The ferry from Palermo cuts through morning swells, 42 miles north into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Black volcanic cliffs emerge from turquoise water around 8am. The island of Ustica rises from the Mediterranean like charcoal floating in glass. Population 1,330. Area 8 square kilometers. No sandy beaches exist here. Just jagged basalt coastline riddled with caves, … Lire plus
The water turns jade-green in January. Not the crystalline turquoise of postcards, but something richer. Plankton blooms thick enough to cloud visibility down to 15 feet, and that murky richness is exactly what brings whale sharks to El Mogote. The sandbar stretches 7.5 miles along La Paz Bay, backed by golden dunes that glow orange … Lire plus
The fishing nets hang stiff with salt on Jodrey State Fish Pier at 6am. Rusted hulls creak against concrete. Then you look up and see it: a medieval castle, golden granite towers and turrets, perched on cliffs 80 feet above the working harbor. This is Gloucester, Massachusetts, 27 miles from Boston. America’s oldest seaport meets … Lire plus
The ferry from Oban rounds Ardnamurchan Point and suddenly the sea appears on both sides. Tiree sits so flat that from the center you watch waves break east and west at once. Whitewashed houses with thatched roofs dot green machair like scattered shells. Population 653. Twelve traditional blackhouses still shelter residents under Atlantic skies where … Lire plus
The boat cuts its engine 50 miles northwest of Nassau. Silence settles over shallow water so clear you count individual grains of white sand 10 feet below. No structures break the horizon. No other vessels dot the turquoise flats stretching toward distant cays. This is White Cay in the Berry Islands, where emerald-green shallows stay … Lire plus
Hocking Hills cabins book out two months ahead for winter weekends. Rates hit $250 per night. Old Man’s Cave trail sees 500 visitors on a Saturday in January. Peninsula sits 25 miles from Cleveland with frozen waterfalls, national park trails, and lodging under $120. The village of 600 keeps snowshoe rentals free when four inches … Lire plus
Antelope Canyon charges $85 to $225 per person for mandatory guided tours through slot canyons you explore for 20 minutes. Quebrada de Cafayate in northwest Argentina offers the same orange-red rock drama for free. Pull over whenever you want. Stay as long as you like. No crowds, no permits, no tour groups shuffling you along. … Lire plus
Cannon Beach’s parking lots fill by 8am June through August. Haystack Rock viewpoints stay roped 50 yards back. Gift shops outnumber tide pools three to one. This Oregon coast icon draws over 1.5 million visitors annually, but 25 miles south, Pacific City’s Haystack Rock (327 feet, nearly identical height) meets under 5% of those crowds. … Lire plus
Old Sacramento’s boardwalks draw 5 million visitors each year. Tour groups shuffle past gift shops selling fool’s gold in velvet bags for $15. The waterfront stays loud until 9pm. Forty-five miles east, Coloma sits on the American River with 200 residents and the actual spot where James Marshall found gold on January 24, 1848. No … Lire plus
Highway 137 ends at a state park nobody mentions. Free parking. No gate. Thirteen acres of ironwood trees and black lava cliffs where the Pacific crashes hard enough to feel through your shoes. MacKenzie State Recreation Area sits in southern Puna, 30 miles from Hilo, and most days you’ll have it to yourself. The 2018 … Lire plus