A travel adventure to most people means a climbing expedition, a safari or similar experience. Mine was much more modest – and economical.

A trip to Newfoundland was just far enough away, requiring exactly the right mix of nonrefundable airfare, planning, and difficulty involved in reaching the place, that canceling in favor of work was out of the question.

An oasis in the Chihuahuan Desert, Carlsbad, New Mexico is approximately 120 miles north of El Paso, Texas. A nice town with plenty of hotels, restaurants, and a Wal-Mart, Carlsbad makes a good base camp from which to stock up and explore the area’s most significant attraction, the Carlsbad Cavern National Park.

As spring of 2003 begins, I find myself looking back to a year ago, when the Salt Lake Olympic Games were coming to a jubilant close. It was a period of great pride for me to witness representatives from around the world coming together in the spirit of competition, friendship, and humanity.

On every river you can find one place that’s so full of mystery, life, and beauty, that it’s like finding the very heart of the river itself. It may be a shadowy, swirling pool that reflects light in such a way, you could swear you were seeing into another world. Or it could be an easy bend where the rush has undercut the bank, and trees’ roots dip into the stream. They are images of every river, but something about that particular spot makes it seem different, unique, and inspired. On the Alsek, you’ll find that place after each turn.

The covered bridge in Bath, New Hampshire is a sturdy reminder of reliability and the Congregational Church evokes a sense of strong neighborly bonds between community members. Still, another landmark of New Hampshire’s traditions is just down the road–off the beaten path. That symbol is the colonial family barn.