Category Archives: Adventure

Adventure: Hiking Mount Toubkal In Morocco

The Times and The Sunday Times (April 21, 2023) – A century on from the first ascent of Morocco’s highest peak, Mount Toubkal, our writer takes on the extraordinary hike for himself.

Mount Toubkalmountain peak that is the highest point (13,665 feet [4,165 metres]) in Morocco and in the Atlas Mountains. The peak is situated 40 miles (60 km) south of Marrakech in the High Atlas (Haut Atlas). Juniper forests covering the mountain’s higher slopes are succeeded by alpine meadows, whereas the lower slopes have been extensively overgrazed. 

Arctic Views: A Narwhal Expedition To Franz Josef Land Archipelago, Russia

Timelab Pro (April 15, 2023) – Our trip to Franz Josef Land was an unforgettable experience, and we were fortunate enough to be on board the mighty famous ship Mikhail Somov for a scientific mission to study the Narwhals in the Arctic.

Franz Josef Land is the northernmost territory of Russia, and one of the least filmed territory in the world. Our shots are truly unique, capturing the beauty of the Arctic landscape and the majestic Narwhals in their natural habitat.‌ As we took our drone to the skies, we searched for days to find these elusive creatures, and finally, we were lucky enough to spot them.

Did you know that Narwhals are the only known species of whale to have a single tusk? And that this tusk, which is actually a protruding tooth, can grow up to 3 meters long? The scientists on board the Mikhail Somov were conducting an important research expedition to prove that Narwhals dwell in the Russian Arctic.

They also took biopsies from the Narwhals to better understand the impact of global climatic changes on these amazing creatures. Our diesel-electric ship, the Mikhail Somov, is a historical ship with a rich history of Arctic exploration. In 1985 the Mikhail Somov became trapped in the ice for 133 days, but the crew was able to survive and eventually free the ship. Despite its modern upgrades, the ship still maintains the charm and spirit of its earlier expeditions.

Travel Guides: A Winter Tour Of Grand Canyon National Park In Arizona

DW Travel (April 5, 2023) – The Grand Canyon in wintertime can be a quite unique experience. Follow Eric and Allison from @Theendlessadventure to the US state of Arizona. The traveling couple shows you how beautiful The Grand Canyon National Park is even in a blizzard, with cold temperatures and on icy trails.

Bicycle Tours: Barichara To Medellín In Colombia

Brompton Traveler (April 1, 2023) – A 300-mile bicycle tour of Columbia from Barichara to Medellín.

Colombia, officially Republic of Colombia, Spanish República de Colombiacountry of northwestern South America. Its 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of coast to the north are bathed by the waters of the Caribbean Sea, and its 800 miles (1,300 km) of coast to the west are washed by the Pacific Ocean.

The country is bordered by Panama, which divides the two bodies of water, on the northwest, by  Venezuela  and  Brazil on the east, and by Peru and Ecuador on the south. It is more than twice the size of France and includes the San Andrés y Providencia  archipelago, located off the Nicaraguan coast in the Caribbean, some 400 miles (650 km) northwest of the Colombian mainland. The population is largely concentrated in the mountainous interior, where Bogotá, the national capital, is situated on a high plateau in the northern Andes Mountains.

The only American nation that is named for Christopher Columbus, the “discoverer” of the New World, Colombia presents a remarkable study in contrasts, in both its geography and its society. The lofty snow-tipped peaks of the country’s interior cordilleras tower high above equatorial forests and savannas where surviving  indigenous  groups still follow the lifeways and traditions of their ancestors. In the cooler mountains, at intermediate elevations, modern cities are juxtaposed with traditional rural landscapes where mestizo farmers cultivate their small plots of coffee, corn (maize), and other crops. The more accessible Atlantic lowlands, dominated by large livestock haciendas and a tri-ethnic population, have a distinctively different character.

Travel: The Historic Trans-Bhutan Trail Is Reopened

BBC News (March 14, 2023) – Once the lifeline of Bhutan, the 403km Trans-Bhutan Trail connected the affluent western districts of Haa to the remote far eastern Trashigang. The trail dates back to the 16th Century, and was used by monarchs, traders, pilgrims and messengers for hundreds of years, but fell into disuse soon after Bhutan developed its highway in the 1960s. Now, more than 60 years later, the historic trail has reopened.

Trans Bhutan Trail
A local walks in a field in Paro; 70 percent of the kingdom is covered with greenery.

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New Books: Wanderlust Nordics – May 2023

Gestalten Publishing (May 2023) – From spectacular fjords in Norway, the arctic tundra and serene forests in Sweden, to a plethora of enchanting lakes in Finland and the Ice Sheet of Greenland —the Nordics offer a breathtaking variety of landscapes and endless options to hike.

Mid-June to late September. Due to the warm currents of the Gulf Stream, the Lofoten Islands experience a relatively mild oceanic climate. Despite it lying at a similar latitude to places such as Alaska and Greenland, average winter and summer temperatures in the archipelago are a comparatively balmy 1°C (33.8°F) and 13°C (55.4°F), respectively. Get more hiking tips with Wanderlust Nordics, a book by gestalten and Cam Honan.

Wanderlust Nordics invites you to boast into this distinctive wilderness with a wide range and appealing mix of trails. This is a book that will have you heading north.

Approximately 80 percent of Greenland is covered by a vast ice sheet. The remaining 20 percent of this ironically named island is a coastal corridor that is mostly ice-free during the summer months. It is here among the sparsely populated bays, inlets, and fjords, that the Arctic Circle Trail (ACT) can be found, a legendary hiking route that traverses the most extensive strip of terra firma in Western Greenland. Discover more in Wanderlust Nordics by gestalten and Cam Honan.

Cam Honan has trekked across 61 countries and six continents, logging over 60,000 mi (96,500 km) in three decades. He has authored four bestselling titles for gestalten—WanderlustWanderlust USAWanderlust Himalaya, and The Hidden Tracks. Cam has been described by Backpacker Magazine as “the most travelled hiker on Earth”.

Traverse the World's most beautiful Archipelago with Wanderlust Nordics, a incredible book by Cam Honan.

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Africa Views: Tassili n’Ajjer National Park In Algeria

Six days deep into the heart of the Sahara (in October-November 2022), into one of the most picturesque parts of the desert: Tassili n’Ajjer National Park of Algeria, near the borders with Libya and Niger.

Video timeline: Day 1 0:00 Day 2 1:22 Day 3 9:06 Day 4 15:12 Day 5 26:21 Day 6 34:52

Located in a strange lunar landscape of great geological interest, this site has one of the most important groupings of prehistoric cave art in the world. More than 15,000 drawings and engravings record the climatic changes, the animal migrations and the evolution of human life on the edge of the Sahara from 6000 BC to the first centuries of the present era. The geological formations are of outstanding scenic interest, with eroded sandstones forming ‘forests of rock’.

Filmed and edited by:

Amazing Places on Our Planet

Travel: Hiking Up Yushan, Highest Peak In Taiwan

Yu Shan or Yushan, also known as Mount Jade, Jade Mountain, or Mount Yu, and known as Mount Niitaka during Japanese rule, is the highest mountain in Taiwan at 3,952 m above sea level, giving Taiwan the 4th-highest maximum elevation of any island in the world.

Video timeline: 00:00 Drone Intro 1:49 Meeting up with Curtis and Larry 2:07 4 hour drive to trailhead 2:53 Yu-Shan National Park 3:37 Trailhead Police Station 3:52 Yushan Trailhead 4:08 Day 1 – Trailhead to Paiyun Lodge (5 miles) 6:50 Day 2 – Paiyun Lodge to Summit (11 miles) 9:29 Tataka Visitor Center 9:47 Why did I visit Taiwan? 10:22 Which route did you take? 12:57 How much did this hike cost? 13:33 Who did I hike with? 14:53 How did you shoot this video?

Filmed and edited by:

Kraig Adams

Travel And Photography: One-Week In Iceland (4K)

Tales of Justin (February 28, 2023) – Iceland, an island nation in the North Atlantic Ocean, lies between Europe and North America. The country is situated on a strategic location between North America and Europe, about 840 km north west of the United Kingdom and about 460 km south east of Greenland‘s coast. The closest bodies of land in Europe are the Faroe Islands (530 km).

The island lies just south of the Arctic Circle at the northern end of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR), where the tectonic plate of Eurasia meets the North American Plate, causing a lot of volcanic activity in the region. Iceland’s extraordinary landscape offers hot springs and geysers, icefields and volcanoes, glaciers and wild waterfalls.

Iceland has 30 active volcanic systems, of which 13 have erupted since the settlement of island in AD 874, only about 20 percent of the country is habitable.

Columbia Views: A Journey To The Lost City Of Teyuna

DW Travel – Discover Teyuna! It’s older than Machu Picchu and not quite as famous. Known in Spanish as Ciudad Perdida or the “Lost City,” it is located deep in the jungles of northern Colombia. You need weather-proof clothing and sturdy shoes for the four-day trek to the archeological site.

Our reporter Joel Dullroy is making the adventurous journey to the Lost City. Join him on his trip! Background: The ruins of Teyuna were once settled by the indigenous Tairona people. Their descendants still live today in the Wika and Kogi tribes in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.