N ATG EOT R AV E L .

C O M | J U N E /J U LY 2 0 1 7
GREAT
FAMILY
GETAWAYS

Best
Summer
Ever
25 DREAM TRIPS
TO ITALY & BEYOND

American
Wanderlust!
San Francisco’s Summer of Love
BEST BARBECUE JOINTS
Great Lakes Road Trip
NATIONAL PARK ADVENTURE
Family-friendly With Private Pool

They arrived as rivals and left partners in crime.

EDITOR’S NOTE
BY GEORGE!

Read our story on hiking

the GR5, and see the
French Alps in bloom.

S
ummer is my favorite season. When I was a kid, I would reliably grow Nat Geo Highlights
half an inch between May and August, a triumph I attributed to sun
and liberation. Summer is when my family would explore America, A MAJOR PLUS DEEP-END DISCOVERY
setting out from Toledo, Ohio, to Chicago, Williamsburg, Greenwich Village,
and even Canada. On slow days I would ride my bike five miles to Michigan, Nat Geo Plus gives you From May to October,
unlimited, exclusive access National Geographic’s D.C.
just to cross the border. I’d return home by sunset, and my mom would be to National Geographic museum will be swarm-
surprised to learn that I had left the state. Once, when I was a teenager, I biked articles, archives, films, ing with sharks. The new
1,111 miles around Lake Michigan, pedaling through Wisconsin and the Upper e-books, and more. You exhibition, “Shark,” features
can sign up at natgeo images and videos taken
Peninsula, eating nothing but peanut butter. That summer I grew a full inch. .com/plus. by National Geographic
Summer is a season for discovery. If travel is play for grown-ups, then it photographer Brian Skerry
should be an outright circus for kids: a magical intersection of people, places, SHIPSHAPE of the sharp-toothed sea
creatures. Visit natgeo
and ideas that spurs growth and encourages awe. In this issue we offer inspi- .org/dc for more.
Lindblad and National
ration for travelers of all ages to have the BEST SUMMER EVER. We celebrate Geographic’s newest ship,
North American wanderlust (barbecue! bison! beaches!), hike along the Alps the National Geographic SUBSCRIBE NOW!
in France, and savor Italy, from Milan to Sicily. We embark on 22 epic adven- Quest, will begin its very
first voyage this summer: Our goal is to inspire
tures for families. And in Pico Iyer’s story about a missed flight, we venture around the fjords and our readers to explore
where few travel magazines have dared to go: practically nowhere. Iyer finds glaciers of Alaska and the world. For ideas
KEITH LADZINSKI

that nowhere can be nearly as revealing as everywhere, if you slow down, look British Columbia. To book about where to go next,
a trip on one of our ships, subscribe to National
around, and embrace the everyday. Tell us all about your summer vacation at visit natgeoexpeditions Geographic Traveler at
natgeotravel@natgeo.com. —George W. Stone, Editor in Chief .com/explore. natgeotravel.com.

J UN E / JU LY 2 0 1 7
Time stands still. but you’re free to walk around.
Ev e r y t h i n g c h a n g e s . O r s o w e’v e h e a r d . Ye t h e r e i n Wy o m i n g y o u
c a n e x p e r i e n c e t h e w o n d e r o f v i s t a s u n a l t e r e d . C u r i o s i t i e s t h at s t a n d
d e f i a nt l y a s t h e y h av e f o r m i l l e n n i a . P l a c e s t h at i nv i t e y o u t o p au s e
a n d r e f l e c t . W hy n o t s l ow d ow n a n d t a k e i t a l l i n . Fo r a c h a n g e .
CONTENTS
JUNE/JULY
VOLUME 34, NUMBER 3

In This Issue Follow Us

BEST. SUMMER. @NATGEOTRAVEL

EVER.
Take a daily journey
Family travel fun: around the world
From visiting baby through our social
elephants in Kenya media platforms.
to exploring Costa
Rican cloud forests,
soak up the most
this summer. p. 57

ITALY FOR
EVERYONE

There’s no wrong
way to see Italy, so
we spotlighted five
itineraries that are
fantastico! p. 64

AT HOME ON
THE RANGE

Teddy Roosevelt’s
favorite North
Dakota hideaway
offers wild horses
and prairie dog
towns. p. 74

EUROPE’S
GRANDEST HIKE

A high-altitude trek
through the Alps
brings chalets,
tucked-away towns,
and mountain
views. p. 84

Explore the fields of

Umbria in our “Italy for
Everyone” feature
(page 64).

COVER: CAPRI, ITALY (SIME/eStock)

EMANUELA DE SANTIS/ANZENBERGER/REDUX
 th the EOS 5D Mark IV Camera & EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM Lens

THE E O S 5D M PTER B EG I N S .
For over a decade, nature photographer Alex Strohl has chosen Canon EOS 5D cameras. It’s a legacy boldly advanced with the EOS 5D Mark IV.
With a 30.4 Megapixel full frame sensor, built in GPS and Wi Fi® connectivity, and a max ISO of 102400, the features in the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV
offer unprecedented flexibility. Perfect for photographers who push the limits. See Legendary.

www.usa.canon.com/5D4Legend

©2017 Canon U.S.A., Inc. All rights reserved. Canon and EOS are registered trademarks of Canon Inc. in the United States and may also be registered trademarks or trademarks in other countries.
 OUR
FAVORITE
SUMMER T R AV E L W I T H PA S S I O N A N D P U R P O S E

TRIPS
EDITOR IN CHIEF PUBLISHER & VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL MEDIA
George W. Stone Kimberly Connaghan

SENIOR DIRECTOR, TRAVEL AND ADVENTURE Andrea Leitch ADVERTISING NORTH AMERICA SALES OFFICES
DESIGN DIRECTOR Marianne Seregi SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, GLOBAL MEDIA John Campbell
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summer trips MULTIMEDIA PRODUCERS Adrian Coakley, Jess Mandia Danny Bellish Danny.Bellish@natgeo.com; Danielle Nagy
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FURTHER
W I S C O N S I N ROA D T R I P O SA N F R A N C I S C O O JA PA N O P E RU O U.S. BA R B EC U E O H E L S I N K I O PA R I S O B E ST EC O - E S CA P E S

A Window to
the World
PHOTOGRAPH BY
BEN HORTON

Curtains of red rock

frame an expanse of
desert landscape in
Utah’s Arches National
Park. Our favorite way
to get a glimpse of
these monumental
formations up close is
on foot. Windows Trail,
an easy one-mile hike,
is a great starting point
for exploration. The trail
passes the famous North
and South Windows
and Turret Arch, with
boundless views along
the way.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
WE TAKE
SUMMER
SERIOUSLY
Replace the chorus of Are we there yet? with the sweet sounds of crashing
waves and live entertainment. While the kids are busy mixing melodies
at the one-of-a-kind Music Lab or dancing with their favorites at the Little
Big Club™, it’s your time to unwind. Play unlimited rounds of championship
golf — included in your stay — or use your $1,800 Limitless Resort Credit on
snorkeling, Ocean Breeze massages, and sunset dinner cruises.

No matter what kind of adventure you’re into, the all-inclusive Hard Rock
Hotels of Mexico and the Dominican Republic deliver, every time.
ROAD TRIP
DOOR COUNTY, WISCONSIN
³ Miles: 30.8 O Days on the Road: 3 O Best Cherry Pie: Sweetie Pies in Fish Creek O Best Stargazing: Newport State Park
You could be forgiven for
imagining you’ve gone
back in time when driving
along two-lane, treelined
highways through this Wis-
consin peninsula, which
juts into Lake Michigan like
a thumb. In Door County a
slower and quieter way of
life still prevails. Days are
spent meandering through
gallery-and-boutique-
packed towns with
Gatsbyesque names like
Egg Harbor, Fish Creek,
and Sister Bay or pursuing
more active adventures
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
like sailing the bay, hiking
wooded trails, and kay-
aking along the rugged
coast. Nights are filled with
bonfires and fish boils.
And no visit is complete
without sampling the
Montmorency cherries that
are everywhere, from you-
pick orchards to roadside
stands. Here, life is as
sweet as cherry pie.
—Kelly DiNardo
A goat poses for
a portrait on the
grass-covered roof
of Al Johnson’s
Swedish Restaurant.
Our hop farmer has spent decades in these
fields growing hops. He knows ripe hops
by the distinctly fresh scent of citrus and pine.
We know we’re brewing with the finest hops
America has to offer for Goose IPA.

© 2017 GOOSE ISLAND BEER CO., GOOSE IPA,® INDIA PALE ALE, CHICAGO, IL | ENJOY RESPONSIBLY.
ROAD TRIP
WISCONSIN
STOP 1 STOP 3
Swedish Smorgasbord Boiling Point
The fish boil, a tradition
Yes, there are live goats on the roof of Al Johnson’s brought to the area by
Swedish Restaurant. It started as a joke more Scandinavian settlers, is
than 40 years ago, but the goats were such an equal parts dinner and
a show. White Gull Inn,
attention-getter they became a regular feature, a historic Victorian bed-
munching on the sod-covered roof daily. Beyond and-breakfast, is home
the rooftop grazers, the restaurant is a bastion of to one of Door County’s
longest-standing fish boils.
the region’s Scandinavian heritage. Waitresses in On Wednesday, Friday, Sat-
traditional Swedish folk dresses serve up Swedish urday, and Sunday nights
meatballs and crepe-thin pancakes with lingon- from May through October
(and Friday nights the rest
berry jam at this bustling spot. of the year), you can watch
as potatoes and chunks
of whitefish are boiled in
STOP 2 a cauldron over an open
fire. When the fish is ready,
Get the Local Scoop the boil master tosses
kerosene on the fire, which
The red-and-white striped awning of Wilson’s Restaurant causes the pot to boil over,
makes it easy to spot this old-fashioned soda fountain. taking the fishy oils with it
Home-brewed root beer and treats like the Cherry Berry and leaving behind just the
Delight, vanilla ice cream layered with Door County cherry, food. The family-style feast
blueberry, and strawberry toppings, have made this a popu- is served with lots of but-
lar landmark since 1906. Sweeten the deal and take your ice ter, bread, coleslaw, and of
cream across the street to benches overlooking the bay. course, cherry pie.
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
STOP 4
Crash Course
The waters of Door County
are full of shipwrecks, and
the cold water keeps them
well preserved. Lakeshore
Adventures leads two-
hour tours in clear-bottom
kayaks around the waters
of Baileys Harbor, where
more than a dozen ship-
wrecks can be spotted less
than 15 feet below.
STOP 5
See the Light
Cana Island Lighthouse
on Lake Michigan has
been in service since
1869. Walk across a rocky
causeway to the island to
find the 89-foot tower and
former keeper’s home. The
catwalk’s panoramic view
is worth the climb up 97
iron stairs.
STOP 6
Rustic Retreat
GUILLERMO TRAPIELLO (MAP); PREVIOUS PAGE: ACKERMAN + GRUBER (GOAT), TAMER KOSELI (ILLUSTRATION)
On a small peninsula
between North Bay
and Lake Michigan, the
130-acre Gordon Lodge
has a 1960s-throwback
vibe, which was care-
fully curated when the
almost hundred-year-old,
one-story lodge was
recently renovated. Its
outdoor heated pool and
slip of sandy beach are
ideal amenities for guests
wanting a serene escape,
while bikes, stand-up pad-
dleboards, tennis courts,
nature trails, and kayaks
are all available to those
who crave some recreation
on their vacation. Evenings
at the forested lodge mean
sunset cocktails on the
second-story deck of the
hotel’s tavern (formerly a
boathouse), along with fire
pits and a sky unmarred by
light pollution.
Visit palmettobluff.com. For real estate inquiries, call 866.321.3652.
To book your stay with Montage Palmetto Bluff, call 866.321.2693.

Obtain the Property Report required by federal law and read it before signing anything. No federal agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property. This does not
constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy where prohibited by law. The complete offering terms are in an offering plan available from sponsor. File no. H-110005
MiNi GUiDE
SAN FRANCISCO
“ ”
San Francisco has only one drawback. ’Tis hard to leave.
In 1967 nearly 100,000
people flooded San
Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury
neighborhood, creating a
movement now dubbed
the Summer of Love. Five
decades later, travelers
still head to Haight Street,
home to vegetarian cafés,
smoke shops, and a sprawl-
ing Amoeba Music. But
San Francisco isn’t exactly
hippie headquarters any-
more. Tech moguls moved
—Rudyard Kipling
The Golden
Gate Bridge,
in, housing prices have as seen from
skyrocketed (earning San Baker Beach
Fran the title of the most
expensive city in the United
States), and high-rises are
reshaping the downtown
skyline. But even with all
the changes over the past
50 years, there’s still plenty
to love about California’s
City by the Bay.
—Renee Brincks
KARSTEN MAY, TAMER KOSELI (ALL ILLUSTRATIONS)
BOOK iT
SAN FRANCISCO

The stylish game

room at Hotel
Zeppelin

T Hot Hotel
he HOTEL ZEPPELIN (O) celebrates the city’s and tropical drinks at the old-school Tonga Room &
rockers and rule-breakers through Instagram- Hurricane Bar or the bronze Tony Bennett statue
ready design details, from psychedelic posters near the hotel’s entrance. The singer first performed Stays by
to peace signs projected onto guest room ceilings. A “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” here in 1961. Located the Bay
block from Union Square, the 196-room hotel also in an early 1900s brick warehouse, the ARGONAUT
features event venues named Love and Peace—the HOTEL (O) offers luxury at Fisherman’s Wharf. The
latter being a game room with pop art murals and nautical-themed interior incorporates porthole-style
an oversize bingo board. At Nob Hill’s 592-room lights and Douglas fir beams. But peer through the O NEW

FAIRMONT SAN FRANCISCO (O), which withstood the panes for the real highlights. Select rooms overlook O CLASSIC

1906 earthquake, don’t miss the indoor thunderstorms Alcatraz Island and the Golden Gate Bridge. O TRENDY

Go With Nat Geo FOR THE PHOTO FAN FOR THE NATURE LOVER

Let National Geographic See the Golden City from Drive through Death Valley,
Expeditions be your behind the lens during hike Sequoia National
guide to San Francisco stops at Chinatown, Park’s Big Trees Trail,
natgeoexpeditions.com Russian Hill, and North and roam San Francisco
DOUGLAS FRIEDMAN

/explore; 888-966-8687 Beach with a Nat Geo by bike on National

photographer on National Geographic Journeys with
Geographic Expeditions’ G Adventures’ nine-day
“San Francisco Weekend “Natural Highlights of
Photo Workshop.” California” trip.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
 A MOMENT LASTS
BUT A SECOND, BUT
A MEMORY LIVES
FOREVER.
Well, this is a first.

You weren’t expecting to feel

this far away from it all
this early.

It’s the first day and,

with every step forward,
you feel yourself descending
deeper into tranquility.

Usually, it takes until the second day

to enter this vacation mindset.

Here, all it takes is the ocean.

Experience the difference in Grand Bahama Island at GrandLucayan.com or call 855-708-6671.

SEE iT
SAN FRANCISCO
´
If you liked: Golden Gate Bridge
W W
Then try: Presidio
Get a fresh perspective on
the Golden Gate Bridge at
the Presidio, a 1,500-acre
national park that fans out
from the bridge’s southern
approach. The new visitors
center stocks maps that
outline 24 miles of trails—
such as one to Baker
Beach, where coastal cliffs
across the bay frame the
bridge’s western face.
The Palace of Fine
Arts, a landmark of
the city’s Marina
district
Painted Ladies
Palace of Fine Arts
Alfred Hitchcock shot
scenes for his 1958 thriller
Vertigo at the picturesque
Palace of Fine Arts, an
ornate rotunda flanked by
columns that curve along
a lagoon. Created for
the 1915 Panama-Pacific
International Exposition, it
was rebuilt as a permanent
landmark in 1964 and is
now a popular picnic spot.
Fisherman’s Wharf
W W
Ferry Building
Stretched along the
eastern waterfront, the
1898 Ferry Building today
doubles as a transit hub
and retail arcade. Shops
such as Book Passage and
Heath Ceramics put a local
spin on souvenir shopping,
while regional suppliers
sell fresh produce and
street food at three weekly
farmers markets.
Alcatraz
Angel Island
One million people passed
through the U.S. Immigra-
tion Station on Angel Island
between 1910 and 1940,
earning it a reputation
as the “Ellis Island of the
West.” These days visitors
cross San Francisco Bay
by ferry to cycle, hike, and
picnic at Angel Island State
Park, which offers pan-
oramic Bay Area views.
JILL SCHNEIDER
EAT iT
SAN FRANCISCO
Four Food Healthy Cafés
Trends to
Savor
1 Seed + Salt is among
several area kitchens
taking local and organic to
new levels. The clean-
From upscale dining eating spot in the Marina
halls to cocktail lounges, district features plant-
here’s how to eat your based, gluten-free bites
way around the bay. like the popular veggie
burger—a blend of beets,
walnuts, lentils, and mush-
rooms. A former fine-dining
exec co-founded Hayes
Valley’s Little Gem, a
destination for veggie
bowls and flatbreads free
of dairy and refined sugar.
Michelin-starred Al’s Place
spotlights seasonal pro-
duce and fermented eats in
the Mission district, dishing
up meat items as sides.
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
Fresh Food Halls
2 The three-floor culi-
nary emporium China
Live debuted this year,
bringing an Asian tea café,
a restaurant with cooking
stations, and an eight-
course fine-dining venue
to Chinatown. Last August
the Tartine Bakery team
opened Tartine Manufac-
tory, a 6,000-square-foot
Mission production space
and dining hall. The chic
outpost houses a coffee
counter, ice-cream bar, and
restaurant. In the Castro,
the Myriad is a neigh-
borhood market hall and
entertainment stop with
pinball machines, comedy
shows, and game nights.
Cocktail Dens
3 Local chefs are shak-
ing things up with cozy
cocktail lounges tucked
inside restaurants. After
Liholiho Yacht Club’s 2016
James Beard nomination,
its owners unveiled Louie’s
Gen-Gen Room in the
Club’s basement. The tav-
ern serves tropical drinks
and highbrow pub snacks,
including a rotating waffle
selection. Expect cocktails,
champagne, and seafood
at the Hideaway, a Finan-
cial District retreat inside
Leo’s Oyster Bar. At Union
Square’s Benjamin Cooper,
above 398 Restaurant, a
spirited cocktail menu gets
updated weekly.
Fresh seafood
spread at Leo’s
Oyster Bar
Modern Mexican
4 Dogpatch neigh-
borhood’s Glena’s
opened in February,
introducing seasonal tacos,
tortas, and crispy churros.
Over in Cow Hollow, Flores
offers family-inspired
recipes, corn tortillas made
daily, and playful drinks—
including rum-based Tosti-
loco served with crushed
corn chips on the rim.
Mexico City chef Gabriela
Cámara chose Hayes Valley
for her first U.S. restau-
rant, Cala. Dine on local
produce and seafood in
the hip main café, or get
ALANNA HALE
casual lunch-hour tacos
and aguas frescas from the
adjacent Tacos Cala.
COME AS YOU ARE ®
PLACES WE LOVE
JAPAN

Q Places We Love:
National Geographic
Traveler celebrates
the United Nations
2017 International
Year of Sustainable
Tourism for
Development. For
more information on
this global initiative,
visit unwto.org.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
Going With Heritage sites organizes trips to
(the other is the area. At a time
the Flow in Spain’s Camino when rural to urban
Japan de Santiago). For migration threatens
those seeking to the future of
A journey into the experience Japan’s villages, Kumano’s
realm of nature can traditional way of community-based
bring purification life, the Kumano tourism helps
to the soul. And it embraces living sustain age-old
is with that in mind heritage—villagers customs. “Travelers
that centuries of tend heirloom sleep in family
Japanese pilgrims orchards of ume homestays and
have set out to plums, pound rice ryokans, where
walk the Kumano using wooden mal- kaiseki meals using
Kodo, a more than lets to make mochi, local ingredients
1,200-year-old and welcome the that represent each
network of trails weary to soak season are served,
that pass cedar tired muscles in as they have been
forests, cascading onsen hot springs. for generations,”
waterfalls, and pic- “Most foreigners adds Takayama.
turesque villages in have never heard Walking the
the Kii Mountains. of Kumano, but Kumano, where

SEAN PAVONE/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Anchored by three among the Japa- Buddhism also
Shinto shrines nese it’s a revered fused with Shinto,
dedicated to place of nature in gives renewed
nature, Kumano Japan’s spiritual meaning to the old
is one of only two heartland,” says adage that happi-
ancient pilgrimage Masaru Takayama, ness is a journey,
routes recognized president of the not a destination.
as UNESCO World Asian Ecotourism —Costas Christ
Network and
founder of Spirit of
Japan Travel, which

F E BRUA RY/MA RCH 2 0 1 7

 ADV E R TI SE M E NT
THE SUMMER OF MARS
BLAST OFF TO KENNEDY SPACE CENTER
VISITOR COMPLEX
W
hat’s the next great leap for mankind? The red
planet, of course! And right now the Summer
of Mars is upon us. Come to Kennedy Space
Center Visitor Complex and learn about NASA’s pathway
to setting foot on Martian soil. Whether or not you’re one
of the brave few who pioneer the way to another planet,
you can immerse yourself in the future of deep space
exploration by taking a behind-the-scenes look at NASA’s
quest for Mars. To inspire the next generation of space
explorers, the Visitor Complex is offering free admission
this summer to all incoming 5th graders.
Bring the “Journey to Mars” to life in the Explorers Wanted
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on a “Journey to Space.” Then you can build a Mars
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real NASA missions.
Throughout the summer, experts will offer exciting
presentations about Mars and the ongoing efforts to get
there. You might even see a rocket launch. Payloads are
heading to the International Space Station where astronauts
are developing ways to live and work in space now to
prepare for future journeys to Mars.
Get Your Ticket to Mars: Enter a nationwide contest to win a family trip to the Astronaut Training Experience®.
Start exploring at KennedySpaceCenter.com/SummerofMars
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NASA has spent 20 continuous years in robotic exploration
of Mars. We’re still studying the planet, trying to determine
if it held (or still holds) microbial life, and we’re learning
about how humans might live and work on long space
voyages. One big question is: Could Mars someday
be habitable?
In the meantime we’re gearing up to send astronauts there
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that trail will be the launch of a powerful new rocket, the
Space Launch System, which will propel an Orion spaceship
thousands of miles beyond the moon.
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when the new Astronaut Training Experience® education
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Mars, and, with advanced engineering and robotics, grow
food and survive on an alien planet. Mission simulations
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or mission control expert. You’ll also get to experience
microgravity, take a simulated walk on Mars, and feel what
it’s like to drive and ride a Mars Rover.
GET A FRONT ROW SEAT
TO OUR
JOURNEY TO

Touch, feel, learn, explore and be inspired

— at the place where we launch rockets,
and where immersive experiences take you
behind the scenes of NASA. Join us here
as we take our next giant leap.

This summer, we’re offering free admission

to all fifth graders to inspire them to join
NASA’s journey to Mars!

mmerofMars
OBSESSIONS
FISHING

The Pleasures of
Dropping a Line
A river runs through my travels,
preferably stocked with trout
By Cathy Newman

L
et me tell you about a store
I like to visit in London that
will offer some insight into a
passion of mine. It is not Fortnum
& Mason—Grocers and Provision
Merchants by Appointment to
the Queen—where I once spotted
ostrich eggs for sale (£35, or $43,
each). Nor Manolo Blahnik on Old
Church Street, where I sighed over
a silver silk-and-fur slipper that
looked like the accessory to a
fairy tale.
It is the sporting goods store
Farlows on Pall Mall in St. James.
Here the well-heeled may pur-
chase a pair of Wellington boots
lined in leather for £340 or, more
modestly, a trout fly called a
hackled wet bumble claret for one
pound. And near here, 20 years
ago at a now closed competitor’s,
I purchased a fly rod that breaks

In northwest
Montana’s Bitterroot
Mountains, Lolo Creek
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM lures an angler.
THERE’S A FINE LINE BETWEEN
ITINERARY AND BUCKET LIST. Photo by Marble Street Studio

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OBSESSIONS
FISHING
Luis Marden’s love of
fishing infuses this
1941 photo of rainbow
trout in Panama.

down into seven sections. Unassembled in its case, the

eight-foot, two-and-a-half-inch rod measures 18 inches
and fits in my handbag. It is called, appropriately, the
Smuggler, and allows me to combine two passions:
travel and fishing.
I have fished since the age of three. I grew up in
Miami Beach, and my backyard bordered on Biscayne
Bay, making it easy to drop a line in the water after
school. My parents would take me out fishing and tie
the first fish caught onto my line, and that would keep
me busy for the day. So when I became a staff writer
for National Geographic, many assignments—sheer
coincidence, of course—turned out to be in close prox-
imity to some fine fishing waters.
A story assignment on the Catskill Mountains
(published as “The Lure of the Catskills,” naturally)
mandated a day on the Beaver Kill. Another assign-
ment on the Pecos River yielded a cutthroat trout
caught in the icy waters near the river’s source in New
Mexico’s Sangre de Cristo Mountains (released, I might 3 Classic It so happens that my favorite fish, like that of
add). In Devon, England, there was a wild brown trout, Fishing Lodges the protagonists in Maclean’s novel, is trout, which
landed in the swift Thrushel while I was staying at the makes the marriage between fishing and travel even
Arundell Arms in Lifton. In the Scottish Highlands, BEAVERKILL VALLEY INN tighter. The British so loved fly-fishing that as the
two salmon on the River Garry. CATSKILLS, NEW YORK empire expanded, so did the range of trout. Because
As to the why, let me direct you to the Compleat trout eggs kept cool and wet remain viable for months,
This historic country
Angler himself, Izaak Walton, who wrote, “Rivers and inn enjoys an exclusive the British in the 19th century were able to introduce
the inhabitants of the watery element were made for one-mile stretch on the them to a litany of places where no trout had swum
wise men to contemplate, and fools to pass by without Beaver Kill, considered the before—such as India, Tasmania, and South Africa.
birthplace of American
consideration.” Rivers are mirrors. We pursue trout— dry fly-fishing. Post-outing, There remains ahead of me a lifetime of global pursuit.
or for that matter, most any other fish—and find an unwind on the wraparound Hanging in my home is a photograph taken in
elusive something in ourselves. wooden porch. Panama in 1941 by Luis Marden, the late legend-
Recently, I went home to Miami Beach for the hol- ary explorer, writer, and photographer for National
NIMMO BAY RESORT
idays to be with family. My father, 95, still fishes; my BRITISH COLUMBIA Geographic and a much missed friend. The image
brother, Andy, is a maniac about it, as is my sister- features three rainbow trout on a bed of moss with a
in-law Maria, who owns a small runabout and fishes Originally geared toward lush surround of yellow orchids and red coffee cherries.
heli-fishing, this National
in the Florida Keys for kingfish, yellowtail snapper, Geographic Unique Lodge Marden, who slipped his passion into every story he
and tarpon. of the World has expanded touched, found a way to cast a line (usually a fly line)
My family, like most, harbors frictions—some to include heli-hiking, into nearly every drop of exotic water he encountered.
whale-watching, kayaking
long-standing, others newly minted—that simmer Somehow he discovered, in this unlikely tropical set-
LUIS MARDEN (FISH); PREVIOUS PAGE: MIKE TITTEL (CREEK)
among salmon and sea
and boil, but fishing remains our common language lions, and glacier trekking. ting, a trout stream on the slopes of a volcano.
and safe territory. Some years ago, I interviewed John “Fishing is a solace,” Marden wrote a friend. “It is,
Maclean, son of Norman Maclean, the author of A River ARUNDELL ARMS as the writer George Orwell wrote, ‘the opposite of war,’
DEVON, ENGLAND
Runs Through It, and asked him to explain the role a civilized, gentle, and healing occupation.” With my
of fishing in his family. We sat in the living room of Home to an award-winning Smuggler tucked neatly in my suitcase, I like to think
his family’s cabin in Seeley Lake, Montana, while he fly-fishing school, this I am following in his footsteps.
family-run hotel caters to
sorted through memories, some still laced with pain. all levels of anglers, with
“Fishing,” he told me, “held together a family that 20 miles of private trout CATHY NEWMAN ( @wordcat12), former editor at
communicated in disastrous ways. Dad talks about and salmon streams. Staff large at National Geographic, became a convert to
will pack a picnic lunch
going to the river because he could say things there and send you off to your fly-fishing at the age of 36. She can do a double haul
he couldn’t say anywhere else.” assigned stretch of river. cast and considers it a worthy accomplishment.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
WHERE YOUR SENSE OF ADVENTURE
MEETS YOUR TASTE FOR LUXURY.
EXPLORER’S GUIDE
PERUVIAN MUSIC

A shaman plays a flute

alongside Amazonian
Peru’s Boiling River.

Facing the 1 2
Music in Hidden Workshop
Cusco Inside a storefront sign-
posted simply “Luthier,”
expertly made Andean
While living among the instruments lie scattered
Q’eros, an indigenous around their maker. Sabino
Andean group in south- Huamán, a third-generation
east Peru, Holly Wissler stringed instrument crafts-
was immersed in their man, will demonstrate how
native music. Now based to play each charango,
in Cusco, the ethno- bandurria, guitar, and
musicologist and Nat quena flute. Ask to see his
Geo Expeditions expert workshop upstairs, says
outlines where to find Wissler—and even if you
Andes Anthems
Traditional Andean
music isn’t something you
stumble across—it has to
be sought out. Wissler sug-
gests contacting Santos
Machacca Apaza, a Q’ero,
to sit in on an offering to
apus (mountain gods) and
Pachamama (Mother Earth)
at his family’s home, 20
minutes outside Cusco.
Request music up front so
that his mother is around
3 4
Dinner and a Show
What originated as leftist,
anti-dictatorship music
in the 1960s and ’70s has
morphed into Andean
folk, supported by guitar,
charango, various flutes,
and drums. “People love it,”
says Wissler of the haunt-
ing melodies, which are
best enjoyed over dinner at
any number of restaurants
in Cusco, including the
just opened Ayasqa, which
Electric Inca
Follow up the show with
drinks and dancing at this
local staple for Andean
rock. Ukukus has live shows
daily, while Sundays are
headlined by Amaru Puma
Kuntur, a band named for
the three cosmic figures
of the Inca Empire (snake,
puma, and condor). Here,
folk music goes electric,
with hand pipes and quena
flutes getting the rock-
SOFĺA RUZO

the best local beats. don’t purchase anything, to sing as his father plays overlooks Plaza de Armas and-roll treatment while
By Hannah Lott-Schwartz make sure to tip Huamán the pinkuyllu after leading and serves highly lauded singers alternate between
for his time. the hour-long ceremony. Peruvian comfort food. Quechua and Spanish.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
T his is the most swamped
you could ever hope to be.
Must be t he sunshi ne.

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It’s the perfect place for an adventurer’s vacation,
where you can enjoy the thrill of exploring
our natural wetlands and habitats.
 WHERE IN THE WORLD
U.S. BARBECUE
Austin, Tex.

T
he perfect way to soak up the summer is with a slice of white bread to mop up
every last drop of sweet, tangy barbecue sauce left on your plate. Around America,
barbecue is a point of pride. Loyal supporters argue that their region’s cuts, cooking
methods, and sauces are the best, while sporting restaurant trucker hats and tees as they
rseys. But how do you choose your own tasty team? In a country that’s brimming
with so any barbecue flavors, our advice is to try them all. —Hannah Sheinberg

ustin’s Franklin
Barbecue has
otoriously long
Casmalia, Calif. lin s. Get there at 2 a kson, Ga.
. . (an hour before
they close) for the
est chance at a
shorter wait.

Greensboro, N.C.

At western North
Carolina joints
like Stamey’s, the
vinegar-based sauce
also has ketchup.
On the eastern side
of the state, ketchup
is a no-no.

emphis, Tenn.

Chicago, Ill. Owensboro, Ky.

Kreuz Market in
Lockhart, Texas,
has been serving
up brisket, ribs,
and sausages for
117 years.

Lockhart, Tex.

Kansas City, K .
 Big Bob Gibson Charleston, S.C.
Bar-B-Q is credited with
inventing Alabama’s
beloved white sauce,
a mix of mayonnaise,
vinegar, horseradish,
cayenne, garlic, and lots
of black pepper.
De atur, Ala.

Barbecue legend
Rodney Scott recently Durham, N.C.
opened a new
restaurant, Rodney
Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ,
in Charleston, S.C.

Nashville, Tenn.

Tuscaloosa, Ala. Houston, Tex.

Taylor, Tex.

At its flagship location in

Lexington, N.C.
Tuscaloosa, Dreamland Turn the
Bar-B-Que dishes page for more
delicious ribs and hickory-
smoked sausages, along barbecue!
with slices of white bread.

Charleston, S.C. Kansas City, Kan.

WHERE IN THE WORLD
U.S. BARBECUE
W
hether it’s
chopped,
pulled, or
served over spaghetti,
barbecue around the
country has its own
distinct style and sauce.
Daniel Vaughn, barbecue
editor at Texas Monthly,
and Robert Moss, con-
tributing barbecue editor
at Southern Living, tell
us where to find the best
BBQ and slow-smoked
specialties. Our tip? Pack
extra napkins.
1. California
Around Santa Maria,
California, sirloin steak is
the cut. Seasoned with
salt, pepper, and garlic,
the meat’s cooked over
red-oak coals and usually
served with salsa and pink
(pinquito) beans.
Spots to try: Jocko’s,
Hitching Post, Far Western
Tavern
2. Texas
The Lone Star State has
three distinct barbecue
regions. West Texas prefers
brisket or beef shoulder,
usually with sauce on the
side. In Central Texas,
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
brisket and ribs are slowly
smoked, and sauce is
also not a necessity. East
Texas is the land of ribs
and chopped brisket sand-
wiches, topped with a hot
tomato-based sauce.
Spots to try: Tyler’s Barbe-
que (West Texas); Kreuz
Market, Cranky Frank’s
(Central Texas); Joseph’s
Riverport BBQ (East Texas)
3. Kansas City
Locals like their brisket
well-done here. The city’s
signature dish is burnt
ends, with a sweet
tomato-based sauce.
Spots to try: Joe’s Kansas
City Bar-B-Que, Slap’s BBQ,
Arthur Bryant’s
4. Chicago
The South Side of the
Windy City is home to
some of the country’s best
ribs, rib tips, and hot links,
all of which are cooked in
glass-walled smokers that
look like aquariums.
Spots to try: Lem’s Bar-B-
Que, Honey 1
5. Western Kentucky
Mutton makes the meal
in the Bluegrass State,
specifically in Owensboro.
Sliced, chopped, or served
as ribs, it’s paired with a
spicy Worcestershire sauce
known as “black dip.”
Spots to try: Old Hickory
Bar-B-Que, Moonlite Bar-
B-Q Inn
6. Memphis
If you have the blues,
Memphis offers a pick-me-
up in the form of barbecue
spaghetti (pasta topped
with sweet sauce and pork)
and dry-rubbed ribs.
Spots to try: Leonard’s Pit
Barbecue, Central BBQ,
Cozy Corner Bar-B-Q
7. Alabama
This state specializes in
direct-heat ribs and
smoked chicken with white
sauce. “The sauce tastes
like barbecue ranch dress-
ing,” says Moss.
Spots to try: Archibald’s
Bar-B-Que, Dreamland
Bar-B-Que, Big Bob Gibson
Bar-B-Que
8. Georgia
For a quintessential taste
of Georgia barbecue, try
a chopped pork sandwich
with tomato-based sauce.
Spots to try: Old Brick Pit,
Fresh Air Bar-B-Que
9. South Carolina
Two distinct sauces
thrive in S.C.’s BBQ scene.
Pee Dee style means a
vinegar-and-pepper sauce,
with chicken and rice sides
such as perloo or chicken
bog. Midlands style centers
on a mustard-based sauce,
as well as sides of hash
and rice (pork and gravy,
poured over rice).
Spots to try: Scott’s BBQ,
Melvin’s, Bessinger’s
REBECCA HALE/NGP (HATS), ANDREW JOYCE (ILLUSTRATIONS)
10. North Carolina
“North Carolina is one of
the pillars of the barbecue
world,” says Vaughn. The
state sets the standard for
whole hog cooking. Order
pulled pork with the area’s
vinegar-based sauce (but
the side of the state you’re
on will determine the
vinegar-to-ketchup ratio).
Spots to try: Barb-B-Q Cen-
ter, Lexington Barbecue,
Picnic, Buxton Hall
 Escape to time-honored trails,
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 WHERE
PERFECTION
meets
THE SEA

C O M I N G F A L L 2 0 1 7
SMART CITIES
HELSINKI
Finland is celebrating a
century of independence.
Some credit kalsarikännit,
the Finnish concept of
drinking at home alone
in your underwear, for
this milestone, but the
World Economic Forum
has another notion. The
2017 Travel & Tourism Com-
petitiveness Report names
Finland as the world’s
safest destination. The
Nordic nation is also the
world’s fifth happiest coun-
try, according to the World
Happiness Report. Helsinki,
the coastal capital, seems
to have turned native son
Eero Saarinen’s futuristic
outlook into a blueprint
for urban innovation that
benefits locals and visitors
alike. The city is collabo-
rating with think tanks and
philanthropies to plan for
the rollout of self-driving
vehicles. Kalasatama, the
old harbor area, is now a
revitalized district brought
back to life through public-
private partnerships. There
and throughout the city,
creative incubators are
at work, growing global
acclaim for sustainable
cuisine, environmental
preservation, and—
always—Scandinavian
style, making for a walkable
city well worth exploring
now. —Adrienne Jordan
Lounge on the terrace
at Löyly, a new sauna
complex in Helsinki.
 Did you know a group of
sea turtles is called a bale?
Did you also know a group of National Geographic members who insure
their car with GEICO are called Savers? That’s right, as a member and
subscriber of Nat Geo, you could save even more on your car insurance
with a special discount. Join your fellow members who already insure their
car with GEICO, and you could end up saving a bale of money, too.

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group discount applicable per policy. Coverage is individual. In New York a premium reduction may be available. GEICO is a registered service mark of
Government Employees Insurance Company, Washington, D.C. 20076; a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary. © 2014 GEICO
SMART CITIES
HELSINKI
Eat
FOOD HALLS AND
DINING FEASTS
Located next to Market
Square, the 19th-century
Old Market Hall has two
dozen gleaming stalls
offering options like Finnish
beef, smoked fish, pho,
and jelly doughnuts in the
shape of pigs. In the Ullan-
linna district, Chef &
Sommelier has been
Michelin-starred since
2014. The five-to-seven-
course menu features
items such as arctic char,
pork neck and beets, and
a juniper and blueberry
dessert. Restaurant Grön
uses seasonal Scandina-
vian ingredients to create
dishes such as cod with
gratinated leek and grilled
buckwheat bread with pre-
served forest mushrooms.
Stay
SLEEK SLEEPOVERS
Plant yourself smack-dab
in the city center at the
minimalist GLO Hotel
Kluuvi, located steps from
shopping oasis Galleria
Esplanad. The modern
Hotel Haven is adjacent to
the South Harbour, where
ferries depart to Stockholm
and Tallinn, Estonia. Art
deco enthusiasts should
stay at Hotel Lilla Roberts,
which was originally
designed in 1908 by one of
Finland’s top architects and
was formerly the headquar-
ters of Helsinki Energy.
The building opened in
2015 as a hotel with 130
stylish rooms and a swanky
restaurant that serves
traditional Nordic dishes
such as smørrebrød and
lingonberry porridge.
Clockwise from top
left: Helsinki University
Library, Kamppi Chapel,
a sauna at Löyly, fried
chicken at Restaurant
Grön, Esplanade Park
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
Play
SOAK UP THE CITY
Built of leftover mate-
rials from the country’s
plywood industry, Löyly is
a supersize public sauna
and restaurant complex
that debuted last year.
Here guests can relax in a
traditional smoke sauna or
a wood-burning sauna. The
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: KUVATOIMISTO KUVIO OY (LIBRARY), GETTY IMAGES/WESTEND61 (CHAPEL), KUVATOIMISTO KUVIO OY (SAUNA), TONI KOSTIAN (FOOD), GULLIVER THEIS/LAIF/REDUX (PARK); NG MAPS.
vaulted-roof Tennis Palace,
constructed for the 1940
Olympic Games that were
canceled, now houses
a cultural complex that
includes the Helsinki Art
Museum, which reopened
in 2015 after renovations.
Iittala & Arabia Design
Centre offers an in-depth
look at Finland’s beloved
design and lifestyle brands,
Iittala and Arabia, and
showcases limited-edition
products, to commemorate
the country’s centennial.
Shop
AVANT-GARDE ARTS
AND CRAFTS
Finnish photographer Katja
Hagelstam created Lokal
in 2012 with the aim to
combine a shopping and
gallery experience. Visitors
can catch revolving exhibi-
tions like the recent “Black
Lake,” which features
custom furniture by Nikari,
and “Bloom,” a collection
of art by designers under
30. Visit CraftCorner to
stock up on goods made
by local artisans, or stop
at Artek Helsinki to get a
classic custom-made Alvar
Aalto stool that you can
ship back home.
PREVIOUS PAGE: KUVATOIMISTO KUVIO OY
200 mi
200 km
AY
RW
EN
RU
NO
ED
SSI
FINLAND
SW
Helsinki
TONIA
 17_147
© 2017 Preferred Hotels & Resorts
The Preferred Life
JUST BEYOND THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

Ungrip the phone. Let loose the to-do list. Move your mind to a place
of calm — where real priorities align and time relaxes with you.

P R E F E R R E D H O T E L S . C O M

POST RANCH INN T H E A L P I N A G S TA A D B U R G V I TA L R E S O RT

OFF-SEASON STRATEGIST
PARIS

DECEMBER TO MARCH: Just because the weather may 800F 30

mm
be gloomy and gray doesn’t mean the City of Light will
lose its luster. In fact, Paris becomes that much more 40 0
interesting (and manageable) in the winter. And the J F M A M J A D J F M A M J A D
deals become more delectable. Average high temperature Average rainfall

DINING

Spring Fever

Its name might be Spring,

but American-born chef
Daniel Rose’s restaurant
offers seasonal menus
year-round. “Every season
has highlights,” says Rose,
but unusual ingredients
such as “celery root, sea
urchins, truffles, endives,
and fruits like pineapple
and lychee are all part of
our winter repertoire.” The
multicourse menu will set
you back 84 euros (around
$90) a person, a relative
bargain by Paris standards.

LODGING

Stately Stay

The Peninsula Paris’s

prime location between
the Arc de Triomphe and
the Trocadéro commands
summer rates that start
around a thousand dollars,
whereas winter nights are
a few hundred dollars less.
You can score a table at the
hotel’s impossible-to-book

© PETER MARLOW/MAGNUM PHOTOS (EIFFEL TOWER), TAMER KOSELI (ILLUSTRATION)

restaurant, L’Oiseau Blanc,
and catch stunning views
of the Eiffel Tower through
its glass roof.
Eiffel Tower
views come at a FLIGHTS
lower price in the
off-season. Flights of Fancy

Air France’s Flying Blue

program offers discounts
ACTIVITY of 25 to 50 percent on
glassy, futuristic facade that looks as if it’s moving some award flights, so you
Museum Meanders in the breeze. The museum installs twice-yearly can fly round trip from
contemporary- and modern-art shows. A recent select U.S. cities to Europe
for as few as 25,000
A new museum in Paris has quickly become one of showcase was the collection of 19th-century miles. For folks wanting an
the city’s major draws. Opened in 2014, the Frank Russian art patron Sergei Shchukin, which featured inexpensive coach ticket,
Gehry-designed Fondation Louis Vuitton stands Matisses, Picassos, Monets, and more. Book your airfares to Paris on low-cost
upstarts such as Norwe-
out from its surroundings in the leafy, lake-filled tickets online ahead of time in order to skip the often gian Air and WOW Air have
public park of the Bois de Boulogne thanks to a massive queues at the door. lately been below $400.

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM BY E R IC RO SE N
 GET OUT THERE
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BEST LIST
21 GREAT ECO-ESCAPES
³ Sustainable, spectacular, and engaged with local communities, these lodges are tucked into some of the planet’s wildest places
From a handful of rustic
lodges committed to con-
servation back in the early
1990s, sustainable tourism
is now transforming the
global travel industry, and
in the process helping to
safeguard cultural and
natural heritage, support
environmentally friendly
practices, and deliver eco-
nomic and social benefits
to local people.
Coconut oil helps
power The Brando, in
French Polynesia.
Among the new generation
of lodges is The Brando, in
French Polynesia. The late
actor Marlon Brando’s eco-
dream brought to life, the
private island is run on 100
percent renewable energy
sources, including solar
power and coconut oil.
Guests can join naturalist
guides to explore Tetiaroa
atoll, once the sacred
retreat of Tahitian royalty,
with giant coconut crabs
and temples. Read on for
20 more of our favorite
eco-lodges. —Costas Christ
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BEST LIST
21 GREAT ECO-ESCAPES
Classic Comfort
ECOTOURISM LEGENDS
Nature reigns at Jetwing
Vil Uyana in Sri Lanka’s
famed Cultural Triangle,
home to the gray slender
loris, among the world’s
tiniest primates. Costa
Rica’s Lapa Rios has long
been a conservation icon.
Deep in Bolivia’s Madidi
National Park, indigenous
guides welcome intrepid
travelers to Chalalan
Ecolodge, an ideal base
camp for jungle explora-
tion. Maasai warriors are
your hosts at Il Ngwesi,
a community-owned
safari lodge on the edge of
Kenya’s Northern Frontier
district. Families flock
to O’Reilly’s Rainforest
Retreat on Australia’s
Gold Coast.
Island Abodes
WATER WORLDS
At the new Six Senses Zil
Pasyon in the Seychelles,
guests can kayak to Ile
Cocos Marine National
Park. Director Francis Ford
Coppola opened Coral
Caye last year in Belize,
surrounded by a rainbow
of sea life. Concordia’s
canvas solar cabins on St.
John, USVI, were one of
the early ecotourism land-
marks. Madagascar’s Tsara
Komba Lodge is prime for
spotting lemurs and cha-
meleons. Rasta vibes thrive
at Jakes, a family-owned
retreat in Jamaica.
GO WITH NAT GEO
The Brando, Lapa Rios,
Tsara Komba Lodge, and
Aristi Mountain Resort are
members of National Geo-
graphic Unique Lodges of
the World, a collection of
55 global properties ded-
icated to community and
conservation. For more,
visit natgeolodges.com.
N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
Savanna Spots
PEACE ON THE PLAINS
Ted Turner’s Sierra Grande
Lodge in New Mexico pro-
vides access to over half
a million acres of private
wilderness, part of the con-
servation crusader’s efforts
to rewild America. In South
Africa’s Cape Floral Region,
nature trails connect
Fynbos Retreat’s three
bush cottages. Reindeer
herders share their wisdom
about the Sami indigenous
way of life at northern Swe-
den’s Sápmi Nature Camp.
FROM TOP: JOHN ATHIMARITIS/SIX SENSES ZIL PASYON, JAIDEEP OBEROI/JETWING, JAKES HOTEL, VILLAS AND SPA; PREVIOUS PAGE: THE BRANDO (LODGE), TAMER KOSELI (ILLUSTRATION)
At Estancia Los Potreros
in Argentina, gauchos
lead horseback trips to
hidden waterfalls. The new
Duba Expedition Camp, a
partnership between Great
Plains Conservation and
the Okavango Community
Trust in Botswana, offers
a front-row seat to Africa’s
majestic wildlife.
Peak Outposts
HIGH ON NATURE
Crystal rivers, deep gorges,
and soaring peaks com-
bine with Greek village life
at Aristi Mountain Resort
& Villas. On a hilltop
overlooking New Zealand’s
Coromandel Peninsula,
Manawa Ridge merges
eco-living with adventure
outings. The Lodge at Valle
Chacabuco, in Chile, sits in
the heart of Patagonia Park,
a conservation initiative
protecting nearly 200,000
acres. Hear wolves howl
at night, while staying
at the Prince of Wales’s
Guesthouse in rural Tran-
sylvania. North of Hanoi
in Sa Pa, Topas Ecolodge
organizes treks into Hoang
Lien National Park, a global
biodiversity hotspot.
From top: Six Senses Zil
Pasyon, in the Seychelles;
Jetwing Vil Uyana, in
Sri Lanka; and Jakes, in
Jamaica
 MOXY
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TRAVEL TECH
TREASURE HUNTING

Hidden in Plain Sight

Long before Pokémon Go, the GPS-based game of
geocaching led playful travelers outdoors
By Gillian Kendall
Illustrations by Eiko Ojala

M
ost people go to Waikiki for the surf, the
shopping, and the sushi. But not me.
One cocktail hour in spring, as crowds of
sunburned, vacation-happy Japanese, American,
and German tourists ambled past, eating shave ice
and making dinner plans, I sat on a bench gazing at
a few yards of sidewalk surrounded by plain grass.
Embarrassingly I was on my third visit to that patch
of unremarkable pavement.
Slack-key guitar music drifted from restaurant ter-
races, and I was missing a surfing lesson, but I hunched
over a yellow plastic GPS device, avoiding eye contact.
All I cared about before leaving entrancing Oahu was
finding the cache—difficulty level “moderate”—that
had so far eluded me.
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TRAVEL TECH
TREASURE HUNTING

My devotion to this unlovely stretch of concrete

was part of my fascination with the international form
of hide-and-seek known as geocaching. Long before
there was Pokémon Go, people all over the globe
were hiding (and finding!) “geocaches.” Every cache
is different, and there are millions of them around the
world. The hidden containers include a finders’ log and
sometimes “trades”—small tokens that are sometimes
related to the cache’s theme or location. You can also
leave a trade in return. In a California cache I found a
squashed penny showing San Francisco’s Golden Gate
Bridge; beach caches might proffer shells or photos of
seabirds. Since a lot of people take kids caching, there
are often plastic toys, pins, or stickers (but never food,
for obvious reasons). Geocaching
“Trackable” items—with a unique tracking Essentials
number to log online—are hidden as surprises in
caches, a find within a find. Usually the trackable has a HOW DO I GET STARTED?
goal that the person who owns it wants to achieve. For
A good starting point
instance, I found a geocoin in Melbourne, Australia, that is Geocaching.com, about children solving mysteries. I made my friends
included instructions that it was to be moved around which offers a 75-second decode and follow trails of secret messages that I left,
the globe. I helped it about 10,000 miles on its way, introductory video. Note: one note leading to the next to the next. Now I get the
The video shows a young
taking it on a flight to the United States and rehiding woman easily coming same thrill from tracking down geocache clues.
it in New Jersey. Sometimes geocaches near airports across a cache larger than As with Pokémon Go, the game has massive appeal.
contain trackables hoping to hitch a lift in a suitcase. her head, but in reality Geocaching.com has over 14 million registered users,
most caches are small and
Much of the fun of geocaching is in the cleverness cleverly camouflaged. To and for a few of them, it’s apparently quite an obses-
or unusual location of the hides. Geocaching while find a list of caches near sion. Many have logged finds in the tens of thousands.
traveling offers an insider’s view of a place since caches you, enter your location. Paul Frizzell, 53, a maintenance supervisor in
The website lists clues and
are often hidden by locals in spots that most tourists coordinates for each hide, Chicago, has been caching for 13 years and has found
never see. Note: Geocachers enjoy mystery, and it’s as well as ways to contact caches in all 50 U.S. states and in Canada. Frizzell says
frowned on to alert “Muggles” (non-geocachers) to the the person who hid the he has “just over 20,000” finds but claims he’s “just
cache in case you need
presence of a cache. Though they often appear in plain extra help (as I often do). barely in the top 20 in the state of Illinois.”
sight, cache containers must be camouflaged so that Back to Oahu, and that dull stretch of sidewalk.
Muggles don’t come across them. WHAT DO I NEED? After a long time poring over my GPS device and
More than 3 million active geocaches are hidden all rereading my notes, I finally found the “Royal Coconut
³ a dedicated GPS device
over Earth, from Antarctica on up. Within 10 miles of or a smartphone app Grove” cache: a magnetized strip of gray rubber
National Geographic’s offices in Washington, D.C., lie (such as c:geo, for wrapped around a utility pole. It blended in so per-
more than 1,000 active caches. Travelers can geocache Android, which is free) fectly with the metal protrusions that I had touched
³ a pen for signing the
anywhere, anytime, with little preparation or special cache’s log it once without realizing what it was. The cache came
equipment. To play, you need only a GPS-enabled ³ a camera (to photograph off, and on the back was a tiny space to log the find.
device. Unlike Pokémon Go, geocaching does not your finds, for fun) I sneakily replaced it when I thought no Muggles
³ whatever you’d normally
encourage competitiveness, and it’s nearly anarchist take on an outdoor were watching, but someone may have seen me and
in its lack of rules. The most serious guidelines concern excursion destroyed it, because that particular cache hasn’t been
respect for the environment: Caches must be hidden in found since. Fortunately, though, there are millions
public areas or on private land with permission. They WHAT DO I DO WHEN I more, including my latest find, near my Florida house:
FIND A CACHE?
are never buried. In other words, we geocachers explore a hollowed-out coconut hanging from a tree.
but do no harm to the earth, and many practice “cache Sign the cache log, and
in, trash out,” picking up litter as we hunt. take and leave a “trade” Having lived on four continents and written three
if you wish. Then record
What I love most about the game is figuring out the your visit to the cache on books, GILLIAN KENDALL ( @GillianWriter) works
puzzles. As a kid I adored Harriet the Spy and books Geocaching.com. as an adventurer for hire (gilliankendall.org).

N ATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
THE TIDE IS TURNING

NEW SEASON MAY 30

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Best.
Summer.
Ever.
22 Trips the Whole
Family Will Love
Take one part adventure, add whatever
your family is obsessed with at the moment,
mix with warm weather, and you’ve got the
recipe for an epic summer vacation

BY
HEATHER
GREENWOOD
DAVIS J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 57
PLAY ZONES
Top trips in favorite places, whether
a city, national park, or the beach
ENGLAND/U.S.
Into the Wild
Spend 24 hours in the wilderness
learning to make fire, forage for
grubs, and build a shelter. Families
(with kids ages 9–17) can join the
Bear Grylls Survival Academy
adventure in England or the U.S.
beargryllssurvivalacademy.com
CANADA
Nothing but Nature
Soak in the hot springs of Banff,
Canada’s first national park; hike
the cliffs off the Cabot Trail; explore
coastal rain forest in Haida Gwaii; or
meet the Vikings in Gros Morne—all
in celebration of Canada’s 150th
anniversary. Admission to any site
operated by Parks Canada is free in
2017 (though fees for some experi-
ences still apply). pc.gc.ca
BORNEO
Real Jungle Gyms
Swinging monkeys and ambling
orangutans await in the dense
jungles on Intrepid Travel’s “Borneo
Family Adventure.” After you’ve
gotten up close to these fascinating
creatures, cool off on a snorkeling
trip on Pulau Tiga, the island setting
for the very first season of CBS’s
Survivor series. intrepidtravel.com
LISBON
Urban Explorers
MEXICO
Beach Bound
The walkable Portuguese capital Sometimes you just want to chill
offers a quintessential European at an all-inclusive beach resort.
experience. Purchase a Lisboa card No shame. At Club Med Ixtapa,
(lisboacard.org): It offers discounts activities include stand-up paddle
or free admission to key attractions, boarding and archery, but simply
such as the massive Oceanarium, lounging at the beach or the pool is
the conservation-focused Lisbon OK too. clubmed.us/ixtapa
Zoo, and STEM-focused Pavilion
of Knowledge. Best of all, the card
includes free rides on the city’s
popular trams. Then take a day trip
to the town of Sintra to explore the
fairy-tale Pena Palace.
Like a Lego castle on a hill, Pena National Palace in
Sintra, Portugal, can be seen from Lisbon on a clear day.
Previous page: Splash time at an Oahu beach
ANIMAL
KINGDOM
When the local petting zoo just
won’t cut it anymore

KENYA

Elephant Playdate
Kick it old school in Kenya on
an Elevate Destinations trip that
will have the kids standing side
by side with Maasai warriors,
visiting with baby elephants,
and learning about regional
conservancy efforts. Bonus:
Every Elevate trip provides local
children with a tour to see the
highlights of their home country.
elevatedestinations.com

MEXICO

Shark Swim
Match flippers against the largest
fish in the world. Sustainable
tour company Reefs to Rockies
leads custom trips out to snorkel
and swim with whale sharks off
Isla Mujeres. reefstorockies.com

WYOMING

Dino Dig
Think you know your triceratops
from your T. rex? Participate in
a dig for real dinosaur bones at
the Wyoming Dinosaur Center.
(Scientists here consulted on
Disney-Pixar’s The Good
Dinosaur.) Then delve into the
collection, including a 150-million-
year-old Archaeopteryx fossil.
wyodino.org

CANADA

Baby Beluga Nursery

Each summer (July–early August)
the Hudson Bay coast of Churchill,
Manitoba, becomes Beluga
Central. Tens of thousands of
whales return here to give birth.
Book a kayak adventure, and you’ll
feel moms and babies bumping
your boat. Opt to snorkel, and
you’ll find the friendly whales
are as curious about you as you
will be about them.

ALASKA

Paw Patrol
Just try to deal with the cuteness
on John Hall’s Alaska Grand Slam
tour, during which you can meet
a sled dog racing team and the
puppies that may one day join
them in the legendary Iditarod
race. Later, visit Denali National
Park, which turns 100 this year.
kissalaska.com
 Young elephants
wallow in a mud bath
in Kenya’s Samburu
National Reserve.
 FAMILY
MOVIE NIGHT
Rewind the kids’ favorite flicks in
these glittery real-life locations
HAWAII
Aloha, Moana
Disney’s Aulani resort on Oahu
offers the chance to meet and greet
Moana but also to dive deeper into
Polynesian culture. Top tip: Story-
teller Uncle Aito shares Hawaiian
legends and history. resorts.disney
.go.com
NORWAY
Frozen Fantasy
Spot the resemblance between
Anna and Elsa’s family castle and
Oslo’s medieval Akershus Fortress.
Then visit Bergen, gateway to
Norway’s epic fjord country—which
looks an awful lot like Arendelle.
Both cities appear on National
Geographic’s new family expedition
to Denmark and Norway. natgeo
expeditions.com/explore
LONDON
Portkey to All Things Potter
The British capital is crawling with
Muggles Snapchatting Platform
9 3/4 at King’s Cross station, or
queuing up at Palace Theater
for the play Harry Potter and the
Cursed Child. Tour for Muggles
Costa Rica helps
families get up to
speed with ziplining
in a cloud forest.
(tourformuggles.com) offers guided
walks of Harry Potter film locations
throughout London, while Warner
Bros. Studio is home to the official
tour of movie props and sets. Bed
down at family-run Georgian House
Hotel (georgianhousehotel.co.uk),
where themed Wizard Rooms hide
behind a bookcase.
ON TREND
Indulge your superfans with a trip
that’s hotter than hot
JAPAN
On the Go With Pokémon
Lure them to Japan with promises
of Pikachu, but keep them hooked
with a tour that explores the anime
culture that made the Pokémon
game such a global success. The
Pokémon Go–inspired tour with
Explorient also includes a visit to
Tokyo’s Tsukiji Fish Market, a ride
on the bullet train, and biking
Kyoto back streets. explorient.com/
japan-tours
NEVIS/U.S.
The $10 Founding Father
Tickets to the Tony Award–winning
Hamilton musical are hard to come
by, but booking a trip to Alexander
Hamilton’s Caribbean island birth-
place of Nevis—where his former
home is now a museum—will have
everyone singing. At Colonial
Williamsburg a costumed Lafayette
still rallies troops. And new inter-
active museums dedicated to the
American Revolution rise up in both
Yorktown (historyisfun.org) and Phil-
adelphia (amrevmuseum.org).
ATLANTA
Beware of Walkers
Don’t look now (and don’t make
any loud noises), but your city
guide might be a former member
of the undead. Atlanta Movie Tours
offers three different itineraries to
locations that have appeared in
the hit series The Walking Dead,
such as the Jackson Street bridge
and the Goat Farm. Guides are also
actors who have performed on set.
atlantamovietours.com
SILICON VALLEY
Geeks in Paradise
Tech pioneers as well as newly
IPO’d start-ups cluster south of
San Francisco. Visitors can face-
swap on giant screens at the Tech
Museum of Innovation (thetech
.org), challenge each other to a
vintage game of Pong or PacMan
at the Computer History Museum
(computerhistory.org), and pose for
selfies with oversize Android figures
at Google headquarters. The
on-site store at Apple HQ (1 Infinite
Loop, Cupertino) stocks unique
T-shirts, mugs, and more.
EDINBURGH
Characters Animated
For the past 70 years, superheroes,
jugglers, magicians, and
comedians have roamed Edin-
burgh’s cobblestone streets during
the three-week Festival Fringe.
Costumes are welcome and
audience participation—everything
from bubble-making to Elizabethan
sword fighting—is enthusiastically
encouraged. edfringe.com
ADRENALINE
RUSH
Get mad new skills on one of these
active adventures
IDAHO
White-Water Runners
Nothing says “family bonding”
like the teamwork required to raft
Class IV rapids. Kids row too, on
ROW Adventures’ seven-day “Raft &
Ranch” trip down the Salmon River.
THE PALMER (ZIP LINE); PREVIOUS PAGES: PAUL NICKLEN (BEACH), LAVENDERTIME/ISTOCK EDITORIAL/GETTY IMAGES PLUS (CASTLE), MICHAEL NICHOLS (ELEPHANTS)
With no Wi-Fi signal to distract
them, they turn instead to new
friends and impromptu sing-alongs.
rowadventures.com
QUEBEC
Flip Fantastic
Head to the province where Cirque
du Soleil was born for the annual
Montreal Cirque Festival. Each July,
international circus acts dazzle
audiences. Visitors can take their
own turns on the trapeze and tight-
rope or try their hands at juggling.
montrealcompletementcirque.com
COSTA RICA
Sky High
On National Geographic’s “Costa
Rica Family Expedition,” hike
through a cloud forest as guides
point out the creatures tucked into
the trees, and sail through the air
on a zip line above the Río Perdido.
natgeoexpeditions.com/explore
BELIZE
Under the Sea
Open your bungalow door on
Robinson Crusoe–worthy Long
Caye and step into a diving, surfing,
snorkeling, or kayaking adventure.
With no internet, TVs, or phones.
slickrock.com
When not traveling, Toronto-based
HEATHER GREENWOOD DAVIS
( @greenwooddavis) is busy
replying to her kids’ Snapchats.
 For the Stylish Set For Foodies and Car Lovers
Milan steps up with cutting-edge Modena may be home to Ferrari,
architecture, indie designers, but take it slow to savor the
and surprising art. city’s cuisine.

Italy for

64 NATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
 Best Summer Ever

For Crafty Travelers For Hipper Sippers For Eternal Romantics

In the hill towns of Umbria, Taste Capri in a bottle of In Sicily, life lived con amore
artisans turn out gorgeous limoncello, made from the finds its most intense expression
ceramics and textiles. island’s legendary lemons. on volcanic Stromboli.

Everyone Italy is a mosaic of style, sparkle, and

sprezzatura. Here are five sensational
spots for celebrating local life.

Red poppies, yellow lentils, and other flowers stripe

the fields of Castelluccio di Norcia, in Umbria.

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 65
 Milan

Modena

Umbria

TALY

Capri

Sicily

Fashionably Forward
Milan

Several hundred years ago, some genius decided

to put a doorway directly under Leonardo da
Vinci’s masterpiece “The Last Supper”—chopping
off Jesus’ feet in the process. Planners in Milan
today wouldn’t commit that mistake. The fashion
and finance capital is obsessed with making shoes as visible as
possible. And we’re not just talking Ermenegildo Zegna loafers.
Pedestrian-friendly projects are all the rage across the northern
Italian city, which is deploying design elements to combat a
skyline that had become known as smoggy and stale. whole development has become a magnet for coffee drinkers,
The showstopper is Porta Nuova, a formerly dead zone located cocktail sippers, and, of course, shoppers. International brands
KRZYSZTOF DYDYNSKI, GETTY IMAGES (MILAN);

between the central train station and Milan’s top tourist attrac-
tions (including its original grand shopping arcade, the Galleria
Vittorio Emanuele II). Over the past five years, Porta Nuova has
become the place to geek out over architecture. Stand in the
elevated Piazza Gae Aulenti, with its LED-enhanced fountains,
while gazing up at the steel spire atop the UniCredit Tower—the
tallest building in Italy. Just beyond a mod botanic garden is the
abound, but the main fashionista focus is just a short stroll to
the south. Behind an understated entrance draped with vines,
10 Corso Como combines art gallery, restaurant, bookshop, and
clothing store. (A New York branch is due to open this year.)
It’s easy to imagine a similar scene emerging soon on the
opposite side of Milan at CityLife, a mixed-use project that’s
one of the largest car-free zones in Europe. A trio of big-name
NG MAPS

ultimate tree house: two residential high-rises covered in leafy architects—Zaha Hadid, Arata Isozaki, and Daniel Libeskind—
vegetation and named Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest). The are the creatives behind what is currently a ridiculously pleasant

66 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM

construction site with cranes soaring beside gleaming skyscrap-
ers, and kids and dogs frolicking in the park below.
Expo 2015, the world’s fair that brought global attention to
the city, jump-started many of these changes. It forced Milan to
PREVIOUS PAGES: RICCARDO RAGAZZO/
move forward, says Marco Tabasso, co-curator and press officer
for Galleria Rossana Orlandi, which features quirky, independent
PHOTOEMOTIONS (VILLAGE)
designers. He’s gradually seen local tastes evolve from traditional
to open-minded.
“Let’s say Milan has been stuck for some years, and now
there’s a new wave of energy,” says Francesca Picciocchi, a
native Milanese who works for an Italian menswear brand. For
One of the world’s
first shopping malls,
Galleria Vittorio
Emanuele II still
provides high-end
retail therapy.
instance, there wasn’t much reason to visit the industrial Porta
Romana area until it recently welcomed Fondazione Prada, a
contemporary art complex with a retro-inspired bar designed
by director Wes Anderson. A revitalization of the Darsena, the
city’s dock, has made it even more appealing to wander through
the Navigli neighborhood, where Picciocchi hunts down vintage
goods. Even trendy Zona Tortona, the center of design in the city,
is buzzing more than ever with new businesses and museums
(including one from Giorgio Armani).
The only downside to exploring all of these offerings? The
potential for blisters. —Vicky Hallett
J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 67
Modena on wheels:
a vintage Fiat 508 at
the Ferrari museum;
pedaling past the
cathedral (right)
Fast Cars, Slow Food
Modena
In the heart of Emilia-Romagna, about two hours
from Milan, Modena is sprawling and modern on
its fringes, but preserves an intact old city with
cobblestones and medieval alleyways. Birthplace
of Enzo Ferrari (and Luciano Pavarotti), Modena
and the surrounding Po River Valley connote sleek motors to
some travelers. Lamborghini, Ducati, and Ferrari (currently cel-
ebrating seven decades) all have their origins in Motor Valley.
But the region is as much a gourmand’s mecca as a motor-head’s
heaven. After you’ve zoomed over to the Ferrari museum for
68 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
historic cars and a Formula 1 driving simulator, slow down amid
students and families with a picnic in Modena’s UNESCO-listed
Piazza Grande, beneath the shadow of the Ghirlandia Tower.
To load up your hamper, drop into any classic salumeria.
There, you can buy from a treasure trove of Emilia-Romagnan
SIME/ESTOCK PHOTO (CAR), JOHN BURKE, GETTY IMAGES (CATHEDRAL)
specialties, from salty prosciutto di Parma to velvety culatello
di Zibello to pistachio-dappled mortadella.
Or, walk through the Mercato Albinelli, the city’s preferred
public market since 1931. You may run into Modena’s homeboy
celebrity chef, Massimo Bottura. Bottura remains down-to-earth
despite three Michelin stars and a restaurant consistently listed
as one of the top in the world, Osteria Francescana.
If you can’t nab a coveted reservation there, head to no-less-
timeless Osteria Ermes, a family-owned trattoria near the Piazza
della Pomposa. Before recent health problems, octogenarian
owner Ermes Rinaldi himself was likely to sit down, pour a
glass of fizzy local Lambrusco, and watch until you’d consumed
every morsel of your flaxen-colored tagliatelle topped with ragù.

“Mangia,” he might say, pointing a threatening finger at your
heaping plate of his famous cuisine.
The epitome of Modena’s soulful gastronomy, this tiny,
no-nonsense local institution, bedecked with faded photos and
long-expired calendars, offers daily-changing lunches that bring
more residents than tourists. Eat enough (from options that
might include tender rabbit or tortellini in brodo), and you might
earn a smile from crusty Rinaldi, whose life’s work is to make sure
you’ve been well fed. Seated at a shared table, you may watch
a mother feed her baby his first solid food. “The doctor says
that Parmigiano Reggiano must be first. It’s full of protein,” she
says, handing the infant a grainy cheese chunk perfectly sized
for his chubby fist. As he gnaws, wide-eyed with culinary glee,
his mother drizzles thick-as-molasses, 40-year-aged balsamic
vinegar on her own cheese plate, a simple umami-explosion
invented by the Modenese.
As Rinaldi says, before more platters of his satisfying food
emerge from the kitchen, “Food is love.” —Becca Hensley
Saints and Artisans
Umbria
Its name evokes a gentle chant: OOM-
brrree-ahh. The small region of Umbria,
landlocked in the center of Italy’s boot,
welcomes travelers to slow down on country
roads that wind through oak forests, hazy
slopes of olive groves, fields of wildflowers, patchworks of
farms, and then—ta-dah! Hill towns appear—shimmering
visions of ivory-pink stone, frozen in medieval time.
Wherever you land—perhaps in Orvieto’s elegant Piazza
del Duomo or Gubbio’s majestic Piazza Grande—plan on
staying for sunset. You’re in for a breathtaking show of shift-
ing shadows over verdant valleys, streams of gold spilling
over steeples and distant horizons.
Umbria’s mystical aura, felt in those sunsets, is personi-
fied in this Land of Saints, the birthplace of numerous holy
people. Most renowned is nature lover Francis of Assisi,
honored in the eponymous town’s 13th-century basilica with
its 28 frescoes by Renaissance artist Giotto and his school.
Hikers relish nearby trails; a favorite takes them to the spot
where Francis preached his famous sermon to the birds.
Unlike neighboring Tuscany, where you’re surrounded
by tourists, in Umbria it’s easy to mix with locals, and a joy
to discover each hill town’s workshops, meeting craftspeo-
ple who preserve traditions passed down for generations.
There’s Deruta, perhaps Italy’s most famous ceramics town,
where production has been going on continuously since
Renaissance days. At its ceramic art school, you can arrange
for a few hours of ceramic painting class, learning techniques
from a master, and take home what you’ve painted. Or in
the chic capital of Perugia, visit the Brozzetti workshop, run
by weaver Marta Cucchia, who’ll show you how she creates
medieval-inspired designs on antique looms. “Here is where
you can discover the art of a simple quality of life,” she says.
Not so simple, but a fabulous way to immerse your-
self in local spirit, are Umbria’s elaborate festivals, from
Spello’s flower-filled May/June feast of Corpus Domini to
Spoleto’s annual summer arts festival. “Except for the fes-
tivals, Umbria is a place where visitors are stunned by true
silence,” says Letizia Mattiacci, co-owner of Alla Madonna
del Piatto Cooking School and B&B, outside Assisi. “The
medieval architecture, the rural landscapes, have a partic-
ular stillness, unchanged over time. My guests come down
for breakfast, telling me they slept better here than they
have in years.” —Susan Van Allen
J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 69
 Divine Drinks
Capri

On the Italian island of Capri, lemons pendulous On a seaworthy day, cruise over to the Blue Grotto in an azure-
with juice dangle from white-painted garden painted gozzo, a traditional, wooden fisherman’s boat. Watch as
pergolas. Here the air tastes of salt from the the water transforms from cobalt to tinsel-silvery.
Tyrrhenian Sea, and the softball-size fruit, But if you can seize just one true Caprese moment, taste Capri
thick-skinned and nubbly, emits an intoxicating yourself with a sip of island-made limoncello. You can learn to
perfume. Glimmering in the sun, these Sorrento lemons (specific make the spirit with local outfitters who specialize in culinary
to the southwestern region of Italy) infuse Capri, a longtime tours, such as Capri Time ($206 for two people).
jet-setter’s retreat, with an organic glamour. From these lemons, After all, when Capri offers you lemons, shouldn’t you make
islanders concoct their famous limoncello—a more-potent-than- limoncello? —Becca Hensley
it-tastes, sweet-as-honey liqueur savored in the evening after
a meal or tippled at dusk in the swank, al fresco cafés that line
Capri Town’s piazza.
Sunny-side up: Bottles of limoncello
Not everybody visits Capri in Gucci shoes. A trio of sneaker- come in all shapes along shopping
wearing, khaki-clad hikers come across a gardener, who holds street Via Roma, in Capri Town; yachts
and sailboats cluster along the Capri
out slices of a lemon from his tree. Also underdressed by island
coast (opposite).
standards, the gardener has cut a lemon, sliced it into pinwheels,
and offers each trekker a piece to try.
When they hesitate, he grabs a section and pops it into his
own mouth—skin and all. They follow his lead, as he nods
approvingly. Below them, down a 90-degree precipice, a sap-
phire sea swirls like a van Gogh night sky.
“You have just tasted Capri,” he says, before presenting each
walker with a neon yellow fruit.
Sharing Protected Geographical Indication status with the
Sorrentine Peninsula for its lemons, Capri, located a 30-minute
ferry ride off the Amalfi coast, figures prominently in the leg-
endary provenance of limoncello.
Some say shepherds first nipped the lemon-infused spirit to
ward off illness. And at some point, locals began making their
SIME/ESTOCK PHOTO (BOATS), CHRISTINA ANZENBERGER-FINK/REDUX (BOTTLES)

own lemony libation, each according to closely guarded family

recipes. Today, in shops across the hilly, cliff-rimmed island,
bottles of the Capri-crafted digestif are sold as a veritable elixir
of Amalfi sunshine.
Former home to shepherds, Greek gadabouts, Roman emper-
ors, Russian émigrés, and 20th-century artists, two-by-four-mile
Capri has also been the playground of untold numbers of celeb-
rities, from Elton John to Sophia Loren to Giorgio Armani. But
it’s more than fast boats and flutes of Prosecco.
Anyone can explore the island’s intensely blue lagoons,
caves full of lore, and grand villas. Olives and grapes grow
beside lemons, as do herbs, such as rosemary and basil. In
early summer, butter-colored broom gives the terrain a glow,
and lavender-hued bougainvillea punctuates the isle’s uncanny
rose-colored light.

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 71
Some of Sicily’s most popular beaches,
including Cefalù, stretch along the
island’s northern Tyrrhenian coast.
Hot Stromboli
Sicily
In Sicily, everything seems more intense—sun,
wine, cuisine, and even amore. It’s easy to fall in
love: Almond trees blossom in winter, and every-
where you turn could be the setting for a film.
The largest island in the Mediterranean hums
with renewed vitality, never more so than during the run-up to
the G7 summit held in the town of Taormina in May.
A forward-thinking next generation of wine producers is
embracing the island’s indigenous grapes and earning acco-
lades for its full-bodied white Grillo and its signature red, Nero
d’Avola. And young artists and architects are boldly reclaiming
72 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
historic or abandoned sites at places such as Syracuse and Favara.
Yet, for all of Sicily’s spark, there’s an island an hour-and-
a-half ferry ride to the north that captures a uniquely Sicilian
brand of romance. Remote Stromboli, one of Sicily’s Aeolian
Islands, is home to a continuously active volcano nicknamed the
“lighthouse of the Mediterranean.” Its dramatic cone rises 3,031
feet out of the azure sea, often trailing a jaunty scarf of smoke.
Italian film director Roberto Rossellini chose what was then a
raw, forbidding island as the location and title for his 1950 film,
which is now mostly remembered for the scandal that followed
when Rossellini and his married star Ingrid Bergman became
lovers during filming.
You can still pass by the pink house where Bergman stayed
while on Stromboli. “It was my aunt’s house, and it was the
only house that had a bathtub,” says Vito Russo, co-owner of La
Sirenetta Park Hotel, whose father, Domenico, was a fixer for the
MASSIMO VITALI
film. Rossellini stayed in the white house next door.
Vito’s father knew that, after the film, tourists would arrive,
so he opened La Sirenetta, the island’s first hotel, on black-sand
Ficogrande beach. Dine at the hotel’s restaurant where Aristotle Italy in the Know
Onassis was a regular, docking his yacht for lunch. Down the
WHERE TO STAY
road, room service menus at boutique hotel Il Gabbiano Relais
In Milan, Spadari al Duomo
include spaghetti Stromboli, rich with tomato, olives, capers,
sits just off the central Piazza
and hot peppers. del Duomo and is known for
Outfitter Il Vulcano a Piedi leads hikes to Pizzo di Stromboli its collection of contemporary
art. From $268. spadarihotel
with views of the three craters (Northeast, Central, and
.com. In Spoleto, Umbria, the
Southwest). The hike is not easy. It takes five hours, arriving at intimate Hotel Gattapone
the viewpoint to see the lava explosions at twilight, and return- overlooks a wooded gorge.
From $97. hotelgattapone
ing after dark. There are steep steps, slippery sand and volcanic
.it. In Capri, the swankiest
ash, and near the top, a vertical drop of 900 meters (2,953 feet). hotel is Quisisana, which also
The people of Stromboli, who number about 500, refer to the boasts two of the island’s
best restaurants. From $344.
volcano as Iddu, meaning “him” in Sicilian, acknowledging it as
quisisana.com.
a beloved, if temperamental, part of the family. Iddu forces them
Adapted from the National
to live every day with passion—something Rossellini capitalized Geographic Traveler guide-
on when he used the tagline “Raging Island ... Raging Passions!” book Italy.
on a poster for his film. After all, nothing reminds you to live
UMBRIA’S BEST FESTS
life in the moment and to its fullest more than standing in the Things get raucous in Gubbio
shadow of a restless volcano. —Renée Restivo during the May Race of the
Ceri, with medieval pageantry
and townspeople running
up Monte Ingino with giant
wooden candlesticks, to
honor Saint Ubaldo. Summer-
time attracts international
crowds to the esteemed
Umbria Jazz festival, in Peru-
gia (July 7–16 this year), and
2017 is the 60th year of the
Festival of the Two Worlds, in
Spoleto (June 30–July 16).
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hiking adventure in Tuscany
and Cinque Terre to a small-
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J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 73
 AT H O M E O N
THE RANGE F I N D YO U R C O R N E R O F W I L D I N N O RT H DA KOTA’S
T H EO D O R E RO OS E V E LT N AT I O N A L PA R K
By Robert Earle Howells

Clouds roll in above the

Little Missouri River, in a
national park named after
a president who fell in
love with and worked to
protect this landscape.

74 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
Best Summer Ever
 Dollar bills and cowboy
hats fill the rafters of the
Little Missouri Saloon and
Dining Room in Medora.
Opposite: A bucking
bronco adorns the Ghost
Riders belt buckle of Lyle
Glass, a Medora actor and
wildlife photographer.
 I OWN
a prairie dog colony in North
Dakota. Not that its residents
are impressed with me at the
moment. The trail I’m walking bisects their turf, and they’ve
come out in force to scold me for the intrusion.
My prairie dog town is in the 70,000-acre Theodore Roosevelt
National Park, which is mine too, as are the granite walls of
MICHAEL MELFORD (SALOON, BUCKLE); PREVIOUS PAGES: CHUCK HANEY
El Capitan in California’s Yosemite National Park, the lakes of
Michigan’s Isle Royale National Park, and the stalactites and
stalagmites of Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave National Park. Simply
by being an American, I hold collective title to these and other
profoundly beautiful places—an inventory that is the envy of
the world—thanks to the establishment of the National Park
Service a century ago.
Just beyond my prairie dog colony, a movement, something
large, catches my eye. Bison? Bighorn sheep? I veer off-trail and
spot four mustangs grazing near a copse of junipers. As I edge
toward them, they warily edge away. Then one prances and the
others follow, inscribing an arc around me.
Then it strikes me: What could be more fun, more free, than
to be a mustang with thousands of acres of grassland to roam?
I’M DRAWN TO U.S. NATIONAL PARKS for many reasons, none
unusual, all deeply meaningful. In a world where wildlife is
disappearing, where open space is scarce, where noise is ubiqui-
tous and natural beauty and tranquility are hard to come by,
places like Theodore Roosevelt National Park represent respite
and refuge, a balm for modern life.
The 24-year-old Theodore Roosevelt came to this area in
1883 for similar reasons, though with his own predilections. A
privileged Easterner, Harvard graduate, book author, member
of the New York State Assembly, and avid naturalist, he shared
with many of the time a fascination with the West and a concern
that it was changing forever. The Transcontinental Railroad
now stretched across the country, towns were popping up—and
what would be the final great bison hunt had just taken place.
This iconic animal of the American West, once up to 60 mil-
lion strong, had been reduced to a few straggling herds roaming
the badlands of the Dakota Territory. And the man who would
become a towering figure in American conservation—helping
preserve millions of acres and crusading to save game ani-
mals from extinction—was determined to hunt and kill one of
those few remaining bison and mount its head on his wall. So
J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 77
Ranger-led hikers in the
not-so-bad badlands
may encounter the South
Unit’s Painted Canyon,
galloping mustangs, and
prairie smoke flowers.
Once nearly extinct,
bison in the hundreds
now roam throughout
the park but are best
viewed from afar.

80 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
a trail not knowing what to expect—except that your curiosity
will be rewarded.
Right behind the visitors center I find Roosevelt’s cabin, called
the Maltese Cross Cabin, relocated from its original site south
of here. I’m moved when I see the small writing desk where
Roosevelt wrote several of his books during his Dakota time
and a trunk marked with his initials, “T. R.”
I then set out on the park’s scenic drive but within minutes
brake at a sign that reads, “Do Not Feed the Prairie Dogs.” I have
no prairie dog food but scan the ground for the large rodents.
Ranger Irving had told me they’re gaining recognition from biol-
ogists as ecological movers and shakers. The way they mow
the vegetation around their burrows, scientists are learning,
encourages the growth of particularly nutritious prairie grasses
that make prairie dog towns attractive to elk. “If you want to see
elk,” Irving told me, “visit a dog town around dusk.”
Back on the road, I motor through Cottonwood Campground,
a space shaded by cottonwood trees bordering the Little Missouri
River, known hereabouts as the Little Mo. Families are emerging
from tents, some to commence breakfast rituals on portable
stoves, bringing back memories of such mornings on my child-
hood camping trips to national parks, when my mother would
serve corned beef hash and pancakes to three hungry fledglings
and our hurry-up-the-fish-are-biting dad.
I pause at Scoria Point Overlook to observe some literally
scorched earth. Scoria is a red-rock striation that occurs when
coal beds in the badlands are torched by a lightning strike,
causing them to burn, often for years; the sediment that tops
the coal turns red from the oxidation of iron. Farther along, I set
off on the Boicourt Overlook Trail and soon reach a promontory
that casts out over the park’s rolling-hills-and-badlands terrain
before quickly narrowing to a ridge, then to a skinny path that
drops steeply down three sides. Barely a quarter-mile round-trip
but very, very cool. I continue my exploration along the Jones
Creek Trail. Like me, this trail has no particular destination; it
will be as much meditation as hike. Meadowlarks flit around me,
frogs blurt from still pools in the creek, and dark-eyed juncos
trill from clusters of junipers—perfect examples of the rewards
of whimsical travel.
Next stop is the trailhead for a half-mile hike to the Old East
Entrance Station, a small stone hut built by Civilian Conservation
Corps (CCC) workers in the mid-1930s. Structures commissioned
under this jobs program created by President Franklin Roosevelt
dot the national parks. The CCC built, among other things, park
trails, roads, and fire-lookout towers. Here its work shows in
superb stone craftsmanship, with huge sandstone blocks, quar-
ried by CCC men, neatly fitted into walls.
Back on the road, I come upon my first bison. Several hundred
roam the open range in both the South and North Units of the
CHUCK HANEY

park, showing up where they please and holding up traffic at

will. I think I ultimately encounter all of them. More than half
a million bison (including a number that reflect crossbreeding

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 81
 Prairie To the Watford hotel,
dog colony
Roosevelt Inn &
1 mi
Suites, and Fox
RIVE 1 km Hills Sports Grill
CD
ENI
C River Bend
S

Overlook North Unit with cattle) now live on North American ranges, thanks in large
T H E O D O R E R O O S E V E LT Visitor Center
Oxbow 85
measure to the early conservation efforts of bison hunter Teddy
Overlook NAT I O NA L PA R K Juniper Roosevelt. The bulls weigh a ton, can run as fast as some horses,
(NORTH UNIT) Campground
and are known to charge unpredictably. The Park Service has
posted signs noting, “Buffalo Are Dangerous,” sage advice that
ri

2,687 ft
sou

819 m
we view the continent’s largest mammal from afar or from the
is

Achen L ITTL E M ISSO U RI NATIO NA L G RA SSL AND

le M

H i l l sb a c h comfort of our cars. Don’t have to persuade me.

Litt

RANGERS AT HOME ON THE RANGE

When many of us think of national parks, we think of rangers
North Unit: WATFORD FOX HILLS SPORTS

MICHAEL MELFORD; NG MAPS/PARK DATA: NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

Lodging Business travelers
like this hotel’s clean,
and food contemporary style
and attentive service,
located 15 miles
north of the North
Unit Visitor Center.
thewatford.com
ROOSEVELT INN
& SUITES
Just east of the
Watford, this modern
hostelry features Roo-
sevelt memorabilia.
rooseveltinn.com
GRILL leading nature hikes and campfire talks. I’m happy to report that
these traditions endure at Theodore Roosevelt National Park,
Popular dishes at this
simple restaurant even in these cash-strapped times. One morning I join ranger
by the Fox Hills Golf
Erik Jensen and a group of about 20 visitors for a hike through
Course include the
Hangover (a half- what is believed to be the third largest aggregation of petrified
pound beef burger wood in the United States. Joe and Vicki Loren, from Michigan,
with sausage patty).
are on a national parks tour with their spunky daughters, ages
foxhillsgc.com
10 and six. The kids are intensely curious and responsive to
ranger Jensen’s every question. As we walk among the stony
stumps of 60-million-year-old bald cypress trees, Joe shares the
family’s affection for parks. “We love that they’re as natural as
you can get and that they’re respected. Yellowstone is crowded,
(Continued on page 98)

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Europe’s
Grandest
HikeFinding sublime vistas,
mountain villages, and bliss
on a trek in the French Alps
 Best Summer Ever

STORY BY

JEFFREY TAYLER

PHOTOGRAPHS BY

KEITH LADZINSKI

Bursts of fireweed
announce summer in
a French Alpine valley
near Mont Thabor.

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 85
M
y worst fear up here might be about to become reality.
A menacing rumble is coming from the east, across the
French border in Italy. Getting caught in a life-threatening
mountain thunderstorm definitely seems possible, as
lightning flashes from pewter-bellied clouds, striking
the peaks below, trailed by skirts of silvery rain. I am striding across the
Col des Thures pass, my titanium walking sticks click-clacking on the
dry dirt path. The July sun warms me. At the Chalet des Thures, I pause
to drink from a spigot of Alpine-fresh water before descending the trail
into a valley walled with pine and schist, toward the village of Plampinet.
I have to make it off the pass before the storm hits, but I’m strangely
unhurried, feeling only wonder at the potentially lethal, yet wildly
beautiful, meteorological spectacle unfolding nearby.

Hurrying is usually not an option for those crossing the Alps
on foot along the GR (Grande Randonnée, or “great trek”) 5, a
roughly 1,500-mile trail beginning in the Netherlands. I’m trek-
king the most famous section, stretching from Lake Geneva south
to Nice, zigzagging some 446 miles through the French Alps.
The GR5 and its hikers’ fitness impose their own schedule, one
dependent as well on the fickle summertime weather. Though
firmly established on the French outdoor lover’s trekking cir-
cuit and segmented so as to permit hikers, for the most part, to
spend nights at refuges or in villages, the trail, as a rule, imposes
a salutary solitude. Old-fashioned solitude: Cell phone recep-
tion is erratic at best. What counts on the GR5 is the here, the
now—what our senses can absorb from the moment. As global
crises multiply and metastasize, the GR5 offers a respite. I’ve
earlier tried, and failed, at Buddhist meditation; maybe these
mountains will afford me something better.
I admit my somewhat Buddhist take on the GR5 was probably
not shared by earlier trekkers to these parts, including the ram-
paging Hannibal—whose army and elephants crossed the Alps in
218 B.C., heading for Italy)—and the luckless Alpine man Ötzi, a
Copper Age chap murdered in these mountains some 5,300 years
ago, his mummified corpse famously retrieved from a melted
glacier only in 1991. In any case I’m finding the GR5’s here and
now magnificent, with awe overpowering fatigue, loneliness,
and even worries about thunderstorms, with their accompany-
ing flash floods, landslides, and immolating bolts of lightning.
“BONNE ROUTE!” (“HAVE A NICE TRIP!”) say the cheery medics
I’ve asked for directions at a first aid station at Lake Geneva when
I start my trek one drizzly mid-June afternoon at the Swiss ham-
let of Saint-Gingolph. Soon I’m alone under a dripping deciduous
canopy, moving upward along the fog-shrouded GR5, passing
waterlogged ferns and moss-mottled rocks. All the next sunny
day, though, as I climb higher, I find myself perspiring through
a freak hot spell, keeping an eye out for trail markers in vales
carpeted with violets and speckled with butterflies. A haphazard
natural staircase of granite leads me up toward the Col (pass) de
Bise (a chilly north wind). Panting, sweating through my hat,
and feeling I could really use that north wind right about now,
I clear some trees and stumble across patches of snow, radiant
white amid flinty boulders.
The guidebooks led me to expect cool and wet weather! No

86 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
 Ibex can often be
seen roaming the Lacs
des Chéserys, near
Chamonix, France.

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 87
matter, I set down my pack and take out a spoon. After scrap-
ing away the upper crust, I dollop some snow into my mouth,
invigorated by its cold, crumbly texture and crystalline purity,
and let it dissolve on my tongue.
There was no official GR5 in their time, but some of the world’s
most notable bygone literati also marveled at these surround-
ings. British poet Lord Byron wrote of Alpine “palaces of nature”
where “All that expands the spirit, yet appals / Gathers around
these summits, as to show / How earth may pierce to heaven.”
His contemporary versifier Samuel Rogers praised “that mighty
chain / Of Mountains, stretching on from east to west, / So mas-
sive, yet so shadowy, so ethereal, / As to belong rather to Heaven
than Earth.”
Concurring with both would have been Étienne Pivert de
Senancour, a French Enlightenment writer whose Alps-inspired
epistolary novel, Obermann, sparked my interest in the region
some years back and set me yearning for the high-altitude idylls
Senancour described, for the mix of wonder and “liberté alpestre”
(“Alpine freedom”) he lauded.
An hour later I pitch my tent at the Chalets de Neuteu, with
88 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
What counts on the GR5 is
the here, the now—what our
senses can absorb from the
moment. As global crises
multiply, the Alpine trail
offers a respite.
its abandoned cabins above piney slopes and a chest-high stone
shrine enclosing a sculpture of St. Roch, a bearded sage in medie-
val mountaineer’s robes, with a canine, perhaps a Saint Bernard,
at his side and burned-down candles that previous sojourners lit
in his honor. The ceaseless roar of snowmelt cascading through
the nearby crevasses provides the background soundtrack. As the
sun sinks behind the peaks, I strip and wash off the day’s grit by
the chalets’ fountain, dry myself, and retire for the night. Sleep
“The Alps are the friendliest places in all France,” says the author.
Signs of welcome for trekkers along the GR5 include bright flowers and
hanging baskets (left) outside a house in a mountain town near Chamonix
and a heaping plate of local charcuterie, cheese, salad, and pickles at a
cozy Val-d’Isère restaurant (above).
comes easily, but sometime later a light brings me, by degrees,
to wakefulness. Dawn already? No. I pull aside my tent flap and
see the full moon, a glowing pearl in a cobalt sky. Firmly secular,
I nevertheless feel, as I bathe in the moon’s rays, something akin
to that biblical peace that “passeth all understanding.”
ONE MORNING, A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTERWARD, south of
the French town of La Chapelle-d’Abondance, I’m on the alert
for thunderstorms as I trek into mist-curtained heights, at times
paralyzed by fear as I slip on the muddy trail and encounter
suddenly intimate views of the boulder-studded abyss to my left.
Early afternoon finds me off-trail by mistake among fog banks,
using both hands and feet to scramble sideways and skyward
along a perilously steep, grassy declivity toward the pass of Les
Mattes. I lurch my way along the slope, gripping the grass with
one hand, leaning against my walking stick with the other. One
hour passes, then two; I seem to be making no progress, with
fog isolating and disorienting me.
When the fog lifts, I see a few yards above me a signpost
marking Les Mattes. Exhilarated, I clamber up to it and survey
the precipitous descent toward the Vallée d’Abondance, through
a herd of blasé cows. Rain lashes me as I slalom down along the
meandering muddy trail. Eventually I have to baby-step my way,
lest I slip and go tumbling down the mountainside.
Thudding footfalls resound behind me. I halt in fear: a
marauding bull? A charging wild boar? No, a young French
mountain runner, clad in Gore-Tex tights, fluorescent kneepads,
and protective gloves. He effortlessly springs past me (“Bonjour,
monsieur!”) before vanishing behind a bend. Astonished and
more than a little envious, I timidly resume my baby steps.
Evening finds me standing on the lip of an abyss, by the Chalet
de l’Etrye. Clouds are billowing up the valley and hovering above
me, the chalet seemingly suspended in ether, with screeching
hawks as sentinels.
J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 89
“Our screen-centered existence back home, our penchant for checking updates and counting likes, all seem, out on the GR5, to belong to a trivial past life,”
says the author. What matters on the trail (opposite) is the immediacy of (above, left to right) an ibex negotiating a grassy slope, an ornate iron cross outside
Chamonix, and a secure tent backdropped by mountains. But a wildly tumbling stream (below) warns that nature here isn’t always serene.
The photographer created
this sunset image of the
Aiguille du Midi, in the
Mont Blanc massif, by an
in-camera double exposure.
J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 93
 Bewitched by this craggy redoubt, I abandon plans to push on
and decide to bivouac beside the chalet. Soon the hawks retire;
Gazing up at the soaring
mist washes over my tent’s walls; and then, past midnight, rain peaks or downward at lush
patters down. A new symphony of cowbells begins, mingled
with the soothing sound of subtle winds. A melancholy reigns pastures, I think: We can’t
here (Senancour called it that “bien-être mêlé de tristesse”—
“well-being mingled with sadness”), and I feel as though I’m
slow time’s passage, but
the last survivor on the planet. we can do more than just
The next day, after a rugged ascent to Col de Bassachaux,
I lunch on the terrace of restaurant La Haute Bise, pairing my suffer its wounds. We can
steak and salad with a glass of rich red Savoyard Côtes du Rhône.
I set out post-meal and soon find myself accompanied by a vet-
trek into such wilds and lose
eran Finnish trekker named Antti Kajanus. To my shock and ourselves in their majesty.
admiration, I discover that Kajanus considers trekking the GR5
something like an extended after-dinner stroll. For him the pace
established in the guidebook is far too leisurely. Beginning in the Netherlands along the North Sea and traversing
This is due in part to his expert packing skills, which maxi- the French Alps, the 1,500-mile GR5 culminates in Nice, on the
mize weight distribution for balance, and ultralight gear. With Mediterranean. But a popular variant of the trail, called the GR52, leads
to the town of Menton (above), farther east along the French Riviera. It
Mont Blanc looming somewhere behind the clouds ahead, we adds a few days to the trek but makes for what some veteran hikers say is
(Continued on page 100) a more spectacular finish.

94 NATGEOTRAV EL .C OM
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96 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
 owhere is the place you never want to The movie and meal behind me, I went for a walk, and, look-
go. It’s not on any departure board, and ing in on the Marriott down the road, found myself caught up
though some people like to travel so far in the last dramatic seconds of an NFL playoff game on a giant
off the grid that it looks like Nowhere screen, doubly exciting for one who doesn’t have a TV set at
(or Nome or Nuuk), most wanderers ulti- home. The whole event was made festive by the conferencegoers
mately long to get somewhere. Yet every who had turned the impersonal space into a weekend party.
now and then—if there’s nowhere else Heart still pounding as the players rushed the field, I stepped
you can be and all other options have out again, strolled along the water, and caught sight of yellow
vanished—going nowhere can prove the best adventure around. arrows pointing to the finest burgers in the West. My dinner at
One beauty of Nowhere is that it’s entirely uncharted; you’ve In-N-Out cost me all of $4.27.
never read a guidebook entry on it or followed Paul Theroux on Nowhere is so far off the map that its smallest beauties are a
a train ride through its suburbs. Few YouTube videos exist of it. discovery. And as I made my way back to my hotel, lights began
And this leads to the second grace of Nowhere, which is that it’s to come on in the hills of Millbrae, and I realized I had never seen
cleansed of the most dangerous kind of luggage, expectation. a sight half so lovely in clamorous, industrial Osaka. Its neigh-
Knowing nothing of a place in advance opens us up to a wide- bor Kyoto is stunning, but it attracts 50 million visitors a year.
awake vitality we seldom encounter while traipsing around Paris Not so Millbrae. I had the waterfront to myself and no need
or Kyoto with a list of the 10 things we want—or, in embarrassing to dodge tour buses or postcard peddlers. Back in my room, I
truth, feel we need—to see. saw that the irresistibly unbuttoned Golden Globes were on—I’d
I’ll never forget a bright January morning when I landed never managed to catch them before—and I was reminded that
in San Francisco from Santa Barbara, just in time to see my one of the blessings of any trip is that it can open your eyes to
connecting flight to Osaka take off. I hurried to the nearest what you’d never take notice of at home.
airline counter to ask for help, and was Next morning I headed back, unchar-
told that I would have to wait 24 hours, acteristically refreshed, to the airport
at my own expense, for the next day’s and collected my suitcase from the
flight. The airline wasn’t responsible for
A surprise layover left-luggage counter. I arrived there
fog-related delays, a gate agent declared, becomes a free to find a slim silver laptop opened to
and no alternative flights were available. day of unexpected YouTube. On it, Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Millbrae, California, the drive-through discoveries was extolling “the fierce urgency of now”
town that encircles San Francisco’s air- and his dream of the glorious day when
port, was a mystery to me. With one of BY PICO IYER “the rough places will be made plain and
the world’s most beautiful cities only 40 ILLUSTRATION BY the crooked places will be made straight.”
minutes to the north, and the unofficial JON McNAUGHT I looked up and saw that the manager
center of the world, Silicon Valley, 27 of the left-luggage counter, an older black
miles to the south, Millbrae is known man with a graying beard, was standing
mostly as a place to fly away from, at high speed. And an unan- beside me, eyes welling, as moved as I was. We stood together in
ticipated delay is exactly what nobody wants on his itinerary. silence, and it came to me, belatedly, that this was Martin Luther
But what I found, as I dropped my checked-in suitcase off King Day. If my trip had gone according to plan, I’d have missed
at a left-luggage counter, reserved a room at an airport hotel, the day almost entirely, turning my watch 16 hours ahead and
and walked out into the winter sun, was that Nowhere can have arriving in Japan just as it was all but over.
grace notes that Anywhere would envy. I’m not sure I recognized the smiling traveler who boarded his
It was a cloudless, warm afternoon as a shuttle bus deposited flight to Osaka, newly aware of both this particular holiday and
me in Millbrae. Locals were taking their dogs for walks along the the meaning of every holiday. I’d slept well, and I’d seen a pretty,
bay while couples sauntered hand in hand beside an expanse unpresuming town that I’d never thought to explore before.
of blue that, in San Francisco, would have been crowded with Who knows if I’ll ever visit Millbrae again? But I’m confident
people and official “attractions.” I checked in to my hotel and that Nowhere will slip into my itinerary many times more. And
registered another advantage of Nowhere: Nobody knew I was I’ll relish whatever it serves up to me. No place, after all, is unin-
here, and there was nothing I had to do. teresting to the interested eye.
Suddenly I was enjoying a luxury I never allow myself, even on
vacation: a whole day free. I ordered a salad from room service— Santa Barbara-based PICO IYER is the author, most recently, of
healthier and much tastier than anything I could have eaten in The Man Within My Head and The Art of Stillness. Illustrator
seat 17L—and then noticed that The American, a movie I’d longed JON McNAUGHT ( @jonmcn) is based in Bristol, England. His
to see when it sped through the cineplex, was available on my TV. next comic book, Kingdom, will be released in 2018.

J UN E /J ULY 2 0 1 7 97
Theodore Roosevelt National Park
(Continued from page 82)
but hey—it’s for everybody.” Both girls, he notes, are keen wildlife
spotters. “Seven different herds of feral horses yesterday! Ah,
to have young eyes.”
Another visitor in our group, Marlene Young, of Minneapolis,
is such a parks fan that she hosted a viewing party the night Ken
Burns’s National Parks documentary series debuted.
“I know this is the same sky as other places, but it’s just so
big here. That’s what I love. That’s what I came for.” Young is
on her first solo camping trip, a postdivorce journey that she is
finding both uplifting and healing.
The petrified forest—really the fossilized remains of fallen
tree trunks—lies in rugged badlands in the western part of the
South Unit. Accessible by dirt road, the petrified forest itself is
roadless. At one point, ranger Jensen invites us to sit and listen.
To nothing. A breeze, a swish of prairie grasses, our heartbeats.
When the long summer day finally yields to a moonless night,
I join another group of campers and telescope-toting docents for
a ranger-guided, no-flashlights-allowed walk “to see the sky as
Theodore Roosevelt saw it.” Forks of lightning stab the horizon,
but the overhead sky remains jet-black clear. We watch the Milky
Way appear, and gaze through the park telescopes at a showy
Saturn, a half Venus (it has phases), and distant nebulae.
NORTH COUNTRY
The park’s North Unit is 70 miles north of the South Unit and
quite a bit smaller. Lacking a folksy gateway town like Medora, it
also is less visited, which means I have the 14-mile Scenic Drive
almost to myself. The route laces together viewpoints, hiking
trails, and one of the most famous picnic sites in the National
Park System: the River Bend Overlook Shelter, another example
of skilled stone craftsmanship by the CCC, in 1937, and now a
backdrop for many a wedding. Far below the shelter snakes a
great bend of the Little Missouri River, lined by a thick ribbon
of cottonwood trees. An escarpment of sandstone badlands
parallels the river in the distance.
At one point the Scenic Drive narrows to a single unpaved
lane because of a washout, reminding me of something ranger
Eileen Andes said: “The same geological processes that give us
beautiful scenery also give us challenges. In seven years here,
I’ve seen the North Unit road stay open all summer only once.”
This challenge applies to the entire National Park System as it
tries to maintain safe roads and visitor-friendly amenities in
wild, often remote backcountry with a maintenance backlog
of $11.9 billion.
Another challenge: industries, such as North Dakota’s Bakken
oil fields, that sit just beyond the borders of many national parks.
As I drive U.S. Highway 85 through the Little Missouri National
Grassland near the park’s eastern outskirts, I see countless oil
wells, along with camps for workers. Park rangers share with
98 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
me their concerns about the former oil boom, including traffic,
dust, poor air quality, nighttime light pollution, contamination
from fracking fluids—and the effects of all these on animal pop-
ulations and their migratory routes. On the other hand, “quite
a few of our visitors are from the oil fields,” ranger Andes tells
me. “We’re a refuge for them. More than ever, there’s a desperate
need for a place like this.”
CRADLE OF CONSERVATION
Theodore Roosevelt originally traveled west to hunt, but he
would return for the kind of solace only wild places offer. Five
months after his first Dakota trip, his young wife, Alice, died
on Valentine’s Day, 1884, of an illness shortly after giving birth
to their daughter. Only a few hours earlier, Roosevelt’s mother,
Martha, had succumbed to typhoid.
Heartbroken, Roosevelt retreated to the North Dakota prairie
and poured himself into ranch life. He bought more cattle and
established a second spread, which he named Elkhorn Ranch.
Working the range, he would ride saddle for 18 hours at a time
rounding up cattle. He also indulged his passion for hunting by
organizing big game expeditions. Ranch life and his hunts—“the
free, self-reliant, adventurous life,” he called it—would become
the subjects of two books he penned in solitude here.
My strongest communion with Roosevelt comes during a full
day I spend alone at what remains of Elkhorn Ranch, which is
about an hour’s drive north, mostly on good dirt roads, from the
South Unit Visitor Center. Only a few foundation stones indicate
the outline of the ranch house, but the setting looks much as
the future American president described it.
“Just in front of the ranch veranda is a line of old cottonwoods
that shade it during the fierce heats of summer, rendering it
always cool and pleasant. But a few feet beyond these trees comes
the cut-off bank of the river, through whose broad, sandy bed
the shallow stream winds as if lost.”
No one else ventures up to Elkhorn Ranch during the day I
spend there. I sit a few hours under Roosevelt’s cottonwoods,
reading, writing, and musing on a summer morning. I hear the
sounds of crickets, the pat of raindrops, and the hoarse squawk
of a ring-necked pheasant. And I consider how these Dakota
prairies profoundly affected the man who would go on to extend
federal protection to 230 million acres of America’s public lands.
In Roosevelt’s day, I could have ridden the region “for a month
without striking a furrow or a fence,” a far cry from today’s real-
ity of drilling and fracking. Yet in Theodore Roosevelt National
Park I still can draw inspiration from its boundless spaces, stare
into its starry skies, sit for hours, and hear only the rustle of its
prairie grasses. May this park inspire all of us to appreciate what
we have, and motivate us to do what we must do: love our parks,
fund them, and preserve them forever.
ROBERT EARLE HOWELLS ( @bobhowells) is a contributing
writer to National Geographic’s Guide to National Parks.
 STEP ASIDE,
SON. I’m 7 years old and
not about to stop.

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 GR
5
L a c L éma n
Nyon (La ke Geneva ) Montreux
Thonon-les-Bains Saint-Gingolph
GR5
Col de Bise
Chalets de Neuteu
Europe’s Grandest Hike Vallée d’Abondance
6,283 ft
1,915 m
(Continued from page 94) Genève La Chapelle-
(Geneva) Les Mattes
d’Abondance 6,332 ft
Col de Bassachaux 1,930 m

Ar
pause and he rearranges my pack, with the result that it feels 5,834 ft

ve
Author’s route
1,778 m ne
10 pounds lighter. Even in something as elemental as hiking, Samoëns Rhô
an expert’s opinion can make all the difference. Cluses SWITZERLAND

Author traveled by
THE GR5 DIPS BACK INTO SWITZERLAND for some 15 train from Samoëns
miles before reemerging in France by the town of Samoëns. (Cluses) to Landry

S
There I stock up on Savoyard delicacies—tart Reblochon and
Tomme cheeses, chewy, tangy sausages of wild boar, and pork Mont Blanc

GR5
leavened with champignons and nuts. But snow at the passes FRANCE
15,774 ft
4,808 m
NG MAPS/PARKS DATA FROM THE WORLD DATABASE ON PROTECTED AREAS (WDPA), MAP DATA © OPENSTREETMAP CONTRIBUTORS, AVAILABLE UNDER OPEN DATABASE LICENSE: OPENSTREETMAP.ORG/COPYRIGHT

beyond compels me to board a train at Cluses bound for Landry,

a tiny sweltering town I hike out of as soon as I arrive.
I follow an ever ascendant path of pine needles. Gazing up I TA LY
re

P
Landry
at the soaring peaks or downward at lush pastures, I think: We Isè
can’t slow time’s passage, but we can do more than just suffer Lac de la Plagne
Refuge d’Entre-le-Lac GRAN PARADISO
its wounds. We can trek into such wilds and lose ourselves in NATIONAL PARK
VANOISE
their majesty. NATIONAL PARK e
anois
As evening falls, I enter a broad canyon. A wooden footbridge la V
i f de
appears above the Ponturin stream, near its source. I stumble ss
Ma
Arc Hoek van
across it to the Refuge d’Entre-le-Lac, by the turquoise eyespot Amsterdam

L
Holland
10 mi NETH.
of Lac de la Plagne, where I spend the night in the company 10 km
Author’s
Brussels GERMANY
route
of about 40 raucous, mostly French trekkers, enjoying some BELG. LUX.

5
GR
Luxembourg
Alpine camaraderie. How did they get here? I wonder, before Chalet des Col des Thures Paris
Thures 7,198 ft SWITZ.
figuring out that the refuge sits at a confluence of trails. A gaggle 2,194 m
GR5
FRANCE Bern
of British hikers invites me to its table. “How do you manage to ECRINS Plampinet
AREA
NATIONAL ENLARGED
sleep in places like this?” I ask. PARK Briançon ITALY
200 mi

A
“Easy!” says one, holding up his glass of red wine. “Drink 200 km
Nice
heavily!” By and large I take his advice.
Senancour wrote of a moment in the Alps “worthy of being
the first day of a new life.” The next morning, having awaited
the departure (not in the direction I’m to take) of the others, I
set out from the refuge under a cerulean sky, trekking upward, Alpine GR5 Trail Tips
aware of a bracing freshness in the air. I’m soon strolling along
WHEN TO GO WHAT TO BRING
the Plan de la Grassaz, a plateau of meadows and scampering
High season on the GR5 is late A stash of local currency. A
marmots, with Lac du Grattaleu mirroring the snow-streaked
July to August. But mid-June pair of titanium walking sticks.
mountains above. to mid-July can be fine and A local (French or Swiss) SIM
Here the GR5 is a gravelly level footpath. My thoughts reasonably snow free. During card to cut down on cellular
high season, it helps to costs, but be aware that
disperse as my eyes take in Lac du Grattaleu and my ears absorb
reserve accommodations reception is erratic. Clothing
the burbling of a brook originating in the snowfields ahead. I along the trail ahead of time. for both cold weather and
can’t help but slow my pace. Mesmerized, I drop my pack and Depending on the route hot. Water purification tablets.
chosen, walking from Lake Sunglasses and sunblock.
sit on a bank of earth.
Geneva to the Mediterranean Detachable spikes or cram-
The heat will return some days later as I say farewell to the could take as many as 31 days pons for your boots in case of
GR5 when I reach the town of Briançon. But right at this moment, (not counting rest days). snow or ice.
I lean back, folding my arms behind my head, and close my eyes.
WHAT TO READ
Peace. Here and now, a moment worthy of a new life. GO WITH NAT GEO
The indispensable GR5 Trail,
by Paddy Dillon, breaks Nat Geo Expeditions offers
JEFFREY TAYLER ( @JeffreyTayler1) is a contributing editor down the trek into daylong several trips to the Alps,
segments and gives crucial including the nine-day
at the Atlantic. He is the author of seven books, including
information about water and “Switzerland Hiking Adventure.”
Angry Wind. This is Colorado-based photographer KEITH food availability, accommo- natgeoexpeditions.com
LADZINSKI’ s ( @ladzinski) first feature for Traveler. dations, and trail conditions. /explore; 888-689-2557.

100 NATGEOTRAVEL .C OM
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 CONGRATULATIONS to the 2017 National Geographic
World Legacy Award Winners
These visionary companies are driving the travel industry’s transformation and Finalists
toward sustainable tourism practices. The World Legacy Awards ceremony
was held at ITB Berlin in March 2017.

1 CONSERVING THE NATURAL WORLD 2 DESTINATION LEADERSHIP

3 EARTH CHANGERS 4 ENGAGING COMMUNITIES 5 SENSE OF PLACE

WINNER: North Island, WINNER: Cayuga Collection, WINNER: City of Santa Fe

1 Seychelles
North Island, Seychelles demonstrates that
a successful luxury, a fragile ecosystem, can
actively rehabilitate its environment.
FINALISTS: Mark Thornton Safaris ,
Tanzania & Misool, Indonesia
WINNER: Slovenian Tourist Board,
2 Slovenia
What happens to tourism when a whole
nation goes green? The Slovenian Tourist
%RDUG HPEUDFHV DQG UHƄHFWV D QDWLRQDO JRDO
to be one of the world’s most sustainable
countries.
FINALISTS: Riverwind Foundation/
Jackson Hole Wyoming, USA & Segera
Retreat, Kenya
3 Costa Rica and Nicaragua 5 New Mexico, USA
This innovative hospitality management If American pioneers from more than a
company merges the concepts of luxury and century ago reappeared in Santa Fe’s plaza
state-of-the-art sustainability at eight small today, they would recognize it instantly. The
hotels and lodges in Central America. city of Santa Fe, the United States’ oldest
FINALISTS: Finch Bay Galápagos Hotel, state capital, considers safeguarding its rich
Ecuador & ITC Hotels, India heritage a duty.
FINALISTS: Adventure Canada, Canada &
WINNER: The Lodge at Chaa Creek, Awamaki, Peru
4 Belize
Winners on stage at ITB Berlin. Photo by: Philipp Spalek.
2QH RI %HOL]HŠV ƃUVW HFRUHVRUWV WKH /RGJH
at Chaa Creek, nestled in a private nature
reserve, demonstrates that putting people
ƃUVW EHQHƃWV HPSOR\HHV ORFDO FRPPXQLWLHV
its own bottom line, and the country’s tourism
industry as a whole.
FINALISTS: Andaman Discoveries,
Thailand & Chambok Community Based
Eco-Tourism and Mlup Baitong, Cambodia

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#TexasToDo Films and #TexasToDo Gallery.
7. Visit Albuquerque
Our city has the power to change perspectives. Visit
our website to plan your trip and leave Albuquerque
viewing your own world in a whole new light.
8. Visit Florida
In Florida, you’ll find 161 state parks, the best theme
parks and endless ways to find fun every day.
9. Visit Natchez
From wherever you hail, Natchez will feel like
coming home. #2 Best in the US 2016 —
Lonely Planet. 800-647-6724.
10. :\RPLQJ 2FH RI 7RXULVP
The most freeing and fulfilling adventures can’t
be explained. Only experienced. 307-777-7777.
Hot Spot Travel: Best of California
(circle 134 or text TRJUN 134 to 41411)
11. &DWDOLQD ,VODQG ² RQH KRXU R 6R&DO &RDVW.
866-449-5807
12. Humboldt — California’s Redwood Coast.
707-443-5097
13. Oceanside — San Diego’s North Shore.
800-350-7873
14. Redding — Family Vacation Destination.
800-874-7562
15. San Mateo County / Silicon Valley — fast
access to Pier 39, Alcatraz +. 800-288-4748
16. Visalia — Gateway to Sequoias & Kings
Canyon. 559-334-0141
For instant access, visit us online
at ngt-travelinfo.com
+RW 6SRW 7UDYHO %HVW RI WKH 3DFL¿F 1RUWKZHVW
(circle 133 or text TRJUN 133 to 41411)
17. Cascade Loop, WA — Washington’s Ultimate
Road Trip. 509-662-3888
18. Lynnwood, WA — 40% lower hotel rates 20
mins. from Seattle. 425-670-5040
19. Sea Lion Caves, OR — America’s largest sea
cave, full of Steller sea lions. 541-547-3111
Travel the World
(circle 503 or text TRJUN 503 to 41411)
20. Aurora Expeditions
Small-ship cruises to Antarctica, Arctic, Scotland,
Alaska & the Kimberley Coast. Antarctica 2017-18
Earlybird Discounts Out Now.
21. MoaTrek New Zealand Small Group Tours
Relax, make friends and see the very best of
New Zealand in comfort – we’re proud Kiwis and
love showing off all our favourite holiday spots.
22. New Zealand Trails ‘World Heritage Walking Tour’
The best of the best in New Zealand on a
friendly small group tour with expert guides,
comfortable accommodation and great cuisine.
Hotels & Resorts
(circle 504 or text TRJUN 504 to 41411)
23. The Broadmoor
The Broadmoor Wilderness properties—Cloud
Camp, The Ranch at Emerald Valley and Fly
Fishing Camp—are all-inclusive, offering true
Colorado adventures.
Cruising
(circle 505 or text TRJUN 505 to 41411)
24. 'HO¿Q $PD]RQ &UXLVHV
Enjoy a Luxury Expedition Amazon Cruise in the
Peruvian rain forest. Indulge yourself in a private
experience on board our 4-cabin cruise ship.
Traveler Getaways
(circle 507 or text TRJUN 507 to 41411)
25. Active New Zealand
New Zealand’s most experienced and trusted
adventure operator. Small group hiking, biking
and kayaking tours in incredible destinations.
26. African Safari Company 800-414-3090
27. Frontiers North Adventures 800-663-9832
28. Gondwana Ecotours 877-587-8479
29. Greensboro Area Convention & Visitors Bureau
Play in the Center of it all — Greensboro,
NC. Immerse yourself in Greensboro’s family
oriented attractions & explore over 200 years of
rich history!
30. MIR Corporation 800-424-7289
31. Mountain Lodges of Peru
Offering first-class lodge-to-lodge adventures
to Machu Picchu, with the choice of trekking
the Salkantay Trail or the multi-activity Lares
Adventure.
32. 3DFL¿F 'HOLJKW 7RXUV 800-221-7179
33. Tara Tours
Tour Company specializing in travel to Central &
South America. 800-327-0080.
34. Wilderness Travel 800-368-2794
 HONORING CONSERVATION AND

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
6 t h A N N U A L L E A D E R I N S U S TA I N A B L E T O U R I S M A W A R D
To honor excellence in travel marketing, National Geographic Traveler and the Hospitality Sales and Marketing
Association International have once again teamed up to recognize and honor companies for their leadership
and innovation in preserving and communicating an authentic sense of place—including the environment,
culture, and historic integrity—through tourism campaigns.

Amelia Island Convention
and Visitors Bureau
Platinum Winner
Three species of sea turtles visit the
beaches of Florida’s Amelia Island to
lay their eggs, though many of these
vulnerable turtles are critically endan-
gered. Recognizing the importance
of protecting this natural asset, the Amelia
Island Convention and Visitors Bureau
launched a public education program to
save the turtles called the “Clean Beaches
and Sea Turtles” campaign. The campaign
aimed to create and lobby for two new
laws that would protect the turtles and
their habitats, ultimately winning passage
of the “Leave Only Footprints” beach
ordinance, as well as a new law to fund
beach re-nourishment. As a result, Amelia
Island—and the turtles—are enjoying
a dramatic increase in turtle nests, with
the number of nests increasing by nearly
30% in just one year.
ETGCVG VJG ƂTUV ECTDQPPGWVTCN TGUQTV KP VJG
Caribbean, Ewald proves that rewarding
travels and protecting the environment are
mutually achievable. Under his leadership,
$WEWVK JQNFU VJG OQUV GEQEGTVKƂECVKQPU
and awards (including LEED Silver) in the
Caribbean. An inspiring leader, Ewald
enjoys inviting everyone to work together
for a sustainable future.

Bucuti & Tara Beach Resort

Pictured from left to right: Fran Brasseux, Executive VP,
HSMAI; Gil Langley, President & CEO, Amelia Island
Convention and Visitors Bureau; Ktimene Axetell,
Director of Digital Strategy, Amelia Island Convention
and Visitors Bureau; Deborah Friedman, VP of
Independent & Specialty Travel, National Geographic
Gold Winner
Ewald Biemans, founder of Bucuti & Tara
Beach Resort in Aruba, is a passionate
eco-pioneer at the forefront of sustainable
tourism. Providing one of the world’s best
vacation experiences while working to
Pictured from left to right: Fran Brasseux, Executive
VP, HSMAI; Amy Kerr, Director of Public Relations for
MP&A Digital & Advertising, accepting on behalf of
Ewald Biemans; Deborah Friedman, VP of Independent
& Specialty Travel, National Geographic

CONGRATULATIONS TO THIS YEAR’S WINNERS,

who were presented at HSMAI’s annual Adrian Awards at the New York Marriott Marquis on February 21, 2017.

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
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NEXTSTOP SIGNATURE EVENTS AND PROMOTIONS
Khajuraho, India
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Take a Walk on Mars
Well … it’s not quite Mars, but it’s the next best thing. Arguably
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photo by: John Woodmansee
You’re Invited to South County, Rhode Island
Our natural beauty will leave you renewed. Miles of hiking and
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Connect with the Traditions of Coastal Alabama
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 ADVERTISEMENT
Over 300 years on the Mississippi River
From its vantage point on the highest bluff, the jewel of the
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Explore the Real New Zealand with the Kiwis
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NICE SHOT!
GALÁPAGOS ISLANDS

Bird’s-Eye “
W
hen you reach the Galápagos Islands, a new type of normal takes over,”
says Mark Thiessen, a National Geographic staff photographer. “It’s this
View
THOMAS P. PESCHAK/WWW.THOMASPESCHAK.COM
normal where the animals are not afraid of you,” says Thiessen, who often
leads the Galápagos trips with National Geographic Expeditions. Fearless wildlife
How to capture wildlife means visitors can get stunning close-ups of all manner of terrestrial, aquatic, and PRO TIP
in the Galápagos through
a camera lens avian fauna, from marine iguanas lounging together atop lava rocks to a Nazca Pack kneepads. The
booby (like the one pictured above) on the beach. Thiessen recommends bringing best shots often require
By Alexandra E. Petri photographers to get low
an underwater camera to get revealing angles of eagle rays, penguins, sea lions, and crawl over lava rock,
and multitudes of fish that visitors can encounter on snorkeling sessions around Thiessen says.
the islands. “There are so many opportunities to shoot in the water,” Thiessen says.
What’s most important, though, is patience and anticipating the moment. “If you Q Go with Nat Geo to the
Galápagos: natgeo
aren’t ready, especially underwater, you aren’t going to get the shot you want.” expeditions.com/explore.

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