Anyone Can Go Anywhere for Outdoor Thrills

To judge by all the hoopla being drummed up by tour operators and travel agencies these days, one would think that adventure travel had just been invented.

But travelers have been doing the unexpected, the slightly offbeat and the possibly risky since the invention of the wheel. There is nothing novel about it at all.

What is new is that adventures once enjoyed only by independent-minded travelers, such as exploring exotic regions or pitting their skills against mountains and rivers, deserts and jungles, now are being popularized as trips that anyone can undertake.

Exactly what constitutes adventure travel, however, is not altogether clear. Everyone seems to have his own idea.

For example, the Zapodel Adventure Atlas, an electronic database available through the Official Airlines Guides Electronic Edition Travel Service, lists “more than 8,000 adventure tours worldwide.”

Obviously, with this many trips being promoted as “adventures,” the definition must depend upon what the traveler is seeking. To some it might mean trekking across the Antarctic by dog sled; to others it could be nothing more challenging than climbing the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan outside Mexico City.

The adventure is in the mind.

Whatever its definition, the catch phrase “adventure travel,” has made it one of the fastest-growing segments of the travel industry. As a result, competition to secure these travelers is fierce, and tour operators are constantly seeking new ground to cover.

“Adventure travelers of today,” said Charlie Ross of Sobek Expeditions, “are looking beyond destinations and experiences that have become familiar and predictable. We have to keep coming up with something new.”

In Sobek’s case, one “something new” has meant organizing white-water rafting expeditions in the Soviet Union, something that Ross said “wouldn’t have been possible before glasnost and perestroika. “

Who goes on trips such as this?

Pat Halty, owner of All Adventure Travel in Boulder, Colo., believes that the largest number of today’s adventure travelers are adult professionals who enjoy such activities as trekking, rafting and climbing, but also want--and can afford--comforts and cultural amenities when their day outdoors is over.

“These people lead busy lives from day to day,” she said, “and when they’re on their vacations they want to be outdoors and they want a flexible itinerary, but they want someone else to handle the details.”

Halty said adventure travels often are people “who enjoy the company of small groups, who want to get out of the big cities, and who want slower-paced vacations where they can meet people like themselves who are intelligent, educated, open-minded and interesting.”

With more and more people going to more and more exotic regions as distant and diverse as Antarctica, the Amazon Basin and Mt. Everest, there is increasing concern over the impact this will have on the environment and/or native cultures.

This, in turn, has prompted a new travel growth area: environmental travel, but that’s another story.

Here is a sample of some of the new travel adventures available in 1990:

--Vermont Bicycle Tours has branched out from its fall foliage tours and is offering two 15-day bicycle tours in the Soviet Union this summer.

Participants fly from New York to Moscow via Helsinki, then pedal about 25 miles a day toward Leningrad. Experienced cyclists have the option of covering longer distances each day. The tour includes a boat ride on the Volkov River and a stop in Novgorod, once the capital of Czarist Russia. There is time for cultural and sightseeing opportunities in both Moscow and Leningrad.

The trips depart New York July 14 and Aug. 11 and cost $2,495 per person, not including air fare. There is a limit of 20 participants per trip. Overnight stays at inns along the way and all meals are included.

For a free catalogue describing these and other tours, call Vermont Bicycle Tours at (802) 453-4811.

--Sobek Expeditions (P.O. Box 1089, Angels Camp, Calif. 95222), which began adventure tours on Ethiopia’s Awash River in 1973, has scheduled three white-water rafting expeditions in the Soviet Union in 1990.

Interestingly, Sobek’s promotional literature advises would-be participants that they may get more (or less) than they bargained for:

“Please be aware that tourist travel in the U.S.S.R. is not highly developed, and inconveniences in transportation, communication and quality of hotels and food can be expected. . . . (but) with an open mind and a sense of adventure, you will have the trip of a lifetime.”

The same could be said of many areas of the world, but such inconveniences are precisely what many adventure travelers expect and are willing to endure.

The two-week Katun River expedition takes place on the rapids of the Katun in the Altai region of Siberia, with stops for visiting villages along the way, as well as two days in Moscow at the beginning of the trip and two in Barnaul at the end. Travel is by Finnair and departure dates are July 21, Aug. 4 and Aug. 18. The cost starts at $4,915 per person, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles.

Sobek also has a rafting trip on the Rioni River in the Soviet Caucasus scheduled for July 14-28. The cost is $4,400 per person, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles.

Finally, there are three Sobek rafting expeditions on the Chatkal River in the Tien Shan Mountains of Central Asia, complete with Russian translator and river guides. Departure dates are Sept. 1, 15 and 29. The cost, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, is $4,865.

For more information and reservations, call Sobek at (209) 736-4524.

--Society Expeditions (3131 Elliott Ave., Seattle, Wash. 98121) has 20 “Project Antarctica” voyages scheduled for 1990-91.

Naturalists and historians will be aboard to give cultural depth to the adventures and to make certain that raft landings in Antarctica are made without endangering the vulnerable polar environment and wildlife.

The 15-day cruises begin with a flight from Miami to Santiago, Chile, then another, depending on itinerary, to either Punta Arenas or Puerta Williams in the Strait of Magellan. The cost, excluding air fare, begins at $6,290 per person, double occupancy. With air fare, it begins at $7,290.

Sobek also has 30-day Antarctic expedition cruises that leave from Port Bluff in New Zealand and are reached by flights from Los Angeles and Auckland. For rates and further details, contact your travel agent or call Society Expeditions toll-free at (800) 426-7794.

--Questers Tours (257 Park Ave. South, New York 10010) is offering a 23-day exploration of Brazil that includes visits to Iguacu Falls and the nation’s capital of Brazilia, as well as a trek into the rich wildlife habitat of the Pantanal near Cuiaba in the state of Mato Grosso.

The departure date is Aug. 4, returning Aug. 26. The cost, including round-trip air fare from Miami, is $5,318. For additional information, call Questers toll-free at (800) 468-8668.

--Mountain Travel, (6420 Fairmount Ave., El Cerrito, Calif. 94530) is offering 19-day tours, including nine days of trekking in the Himalayas and visits to Sherpa villages and monasteries. Departure dates are Saturday, April 7, May 5, Oct. 27, Nov. 10 and Dec. 15.

The cost, including round-trip air fare from Seattle on Thai International Airways to Bangkok and then to Katmandu, starts at $3,090. Maximum group size is 15. Without the air fare the nine-day treks start at $1,945. For more information, call Mountain Travel toll-free at (800) 227-2384.

--All Adventure Travel (P.O. Box 4307, Boulder, Colo. 80306.) has compiled a catalogue called “Biking & Hiking Travel 1990” in which more than 250 tours in 40 countries are described. They are offered by more than 50 companies around the world. All Adventure matches clients with trips based on the would-be adventurer’s skill level, budget and interests. For a free copy of the catalogue, call toll-free (800) 537-4025.

--Information on the Zapodel Adventure Atlas can be obtained by writing to Official Airline Guides, 2000 Clearwater Drive, Oak Brook, Ill. 60521, or by calling (708) 574-6000.

Among other companies involved in the adventure travel field are: Progressive Bicycle Travels, Asian Pacific Adventures, The Smithsonian National Associate Program, Journeys East, Mountain Fit, Adventure Holidays in Australia, Force 10 Expeditions, Mexico Toucan Adventure Tours, Geo Expeditions, Travcoa and Park East Tours to Africa, Overseas Adventure Travel, REI Adventures and Adventure Travel Center Specialists.

Information on any of these companies and the tours they offer can be obtained by your travel agent.