Surfing on Oahu’s North Shore
Toronto Sun
They call it The Surf Bus — a groovy, Scooby-Doo-like Mystery Machine that chortles up to our hotel, the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu. A flip-flop-clad local surfer named Sam — our Shaggy — hops out and invites us aboard, where we encounter seats full of affable travellers from the United Kingdom, South America, Australia and Brandon, Man. Read more…
Tofino, B.C. a wild west coast getaway
Toronto Sun
I think of us as yummy mummies. Not because we’re spectacularly bodacious, well bred or capable of turning heads. But because most of us are moms who like to eat yummy food when we travel together. This time our target is Tofino, B.C., a ruggedly handsome spot for active moms and career girls getting away from kids and work — women who like to hike, surf, stroll, soak, and of course, eat. Read more…
Underground Railroad brought thousands to freedom in Ontario
Toronto Sun
There may not have been an actual “railroad” associated with the Underground Railroad, but its passengers were as precious as any train ever carried. The term Underground Railroad refers to the passage of freedom seekers in the mid 1800s — thousands of slaves and refugees who journeyed north from southern parts of the United States to freedom in Canada. Read more…
Make the most of winter with outdoor adventures
Toronto Sun
Christmas is over and now we settle in for winter — a time to either hibernate, head south or embrace the cold and snow with sense of outdoor adventure. Read more…
Extreme summer fun in Whistler
Toronto Sun
For a village that was little more than a chairlift and a garbage dump a few decades ago, Whistler, B.C., sure has a way of drawing a crowd. First with its Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival every April, then with a little thing called the Olympics (February 2010), and now with a growing bike festival called Crankworx — sports fans just keep coming to Whistler. Read more…
Going nautical in Norfolk
Toronto Sun, Sunday, June 24, 2012
The time to tour the docks of Norfolk, Va., is 7 a.m. on a summer morning, just as the yachtsmen and women are brewing coffee, flipping eggs, stirring grits, searing bacon. It’s dangerous to make the tour feeling hungry, but it’s worth it. The sun at this hour lights the unfurled sails a pale yellow. The breeze — as lulling as a warm bath — makes the masts’ halyards tinkle and flutter. Read more…
Clear sailing on eastern seaboard
Toronto Sun
It happens once every 10 years, spectacular tall ships with billowing sails and multiple masts glide smoothly into harbours along the U.S. eastern seaboard. Read more…
Camping 101 in Ontario
Toronto Sun
A whopping one-quarter of all Ontarians — including yours truly — has never gone camping. We’ve never slept under the stars, popped a tent, cooked over a Coleman, listened to the sounds of the forest at 1 a.m. or — horrors — been woken by the piercing drone of an invisible mosquito in the middle of the night.Read more…
First Nations get Olympic boost in B.C.
Toronto Sun
At any given moment it’s rain, sun and snow here in Whistler, B.C., during the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, but no one inside the local Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre (SLCC) seems to notice. Men, women and children from all parts of the world sit transfixed as Aboriginal peoples dance, sing and tell their stories –vivid, rousing performances that capture the hearts, minds and respect of cheering audiences. Read more…
Making Mom feel like a queen
Toronto Sun
I cannot think of a better way to celebrate Mother’s Day. Seated in comfortable loungers on the aft deck of Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 mid-way across the North Atlantic, wrapped in plaid blankets, advancing toward England, watching the sea churn below. Read more…
Beach bums on wheels
Canoe.ca
There are few spots in the U.S. that can make a teenager’s eyes pop wider than the beach scene in Los Angeles. From its California skaters and surfer girls to its basketball courts and bike parks, the enormous strand of white sand along the Gold Coast from Santa Monica to Venice and beyond sees a lot of outrageous, trend-starting action. Read more…