality.

Measures include:

The management of motor vehicles and the promotion of more environmentally-friendly forms of transportation
A stoppage of work at all construction sites in Beijing on or before July 20, as well as at chemical plants and mining operations around Beijing
The banning of equipment that don't meet emission standards, such as coal-burning boilers
A 30 percent reduction in emissions from 19 enterprises around Beijing notorious for heavy pollution
Strict control on gas, oil, paint and solvent distribution and use

You Know You're Trekking in Patagonia When...

mvalenti — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 23:59:43 GMT

Excerpts from We Shall Continue in Style
by Adrian and Kirsten Korosec

A few final thoughts and photos of our time trekking in Torres Del Paine and other parts of Patagonia. The following happened to us or people we know.

You know you're trekking in Patagonia when ...

1) You say "Hola" about 100 times on any given day passing trekkers on the trail.

2) Three-fourths of the people you just said "Hola" to are not from South America and don't speak Spanish.

3) You quickly learn there is a huge difference between trekkers and tourists. The trekkers you meet are far more interesting than you are and they all seem to speak four languages.

4) You get dirty. So dirty that buses often have signs forbidding trekkers from taking off their shoes.

5) Random dogs follow you for miles into a national park where NO PERROS ARE ALLOWED. Everyone asks the gringo ... ¿Su perro?

6) The wind knocks you over.

7) A mouse chews through your tent and eats your crackers while you're sleeping.

8)It's so hot that you strip down to a T-shirt and shorts, and then it rains. And then the wind picks up. Five minutes later it's so hot you strip down to a T-shirt and shorts again.

9) Rain gear is the only effective mosquito repellent.

10) The "trail" you're following may have been erected by a blindfolded, drunken Chileno.

11) Maté is like having your own guide. It is never lost in translation and when shared all language barriers seem to fall away.

12) The bridges seem like they might fall apart. Sometimes they do.

12) It's entirely possible that the ice in your Pisco Sour came from an iceberg.

Climbing Aconcagua

mvalenti — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:25:09 GMT

Excerpts from We Shall Continue in Style
by Adrian and Kirsten Korosec

Permit Process for Aconcagua
The first step to getting a permit to climb Aconcagua is going to the Park headquarters and paying the $1000 pesos, roughly $300 USD. You then take your receipt to the regional tourist centre on San Martin Avenue in downtown Mendoza. There you receive the actual permit, have it checked against your passport, get it stamped and sign it. That’s it. The permit will be checked and stamped again at the first camp in Pampas Lenas (roughly translated "Firewood Grasslands"). Your passport is no longer needed after Mendoza. The permit is only good for 20 days.

Update from Base Camp:
I got an e-mail from Adrian and he has reached base camp. The team will rest at the base camp for today and then tomorrow they will carry a load up to Camp 1 and descend to base camp for the evening. The following day, the team will move up to Camp 1. The team follows a similar pattern to reach Camp 2. Summit day is about 10 days from now.

Update from Camp 2:
According to the e-mail, ''Lead Guide Christian Santelices phoned to let us know that the team had safely moved to Camp 2'' on Tuesday. Camp 2 is at 5,400 meters or 17,820 feet. This photo is from the previous expedition in January, but it shows what it looks like near Camp 2.

The weather there has been sunny, warm and calm. Later, the team plans to carry a load to Piedras Blancas at 5,950 meters or 19,635 feet. The team will then rest back at Camp 2 and then move permanently up to Piedras Blancas, the mountain's highest camp before the summit.

For more on climbing Aconcagua and other Argentina adventures, go to korosec.blogspot.com/

Fare Watcher

mvalenti — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 22:32:07 GMT

I just got my travelocity email and they are now offering a fare watcher program where you can choose up to 10 destinations that you would love to go to, or plan to go to, and they will notify you with price changes and special offers. I wish I had signed up for this before I booked my Cayman Islands trip. I could have watched the prices over time and had something to compare my actual fare to.

http://community.active.com/blogs-create-post!default.jspa?blogID=2674

Major Airlines Cut Prices

mvalenti — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 18:10:00 GMT

Travelzoo just let us in on a winter travel tip: Major airlines such as American and United are cutting prices. You have to travel on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday to get the best deal but it is worth the search.

http://supersearch.travelzoo.com/Flights.aspx?catid=1300&source=1300

Holiday Travel Tips

mvalenti — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 16:43:00 GMT

1) Book now...just sit down, figure out what you want to do and book the flight before the fares spike. Kayak.com has weekly and daily fare alerts. Sign up by plugging in where you want to go and how much you want to pay and they will email you when the fare meets (or beats) your target price.

2) On Kayak.com you can also check the airfare history by clicking on "chart" view after searching for a fare. In some cases it may be much cheaper to fly over New Years weekend than over Christmas.

3) Check alternative airports! It might be a little further away but well worth the savings.

4) If you book your holiday ticket through Delta, sign up for the 'tickets for life ' sweepstakes first for a chance to win 2.5 million miles, then book your flight.

The King of Climbing Gyms

mvalenti — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 20:03:00 GMT

Planet Granite is--by far--the best place to get a workout on a rainy day in the South Bay. It is a climbing gym on steroids with over 25,000 sqaure feet of space that includes fitness equipment, weights, a yoga studio, and 119 ropes, more than 20 crack climbs and a ton of bouldering.This set up integreates climbing into a regular fitness routine, making it a great place for climbers to get stronger and for everyone else to have fun with their workouts.

Fitness equipment normally drives me crazy with boredom but here the treadmills and stationary bikes face the climbing area, providing plenty to look at during your workout.

Fitness centers and climbing gyms alike should take a hint from Planet Granite in Sunnyvale!

Active San Francisco

mvalenti — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 18:40:00 GMT

It's hard not to be active when you're in Santa Cruz mountains. I travelled from San Diego to San Jose this weekend to visit my boyfriend, who happens to live across the street from an open space preserve and down the street from Castle Rock State Park. This is the view that becons to him daily:

What impressed most me was that skyline drive, a narrow, winding mountain road, with little-to-no shoulder was packed with cyclists. Not the perfectly manicured cyclists you see in southern california, but average Joes wearing cotton Ts just looking for a workout in the gorgeous outdoors. Cars lined the pull-outs and hikers, bikers and explorers crowded the trails in the open space preserve the entire weekend. I opted for a casual hike so I could take it all in:

We spent Saturday morning in the mountains, then headed into San Francisco for a taste of the city--hitting up Millennium Restaurant for some gourmet vegetarian cuisine and then Orpheum Theater to see Avenue Q.

All in all, San Francisco / San Jose turned out to be a great destination to get active in the outdoors!