Tag: trip

Daily Photo – July 24, 2020

Tree exists in only 2 places in modern times.

 Monterey cypress, is a species of cypress native to the Central Coast of California. The native range of the species during modern times is confined to two small relict populations near Carmel, California, at Cypress Point in Pebble Beach and at Point Lobos. Credit – James Carey

Daily Video – July 20, 2020 – Fort Ord Beach, Monterey, CA.

Sound of waves at deserted Fort Ord Beach located at Ford Ord Dunes State Park, Marina, CA

Fort Ord Dunes State Park is a relatively new California state park that protects the beach and dunes for a four-mile stretch south of Marina State Beach. This is an excellent beach with a remote feel below undeveloped bluffs that offers some excellent beachcombing. The parking area is on the former site of Stilwell Hall, a 52,000 square foot officers club and hall that was part of nearby Fort Ord military base. The main part of the base, which was decommissioned in 1991, is a large inland tract with hiking trails and wild open lands that is now Fort Ord National Monument. Access to the Fort Ord Beach requires quite a walk from the parking lot on the bluff to the beach below. Head south from the lot along the gated paved road until you see a trail on the right and then hike down the sandy gulch. If you don’t want to make that trek, then you can walk out a boardwalk trail to the bluff’s edge and a viewing platform. The Monterey Bay Coastal Trail runs parallel to Highway 1 for this entire 4-mile park and continues north and south to make a great bike ride.

Getting here is a little tricky. Find Divarty Street near Cal State Monterey Bay in Seaside then head west and follow signs that say Fort Ord Dunes State Park.

Or take the PCH in Marina take the Imjin Exit, you can only go east at the top of the exit ramp. Drive to 2nd Ave and go right. Drive to 9th Street and turn right. Follow 9th around the traffic circle and cross back over the freeway and you are at the parking lot for the beach and the Dunes Park.

Do not swim there because of very strong rip tides and currents. Be careful. There are no life guards at this beach at all. Yet this is a very beautiful beach without many people and beautiful sunsets over Monterey Bay.

Daily Photo – July 17, 2020

Magical Central Coast of California

Daily Photo – July 5, 2020 and Coming Next! Victoria Falls!

Nothing compares to standing in front of the world’s largest waterfall, which stretches in length for a full mile. Visit between February and May (after the region’s rainy season) for the clearest views of the 500 million liters of water that pour over the falls every 60 seconds. Credit – Getty

COMING NEXT –

VICTORIA FALLS, ZIMBABWE

Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, one of the Seven wonders of the world. The coming series will be about Victoria Falls before COVID-19 and the effect that the pandemic has had on this tourist community since the virus.

Victoria Falls is one of the most vibrant tourist communities on the planet. Its sole reason for existence is to serve the tourists that come from all over the world to see the majesty of the falls. There are luxury hotels and luxury safari camps, you can walk with elephants and walk with lions, bungee jump into the Gorge at the bottom of the falls, zip line across a lagoon full of crocodiles and eat wonderful food. These are just of the things that you can do on any given  day in Victoria Falls pre-coronavirus. Yet since the pandemic and the lockdown in Zimbabwe and especially in Johannesburg, South Africa which Victoria Falls depends on as a regional hub for air traffic, Victoria Falls is now a ghost town. With my good friend Melanie Mostert (africanizedmc@gmail.com), a luxury travel consultant based in Victoria Falls, we will explore Victoria Falls before the virus and after the virus.

The town is waiting for your return and we hope to intrigue you not only to visit but also to consider the effect a lock down on a third world country that depends totally on tourism. There will be good stories, great photographs, and a lot of human interest. I hope you enjoy.

Daily Photo – June 26, 2020

The Faroe Islands lie in the North Atlantic between Iceland and the coast of Denmark. With its grass-roofed houses, rocky coastlines, and abundance of puffins, the self-governed group of 18 volcanic islands is basically one giant photo op. Mulafossur Waterfall might be the archipelago’s most famous site—the cascade is like something from a fantasy novel, falling over the rocky cliffs of Vagar Island to the ocean below, with the green hills of Gásadalur village as a backdrop. Credit: Haltong Yu

Daily Photo – June 20, 2020

Denali National Park, Alaska
It is off the beaten track, Denali’s awesome beauty is worth the trip. Over 6 million acres of wilderness, lakes and mountains make up this beautiful national park.

Daily Photo – June 23, 2020

The Azores, Portugal
Roughly 900 miles off the coast of Lisbon, this Portuguese archipelago can inspire wanderlust with a single photo. Filled with verdant valleys, steep ocean-side cliffs, rows of blue hydrangeas, and scattering of waterfalls make the Azores a paradise worth exploring. Credit: Getty

Daily Photo – June 22, 2020

Madagascar’s surreal Avenue of the Baobabs, where the centuries-old trees reach heights of nearly 100 feet. Credit Kieran Stone

Daily Photo – June 17, 2020

Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Japan
Every traveler should experience the ethereal glow and seemingly endless heights of this bamboo grove on the outskirts of Kyoto.
Credit: Terence Leezy

Daily Photo – June 15, 2020

Atacama Desert, Chile
Valle de la Luna in Chile’s Atacama Desert -Years of erosion have left behind jagged peaks, dry riverbeds, and a landscape startlingly similar to that of our favorite celestial bodies.
Credit : Getty