bodacious: adj. excellent, admirable, or attractive. ORIGIN: Boldacious. Blend of BOLD and AUDACIOUS.” - Oxford English Dictionary, 11th edition.
“I’m off to the Bugaboos.” Just saying it, feels bodacious; though I am neither bold nor audacious by nature. What I am, unfortunately, is heavier than I’d like (thanks to a love affair with chocolate), and I can rationalize my way out of a morning run faster than you can say Mocha Grande. So why am I traveling solo to the Canadian Rockies for a Bodacious Girlfriend Getaway heli-hiking and yoga vacation. Why not?
The simple purity and intense beauty of the West has long been a place where dream seekers can indulge such brazen fantasies unfettered by the hard facts of reality. Turning intimidating concepts into inspiring life-enhancing adventures, in fact, is what Canadian Mountain Holidays (CMH), has been doing since 1965 when they first started ferrying skiers by helicopter into the remote mountains of British Columbia.
“Welcome to my office,” says Lyle Grisedale, a professional CMH hiking guide and designated ‘bodacious bro’ on our women-only getaway. A courteous bon vivant with enough Irish devilment in him to fit right in with the girls, Grisedale is equal parts superhero, spiritual guru and mountain goat. Beyond his outstretched arm, tower the wild and jagged peaks of the Bugaboos –a granite mountain range in the Purcell Mountains of eastern British Columbia. A stunning land-sea of serrated ridges, turquoise lakes, lush meadows, and blue-tinged glaciers surround us.
Only a few hours earlier, I’d scrambled aboard a twin-engine Bell 212, 14-passenger helicopter at the CMH helipad (near Radium Hot Springs) after a scenic two-hour drive from Banff. The ten-minute flight to the Bugaboo Lodge, one of 11 self-sufficient, eco-sensitive lodges run by CMH, provided a thrilling, IMAX view of snow-capped peaks, evergreen forests, glistening snowfields, and wildflower-filled valleys sandwiched between rocky ridges. By comparison, it would have taken two full days of hard walking to cover the same distance.
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".
words + photos by Jeanine Barone
Macau’s glitzy side with its mega-watt casino resorts is certainly seductive to the majority of visitors who flock to this former Portuguese colony that’s set in the South China Sea. Instead, I was enthralled with Macau’s more serene side:
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Macau is chock full of green spaces. In leafy Camoes Garden, named for Portugal’s national poet, it’s worth hanging out to observe the local men who, instead of walking their dogs, stroll while carrying their pet song birds in elaborate cages. Also, check out the reflexology path where you’ll get a much-needed foot massage by walking barefoot over the rough pebbled surface.
• One of the most curious exhibits at the Museum of Macau is the cricket fighting display, complete with tiny cricket coffins and tombstones. (Don’t worry, there are no live crickets here.)
• The upper level of the Museum of Macau opens to a lovely green patio that’s ringed by cannons and the old crenellated walls of this fort that was once a defense against the Dutch. (This is also the site for the annual Macau International Music Festival.)
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".