Articles Written

Stockholm - Photo Credit Will Linehan
June 15, 2016

Stockholm: Venice of the North

Stockholm is not a city that speaks for itself. Like the Swedes, it exists with a quiet elegance and humility that is discovered by the foreigner with the patient peeling away of layer after layer. Its skyline is one of the most striking I’ve seen in Europe, with spires reaching towards the sky and pastel-colored buildings lining the canals and bridges that unite the city across 14 islands. From Lake Mälaren through a web of canals and rivers reaching the Baltic Sea, the Stockholm archipelago draws city dwellers from the capital’s urban chic into the countryside.

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June 7, 2016

Loving Lake Garda

Put together everything you love about Italy: a warm climate, the rugged coastline, mountains, food, history, wine and rich cultural traditions. Lake Garda, at 31 miles long and touching three Italian provinces, manages to offer it all.

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Sunset in Snow Canyon
May 18, 2016

There's No Canyon like Snow Canyon

The perfect cycling combination awaits in the rolling desert hills near St. George, Utah: a butt-kicking workout on the way up followed by an adrenaline-pumping downhill race. When I first rode up Snow Canyon last summer, it was a real "sufferfest." Finally I crested that last sweaty hill, pushing my poor legs harder than they had any right to be pushed, filling my lungs with hot desert air... then I looked around. Miles of pristine Navajo sandstone stretched out before me, carved into towering walls of red and white striations. I felt like I was on Mars, and I was hooked.

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Backroads Leader Etienne in the Rockies
May 12, 2016

Top Ten Cycling Roads in the Americas

Before I became a Backroads Trip Leader, a crazy project took me on a bicycle adventure along the spine of the Americas, from northern Canada to southern Argentina, chasing down the Rockies, the Sierra Madre and the Andes mountains. Here is what I consider to be the top ten best road segments from that trip. This list includes different sceneries, jaw-dropping sights and some of the places that made me shout out "wow" uncontrollably. Moreover, some of these routes can be experienced on your next Backroads adventure!

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Asheville to Greenville Biking
April 27, 2016

The Carolinas Bike Tour Video

Normally bikes aren't allowed on the Biltmore Estate, the 7,000-acre park with a château-like mansion that's the largest private home in the US. But we've managed to gain access for Backroads guests on our Asheville to Greenville bike tour. Riding up to this monument of the Gilded Age is just one of many highlights on a biking journey that uniquely combines rides through undulating countryside around the cultural center of Asheville, North Carolina with the scenic, bike-friendly roads outside historic Greenville, South Carolina.

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April 25, 2016

Wildlife in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks

Yellowstone and Grand Teton are two of the best national parks in the United States for viewing wildlife... the "Big Five" refers to the most popular animals that visitors hope to see in the parks: American bison, elk, gray wolves, grizzly bears and moose. Whether you are driving, cycling, hiking, rafting, kayaking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or just sitting on a bench, you are sure to see a variety of animals during your visit, but the Big Five continue to win the hearts of our guests during their Backroads vacations.

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San Juan Islands Backroads Biking
April 18, 2016

San Juan Islands Bike Tour Video

We've biked in the San Juan Islands since the earliest days of Backroads and know every inch of the great routes we've linked together with help from island-hopping ferries and an amazing network of local friends. We're constantly fine-tuning our itineraries, keeping what's great, revisiting what's changed and making sure you enjoy the best of the San Juans – whether it's an ideal picnic spot, an interesting regional artist or a feast of perfectly prepared fresh salmon.

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Danube River
April 5, 2016

Discovering History along the Danube

The banks of the Danube are soaked in history, having witnessed the rise and fall of countless empires. Today, within the cities along the Danube, the past remains visible in stunning clarity. An imperial glow is embedded within the very masonry of capitals like Vienna and Budapest. One stands at the footsteps of the Hofburg Palace or the Hungarian Parliament and senses how it must have felt to be a provincial subject from some far-flung corner of the empire, awestruck by their imperial grandeur. The Danube has retained this aura of historic wonder and it flows like a gateway into the past for all travelers who tread its banks.

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The Eiger and the Jungfraujoch station
March 24, 2016

Hiking the Eiger Trail

It's said that long ago in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland, there were two monasteries at the top of the world. One, on a peak called the Jungfrau (the virgin), is where the women would stay. The other, called the Eiger (the ogre), housed the men. In the middle stood the most formidable of the three peaks, called the Mönch (the monk), to keep the sexes apart. These mountains tower over the village of Grindelwald. The Eiger in particular, with its steep exposed north face, has long been a test piece for serious mountaineers. Last fall another Backroads leader and I hiked in the shadow of the Eiger--and you can too!

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Holland Belgium
March 11, 2016

Netherlands & Belgium Bike Tour Video

This captivating region offers much more than canals and windmills... not that you won't see plenty of both as you bike flat, quiet roads through landscapes straight out of masterpieces by Cuyp or van Ruisdael. After riding in the Netherlands and Belgium for more than 20 years, we know both countries intimately and can share our insiders' take on everything from the best places to try a great beer or a chunk of Gouda (or both) to contemporary cultural attractions that provide an interesting counterpoint to the classic must-see sights.

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