I could not agree more!
Category Archives: Travel
The Trip is Right Around The Corner
I’ve been so busy and had so much on my mind that I didn’t realize my Tennessee adventure is fast approaching. What made me think of it was an email I got from the concierge at the resort. It was a very nice email with a list of upcoming events and directions to the resort.
One thing that I was very disappointed to learn is that the Aerial Tram will be closed this year from April 28 through May 22, 2014 for additional scheduled preventive maintenance and updates. Of course my trip falls in that time frame 🙁 That was something I really wanted to do.
As if to make up for taking away one attraction I ran across the Gatlinburg Space Needle.
I loved the space needle in Seattle so maybe this will be a good substitute for the Tram. The advertisement encourages you to “Ride the glass elevators over 400 feet and step out to a breathtaking 360 degree view of the Smokies by day or Downtown Gatlinburg’s lights by night.”
There’s also a chairlift : Gatlinburg Sky lift. Enjoy a peaceful ride as the chairlift takes you to the mountain’s top and back, providing breathtaking views of the Smoky Mountains.
Hop on from the heart of downtown Gatlinburg, and experience a tranquil escape as the Sky Lift gently glides over the Little Pigeon River and then climbs to the overlook at an elevation of 1,800 feet. The vantage point and views are unparalleled. You’ve arrived at Gatlinburg’s #1 scenic overlook!
That sounds like a must do with the camera. Nice high shots of the Great Smokey Mountains!
I may not mind the tram being down after all.
SUPERVOLCANO and The Mis-information Superhighway
You saw it on YouTube, then Turner Networks and even the local newspapers. Bison are fleeing Yellowstone National Park. Earthquakes are “unzipping” the super volcano caldera!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMSPrHXvyws
Is a mega disaster imminent?
Not likely says Park Spokesman Dan Hottle. The bison are actually running toward the interior of Yellowstone right toward the ancient 55 X 18 mile magma chamber, the location of the past super volcano explosions.
The Video originally posted on March 20 and sparked stories as far away as Australia. Mainstream news outlets picked up the story and the video went viral. By now more than 700,000 people (make that 700,001) have viewed the alleged bison exodus.
When news of Sunday’s 4.8 magnitude earthquake hit the airwaves, Turner Radio Network broadcast ” It appears the super volcano is unzipping !” The earthquake, which was the largest in 34 years, was actually centered north of the caldera boundary. It was generated by a system of fault lines, not magma.
Yellowstone has thousands of tremors every year. How could it not with geysers exploding and mud flats bubbling. There have been more than 250 tremors in just the past month. It is business as usual for the geothermal area.
But just in case the bison are trying to commit a mass suicide Spokesperson Hottle says he’s ready. “I’ve got my tent packed and a couple of bags of microwave popcorn. I’ll be ready!”
Just goes to show you can’t believe everything you see on the internet.
Oh one last comment for our Russian friends…Old Faithful will not burn down. 🙂
( Last year there was a 2 tree fire 8 miles south of Old Faithful. A Russian television station called asking if Old Faithful was going to burn down. )
Maui Wowie
You remember how I said once you book a trip you start to hear about the location all the time? It’s true. Since booking the trip to Tennessee I’ve seen ads for Tennessee Whiskey and an article about the Chattanooga Train Museum.
And Las Vegas made the news. They just opened a huge Ferris Wheel, the World’s tallest! There are 28 glass enclosed gondolas that are fully air conditioned. A full rotation takes 30 minutes.
Now I’m wondering if I should start thinking about Hawaii again. Actually I never stop thinking about Hawaii. I love it there but I have delayed a return trip in hopes of seeing more of the as yet un-visited states. But along with the Tennessee and Las Vegas news I keep finding things about Maui, HI.
Last night Wild Hawaii was on Nat Geo Wild. It was all about the ocean around Maui and a large segment concentrated on the humpback whales that migrate to Hawaii to give birth and mate. The show was filled with shots of whales breaching and fins slapping.
That show was followed by another episode but this time about surfing. After the show covered California surfers it segued into “Jaws” and not the shark. Jaws is what they call the huge waves that roll into Maui, HI. in the winter each year. Championship surfing at it’s best.
I picked up another magazine and the feature story was “The Road to Hana”.
Then the science channel had a show about volcanoes and Haleakala was discussed.
Seems to me the universe is lining up to entice me back to the Aloha State. Something to really look forward to. 🙂
Nat Geo Wild
There’s a television station/ channel called Nat Geo Wild. I hate and love it at the same time. Does your cable provider supply it in your area? To me it’s the new Animal Planet. I remember when Animal Planet launched. It was the new kid on the block and everyone wanted it. If it wasn’t available in your area you lobbied your cable provider to carry it. Now it’s a staple in most cable lineups.
Nat Geo Wild is a joint venture of Fox Cable network and National Geographic. It first launched in Asia, Hong Kong actually in January of 2006. It slowly worked it’s way to toward the New World, United Kingdom, Turkey, Ireland, Romania, India, Vietnam, and Poland.
The channel finally launched in Latin America on November 1, 2009. It didn’t make it to the United States until 2010 when it arrived in High Definition Glory, a true member of the National Geographic Family, dedicated to animal related programming with National Geographic’s signature quality photography.
I love this channel. I love the animals, the stories and the amazing vistas from Canyonlands to Safaris in Africa.
So why do I hate the channel? I hate it because it is so real, especially in HD on a large screen TV. The locales and adventures call to my heart. I want to be in that sub at 500 ft. under the sea. I want to be on the boat off Maui watching the humpbacks breach in the azure water. I want to be scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
I want to climb aboard an airboat in the Everglades and kayak under the glaciers of Alaska. Maybe I’ll skip Antarctica but I’m not adverse to searching for komodo dragons on Indonesian Islands or visiting Galapagos.
It’s very possible that I can do some, if not all of these adventures… if I win the lottery. National Geographic offers vacations with their guides and photographers but like all things National Geographic, done to the max and with the price tag to match. They even have a “mentor” series where you travel to a location for training with their award winning photographers. Again $$$$.
So I dream on and torture myself with wishes. I take my little vacations and scratch the surface of these amazing locations. I enjoy my vacations but there’s a slight feeling that there should be more.
I watch Nat Geo Wild to see what I’m missing and keep my wanderlust fueled for my next adventure, and I keep dreaming. 🙂