Fire up the grill. Pull out the road maps. It’s just days to Memorial Day Weekend, the traditional start of Get-Outdoors-Summer’s-Here! Season.
Wading birds called avocets take flight at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, a short ride off Interstate 15 near Salt Lake City, Utah. (USFWS)This summer, include a visit to a national wildlife refuge in your plans. Thrill to a hidden world of natural wonders while your kids learn the joy of healthy outdoor activity. Take pride in America’s Great Outdoors and your natural heritage.
Here’s another good reason to visit a national wildlife refuge:
National wildlife refuges make great mid-route stops on long drives. The shortest of detours off many interstate highways lead to federally protected wildlife havens and relief for your jangled nerves.
Just two examples:
• Heading south to Florida on I-95? In South Carolina, take exit 102 to Santee National Wildlife Refuge, a few minutes away. Scenic Santee Refuge is a magnet for hawks, eagles, wading birds and songbirds. It’s the historic stomping grounds of Revolutionary War hero Francis “Swamp Fox” Marion. And it’s an anthropological wonder — the site of 1,000-year-old National Register-listed ceremonial Santee Indian mounds.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
So you’re thinking about starting a travel blog and you want someone other than your mother to read it, right? With so many travel blogs out there, adding a fresh one into the mix can be a bit daunting; ‘Who’s going to read it?’, ‘What kind of stuff should I be writing?’, ‘How can I make my blog get noticed?’ There’s a lot to consider! Here are a few tips to help get you started and on the road to writing your brand spanking, killer blog.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
Van-Tastic Adventures: Drive it! Film it! Win it!
Are you a mad keen traveller with a lust for filming your adventures?
Enter the WorldNomads.com Van-Tastic Adventure for the chance to fly to Australia and film the ultimate Aussie road trip to win $AUD 10,000.
WorldNomads.com is looking ‘Van-Tastic Adventurers’ to travel across Australia on a 6 week road trip of a lifetime.
You’ll be flown to Australia to explore your favourite piece of the country in a fully loaded camper van, with fuel money, an action packed itinerary and all the gear you’ll need to share your adventure through videos, stories and photos.
You can choose where you want to go, what you want to do and, with heaps of adventurous activities thrown in for free, you’ll have lots of stories to make a mini video documentary of your adventure. The team with the most popular video will win $10,000 cash and flights from Virgin Blue.
Apply now and start preparing a 2 minute or less video of why you are the most Van-Tastic.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".