Survival School Search

Whether you sail, hike or ski, you’ll enjoy nature more by being prepared. When selecting a wilderness-skills course, consider these factors. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life Length and level of training. One- or two-day courses offer an outdoor-preparedness overview, whereas longer courses (four days to three weeks) delve deeper so you can hone real skills. Physical challenge. At minimum, you must be able to hike a few miles a day with a light pack. For rigorous or high-altitude trips, train in advance for several months. Courses that simulate emergency hardships (hunger, thirst, extreme temperatures) require physical and mental prep. Terrain and conditions. Most courses teach skills that focus on deserts, mountains, woodlands or extreme weather conditions. Consider a course that supports your favorite activities (winter safety for skiers, summer survival for backpackers). Cost. Outfitters charge $100 to $200 per day. Budget for extras such as a knife, compass or... Read More →

Into the Wild

Build your outdoor survival skills – and reconnect with nature – on an educational wilderness adventure. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life Sheri Webb moves stealthily through northern California’s Mount Shasta Wilderness, taking care not to step on twigs or crackling leaves. She pauses every few minutes to pick miner’s lettuce for food or to scrutinize a print on the ground. Is it a deer trail? Will it lead to a spring where she can drink? For 36 hours last spring, Webb and her boyfriend, Frank Sturniolo, made themselves at home in this pristine forest, with only a knife, a flint, a canteen and a cup. It was the culmination of a six-day outdoor survival course called The Edge — a course that the outfitter, Lifesong Wilderness Adventures, patterned after the TV series Man vs. Wild. Their goal: Survive without the trappings of civilization. No cell phone, no Starbucks, no running water. “When I hike, I normally tromp mindlessly through the woods,” admits... Read More →

The Right Ride

Longing to slide into the stirrups on an equi-adventure? Answer these questions to help you pick the horse trip of your dreams. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life What type of rider are you? Most outfitters distinguish between beginner, intermediate and advanced trips so that you’ll be riding with peers of similar ­abilities. Family trips welcome all abilities. To brush up your skills, try guest ranches, whose instructors help you practice on the trail. Do you want to gallop around the globe? Choose from Highland ponies in Scotland, Arabians in Morocco or Tennessee Walking Horses in the Appalachians. Consider all types of terrain — mountains, savannahs, beaches — and don’t limit yourself to summer. Think snow riding or driving a horse-drawn sleigh. What do you want to do when you’re not in the saddle? Some people want to ride all day. Others prefer blending horse adventures with fishing, cooking classes, wine tasting, cultural sight-seeing, hiking or kayaking. Where... Read More →

Ride Away

Looking for an exhilarating way your whole family can explore the great outdoors together? Consider an unforgettably fun horseback-riding adventure. By Laurel Kallenbach, for Experience Life Coyotes howl in the distance as Jeff Moore and his daughter, Jill, eat cowboy grub by the campfire in California’s eastern Sierras. Nearby, horses nicker and munch hay. The Moores’ annual father-daughter horseback adventure — a four-day camping trip driving more than 100 horses 100 miles across the valley — lets them get away from daily routines and enjoy the freedom of wide-open spaces. “I love horses and being outside with my dad,” says Jill, 18. “It’s fun getting dirty and riding fast to round up riderless horses that try to break away.” The horse drives give the Moores, who live in Coto de Caza, Calif., a chance to bond. “There are no cell phones, laptops or TVs on this trip,” says Jeff, 52, a managing director for a commercial-real-estate brokerage firm. “I’m... Read More →

Endangered Places to See Now

By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life Thinking about visiting an area hard-hit by global warming? Far-flung or nearby, many landscapes are in flux. Here are some important U.S. locations. For more ideas, read Frommer’s 500 Places to See Before They Disappear by Holly Hughes (Wiley, 2009). Death Valley, Calif.: The vegetation that holds the desert soil and dunes in place is being threatened by heat and drought. The Redwoods, Calif.: The giant, 2,000-year-old trees are at risk from forest fires. Cape Hatteras National Seashore, N.C.: Severe storms and rising sea levels have caused beach erosion and loss of flora and fauna. Nachusa Grasslands, Ill.: One of the last surviving prairies, this area is being protected from encroaching development. Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida Keys: This low-lying island is threatened by rising seas, reef bleaching and hurricanes. The Everglades, Fla.: The marshy landscape and bird species are threatened by dwindling water, pollution and urban development. Glacier... Read More →

Disappearing Destinations

Many of the world’s most spectacular landscapes are vanishing because of climate change, spurring concerned visitors to experience and protect them before it’s too late. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life What would an autumn cycling trip in New England be without colorful maples? What’s a ski vacation without fresh snow? Or an outing to the shore where the beach has eroded? These scenarios are unimaginable for many, yet global warming threatens to make them a reality as species extinctions, severe storms, flooding, drought, melting icecaps, and warmer, more acidic ocean water transform the outdoor environments we love.  People are responding to the threat by rushing to destinations hard-hit by climate change before they disappear. They want to climb Tanzania’s Mt. Kilimanjaro before its fabled snows melt forever, or paddle Florida’s Everglades before its grassy swamps dry up. The see-it-before-it’s-gone philosophy has launched an entirely new form of tourism: climate-change... Read More →

Your Eco-Adventure Awaits

Explore nature and respect area environments by following the code of an eco-adventurer. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life Travel responsibly. Stay close to home or purchase carbon offsets for any air or road travel. Lighten your impact on local resources. Leave no trace. When you enter a wilderness, take care to leave little or no evidence of your presence. Stay on trails, remove your trash and waste, and don’t disturb animals or plants.  Patronize locally owned businesses so that local residents benefit economically from your visit and from preserving the area.  Choose a sustainable outfitter. Ask the company how it protects the areas you will be visiting, how it cares for natural resources, and how it supports local or indigenous people. (See Resources for directories of responsible outfitters.) Learn about your destination. The more you understand area ecosystems and cultures, the more respectful and appreciative you’ll be when you’re actually there.  Show... Read More →

Earth-Friendly Outfitters and Resources

By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life Ecoventura: A carbon-neutral adventure-tourism company in the Galápagos Islands that operates trips aboard the Flamingo I, Eric and Letty yachts; 800-633-7972; www .ecoventura.com International Ecotourism Society: Search for an eco-outfitter or eco-trip; www .ecotourism.org Planeta.com: A global journal of practical ecotourism, including info on guides and destinations; www­.planeta.com REI Adventures: Find carbon-neutral outdoor adventures around the world; www.rei.com/adventures Surfrider Foundation: A grassroots environmental organization that works to protect U.S. and Puerto Rican oceans, waves and beaches; www.surfrider.org Sustainable Travel International: Supports travelers and travel providers that protect the cultures and environments they visit. Search its eco-directory for sustainable destinations and tour companies; www­.sustainabletravel.com  Experience Life magazine is an award-winning health and fitness publication that aims... Read More →

Hard Facts on Climate Change

By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life   Every five minutes, the Arctic loses up to 3 square miles of its multiyear ice. — The Rough Guide to Climate Change by Robert Henson (Rough Guides, 2008)  40 percent of the Arctic icecap will be lost by 2050. — National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, www .noaa.gov  Every five minutes, the Amazon loses 600,000 square feet of climate-preserving rainforest. — The Rough Guide to Climate Change  Australia’s Great Barrier Reef could be functionally dead before 2050. — Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, www .ipcc.ch  In writer Laurel Kallenbach’s home state of Colorado, winter temperatures are no longer cold enough to freeze mountain pine beetles, which are destroying forests. Experience Life magazine is an award-winning health and fitness publication that aims to empower people to live their best, most authentic lives, and challenges the conventions of hype, gimmicks and superficiality in favor of a discerning,... Read More →

Earth-Friendly Forays

Outdoor excursions restore and rejuvenate your body, but if you travel with the environment in mind, your vacation can also help restore some of the world’s most pristine wilderness. By Laurel Kallenbach for Experience Life On a Galápagos Island beach, two sea lion pups are playing king-of-the-hill on a flat-topped rock. With each wave that washes over the rock, the two-week-old pups lose their balance and tumble head-over-flippers onto the sand. I’m standing 10 feet away, snapping photos and laughing at their antics. After a week of hiking and snorkeling in the Galápagos Islands with Ecoventura, an environmentally responsible tour company, I’ve grown used to seeing wild animals in their natural habitat. In this paradise, 500-pound Galápagos tortoises lumber about munching on leaves. Some are so old they might have been hatchlings when scientist and evolution theorist Charles Darwin visited the islands in 1835. Here, I’ve also had a front-row seat to see a flightless... Read More →