Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List
adventure travel introSure you can go kayaking at the lake, but doesn’t kayaking with humpback whales in Greenland sound just a little more exciting? From mountain biking to rock climbing and whitewater rafting, we’ve scouted out the world’s best destinations for taking your hobby to the next level.
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
Mountain BikingMountain Biking – Mostly known for world-class skiing, Canadian resort Whistler trades ski slopes for bike trails after the spring thaw. Whistler Bike Park is home to more than 120 miles of paths crisscrossing peaks, forests and alpine meadows, accessible via chair lifts and catering to both beginners and advanced riders. Up The Ante: Trails carrying names like “Top of the World” and “No Joke” promise a ride you won’t soon forget. bike.whistlerblackcomb.com [Photo: Robin O’Neill]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
DivingDiving – If Iceland isn’t on your list of must-dive destinations, put it there now. Silfra, an hour outside of Reykjavik, is the only place in the world where you can dive between continental plates (the American and Eurasian plates, to be exact), and it offers some of the best visibility on the planet – up to 120 metres – since the water spends decades filtering through underground lava before reaching the fissure. dive.is Up The Ante: Head further north and go dry suit diving with seals at the north pole. oceanwide-expeditions.com [Photo: DIVE.IS ©Magnus Lundgren]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
CanyoningCanyoning – Go “kloofing”, as the locals call it, under the South African sun in scenic Nuy River Gorge, near Cape Town. Perfect for first-time kloofers and acrophobes, you’ll wade through icy streams, scramble over boulders, jump from waterfalls and abseil down rock faces – but only if you want to. Up The Ante: Thrill-seekers should try nearby Suicide Gorge, where 10-metre waterfall jumps and daring rock climbs demand a certain amount of intestinal fortitude.
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
Rock ClimbingRock Climbing – Rugged and breathtaking in equal measure, Patagonia is a climber’s dream. Chile’s Torres del Paine and Argentina’s Fitz Roy, Cerro Torre or San Carlos de Bariloche are perhaps the most legendary, offering hundreds of routes and hardly any human company. Up The Ante: These areas are suitable for climbers of all degrees of expertise and adrenaline addiction, the most technical and challenging of which are the abundant ice climbing routes requiring skill, stamina and the will to push past your limits. [Photo by: Kristoffer Szilas]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
SurfingSurfing – Ask 10 surfers where to find the best waves, and you’ll get 10 different answers. We suggest, then, going right to the source of the surfing craze: New Zealand’s Manu Bay, the setting for ’60s cult surfer film Endless Summer. Up The Ante: The waves in Manu Bay are already incredible, but if it’s something downright impossible you’re after, catch a flight to Tavarua Island in Fiji, home of professional surfing competitions and monumental wipeouts. tavarua.com [Photo: Jun Kaneko/Flickr]
5/15
Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
KitesurfingKitesurfing – As difficult as it is thrilling, kitesurfing demands the perfect confluence of conditions. The Philippines tick most boxes, but avoid crowded Boracay and try Coron and Calamianes Islands instead, complete with a rustic kitesurfing camp. kiteboarding-philippines.com Up The Ante: From November to March, the northeast monsoon pounds North Luzon (above Manila), providing a turbulent combination of wind and waves that’s ideal for experienced kitesurfers in search of a battle. [Photo: 250K Kiteboarding]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
HikingHiking – Most come to Hong Kong expecting a city stay, but it’s possible to get away from the concrete jungle and enter a real one. The 100km MacLehose Trail begins along the eastern shore before retreating into tropical mountainous terrain and cutting through undulating countryside for a series of climbs and descents that will have even the fittest hiker pausing for breath. Up The Ante: 3 words – Great Himalaya Trail. If 45,000km of the world’s most formidable mountains doesn’t get your blood pumping, we don’t know what will.
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
SkiingSkiing – Take the heavenly powdered pistes of Whistler, then subtract a few thousand fellow skiers. That’s Revelstoke, Canada’s best-kept winter sports secret. Geared towards the intermediate and advanced set, the resort features “3,121 acres of fall line skiing, high alpine bowls, renowned gladed terrain and endless groomers” in addition to the longest vertical in North America, at 5,620 feet (1,713 metres). Up The Ante: A half a million acres of heli-skiing territory should do the trick. revelstokemountainresort.com [Photo: Grant Gunderson/Flickr]
8/15
Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
Whitewater RaftingWhitewater Rafting – North America’s Pacific Northwest region is notoriously wild and outrageously scenic: the perfect setup for some epic rafting. Oregon’s rivers – particularly the McKenzie, Klamath, Deschutes, Rogue and Umpqua – are high on the natural beauty and splash factors, with several guide companies offering trips for all skill levels. Up The Ante: Head one state over to Idaho’s remote Lochsa, an unforgiving Class IV river where flipping is common and beginners are unwelcome. [Photo: US Dept of Interior/Flickr]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
CoasteeringCoasteering – Like canyoning, but along a coast, coasteering was popularised in Pembrokeshire, Wales in the 1990s. Head back to this ground zero, and you’ll find yourself swimming in sea caves, scrambling through rock arches, navigating tight passes and leaping from coastal cliffs, as well as tackling tricky areas like “The Toilet” and “The Washing Machine”. Up The Ante: Not scary enough for you? Try an advanced route in Cornwall, where participants traverse practically inaccessible parts of the coastline. newquayactivitycentre.co.uk [Photo: Andrew/Flickr]
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
CavingCaving – Getting winched down into Britain’s deepest cave along its highest unbroken waterfall (twice as tall as Niagara Falls) is an experience not many can claim to have, especially since North Yorkshire cave Gaping Gill is only accessible to the public for a few days each year. Those who join one of these expeditions get a rare peek at the cave system and its massive main chamber. bpc-cave.org.uk Up The Ante: Experienced cavers can find information about routes to explore further. braemoor.co.uk/caving [Photo: David Oxtaby/Flickr]
11/15
Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
Bungee JumpingBungee Jumping – If it’s good enough for James Bond, it’s good enough for us. The 1995 film GoldenEye saw 007 leap from the Verzasca Dam in Ticino, Switzerland, and now you can, too. To take the 220-metre plunge – the 3rd longest in the commercial bungee jumping world – you’ll need to meet weight and age requirements, and possibly obtain clearance from your doctor. Up The Ante: Only China’s Macau Tower (233 metres) or the Royal Gorge Bridge in Colorado (321 metres) offer more airtime. [Photo: Ticino Turismo/swiss-image.ch]
12/15
Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
KayakingKayaking – Head to Greenland, the birthplace of the kayak, to paddle among icebergs under the midnight sun. Expect to see stunning fjords, cliffs and even the occasional humpback whale as you navigate remote islands, bays and inlets in places like Ammassalik on the east coast, or Disko Bay along the western coastline. pgigreenland.com, greenlandtours.com Up The Ante: Couple a kayaking expedition in East Greenland with guided hikes to view the dramatic fjords from above.
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
SailingSailing – Adventure travel doesn’t have to be all grunts, groans and adrenaline. Steal away to Australia’s Whitsunday islands to combine sport (sailing, hiking, swimming, diving and snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef) with bouts of absolute indolence laying on spectacular white sand beaches.
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Travel
Our Adventure Travel Bucket List.
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