On Sunday, June 30th we climbed the Great Wall of China at Jingshangling , about 100 miles ( 160 km) Northwest of Beijing. Though the weather was misty the views were great. The Great Wall was fascinating for my 12 year old son. This area of the wall is unimproved and difficult to access – recommended only for fit and adventurous travelers.

FOR ADVENTURES IN CHINA, CLICK HERE

The scenery is incredible.

We then climbed up a 15 meter ice wall in a crevas. My first time !

Rappelling down is easy;

The Engelberg Glacier never melts. Today’s temperature was in the 20s F ( -5 C) while in the valleys below it was in the 60s.

In March of this year ArcticTropic and family took an excursion to Germany. While hardly adventurous, it is where the Director as young boy lived while the family was transferred for work. It was in Germany where the quest for worldwide adventures began. We flew from MIami to Munich via London and went immediately to Garmisch in Bavaria and ascended the Zugspitze.

On top of the Zugspitze – Germany-Austria border.

The frozen Elbsee ,below the Zugspitze.

Sunrise over the Zugspitze – highest peak in Germany. After 3 days enjoying the snow, we headed North to Berlin.

FOR ADVENTURES IN GERMANY, CLICK HERE

Explora Parques , led by Ramón Ossa Federico took ArcticTropic on an adventurous excursion to Parque Nacional El Leoncito. The first activity was dry land sailing on Barreal Blanco, a dry lake bed located at the foot of the  Andes.  The video above was taken as we drove at 100 mph ‘160 kph across the lake bed.

The lake bed is parched as it rains or snows only a couple of times a year.

No sound except for the wind.

The wind dies down, so the sailing is a bit slow.

The technique is not much different than water sailing.

Entrance to the giant park.

A valley oasis.

Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO), where we will vist at sunset.

A cooling waterfall. There may well be gold in the rocks.

Will almost no rain,these rocks take eons to form.

Springtime in the oasis.

Some rare clouds.

The park is near the Chilean border – the mountains offer huge mining potential as well.

As darkness fell around 8 PM we arrived at Complejo Astronómico El Leoncito (CASLEO). There are three times as many stars to view in the Southern Hemisphere than in the Northern Hemisphere. The high Andean deserts in Chile and Argentina offer the best viewing in the world  due to high altitude,clear air and a total lack of light pollution due to being one of the more remote areas of the world. Even with some volcanic dust in the air from Peyhuehe the viewing was incredible. Above is a photo taken with a radioteescope.

Comet Halley in 1986.

Planet Venus in the West.

The radio telescope is for the astronomers only. We were treated to views from a smaller but very powerful telescope outside. The roof above retracts.

ArcticTropic was the guest of  Doña Pipa  Cabañas in Barreal, Calingasta in western San Juan Province for two nights and a day. The Inn is owned by two brothers , Ramón and Diego Ossa Federico. Ramón runs many eco and adventure tours through Explora Parques – which leads excurions to four National Parks spread out over thousands of square miles – some of the trips last several days. ArcticTropic made use of limited time by going to nearby Parque Nacional Leoncito.

The Posada is comfortable and casual – reminiscent of being in the Western United States, but with delicious Argentine food and wine.

THe rooms are simple and quiet – bu there is wifi !

ArcticTropic took a bike ride up one of the dirt roads in town on a beautiful spring morning.

Riding is also offered – with Western saddles.

A healthy and tasty dinner awaits in the restaurant – welcome protein after a long day trekking and riding. It is open till midnight.

The Philippines offer extreme adventure and incredible vistas . The island nation is easily accessible from Hong Kong for shorter getaways and is well worth the trip from Europe and North America for longer expeditions.  Above is a volcanic lake not far from Mt.Pinatubo.

Palawan, Northeast of Borneo in the South China Sea is excellent for mountaineering and diving . The Coral Reefs are pristine and mostly undisturbed.

ArcticTropic will be adding several new providers in the Philippines today. Reminder to current providers : Keep your websites up to date, or you lose your opportunity to reach our adventurers !

The Wakhan Corridor is a panhandle shaped territory that serves as a buffer zone between Tajikistan,Pakistan and China. According the the New York TImes, it is the “safest’ part of Afghanistan , meaning there no warfare because the area is not strategically important to the warring factions in other parts of the country. Mountains top the 24,000 foot range and the first snow falls in August. Noshak is the highest at 24,580 feet.

Obviously the area is extremely hard to reach. Kabul based Great Game Travel offers 11 day trips beginning at about $6000 per person in a small group.

From the Great Game website : ” You will be met at the Ishkashem border and from there you will drive for 2 days to Sarhad. From there, we leave behind our 4×4 vehicles, and trek with Yaks and horses into the heart of the Wakhan corridor, taking a circle route around the Big Pamir knot, before ending up again in Sarhad. From there we backtrack to Ishkashem.
This tour can be combined with the Afghan Adventurer trip to Bamiyan and Balkh or Afghan Explorer trip that includes Herat as well. You can also combine it with trekking in the Fann Mountains (Tajikistan) or with a jeep tour to north Tajikistan/Uzbekistan or along the Pamir Highway to Kyrgyzstan”

The country that bought you bungee jumping now presents the ZORB – a new way to bounce unimpeded down a hill.

Except for Antarctica, New Zealand is as far as one can travel from Europe or North America. Nowhere else in the world does such dramatic Alpine scenery meet South Pacific panoramas. Heliskiing, snowboarding, and surfing can all be done on the same day.

FOR ADVENTURES IN NEW ZEALAND, CLICK HERE

While ArcticTropic does not include many Western European nations on the roster for adventure – Norway is an absolute exception due to its High Arctic adventures.