CHINA
MOUNTAIN CLIMBING/HIKING/CAVING IN YANGSHU
Beijing may be the center of the 2008 Olympics universe, but the heart of China's adventure-sport community sits more than 1,000 miles to the south, near Yangshuo (pop. 298,000). Climbers first began setting routes in the myriad karst peaks here in the 1990s; today there are about 300 established climbs. (Last fall, Briton Neil Gresham set the region's first 5.14b.) After climbing, there's caving, hiking, and mountain biking. And anglers can hire a guide—who'll use a trained cormorant—to catch fish at night. Get on belay with China Climb ($40 per half-day with guide; 011-86-773-88-11-033, chinaclimb.com), then crash at the peaceful Yangshuo Mountain Retreat (doubles from $40; 011-86-773-87-77-091, yangshuomountainretreat.com).
HIKING/RAFTING IN YUNNAN
The Mekong may be renowned for its starring role in Apocalypse Now and as the newest target of China's village-displacing hydroelectric-dam campaign, but it's never been known as a commercial whitewater hot spot—until now. Under the leadership of your veteran guides, kick off the beginning of what may be a Mekong revival: commercial rafting trips on the wilder Class IV-V sections of the upper river. You'll spend the first week acclimatizing to Yunnan's Tibetan culture and altitude, with hikes through the 700,000-acre, bamboo-dense Baima Nature Reserve and a 5,000-foot ascent to the 12,000-foot-high village of Yubong, while sleeping in traditional Tibetan homes. By the second week, drop your raft into the Class IV rapids beneath the flapping prayer flags of Xidang's monastery for six days and 80 miles of gorge-squeezing whitewater bliss. Price: $4,990-$5,490 Outfitter: Mountain Travel Sobek, 888-687-6235, www.mtsobek.com
When to Go: March
MINYA KONKA TREK
In the shadow of 24,790-foot Minya Konka, spend 19 days exploring Tibetan villages, Buddhist temples, and a high-alpine landscape where rhododendrons and wildflowers line paths leading to hot springs and crystalline lakes. The trip centers on a 12-day trek that tops out on a 15,150-foot mountain pass before dropping into the Yunongqi Valley, where you'll sip butter tea in a village home, then set up camp nearby.Price: $5,595 Outfitter: Geographic Expeditions, 800-777-8183, www.geoex.com
When to Go: April, September
EAST TIMOR
TREKING THE ISLAND
In the five years since East Timor won its bloody battle for independence from Indonesia, few travelers have ventured into the world's newest nation, where the tourist-free villages, coffee plantations, and verdant rainforests rival any in Southeast Asia. On this 15-day trip, you'll hike up the country's tallest mountain (9,724 feet), sail to a nearby reef-ringed island, watch villagers weave their traditional tais (sarongs), and spend your nights in humble guesthouses and thatched-roof seaside bungalows.Price: $1,380 Outfitter: Intrepid Travel, 866-847-8192, www.intrepidtravel.com When to Go: May to November
HIMALAYAS
WALK TO KACHENJUNGA
Pioneering adventure outfitter Mountain Travel Sobek celebrates its 40th anniversary with a series of back-of-beyond trips led by top guides. Our favorite: this northern-Sikkim trek, which ends at the base camp of 28,169-foot Kanchenjunga. After two nights in Gangtok, capital of Sikkim, a team of porters, 12 guests, and a seriously illustrious guide—Jamling Norgay, son of some guy named Tenzing—set off for ten days of trekking through remote high-alpine valleys near the Tibetan border. "It will be like hiking in Nepal in the sixties," says Narendra Gurung, Sobek's director of Asia operations. October 31–November 15; 16 DAYS, FROM $4,300 mtsobek.com.
TREK IN A ZEN MASTER'S FOOTSTEPS
In 1978, Peter Matthiessen published The Snow Leopard, the National Book Award–winning account of his quest to find the world's most elusive big cat among Dolpo, Nepal's 23,000-foot Himalayan peaks. One World Trekking's 29-day hike through Shey-Phoksumdo National Park retraces the legendary author and Zen master's footsteps, past 11th-century Buddhist monasteries and 100-foot waterfalls. With four 16,500-foot passes, this trip is for experienced trekkers. One World guarantees porters and cooks, if not leopard sightings. September 7–October 5; from $4,400; oneworldtrekking.com
INDIA
RAFTING THE TSANGPO RIVER
In 2002, a team of world-class kayakers sponsored by Outside became the first to descend Tibet's Tsangpo, the Everest of rivers. Last year, whitewater experts Global Descents made a 110-mile section of the river in India—where it's called the Siang—available to mortals. The ten-day expedition starts with a helicopter flight from Dibrugarh, Assam, to the put-in near Tuting, a village at the Chinese border. From there, 12 rafters and four guides spend six-hour days paddling big-water Class V rapids through rugged, 1,800-foot-deep canyons. Nights are spent camping on sandy beaches and feasting on fish curry. Five departures between November and January; $4,500; globaldescents.com
SURF THE MALDIVES
Surfers have long known that polar storms churning their way into the southern Indian Ocean create some of the planet's most consistent swells by the time the waves bash into the Maldives, 300 miles southwest of India. With about 1,200 islands and 20 atolls, finding the best breaks means living on a boat—in this case, one helluva boat. Australia-based outfitter Tropicsurf raises the bar on live-aboard surf safaris this month with the launch of Tropic Breeze, a 113-foot, three-deck yacht that's stuffed with so many accoutrements even kooks who love Point Break will want to sign up. There are eight cabins (each with a private bathroom), plasma-screen televisions, a library, a tender for surfboards, a bar, two cushy lounges, and a captain who knows how to locate the tubes. After embarking, up to ten surfers can set out to find swells pounding remote, secret atolls. You'll likely have breaks like the Peak to yourself, where deep-water channels make for safer exits from glassy faces up to 18 feet high. (Beginners can take longboards out at Betties for 300-yard-long rides on head-high waves, and onboard guides are always out in the water to give pointers.) At the end of the day, crash on the couch with a cold Tiger beer and watch videos of yourself to perfect your cutback. Yellowfin and mahi-mahi are reeled in, then transformed into sushi and curry dishes. When your shoulders can take no more paddling, learn to tow-in surf behind a Jet Ski, go snorkeling, or get a massage from the onboard masseuse. OUTFITTER: Tropicsurf; tropicsurf.net PRICE: From $5,556, for seven- to ten-day trips DIFFICULTY: Moderate WHEN TO GO: April–October
SAFARI IN MADHYA PRADESH
Last November, Taj Hotels and CC Africa generated big-time adventure travel buzz when they opened Mahua Kothi, the first of five upscale resorts in central India, marrying the African safari with Indian hospitality. Bandhavgarh National Park, abutting the Mahua Kothi, is one of the most famous tiger habitats on earth, with centuries-old man-made caves that now serve as big-cat dens. After a day exploring the sal forests and bamboo jungle, guests chill out in one of 12 suites on the 40-acre property, which offers all the best amenities of a conventional luxury safari—but with hookah pipes in the common area, private butlers in traditional costume, and in-room Ayurvedic massages ($600 per person, all-inclusive; 011-91-11-26-80-77-50, indiasafaris.com).
TRACKING THE SNOW LEOPARD
Hidden in the Himalayan high-desert passes of Ladakh are some of the oldest untouched Tibetan monasteries in the world, as well as one of the highest concentrations of the near-mythic snow leopard. For 19 days, play Peter Matthiessen under the guidance of the Snow Leopard Conservancy. You'll sleep in tents and mountain farmhouses while trekking and tracking the elusive cats through the 5,000-square-mile Hemis National Park, home to about 170 of the world's last remaining 4,600 to 7,000 snow leopards. Along the way you'll visit the spectacular tenth-century Hemis Monastery, enjoy the view at your 12,500-foot-high Rumbak homestay, and trek to the 16,700-foot-high pass of Kongmaru La. A portion of your trip's fee is donated to the conservancy to help improve conditions for the locals—both human and feline. Price: $3,575 Outfitter: KarmaQuest, 650-560-0101, www.karmaquests.com
When to Go: April-October
RAJASTHAN ON HORSEBACK
When film producer Alexander Souri's first expedition of "Relief Riders" trotted into a remote Indian village last fall, the caravan of nine Marwari horses, four pack camels, 50 goats, and 15 people caused quite a stir. "Across India it became front-page news," says Souri, 35, whose inaugural Rajasthan Relief Ride delivered supplies like antibiotics and eye drops by horseback to five villages in northwestern India, and had doctors on board for impromptu clinics. Hardy travelers can join the next cavalcade on a 15-day journey carrying goods deep into the Thar Desert. You'll saddle up in Mukandgarh, about six hours from New Delhi, then ride about 20 miles per day, camping or staying in 400-year-old forts en route to Jaipur.
High Point: Seeing villagers receive knowledge—such as AIDS education—plus food and supplies that they desperately need. Price: $4,800 Low Point: Watching people wait in line at the clinics for hours in the midday heat. Travel Advisory: Three to five hours per day is a lot of time in the saddle. Be sure your skills (and your posterior) are up to the task. Outfitter: Relief Riders International, 413-329-5876, www.reliefridersinternational.com When to Go: February, October
INDONESIA
CLIMB LIVE VOLCANOES
By the end of KE Adventure Travel's three-week Living Mountains journey, you'll have trekked through remote Javanese villages and 15th-century stone temples. Fun stuff, but nothing compared with the trip's primary thrill: watching the sun rise through clouds of gas and cinder from the summit of an active volcano. The voyage takes guests from Jakarta to eight feisty volcanoes on the islands of Java, Bali, and Lombok. Eight-hour treks—and a few nights of camping in Javanese leopard country—are offset by nights sipping Bali Hai beer in rustic island resorts. Departures in July and September; 21 DAYS, $2,800 keadventure.com.
SURF AND SAIL
In the 1980s, Martin Daly put Indonesian surfing on the map by piloting a single-engine boat between breaks and hunting for lost treasure. This fall, he returns as skipper of EpicQuest's 112-foot luxury yacht, the Indies Trader IV, for a two-month, five-leg trip. Surf-crazy guests book a single leg of the voyage, which leaves from Padang, Indonesia, and makes stops in Jakarta, Bali, Timor, and New Guinea. By day, hit Daly's now famous finds, such as Rifles—a quarter-mile right-hand wave. By night, crash in posh cabins and gorge on seafood. Tip: Ask for the trip's final departure, when Daly plans to cruise up the rarely surfed west coast of New Guinea. The boat leaves Padang August 21, and each leg lasts 12 days. From $5,500 per person with two people; epicquest.com
TREK THE GUNUNG RINJANI
If trekking near active volcanoes isn't daunting enough, how about climbing a few—including the 12,224-foot Gunung Rinjani, on the island of Lombok, east of Bali, via a scenic new route to its unexplored southern rim. On this ten-day trip, you'll start in the village of Aibuka, scramble to the gorgeous Sengara Anak crater lake, then paddle inflatable rafts to the base of Gunung Baru (7,752 feet), an active young volcano in mid-lake. After topping that "warm-up" peak, you'll soak in surrounding hot springs, then trek to Rinjani base camp. The push to the summit begins under a full moon at 2 a.m. and ends at about sunrise. OUTFITTER: No Roads Expeditions, 011-03-9502-3789, noroads.com.au; PRICE: $1,422; DIFFICULTY: Challenging; WHEN TO GO: May–June
CYCLING REMOTE BALI
Though the major Balinese tourist centers on the southern coast may still be reeling from the 2002 and 2005 bombings, the heady scents and lush foliage of the island's secluded interior and northeastern coast remain as untouched as ever. On this eight-day sampler, you'll get the full-immersion tour, biking 12 to 47 miles a day and sleeping in garden and seaside spa resorts at night. Starting inland, in Ubud, pedal to the Pura Taman Ayun, a "floating" 17th-century royal temple surrounded by a moat, and past acres of hydrangea and clove plantations. When you reach the northern coast and the black sands of Lovina Beach, strip off those Lycra shorts and take a dip in the Bali Sea. Then head east past volcanoes and verdant rice paddies, stopping to snorkel the coral reefs of the Blue Lagoon and dine on fresh coconut rice and rich green curry in the town of Candidasa. Price: $2,798 Outfitter: Backroads, 800-462-2848, www.backroads.com When to Go: October, January-April
MONGOLIA
PADDLING/TREKING/CAMEL EXCURSION
Explore Mongolia's wildest scenery, from a lake about the size of Rhode Island to the Gobi Desert, where the mode of transport comes with two humps. Guests land in Ulan Bator and hightail it to 85-mile-long Lake Hövsgöl, known for its rich purple color. After four days of kayaking along shorelines, camping in traditional gers, and horse-trekking through 8,000-foot-high meadows in the nearby Khoridal Saridag range, it's Gobi time. Between two-to-six-hour camel rides and trips to the iconic 2,500-foot-high singing dunes, unwind at the solar-powered Three Camel Lodge. Five departures between June and September; 12 DAYS, $3,600 PLUS $20 MEMBERSHIP FEE rei.com.
MYANMAR
EXPLORING THE MERGUI ARCHIPELAGO
The Moken "sea gypsies" who travel the recently opened Mergui Archipelago, an 800-island cluster off the southern coast of Myanmar, are among the few who still practice their traditional nomadic marine life, fishing for sea cucumbers and lobsters and wandering from island to island in hand-built boats. For 12 days you'll emulate this vanishing culture, hopping from the powdery beaches of Clara Island to the stunning old-growth coral of the underwater reef gardens around Hayes Island. Snorkel and dive uninhabited Lampi Island's boulder-strewn seafloor and kayak through the limestone cliffs and tunnels along Horseshoe Island's dramatic coast. Base camp is one of five air-conditioned cabins aboard an 85-foot wooden yacht, where meals are a merging of Moken and Thai flavors, such as fish fresh from the Andaman Sea steamed with coconut and lemongrass. Price: $3,995-$4,495 Outfitter: Wilderness Travel, 800-368-2794, www.wildernesstravel.com When to Go: November-March
NEPAL
TREK THE ANNAPURNA CIRCUIT
After years of violent unrest, a 2006 peace agreement between the government and Maoist rebels promises to return the tourism spotlight to this Himalayan wonder—one of the original adventure travel meccas. No trekking route is more spectacular, or more accessible to reasonably fit hikers, than the three-week, roughly 200-mile inn-to-inn Annapurna Circuit. With a constant backdrop of 20,000-foot peaks, the trail loops from the semitropical city of Pokhara, over 17,769-foot Thorong La pass, on the edge of the arid Tibetan Plateau, and back to the terraced lowlands. Thanks to the détente, U.S.-based outfitters have noticed a surge in interest in Nepal. Wilderness Travel will return to Annapurna this fall after a four-year absence (from $2,795 per person; 800-368-2794, wildernesstravel.com).
SRI LANKA
WILDLIFE EXPEDITION
Sri Lanka is serious about protecting its endangered elephants—the penalty for killing one is death. On this eight-day loop around the island, starting and ending in Colombo, you'll witness the slow recovery of the species—thousands of these mammoth mammals now roam the jungles of Yala National Park. En route to the two-day park safari, you'll visit Kandy and Polonnaruwa, two of Sri Lanka's oldest cities, and an elephant orphanage, and stay at an Edwardian manor house amid the tea fields of a former British hill station. Price: $1,099—$1,390 Outfitter: Big Five, 800-244-3483, www.bigfive.com When to Go: October to March
THAILAND
SAIL THE THAI ISLES
After a week of sailing between Thailand's southern islands, you'll be ready to go Gilligan. On Gap Adventures' new cruise, eight sailors lounge on a 37-foot live-aboard catamaran, drifting between ten limestone islands jutting from the 88-degree water of the Andaman Sea. Like snorkeling? Tell the captain (guests help choose the trip's route) and he'll take you to the mangroves of 98,800-acre Ao Phang-nga National Park in the evening, after the tour boats leave, for a private viewing of the park's 80-plus marine species. Departures from November to April; from $1,250; gapadventures.com
TIBET
PHOTO EXPLORATION
Red limestone cliffs front the sapphire-blue surface of Lake Nam Tsho, where Tibetan pilgrims gather at a shoreline dotted with migratory cranes and geese. Any amateur could produce stunning images here, but you'll have expert guidance from Bill Chapman, whose photographic book The Face of Tibet has a foreword by the Dalai Lama. Starting in Lhasa, the 15-day adventure takes you on a challenging trek over 16,900-foot Kong La Pass. You'll bunk in nomad camps as you make your way to the riding competitions and colorful dance performances of the Nagchu Horse Festival. Price: $4,695 Outfitter: Myths & Mountains, 800-670-6984, www.mythsandmountains.com
When to Go: August
TREKING MOUNT EVEREST
Hard-charging guide and Imax cinematographer David Breashears shows his softer side on Destination Himalaya's new Two Faces of Everest Trek. The five-time summiter will lead up to 16 guests to the mountain's north and south base camps in the span of a month. During an eleven-day stay on the Tibetan side, clients will attempt a hike to advance base camp, at 17,500 feet, and to the ice pinnacles of the Rongbuk Glacier. The group will then drive to Kathmandu, Nepal, and fly to Lukla to begin the six-day trek up to the south side of the peak. En route, trekkers visit with Sherpa families and catch spectacular views of the high Himalayas. September 19–October 3 (north side) and September 30–October 17 (south side); $6,885 for either half or $12,770 for both; destinationhimalaya.net
TREK TO THE SOURCE OF THE TSANGPO, TIBET
The last time trekking guide Gary McCue set out to explore far-western Tibet, he happened upon an acre-size hot spring that tumbled from a mountainside near Lake Manasarovar. "I'd never seen a boiling creek just come crashing out of a hole in the ground," he says. But it's just the sort of surprise the Tasmania-based author of Trekking in Tibet: A Traveler's Guide has come to expect from this part of the world. Tourism may be booming—the controversial new Qinghai-Tibet Railway helped bump up visitation to Tibet by 30 percent last year—but much of this mysterious land of Buddhist temples and mist-shrouded peaks remains blissfully unexplored by outsiders. This spring, McCue will return to the Himalayas on a quest to reach the source of the Tsangpo River, the mightiest of four rivers that flow from the sacred 22,028-foot peak of Kailas. The 42-day exploratory trek is the first commercial expedition to a pilgrimage site very few Westerners have seen since a Swedish explorer hiked nearby in the early 1900s. After driving across the plains from Lhasa to Darchen, you'll trek the perimeter of Kailas before camping in the Lha Chu Valley during the annual Saga Dawa full-moon festival. Then you'll start the weeklong journey through a glacial valley to Tamchok Khabab, the river's source. The trip ends with a visit to the temple-strewn Limi Valley, a newly opened region of western Nepal. "It's hard to find wilderness this wild and remote that doesn't require Reinhold Messner-level skills to reach," says McCue. "It's the closest you can come to what the explorers experienced 150 years ago." OUTFITTER: Wilderness Travel, 800-368-2794, wildernesstravel.com; PRICE: $10,560–$13,160; DIFFICULTY: Challenging; WHEN TO GO: May–June
TANZANIA
TREKING KILIMANJARO
One of the world's tallest "walkable" mountains, this freestanding 19,340-foot massif draws some 30,000 wide-eyed—and often ill-prepared—hikers annually. Though technical climbing is not required, it's no stroll: A number of those who attempt the five- to nine-day push through rainforest to wind-flayed icefields turn back before reaching the top; about five die en route every year (often from altitude sickness). The payoff for summiters? Views of Africa, in all its brawny magnificence, in every direction. Guides are mandatory; book one in advance through a reputable company, and avoid touts pushing cut-rate outings via the tourist-trampled Marangu Route (the Umbwe Route and others get less traffic). For group treks, seek out experienced companies like Thomson Safaris, which offers hikes on less-traveled trails, with summit-success rates near 95 percent (from $3,990; 800-235-0289, thomsonsafaris.com).
