Alaska

Icelandic Saga

Washington, DC

A wonderful trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico and environs. Outstanding sites include Tent Rocks National Monument, the Bradbury Science Museum (Los Alamos), the art galleries on Canyon Road, and 10,000 waves spa. Also enjoyed the Loretto Chapel and the Georgia O'Keefe Museum.

Another REI tour. There was sunlight 24 hours -- we camped two nights, and at midnight, you could read a book inside your tent. The country was beautiful. A little stark: no trees, no wildlife, thousands of acres of desolate lava fields. But stunning features included a glacial lagoon filled with icebergs, Gullfoss, the "Golden Falls," a gorgeous, two-tiered waterfall, and Thingveller Park, site of the world's oldest parliament (the Althing, first formed in 930) and the rift between the North American and European tectonic plates.

After that great REI trip to Alaska, I decide to try a tour with Backroads -- a cycling trip through California wine country. And I don't even own a bike! I don't think I've been on a bike in 5 years. But I'm having a great time, and we're riding about 40 miles a day, no problem. But! On the fourth day I get going too fast on a sharp, downhill left turn and take a tumble. The next thing I know I'm on a stretcher! But I don't miss any biking, because after that it starts raining so hard that places we are scheduled to go are being evacuated! Heavens, a few changes from the original schedule. But the injuries are minor, and the group is so nice that we have a lot of fun even without more biking.

Jackpot! I take an REI trip to Alaska's "inside passage" -- the area with all the islands, off the coast near Juneau. Usually, I shun group tours, but this one is fantastic; I'll try another. We go kayaking and hiking for 8 hours a day -- and then there's another 8 hours of daylight after that! Scenery, wildlife, and activity all superb. We see tons of whales, a moose, a grizzly bear, a black bear with cubs, sea lions, otters, glaciers, and more. What a trip!