Tag Archives: National Geographic

National Geographic Traveller UK ‘Lakes & Mountains’ Issue 2022

1. Alpine running in Canada

Keen runners seeking more inspirational landscapes can join a new tour by CMH Heli-Skiing & Summer Adventures to discover the wild beauty of the Bugaboos in the heart of the Canadian wilderness. Soar over verdant forest trails, rugged mountain tops and granite spires in a helicopter before being dropped on a summit. Runners will revel in the sunny skies, breathtaking panoramas and plenty of breaks, often in crystal-clear glaciated lakes. The day ends back at base camp, a spacious fly-in backcountry luxury lodge where guests can relax with a massage, sauna or a soak in a hot tub.

Where to stay: CMH Bugaboos log-hewn lodge at the base of Bugaboo Glacier offers gourmet dining, swimming and a rooftop hot tub. From $3,025 (£1,926) for three nights/four days including meals, helicopter flights, guide, equipment and local transfers. 

2. Heli-biking in New Zealand

Cycle far from the crowds in the Wanaka region past glaciers and lakes on gentle high-country trails and tricky single tracks that combine easy free-wheeling with adrenaline pumping fun. For seasoned cyclists, the four-hour Mount Burke trail is the holy grail of mountain bike trips with riders ferried to the top by chopper to avoid the uphill grind. Soak up the scenery at 4,593ft before braving the epic downhill descent through scenic valleys and farmland to the glassy waters of Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea for a gourmet picnic. 

Where to stay: Minaret Station, an off-grid lavish four-chalet lodge accessible by only helicopter or boat, located at 7,000ft with a valley to one side and Lake Wanaka to the other. Five nights from £5,250pp, including four nights’ full-board at Minaret Station with return helicopter transfers, excluding international flights, with Black Tomato

Preparing to go heli-biking in New Zealand.

Preparing to go heli-biking in New Zealand.

PHOTOGRAPH BY FREDRIK LARSSON

3. Glacier hiking in France

Head to Saint Martin de Belleville to traverse the Glacier de Chavière and conquer not one, but three cols, or mountain paths, at altitudes of around 10,000ft. Set off at dawn, after learning how to use an ice axe and crampons, to begin an energetic climb attached by a rope to an expert guide. Enjoy incredible views of snow-covered ridges, steep couloirs and rock towers, but take care where you place your feet as some narrow paths come dangerously close to crevices with sheer drops. After reaching the three cols — Col de Thorens, Col Pierre Lory and Col du Bouchet — return to Val Thorens in the early afternoon for a leisurely lunch. 

Where to stay: The renovated four-star Hotel Lodji at the base of Saint Martin with cosy bar, restaurant, sunny terrace and spa. Rooms from €150 (£129) a night.

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September 2022: National Geographic Traveller

National Geographic Traveller (UK) September 2022

PHOTOGRAPH BY NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER

The September issue of National Geographic Traveller (UK) is out now. The cover story this month focuses on the Italian coast, which encapsulates the very best of the country.

Cover Preview: National Geographic – August 2022

How the spirit of ancient Stonehenge was captured with a 21st-century drone

Photographer Reuben Wu took innovative risks to show one of the world’s most-photographed sites in a new light.

Reuben Wu, a British photographer and visual artist based in Chicago, was first introduced to National Geographic as most⁠ people are: When he was a child, he enjoyed looking at the magazines his father subscribed to for decades. 

He dreamed of seeing his photographs in the same magazine—and even on the cover. So when National Geographic asked him to photograph an iconic monument he knows well, he was ready to work. 

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Wildlife Views: Sea Otters Feeding In Seaweed Beds

The charismatic otter, a member of the weasel family, is found on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Most are small, with short ears and noses, elongated bodies, long tails, and soft, dense fur.

There are 13 species in total, ranging from the small-clawed otter to the giant otter. Though most live in freshwater rivers, lakes, and wetlands, the sea otter and the smaller marine otter are found in the Pacific Ocean.

Top Hikes: California’s Condor Trail (400 Miles)

The rugged chaparral of California’s Sespe Wilderness lay hidden under the camouflage of mahogany and sage hues. Nearly a week into her thru-hike on the Condor Trail, Brittany Nielsen surveyed this scraggly landscape. She had already faced a downpour, severe flooding, and hypothermia. Now, she leaned against her pack in the spring sun, scanning the thickets and hoping the trail would emerge like a scrub jay.

“I learned a lesson about being calm while being lost on the trail,” Nielsen says. Earlier, behind on miles and low on her food supply, she had searched for the path in a frenzy, only to find herself exhausted. The trail on the side of Sespe Creek was fiercely overgrown in sections and required strong orienteering skills to navigate.

“When I opened my eyes I was looking at the sky,” Nielsen says, “And up above me—I couldn’t believe it—there was a condor.” She noted the telltale band of white feathers in the shape of a scalene triangle that decorated the bird’s nine-foot wingspan. When the condor drifted out of sight, Nielsen dropped her gaze into the chaparral where, directly in front of her, she discovered a small rock cairn that marked the trail.

Over the course of her 37 days on the hike, Nielsen would lose and gain the trail numerous times as she fought through menacing brush and screamed expletives that no one could hear in the most remote pockets of Los Padres National Forest. She would travel through seven wilderness areas, along the shores of central California, past colonies of elephant seals, and across the ancestral lands of the ChumashSalinanEsselenTataviam, and Costanoan peoples.

SOURCES: BRYAN CONANT; IUCN REDLIST

Unlike California’s well-established John Muir and Pacific Crest Trails, the Condor Trail is a thru-hiking “route,” meaning its course exists—as a continuous thread of trails and roads and cross-country travel—but that it lacks proper signage and maintenance. While these popular thru-hiking routes receive hundreds of hikers a year, Nielsen took on the Condor Trail alone in 2015. When she finished on June 18th, she was the first thru-hiker to complete it.

Views: NatGeo Traveler Magazine – July/Aug 2022

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African Views: Secretary Birds – ‘It Stomps Its Prey’

Secretary birds are also referred to as Sagittarius serpentarius. The secretary bird is one of the weird birds in Africa and it inhabits the savannah region with a head which is like that of an Eagle and the legs like that of a stork. The secretary bird is popularly known as a bird of prey together with its family. It has got technics of killing just like that of a snake which is fabric of legend. These are the 5 Interesting facts about the Secretary bird;