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OUTDOOR ADVENTURES
Best Places to Do
BIRD-WATCHING
As I travel around the world, I meet more and more birders. They are passionate, they get excited--in their own quiet way--about their discoveries of a species or a behavior of one, and they are the first to explain when nature is in sync and when it isn't. If you want to see the natural world in a new light, ask a birder. Or become one yourself!
Bird-watching, or "birding," can be done on nearly every continent and in both urban and wilderness environments. Picking the best place to see birds depends on what kind you want to see and in what volume.
NORTH AMERICA
The area around Utah's Great Salt Lake offers some of the most celebrated birding in western North America. Millions of shore-birds, ducks, and other waterbirds live in the region, including more than 250 species that nest and feed on Antelope Island. You can spot gulls, egrets, and chukars year- round, but the big attraction is the bald eagle, which appears between January and March.
The 760-acre Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, just north of the Mexican border, is one of the top birding destinations in the United States, for good reason. The park, plus an additional 1,700 acres of adjoining US Fish and Wildlife refuge land, has a rich population of birds that aren't found anywhere else in the country, and it's home to the renowned World Birding Center. Birders come here year-round to spot everything from green jays, ferruginous pygmy-owls, gray hawks, and more. Every spring and fall, Swainson's and broad-winged hawks migrate in such large droves that they've been likened to a flying cloud.
The area around Tucson, the gateway city to southeastern Arizona, is one of the best places in North America for year-round bird-watching. It has a surprisingly varied terrain--including grasslands, wetlands, forests, and narrow canyons with creeks--which attracts a host of wildlife. The region is home to Tucson Mountain Park, Saguaro National Park, Agua Caliente Park, Tohono Chul Park, Coronado National Forest, the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, and the Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge. In these spaces, you'll find hundreds of desert and water species, including at least five types of hummingbirds, cactus wrens, and the pygmy nuthatch.
You don't even need to leave Tucson city limits to see a variety of typical desert birds. Meander through the city's parks, washes, and undeveloped lots to catch a glimpse of what the area has to offer. Tucson Audubon Society has a nature shop inside Saguaro National Park that conducts bird walks on a regular basis. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, located just west of the city, is also a good place to learn about the native birds and their habitats. And don't forget the Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory in Bisbee (about 50 miles southeast of Tucson), where you can take guided bird walks, go on tours, and attend educational workshops at local birding hot spots.
Florida in general is ripe for birding--in fact, the state boasts the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail, a 2,000-mile, self-guided nature highway. But if you have to choose one spot in the state to focus on, hone in on the south-central region. Its diverse habitat and areas of both temperate and subtropical climate draw more than 250 species of birds, including bald eagles, cerulean warblers, sandhill cranes, bobwhite quail, and grasshopper sparrows.
Also in Florida, the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge/Canaveral National Seashore, the J. N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge, Everglades National Park, the St. Marks Wildlife Refuge, and Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park are just a few more places you can spot birds. In addition, the area has several sanctuaries and conservation operations, including the Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary in Indian Shores, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida in Naples, and Busch Gardens in Tampa. During the last weekend of January, Brevard County hosts the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival, a 6-day annual event that is one of the most popular in the United States and features field trips, classes, and workshops.
Georgia's Colonial Coast Birding Trail includes a number of islands with prime birding opportunities. One of the best is on Jekyll Island where, by law, 65 percent of the island has to remain in its natural state. The North End Beach is a mix of beach, forest, and saltwater habitats that provide a range of birds including red-throated loons, least terns, scoters, and scaup. Just next door is Cumberland Island, Georgia's southernmost barrier island and a national seashore, where more than 335 species of birds have been recorded, including bald eagles and falcons.
To the north, more than 420 bird species can be spotted throughout the year in Minnesota. Because of its location on the Mississippi Flyway, a bird migration route that generally falls along the Mississippi River, you can see Canada geese and trumpeter swans migrating south for the winter. Duluth is home to Hawk Ridge Nature Reserve and the Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory, where at least 20 species of raptors and vultures fly down from Canada and northern Minnesota along the shores of Lake Superior. Peak migration takes place from mid-September to late October, with more than 1,000 raptors passing through Hawk Ridge each fall.
INTERNATIONAL
Veracruz in eastern Mexico is a favorite of experienced birders, as it hosts an unbelievable 650,000 migratory birds a week during the fall-winter season, plus more than 500 species that are either native or transient to the area. The sheer volume of birds derives from a variety of habitats that range from mountains to tropical rain forests to highland grasslands. Cardel is the place to go in October to see the "river of raptors," the incredible autumn migration when more than a million Swainson's and broad- winged hawks can pass overhead in a single day. Chichicaxtle, the San Julian Lagoon, the La Mancha ecological reserve, the Alvarado Wetlands, the Selva Zoque tropical rain forest, and the Sierra de los Tuxtlas range are great (and generally easily accessible) places to see migrating raptors, warblers, orioles, falcons, hummingbirds, parakeets, spoonbills, terns, kingfishers, and hundreds of other species.
A variety of different ecosystems, from rain forests to wetlands and coastal zones, allow for prime birding in the country of Belize. The Belize Audubon Society offers customized bird-watching tours in protected areas like Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary, Aguacaliente Wildlife Sanctuary, Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, Ambergris Caye, Caye Caulker, Half Moon Caye Natural Monument, and Red Bank Village. If you have to choose one, opt for the Crooked Tree Wildlife Sanctuary, which is packed with endemic species, meaning they are unique to that region. In fact, between October and January alone, you can catch sight of at least 120 bird species. Of course, you can go any time of year and get a great view.
You might expect the nearby Galapagos Islands to win out, but as far as overseas birding destinations go, Ecuador is a top pick--not only because of its variety of birds, but also its user-friendliness. The government and private enterprise have done a great job making trails accessible, encouraging the building of ecolodges, and promoting the country's mountains and cloud forests, which is where most of the birds are found. The Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve is home to more than 394 different species of birds, including the rare white-faced nunbird, the wattled guan, the long-wattled umbrella bird, and more. Mindo is another area popular with birders. Located on the western slope of the Andes, it's the winter home of many temperate species and has one of the highest bird counts in the world. Favorite trails in the area include the Flat Loop Trail, the Rio Mindo Dirt Road, and the trail that runs along the Cordillera San Lorenzo.
Few places in the world compare to Brazil when it comes to birding. The bird population of Brazil is so abundant and diverse that enthusiasts will often return over and over to different parts of the country. The Pantanal wetlands is a massive wilderness paradise and is home to as many as 650 species of birds. We're talking megasize, brilliantly colored birds like the hyacinth macaws and the turquoise-fronted parrot toucans, the rare helmeted woodpecker, and nocturnal creatures such as pygmy-owls. Alternately, in southeastern Brazil, Itatiaia National Park, the oldest national park in the country (established in 1937), is home to at least 250 species, about 50 of which are endemic. There are plenty of paths around the hotels that are easily explored on foot, including the Tres Picos trail, or head to higher mountain elevations of Pico das Agulhas Negras.
A Bird's-Eye View in Belize
Headed to Belize on a cruise? Arrange your own independent shore excursion instead of following the rest of the cruise-ship crowds. The Belize Audubon Society can help point you in the right direction, like the Bird's Eye View Lodge and Tours that lies within a protected area and employs especially knowledgeable guides. www.birdseyeviewbelize.com
With its diverse habitat and unique ecosystem, the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa is home to at least 250 species of birds. Located just a short drive south of Cape Town, the area's terrain ranges from rocky mountaintops to beaches and is home to birds such as the South African black-footed penguin, bush birds, curlew sandpipers, and ostriches. The Cape of Good Hope Nature Preserve and Cape Peninsula National Park are good places to explore, while Boulder's Beach, Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden, and the Rondevlei Nature Reserve also offer prime viewing opportunities. Solo excursions are perfectly safe, but if you prefer not to go it alone, there are plenty of private small-group trips led by experienced local operators such as Lawson's Birding, Wildlife, and Custom Safaris. www.lawsons- africa.co.za
The island of Madagascar isn't so much known for its volume of bird species but its individuality. Out of about 285 species of birds, 100 are endemic. One of the easiest places to see a wide variety is the wetlands Lake Alarobia. This privately owned park is within a few miles of the capital city of Antananarivo, and it's filled with brilliantly plumed birds. From the Madagascar pond heron to the Madagascar kingfisher, you're sure to spot feathered creatures that you can't see anywhere else in the world. However, if you want go beyond the touristy areas, go about 3 hours east of the capital to the Perinet Special Reserve (also known as the Indri Special Reserve), a rain forest inside the Andasibe-Mantadia National Park. It's teeming with endemic birds as well as a thriving lemur population.
If there's one thing on your birding bucket list, it should be the tiny fairy penguins of Australia, which are known as little blue penguins in New Zealand. These are the smallest of the penguin species, and to watch them parading back from the sea at dusk is a sight you'll remember. Though touristy, the best place to see them in action is Phillip Island outside of Melbourne, which is home to one of the largest colonies in the world. Every day at sunset, you can sit on the beach and wait for the wild penguins to return from their day of feeding and waddle across the beach back to their burrows for the night. Well-enforced rules prohibit anyone from getting too close or taking photographs, and the walkways make it possible to see these little guys from all angles without disturbing them. In New Zealand, the penguins live all along the coastline, but they're easily spotted (along with the equally cute yellow-eyed penguins) at Penguin Place on the South Island's Otago Peninsula, near Dunedin.
Of 17 species of penguins, only a few inhabit Antarctica, but they're worth the trip. Whether it's the mighty emperor penguins (think March of the Penguins) or the chinstrap penguins (named for the thin black line under their chins), these creatures are best seen on an expedition cruise. The benefit of a guided cruise is that you can reach otherwise inaccessible areas. Lindblad Expeditions has partnered with National Geographic experts on the National Geographic Explorer, where you'll travel with naturalists who really know their stuff, whether you're cruising on the Zodiac, kayaking between ice floes, or hiking through the wild where penguins roam freely.
National Wildlife Refuges
Surround yourself with enthusiasts at a national wildlife refuge (www.fws.gov/refuges). These attract large numbers of birds and are the sites of bird festivals all around the country during spring and fall migrations. Catch sight of green jays and Altamira orioles during the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival in Harlingen, Texas, which includes field trips to several area refuges. The majestic Festival of the Cranes takes place every November at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico, where sandhill cranes and snow geese take to the skies at dawn and dusk. Search for bald and golden eagles at Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma, and see the unique scrub jays in Florida's Hobe Sound, Lake Wales Ridge, and Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuges. If you really know your stuff, the Cache River Birding Blitz in Illinois involves teams competing to see who can identify the most species of birds in 24 hours in areas like the Cypress Creek National Wildlife Refuge and Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge.
Best Places to Go
BOATING
As someone who grew up on boats, I find that trying to write about the best places for boating is somewhat contradictory, because in my experience, any time I can get out on the water immediately qualifies as the best place for boating! Simple as that. Well, not so simple, because in the end, it gets down to your definition of boating. Are you going to physically operate the boat or passively enjoy your experience as a passenger? Sail or power? Ocean, bay, river, or lake? Rough water or calm? Beginner or perfect storm boating? You get the picture.
MOTORBOATS
The British Virgin Islands are known as the sailing capital of the world for a number of reasons: steady breezes, easy line-of-sight navigation, comfortable anchorages, and great yacht availability (not to mention it's an easy destination for Americans to reach, the language is English, and the currency is the US dollar). Adding to its appeal is the diversity of possibilities for water-based exploration and the abundance of onshore activities. Many of the best snorkeling, diving, and fishing spots in the area are only accessible by boat: the caves of Norman Island, the extensive reefs off Eustacia Island, and the famous wreck of the HMS Rhone. You're best off sailing December through May, outside of hurricane season, though the best game fishing tends to be in summer.
