January, 2010 Photo Contest

This month, can you name this South American expanse taken by our photographer Adam Vaught? Be the first to email our editor at editor@travelofftheradar.com with the correct answer, and we’ll send you some sweet Eagle ...

Kayaking, Trekking or Just Relaxing at Argentina’s La Confluencia

Often described as “Yosemite without the crowds,” Patagonia rewards those who visit with some of the world most stunning scenery as well as unspoiled adventure opportunities. While spots like Bariloche and El Calafate become more commercialized every year, the sheer size of the region is allowing new spots to develop off the radar. One of the newest, La Confluencia, is located an hour and a half south of Bariloche just outside the town of El Bolson. Sitting on the bank of pristine Rio Azul, owners Mark and Ellie Jordan situated their lodge such that adventure ...

Boating, Birding in West Bengal’s Sundarbans

The Sundarbans is the largest single mangrove ecosystem in the world, and lies within both India and Bangladesh. About 45 percent of the total area of the Indian Sundarbans is under mangrove forests, which is protected and consists of the Sundarban Tiger Reserve and the Reserve Forest West of Tatla and Bidya Rivers. The remaining area consists of 54 islands inhabited by about 4 million people facing limited development opportunities. Adventurous travelers will love this area if they hook up with Help Tourism's Asit Biswas and guide Tuhin – who have been leading tours in the area ...

Hiking the Northern Albanian Alps

Welcome to Albania - in South Eastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic sea, and only recently open to the world.  Albania has a peculiar history: while courted by the Yugoslavs’ and Soviets during the Cold War, the isolationist government under Enver Hoxha implemented a homegrown form of repressive communism. The country lingered in relative obscurity after the fall of Communism in 1992. It wasn’t until a giant Ponzi scheme involving many high-ups in the government bankrupted the entire country and led to a brief ...

Winter Ranching!

When snow blankets the Rocky Mountains, many of Colorado's ranches are still open. The region is famous for its powder, making it a veritable playground for snow sports: ice fishing, back-country skiing, sledding, snowmobiling, snowshoeing, and, of course, horseback riding. Sylvan Dale Ranch is transformed in wintertime - try a Bunk and Breakfast weekend of winter sports and cozy fireplaces nights. The individual cabins are clustered beneath the giant cottonwoods which sprinkle snow on you as you walk underneath them. Nearby Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park provide miles of trails for crosscountry skiing or hoseback riding. We especially like Sylvan ...

Happy New Year! From Deepali in Mongolia

This is the fourth in a series of posts from Deepali Patel, a native of Washington D.C. and Fulbright Fellow working in Mongolia.  This week, her suggestions for adventure activities in Mongolia. Read more on her blog: Land of Blue Skies Happy New Year! I have two weeks to go in the Land of Blue Skies, and my research on agricultural policy and food security is done. Mongolia has an uncertain future that I'm afraid will not be all pleasant, but growing pains are probably unavoidable. I think the Western-educated younger leaders of the ...

A Flat Tire in Laos

A faint hissing noise from one of our scooters startled us an hour before sundown: a flat tire. My two friends and I were standing in the jungle somewhere along a 120 km stretch between the towns of Attapeu and Thang Beng on the Bolaven Plateau in Laos. Where exactly – we weren’t sure! Referred to in our map mysteriously as “Road of Unconfirmed Status”, the road had turned into an isolated, narrow singletrail of compacted mud only an hour out of town that morning. Snake-like it wound ...

Do I need vaccinations for Travel to China?

This article on China comes from Dr. Michael Kirsch, who writes the Travelogue Blog and co-founded www.travelclinicsofamerica.com. China is a magnet for tourists, students and businessmen.  The Beijing Olympic Games in 2008 showed the world that China is prominently on the world stage.  Millions from all over the world visit China every year.  It offers an unparallelled adventure in the eastern hemisphere. In China, ancient treasures are juxtaposed against modern skylines and architecture.  There are world class hotels and cuisine in the same country where ancient Chinese ...

Man vs. Mosquito

This article comes from Dr. Michael Kirsch, who writes the Travelogue Blog and co-founded www.travelclinicsofamerica.com. Travelers have a 2 pronged approach against contracting malaria.  The first is medication, discussed in a prior posting.  Choosing the right medicine requires medical expertise.  There are many anti-malaria medications available today and some don’t work in certain parts of the world.  Consult with your travel physician to ensure that you will be taking the proper pills. You don’t want to be firing blanks against mosquitoes that are armed and dangerous. The second strategy is to ...