Published May 2, 2004 12:00AM
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Outside magazine, February 1996
The Outside Trip-Finder: Central and South America By Kathy Martin ANTARCTICA: Cruising the Peninsula The Route: An epic ten-day to four-week ship voyage along the Antarctic Peninsula, with trips via Zodiac or helicopter to visit penguin colonies. You’ll also cruise the Falkland, South Shetland, or South Georgia Islands. . When To Go: November-February Difficulty: Easy Travel Advisory: Outfit your camera with a polarizer or UV skylight filter for screening out glare from the snow, ice, and water, and remember to bracket your exposures: Light meters tend to act up in these bright conditions. High/Low Points: Putting away your wristwatch after the first few days of 24-hour sunshine. Accidentally kneeling in penguin guano on your quest for the perfect rookery photo. Luxe Factor: Boat accommodations Outfitters / Departures / Price Abercrombie & Kent / 10 / $4,995-$11,500 Marine Expeditions / 40 / $3,490-$5,795* Overseas Adventure Travel / 6 / $3,490-$5,590* Quark Expeditions / 3 / $3,680-$16,990 Society Expeditions / 8 / $4,800-$11,785 Zegrahm Expeditions / 3 / $4,350-$11,990 Classic ARGENTINA: Riding Horseback with Andean Gauchos The Route: Ten to 16 days of riding across vast ranchland and coastal sand dunes alongside professional gauchos on estancias in northern Patagonia or central Argentina When To Go: September-June Difficulty: Moderate Travel Advisory: You don’t need advanced riding skills, since there’s no set distance to cover each day. But you do need to be in fit condition to keep up with the gauchos and your fast criollo horse. High/Low Points: Rehashing the day over a campfire and cups of maté with Argentina’s legendary cowboys Climbing back into the saddle after gorging on red meat and wine at an asado, a traditional Argentinean barbecue Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging Outfitters / Departures / Price Boojum Expeditions / 2 / $2,975-$3,275 Equitour /on demand / $2,470 FITS Equestrian / 4 / $1,300 BOLIVIA: Climbing Illimani The Route: A one- to four-week ascent to the brilliant, glaciated, 21,201-foot summit of Illimani, the highest peak in Bolivia’s Cordillera Real. Most trips start with preliminary climbs on nearby peaks. When To Go: May-October Difficulty: Strenuous Travel Advisory: Consider Illimani a superior training climb for the Himalayas or Mount McKinley. It offers serious high-altitude experience without the extreme challenge of freezing temperatures and dicey weather. High/Low Points: Summiting Illimani and remembering that it’s almost 1,000 feet higher than McKinley Missing the view across Lake Titicaca to the Amazon Basin because of dense cloud cover Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging Outfitters / Departures / Price American Alpine Institute / 5 / $3,850 Aventuras Patagonicas /1 / $2,400 Colorado Mountain School / 1 / $2,770 Mountain Travel-Sobek / 1 / $2,450 Southwind Adventures / on demand / $1,565 Summits Adventure Travel / 1 / $1,895 Classic BRAZIL: Paddling the Pantanal Wetlands The Route: A five- to 14-day paddle aboard two-person canoes or kayaks into the world’s largest wetlands, a flooded alluvial plain that’s home to 650 species of birds, with time for shore hikes and swimming When To Go: April-October Difficulty: Easy to moderate Travel Advisory: Biting bugs are a concern. The lightweight mesh netting of a mosquito bog jacket and pants–available at outdoor shops for about $45–protects better than repellents and lotions. High/Low Points: Slipping your canoe–and your telephoto lens–silently into the viveiros, nesting areas for flocks of wading birds Witnessing firsthand how the wetlands are threatened by slash-and-burn operations in the jungle Luxe Factor: Camping; Tourist hotels Outfitters / Departures / Price All Adventure Vacations / 3 / $2,800 Mountain Travel-Sobek / 3 / $2,790 Safaricentre / on demand / $1,100 Southwind Adventures / 1 /$1,495-$1,595 ECUADOR: Climbing Snowcapped Volcanoes The Route: A ten- to 24-day climbing expedition on two to six volcanoes, including 19,347-foot Cotopaxi, the world’s highest active volcano, and 20,561-foot Chimborazo, the highest peak in Ecuador When To Go: June, October-February Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous Travel Advisory: These ascents are nontechnical, but some climbing experience is recommended. You should at least have your crampon and ice-ax technique down. High/Low Points: Boasting to friends that because of the equatorial bulge Chimborazo’s summit is the farthest point from the center of the earth Realizing the hand-loomed rug you just bought in Guano won’t fit into your pack Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging Outfitters / Departures / Price Alpine Ascents International / 2 / $2,100 American Alpine Institute / 6 / $1,490-$2,190 Aventuras Patagonicas / 1 / $2,000 Colorado Mountain School / 1 / $2,395 Mountain Madness / 2 / $1,920 Summits Adventure Travel / 1 / $1,995 NICARAGUA / HONDURAS: Paddling the Rivers of Mosquitia The Route: A five- to 12-day canoe or kayak trip along the jungle rivers and rainforest waterways of the Mosquito Coast, in the company of monkeys, macaws, and mott-motts When To Go: January-July, November Difficulty: Easy to moderate Travel Advisory: You’ll wear river sandals on the water, but bring jungle-grade footwear for shore hikes. Military jungle boots with a Panama sole that sloughs off mud are your best bet; the Mosquitians actually wear soccer shoes. High/Low Points: Watching transfixed as a jaguar glides through your camp Taking only quick dips in the cool river for fear of crocs Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging Outfitters / Departures / Price BattenKill Canoe / 3 / $1,750 Holbrook Travel / 1 / $1,948 Nantahala Outdoor Center / 1 / $1,250 Outland Adventures / on demand / $1,195 Tofino Expeditions / 2 / $1,895 Wildland Adventures / 12 / $650-$1,825 New PATAGONIA: Traversing the Continental Ice Cap The Route: A rugged 16-day crossing of the only ice cap outside the polar regions, with optional ascents of 9,385-foot Gorra Blanca Peak and other mountains that have rarely or never been climbed When To Go: November-March Difficulty: Strenuous Travel Advisory: Ski mountaineering experience is required. The ice cap itself is fairly flat, but you’ll cross crevasses and ice slopes and deal with volatile weather, including Patagonia’s notorious 60-mph winds. High/Low Points: Enjoying the rare sight of the backside of the Fitzroy Massif, from the 4,730-foot-high camp at Marconi Pass Having to chop ice blocks to make a windscreen for your camp after a long day on the glaciers Luxe Factor: Camping; Rustic lodging Outfitters / Departures / Price Southwind Adventures / 5 / $2,495 Classic PERU: Trekking in the Cordillera Blanca The Route: A one- to two-week trek among hanging glaciers, fluted ice faces and cornices, and multicolored lakes in the world’s highest tropical range, with a close look at Quechua Indian village culture When To Go:April-October Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous Travel Advisory: Skip this trek if you’ve had problems with altitude sickness. Acclimatization time is built in, but you need to feel in top shape to cross three high passes above 15,000 feet. High/Low Points: Counting up to a dozen 20,000-footers from 15,585-foot Punta Union Pass Negotiating the tour-bus masses on your Machu Picchu extension after blissful solitude at the high camps Luxe Factor: Camping Outfitters / Departures / Price Forum Travel International / 13 / $764 Journeys International / 13 / $1,225 Safaricentre / 23 / $1,650 Southwind Adventures / 6 / $1,495-$1,595 Wilderness Travel / 3 / $2,295-$2,795 Wildland Adventures / 8 / $885 New PERU: Rafting the Cotahuasi River The Route: A 13-day exploration of a Class V river in a 16,000-foot desert gorge just north of fabled Colca Canyon, along the Incas’ travel route from Machu Picchu to the ocean When To Go: June Difficulty: Strenuous Travel Advisory: This is a first commercial descent, so expect delays and disruptions and be prepared for anything. One departure piggybacks onto a run down the intensely technical Class V Colca. High/Low Points: Hiking up rugged canyons to rarely explored Inca cliff dwellings and unexcavated ruins Balancing on wet, slippery rocks while lugging the 14-foot rafts around unrunnable whitewater Luxe Factor: Camping; Tourist hotels Outfitters / Departures / Price Earth River Expeditions / 2 / $2,150-$3,300 VENEZUELA: Casting for Amazonas Peacock Bass The Route: A ten-day fishing safari for powerful, trophy-size pavón (peacock bass) in the Casiquiare watershed, deep in the Amazon-Orinoco Basin, with overnights in jungle camps and aboard a riverboat When To Go: December-March Difficulty: Moderate Travel Advisory: Hard-core anglers, take note: Several IGFA world records are held by past clients of this trip, and the outfitter’s log doesn’t even record fish weighing less than ten pounds. High/Low Points: Clinging desperately to your rod as a tenacious 25-pound lunker makes acrobatic leaps at the end of your line Dashing from your mosquito-netted cot to the outhouse in the middle of the night Luxe Factor: Camping; Boat accommodations Outfitters / Departures / Price Lost World Adventures / weekly / $2,950 * Includes airfare from U.S. See also: Trip Finder Directory Copyright, 1996 Outside Magazine |