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Don’t try this at home… (Pt 1)

Sep 282012

ashboard Dont try this at home... (Pt 1)

Now that's just showing off...

Unless you happen to have a suitably sized volcano in your back garden.

In this Central American realm of mountains, rivers and jungles, it seems there’s no limits to the ways people will dream up to hurl themselves up / down / along / over and through the natural terrain. While some people may look up at an active volcano and admire its form, others feel that the best thing they could possibly do would be to climb to the top. However, what goes up…

But how to come down? For most of us, the logical thing to do would be to walk / scramble back down as best as our feet can carry us. At Cerro Negro Volcano just outside Leon though, they have a different idea in mind – “ashboarding” (aka sandboarding in some places).

This, fairly obviously, involves something akin to snowboarding the descent, although most people invariably end up taking a rather more “posterior-centric” approach – volcanic sand and rocks not being quite so easy to turn on as fresh powder!

So if you’re looking for a speedier way down after having slogged up the volcano, make sure you remember the ashboarding option. They’ll give you some great protective gear, consisting of knee and elbow pads, goggles – and a really fetching boiler suit.

Do take a look if you’d like to hear about more of the Nicaraguan adventures you could have with Pura.

Coming soon to a 3D TV near you

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Jul 262012

You may find the blue footed booby's mating dance more interesting than this particular female did

We had a visit this week from a good friend, who represents a range of excellent products across Latin America, including some of our favourite hotels and lodges. He came by to tell us about a new client, the Galapagos Safari Camp, which is a pretty unique offering on the main island of Santa Cruz. Based on the African Safari model, think luxury tented camp with hot running water and an infinity pool.

While looking at his slides, it was a shot of the infinity pool which caught my eye, as there was a familiar figure standing next to it. The distinctive and distinguished silver hair, combined with the destination, proved me right: the great Sir David Attenborough was back in town! (Town, in this instance, being a 9 tented camp in the remote highlands of a volcanic archipelago in the Pacific).

We were delighted to hear that he was in the islands shooting a new Galapagos documentary, to air later this year. A little digging found that this will be a 3D series, proving Sir David is always one to keep at the cutting edge, even in his 80s. So, you heard it here first (unless you follow Sky press releases).

This was terribly exciting news, and I can’t wait to see the show. The only slight problem being I don’t have a 3D TV, or indeed a Sky package. Time to call in some favours…

If you’d like to see the Galapagos and their fearless inhabitants in the flesh, take a look at our handpicked selection of cruises and land-based holidays.

Read the book; then climb the mountain (buying the t-shirt optional).

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Jul 052012

Read the book; then climb the mountain (buying the t shirt optional).

Rugged Andean mountains disappearing into cloud in northern Peru

Over the years I have built up a fairly good-sized library on Latin America (fiction, history, travel writing etc), and would thoroughly recommend one of my most recent acquisitions. OK, I got it for Christmas, but I always have such a stack waiting to be read…

Anyway, 6 months later I finally got around to ‘Andes,’ by Michael Jacobs. Very much a case of, “does what it says on the tin,” this is the result of Michael travelling from one end of the Andes (Venezuela) to the other (Chile / Argentina).

What I loved about the book, other than the fact that it covers many of our favourite and most popular destinations, is the unassuming and straightforward style. This is a guy who has nothing to prove, takes people and places as they come, and avoids hyperbole. I particularly enjoyed the section on northern Peru, such as Kuelap etc, as his observations chimed so neatly with my own when I visited the region recently.

The other wonderful aspect of the book is the interweaving of the history, and especially historical characters, into his meanderings. For anyone who is well-travelled in South America, names which are instantly recognisable (Humboldt, Bolivar, Pizarro etc) appear throughout the book and are clearly well-researched, with comment on the personalities that you often don’t hear. The insights into Humboldt and Bolivar are particularly intriguing.

Interestingly, Michael Jacobs usually resides in another of our favourite spots, the Alpujarra Mountains in Andalucia. And before you say, “Oh, is he the feller who drummed with Genesis and wrote that ‘Lemons’ book?” – no, he isn’t. However, they are good mates – and Chris Stewart somewhat randomly turns up halfway through the book to keep him company for a few weeks. This could turn a into a bit of a palimpsest, but in fact is largely characterised by Jacobs chuckling at Stewart getting asked for autographs due to his new found fame.

So if you’d like to read a great travel / history book focusing on the mighty and mysterious Andes, you could do a lot worse than grab a copy. If you’d like some inspiration on holidays exploring northern Peru, heading down into Patagonia, or travelling through volcanoes in Ecuador, do get in touch.

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