By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate Each day, thousands traverse the narrow road that hugs the coast of Southeast Maui to the village of Hana, one of last remnants of old Hawai’i. Typical bridge on Hana Highway It is a miracle that the over fifty one-lane bridges, many of which are over a hundred […]

     While we were visiting family in Wisconsin we took a side trip to the small town of Spring Green, site of Taliesin, home of architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Why is his home out in the middle-of-nowhere Wisconsin? Because that’s where he grew up.      He went off to the University of Wisconsin […]

      I’ve been away from home for a little over a week, with a week to go. We’ve had a good time. But honestly, traveling today is more trouble than it used to be.      There’s the usual trouble of remembering car keys, room keys, iphone, reading glasses, distance glasses, bug spray, […]

 Lisbon is the vibrant capital of Portugal, a gorgeous city steeped in history, impressive architecture, cultural diversity, and friendly residents.  The only things that could spoil a visit would be the weather, sitting in an enclosed tour bus, and not having enough time to take in a lot of the activities and sights to satisfy […]

By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate Camping tents glow beneath dramatic storm clouds on the edge of the Tatshinshini River in Alaska’s Yukon. As temperatures begin to soar, I dream of the rivers I have known and loved. Tension mounts as I hear the rumble of rapids roiling ahead. Sitting up straight, tucking a […]

     We’re driving out to Wisconsin to visit my daughter. On the way we stopped in Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan.      The university is famous for many things — well, yes, a 108,000-capacity football stadium, the largest in the U. S. — but also site of a 1960 speech […]

 Portugal’s gorgeous Algarve region offers a variety of things to do and see with charming towns, beautiful beaches, rocky coastline, and historic sites. It is the southernmost region of Portugal with about a half-million inhabitants, but it triples during the vacation season with seasonal residents.  A marina in Portimão Our two-day visit in early March […]

     My wife and I took a trip up to New York City to go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We wanted to see the exhibit of Winslow Homer paintings.      I honestly didn’t know much about Winslow Homer, except for his famous painting called “The Gulf Stream” which depicts a black […]

 Évora is a charming and historic city in central Portugal with relics from Roman and Moorish influence before and during the Medieval period, including protective walls, a temple, several cathedrals, and remains of a royal palace. Group following the guide Our tour of the UNESCO Heritage Site began with a walk through a quiet park […]

After spending a couple of days in Porto, we traveled south to historic Coimbra, the fourth-largest city in Portugal.  Belltower at the university Our half-day visit focused on the University of Coimbra and the shopping area near the Mondego River. There’s a limit on what you can see before moving to the next destination on […]