ENGLAND, A CHILDREN’S LITERATURE TOUR, Part 1, Beatrix Potter, Guest Post by Cathy Bonnell

 

Hilltop Farm, Once Home of Beatrix Potter

My friend Cathy Bonnell, a retired school librarian who lives in Phoenix, Arizona, loves to travel and recently spent two weeks in England with her daughter Courtney, a journalist. Cathy has contributed previously to The Intrepid Tourist. I thank her for sharing her photos and report of her trip in July to London and the Lake District, with a special eye to connections with children’s literature.

Cathy in London

After a sleepless night in the sky, I made it to London and my daughter Courtney’s darling neighborhood, Belsize, for a two week visit. Early dinner in a little cafe steps from her flat and to bed early!

Chiluly sculpture at the Victoria and Albert Museum

The next day a visit to the Victoria and Albert Museum was my first sightseeing venture —to see an exhibit of original art by author/illustrator Beatrix Potter. 

The tiny illustrations of Beatrix Potter were so thrilling to this longtime admirer and former elementary school librarian. 

Her sketchbooks and handwritten manuscripts were also shown at the museum.

Off early the next morning on the train to the Lake District, where we stayed in a lovely historic hotel in Bowness called Landeth Howe, once owned by Beatrix Potter. Two full days of small group tours took us to Beatrix Potter’s famous home, Hilltop Farm, now owned by the National Trust. 

The white gate at Hilltop Farm is original. 

The lush greenery and sweeping scenery of the Lake Country was a very welcome sight to this desert dweller.  Note a part of Hadrian’s wall in the background.

Such beautiful blooms were everywhere.

Castlerigg (similar to Stonehenge) in Keswick near Sawrey.  No one knows why they were built or by whom.

Rainy, windy and chilly day around the Lake District.

After three days in The Lake District we were back in London  

To be continued next week in Part 2.

MADAGASCAR: Leaping Lemurs, Guest Post by Owen Floody, Part 1

 52 Places to Go: Week 35

Diadamed Sifaka, Madagascar

In June 2016, our friend Owen Floody planned and led a trip to Madagascar.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken several trips that allow him to pursue his passion. He has been a frequent contributor to The Intrepid Tourist. Here is part 1 of a short reflection on his Madagascar trip and a few of his excellent photographs. 

One of the world's places that might best be seen soon, in case it is not preserved over the long term, is Madagascar.  The history and isolation of this large island off the east coast of southern Africa have blessed it with some wildlife that is unique (especially its lemurs) along with some that is unusual though not unique (e.g., its array of colorful chameleons). Madagascar also presents a wide range of habitats, including several types of rainforest at different altitudes (coastal to montane), dry deciduous forests, grasslands, deserts (“spiny forests”) and large expanses of sharp limestone pinnacles (“tsingy”).

Tsingy

Alas, some if not all of these habitats are at risk, in part due to the widespread use of charcoal for cooking: Most or all of Madagascar’s unprotected forests already are gone, increasing the pressure on the protected areas that remain.  Tourism can help in this regard, by giving local residents a stake in forest preservation.  Evidence for such beneficial effects can be seen, for instance, in the requirement for local (in addition to national) guides and in the development of community-based wildlife reserves.  The net effect is that a visit to Madagascar can have the immediate effect of exposing you to some wonderful scenery and wildlife at the same time that it encourages the preservation of these resources for future visitors.

Bamboo lemur

Madagascar’s roads can make it a challenging place to tour. On my recent trip, we began with an abortive trip from the capital Antananarivo (Tana) to a pair of rainforest parks directly to the east, hoping to see and, even more to the point, hear the dawn chorus of the indri, the largest of the lemurs.  Alas, what we discovered is that the indri hunker down and clam up in the rain.  Still, this excursion permitted us to visit the semi-captive lemurs on Lemur Island, as well as the residents of a local reserve specializing in chameleons and other reptiles.

Chameleon

Once back in Tana, we boarded a flight for Morondava, on the west coast.  From there, we drove north with the goal of visiting Madagascar’s premier tsingy site, the Tsingy de Bemaraha (a World Heritage site).  Along the way, we were enchanted by Baobab Avenue, an amazing concentration of huge baobab trees.  

Baobab Avenue

In addition, we stopped to hike within the dry deciduous forest at Kirindy Reserve, looking both for lemurs and their major predator, the fossa, which despite appearances is a type of civet or mongoose, not a cat.

Fossa

Nevertheless, it was the tsingy that stole the show. Within the park, we took two hikes, through the Petit Tsingy and Grand Tsingy.  Both provided great opportunities to view the tsingy from above (viewpoints), within (as we hiked along gaps in the formations), sometimes even below (as we crawled through short caves or tunnels within the rock).  This variety of perspectives helped to impress upon us the height of the limestone pinnacles.  Combining this with the aerial extent of the formations emphasized at the overlooks, one could not fail to come away from this site in awe of its stark majesty.

Once we tore ourselves away from the tsingy, we retraced our steps, first to Morondava, then on to Tana, where the second major phase of our trip began. 

Note: I devised the trip itinerary, which was ably implemented by Cortez, USA, a California-based tour-operator that specializes in Madagascar.  In the past, Madagascar has been criticized for the quality of its tourism infrastructure.  With respect to the roads, this was and still is justified.  In all other respects (accommodations, food, guides), however, I thought that we were extremely well treated on this trip and so would urge others, especially others with an interest in unusual wildlife, to give Madagascar a try.

 

This article was first published January 16, 2017. 

For Part 2 of Owen's post about his trip to Madagascar, click HERE. 

HUILO HUILO BIOLOGICAL RESERVE: Volcanoes, Waterfalls and Towering Rainforests, Chile’s Lake District, Part 1

Volcano Mocho-Choshuenco rises above Lake Panguipulli in Chile's southern lake district.

It was the first day of summer in the southern hemisphere. Birds were singing and a profusion of wildflowers blanketed fields and roadsides as we made our way toward Huilo Huilo Biologic Reserve at the base of the Andes in Chile’s lake district. (Huilo Huilo, pronounced, WEEL-oh-WEEL-oh, is a private for profit natural reserve and ecotourism project in southern Chile.)

Huilo Huilo is in the Patagonian Rainforest

We had landed at the Temuco airport, where we rented a car for the two and a half hour drive–made a little longer by our stop to take photos at the dramatic viewpoint on Lake Panguipulli toward the snowcapped volcano Mocho-Choshuenco, rising 2413 meters (about 7500 feet) into the blue sky.

The road to Huilo Huilo follows the shore of long Lake Panguipulli

After checking in at our hotel, we spent the next three days exploring the reserve, hiking, horseback riding, and learning about the unique life in this southern temperate rainforest. Plastic wristbands gave us free entry into most trails and facilities.

A spiral walkway around the atrium of the Nothofagus hotel leads to rooms facing the treetops.

This was a family vacation with our daughter, her husband, and their two teenage children, and there were activities for all ages to enjoy. We were staying at the Nothofagus Hotel, named after the tall trees endemic to the area. The hotel, built almost entirely of wood, surrounds a Nothofagus trunk and resembles a treehouse, with rooms looking out into the canopy.

Cheerful yellow plastic birds mark the trails in the Huilo Huilo reserve.

From our deck we could hear the roar of the river a short distance from the hotel. Before dinner we took a short walk along the river path to Salto de la Leona, one of several waterfalls in the reserve where masses of water from spring snowmelt were crashing over the edge.

A full moon rises over the mountains in the east (the Andes)

At sunset we went up to the roof deck to watch the sun disappear behind the volcano. Later, we watched the full moon rise in the east, so bright that it eclipsed most of the stars.

A herd of red deer gathers at feeding time. In December (spring in Chile) the male's antlers are covered in velvet.

On our first morning at Huilo Huilo  we crossed the road and  followed the trails (senderos) leading to the large enclosure where a herd of deer (ciervos) lived and to another smaller enclosure with a group of wild boars (jabali). We were able to observe the animals up close via raised walkways and they appeared quite oblivious of us.

A lively group of young boars, still with their striped coats, were frolicking in the enclosure.

We then walked around a large pond and its border of giant leaves to the nearby Volcanoes Museum.

Mapuche woman

Silver jewelry made by the Mapuche displayed in the Volcanoes Museum. The Mapuche (meaning "people of the land") are the largest ethnic group in Chile and constitute approximately 10% of the population (more than 1,000,000 people.)

The Volcanoes Museum is filled with exhibits of animals, minerals, fossils, history of the indigenous Mapuche people, a reproduction of a copper mine, and, rather oddly, a carved mammoth tusk from China.

Stone markers in the Mapuche style outside the Volcanoes Museum

After a lunch of empanadas, the classic Chilean meat filled pastries, that we had purchased from a stand in the local town of Neltume, we spent the afternoon relaxing in the hotel spa. We were still recovering from jet lag--the time difference in December between California and Chile is five hours. At dinner that evening in Puerto Fuy, just a few kilometers down the road, Art and I enjoyed our pisco sours, the classic drink of Chile. Back at our hotel that evening Art, Jennifer and Humberto attended a free workshop–learning how to make the perfect pisco sour, or the Huilo Huilo variation, which adds blueberries to the mix.

Pisco sour workshop.

Plans for our next day included horseback riding and a ride on the teleferico (funicular) up the mountain. Part 2 of our visit to Huilo Huilo will post next week.

For a map and directions for getting to Huilo Huilo click HERE.

MADAGASCAR: Leaping Lemurs, Guest Post by Owen Floody, Part 1

Diadamed Sifaka, Madagascar

In June 2016, our friend Owen Floody planned and led a trip to Madagascar.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken several trips that allow him to pursue his passion. He has been a frequent contributor to The Intrepid Tourist. Here is part 1 of a short reflection on his Madagascar trip and a few of his excellent photographs. 

One of the world's places that might best be seen soon, in case it is not preserved over the long term, is Madagascar.  The history and isolation of this large island off the east coast of southern Africa have blessed it with some wildlife that is unique (especially its lemurs) along with some that is unusual though not unique (e.g., its array of colorful chameleons). Madagascar also presents a wide range of habitats, including several types of rainforest at different altitudes (coastal to montane), dry deciduous forests, grasslands, deserts (“spiny forests”) and large expanses of sharp limestone pinnacles (“tsingy”). 

Tsingy

Alas, some if not all of these habitats are at risk, in part due to the widespread use of charcoal for cooking: Most or all of Madagascar’s unprotected forests already are gone, increasing the pressure on the protected areas that remain.  Tourism can help in this regard, by giving local residents a stake in forest preservation.  Evidence for such beneficial effects can be seen, for instance, in the requirement for local (in addition to national) guides and in the development of community-based wildlife reserves.  The net effect is that a visit to Madagascar can have the immediate effect of exposing you to some wonderful scenery and wildlife at the same time that it encourages the preservation of these resources for future visitors.

Bamboo lemur

Madagascar’s roads can make it a challenging place to tour. On my recent trip, we began with an abortive trip from the capital Antananarivo (Tana) to a pair of rainforest parks directly to the east, hoping to see and, even more to the point, hear the dawn chorus of the indri, the largest of the lemurs.  Alas, what we discovered is that the indri hunker down and clam up in the rain.  Still, this excursion permitted us to visit the semi-captive lemurs on Lemur Island, as well as the residents of a local reserve specializing in chameleons and other reptiles.

Chameleon

Once back in Tana, we boarded a flight for Morondava, on the west coast.  From there, we drove north with the goal of visiting Madagascar’s premier tsingy site, the Tsingy de Bemaraha (a World Heritage site).  Along the way, we were enchanted by Baobab Avenue, an amazing concentration of huge baobab trees.  

Baobab Avenue

In addition, we stopped to hike within the dry deciduous forest at Kirindy Reserve, looking both for lemurs and their major predator, the fossa, which despite appearances is a type of civet or mongoose, not a cat.

Fossa

Nevertheless, it was the tsingy that stole the show. Within the park, we took two hikes, through the Petit Tsingy and Grand Tsingy.  Both provided great opportunities to view the tsingy from above (viewpoints), within (as we hiked along gaps in the formations), sometimes even below (as we crawled through short caves or tunnels within the rock).  This variety of perspectives helped to impress upon us the height of the limestone pinnacles.  Combining this with the aerial extent of the formations emphasized at the overlooks, one could not fail to come away from this site in awe of its stark majesty.

Once we tore ourselves away from the tsingy, we retraced our steps, first to Morondava, then on to Tana, where the second major phase of our trip began. 

Note: I devised the trip itinerary, which was ably implemented by Cortez, USA, a California-based tour-operator that specializes in Madagascar.  In the past, Madagascar has been criticized for the quality of its tourism infrastructure.  With respect to the roads, this was and still is justified.  In all other respects (accommodations, food, guides), however, I thought that we were extremely well treated on this trip and so would urge others, especially others with an interest in unusual wildlife, to give Madagascar a try.

Look for Part 2 next week.

MACHU PICCHU: Owen’s Peruvian Adventures, Part 1, Guest Post by Owen Floody

Machu Picchu, Peru

Our friend Owen Floody is in the midst of a series of three treks in Peru, with two down, Machu Picchu (May 2015), Huayhuash (July 2015), and one coming up in mid-2017 (Cordillera Blanca.) Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken numerous trips that allow him to pursue his passion. He is a frequent contributor to The Intrepid Tourist. Here is his report of his Machu Picchu trip and a few of his excellent photographs.

My Machu Picchu trip included three major parts: the several days prior to the trek that I spent acclimating to the altitude as I explored Cusco; the trek itself; and the two days spent exploring Machu Picchu.

Cusco was great and I strongly recommend that anyone visiting this part of the world not shortchange it.  The city presents a fascinating mix of very old and not-so-old streets, walls and buildings.

Stone wall in Sacsayhuaman; similar walls can be found in Cusco

I am not a museum enthusiast, but found several here that were very enjoyable.  One of these was the Pre-Columbian museum; I think that another favorite was the Museo Inka.  The restaurants were excellent, with the introduction to ceviche being, for me, a special treat.  

Some of the salt ponds at the Salinas de Mara

Finally, there are many very interesting sites on Cusco’s outskirts or within easy day-trip distance (e.g., the Sacred Valley, Moray Agricultural Terraces, Salinas de Mara.)  I could easily have spent a week exploring these and more.

On the trail to Machu Picchu

The trek was strenuous, covering 41 miles in seven days.  But it was the altitude (mainly 6700-12,800 feet, with a single pass at 15,200) that presented the greatest challenge.  Was this effort fully repaid by the scenery?  

Lake in the Andes

The scenery certainly was attractive.  Still, I would not put this among the few most scenic treks that I have done.  Bear in mind, though, that this was not the famous Inca Trail and I simply don’t know the relative merits of the two routes to Machu Picchu. 

Not being religious, I was surprised to react very positively to the opportunity our trek provided to participate in a ceremony in which we were blessed and our wishes conveyed to the Andean gods by a pair of Quechuan shamans.  This ended up being for me one of the trek’s highlights.  I found the symbolism fascinating and the ceremony overall very appealing, in no small part due to the gentle manner and charm of the shamans.  And who can complain about the potential divine reinforcement of one’s wishes?

Overview of Machu Picchu from Huayna Picchu

Machu Picchu itself was wonderful, fully justifying any and all hype.  The setting is matchless, the ruins are quite a bit more extensive than I imagined, and the beauty and intricacy of the stonework are breathtaking.  Its extent and beauty more than justified the choice of REI as a tour operator: Whereas most of the tours that I considered included just one day at Machu Picchu, the one offered by REI included two and any less than this would have been inadequate.  Partly because of the extra day, our tour included a climb up Huayna Picchu, for the overview of Machu Picchu that this peak provides.  Of course, it also gave us more time to wander around Machu Picchu.  Especially effective in this regard was the opportunity to have Machu Picchu largely to ourselves in the late afternoon of our first day there, after the day-trippers had departed.

In sum, visits to Cusco and Machu Picchu are highly recommended.