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"I loved being outside. We'd hold lightning bugs in our fingers and pretend they were diamond rings." - Loretta Lynn
Be an outsider
When you were a kid, did you go outside and goof around? Ride your bike maybe, or climb a tree, or play some loud, contact game in the street, or park, or field behind your house? Don't let being an outsider become a lost art in your life. Get out! Hike a trail, paddle a river, ride a horse, take a walk in the woods. Feel the fresh air on your face—and experience the lifting of your spirits, clearing of your mind, and settling of your soul.
Even though it exists, we don't need scientific proof that being outside makes a person happy and healthy. The evidence is clear enough, in ruddy cheeks and a relaxed frame of mind. Here at Off the Beaten Path, we have the inside track on getting you outside—on journeys with interesting and active itineraries, and knowledgeable, friendly guides. Get great ideas for outsiders on our web site, or consider these outstanding possibilities:
Walking Through Peru: Trek the Inca Stronghold of Lima, Cusco, Sacred Valley, and Machu Picchu
Walk in the footsteps of the ancients, sometimes literally, on this breathtaking lodge-to-lodge trek to Machu Picchu. After a few days of acclimation and immersion in Inca culture and Spanish colonial history, embark with your Peruvian mountain guides on a fully supported 4-day hike over lesser-traveled mountain passes and through remote high valleys. You'll stay in intimate new mountain inns along the way. From one outsider to another, we urge you to take this trip now, before this route and these inns get "discovered." (2008 departures 5/8, 9/4, 9/25) Find out more >
Hiking Utah: Zion, Bryce, and Escalante
Spring ahead to Utah! Get a jump on your hiking season with a spring trip to one of the most interesting places in the world to walk. Zion, Bryce, and Escalante each offer very different hiking experiences, and every day of this journey is a new trail—through twisting slickrock canyons, under graceful arches, and along colorful cliffs and sun-dappled streams. Every night, rest your happily tired body in a lovely desert inn. This stands to be a fantastic year for wildflowers, and our May departures get you to this magic area when the flowers—as well as the lizards, birds, and other desert wildlife—are opening themselves to the season of renewal. Experience the pure delight of scuttling reptiles and blooming cactus at your feet. (2008 departures 5/11, 5/18, 9/21, 9/28) Find out more >
Moab Parklands: Arches, Canyonlands, and
Monument Valley
How about spending an entire day outside lolling in a big rubber raft floating down the Colorado River? All you have to do is troll your fingers in the river and keep an eye out for eagles. The rest of your days on this trip are spent enjoying easy hikes past stately spires and through multi-hued canyons, exploring Ancestral Puebloan ruins at Canyons of the Ancients, and swearing you hear the distant "meep meep" of a cartoon roadrunner on your jeep tour of the iconic Monument Valley. (2008 departures 5/18, 6/1, 9/7, 10/5) Find out more > |
