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Snorkeling with Jesus

May 24, 2011 By Jillian

As we swam over the reef I suddenly caught a glimpse of the statue’s hand. I never would have expected to see a statue underwater, let alone in a coral reef, but there it was. A large statue of Jesus cemented to the ocean floor, rather unusual I’d say.

John Pennekamp State Park protects the third largest coral reef in the world, part of the National Marine Sanctuary. Off the coast of Key Largo, it’s a relatively quick boat ride to get out to the reefs and get snorkeling.

From the bronze and aptly named Christ of the Abyss statue to the incredibly colorful coral and fish, the snorkeling at Dry Rocks didn’t disappoint. We saw an incredible variety of fish, from snapper to grouper to angelfish and even a barracudda. The most amazing without a doubt though were the fan corals which seemed to be delicately blowing in the current. There’s even a turtle on the reef and two small kids from our boat swore they saw a nurse shark (their Dad was somewhat less sure on their sighting…)

Perhaps the best part of the snorkeling trip was becoming a classmate of the school of fish. Swimming amongst them, we were able to control the movements of the entire school, making these little one inch fish swim around the reef. Words can’t really explain how cool it was, hopefully the video is better.

If you can’t see it on your browser, watch it on Youtube Here!

The reef ranges from very shallow to deep, so there’s plenty of space for all snorkelers. When we arrived at the reef in the mid-afternoon the place was full of snorkelers, but by late in the afternoon we were the only boat left there. The quick story about the statue is that it was placed there in the 1960s after being donated to the Underwater Society of the America’s. It’s a bronze replica of an original Christ of the Abyss located off the coast of Italy.

IF YOU GO: John Pennekamp State Park is a little over an hour from Miami. It’s an easy drive down U.S. 1. You’ll find the State Park at what’s considered the upper keys, just south of Key Largo at Mile marker 102. Entry into the park is per person, when we went it was 4.50 per adult for the first two people and .50 each adult there after. Snorkeling tours leave three times a day and are $29.50 per adult, including the boat ride, but not including snorkeling equipment. All equipment can be rented, but we picked our own gear up before we went. There are showers and changing facitilies at the park as well as lots of picnic areas, beaches and even a snack stand. They also rent kayaks, paddleboards and canoes and sell a glass bottom boat tour for those that don’t want to snorkel.

This post was sponsored by lowcostholidays.com. With a great range of flights, accommodation and transfers you can be sure to find your perfect Florida holiday.

A Guide to Rail Tours in Canada

May 22, 2011 By Jillian

A train journey across Canada offers breathtaking scenery and appears on many people’s bucket lists. It’s an excellent way to see the country, whether you choose to travel from coast to coast or whether you just take in one region. Travelling overland across Canada’s vast landscape you will come across emerald green forests, crystal clear lakes, snow-capped mountains, vast wilderness areas and cosmopolitan cities. If you’re planning any rail tours to discover Canada, here are some tips to get you started.

Train Operators

VIA Rail Canada is the operator running long-distance trains across Canada. VIA Rail trains will take you between Canada’s major cities, and even all the way across Canada on the between Toronto and Vancouver. The other very popular train company is the more luxurious Rocky Mountaineer, which takes you through the Rocky Mountains from Vancouver via Kamloops & Jasper. Travelling through this area of rugged natural beauty, you will go past mountain ranges, glacier-fed lakes and rivers.

The Routes

On VIA Rail’s inter city trains you can travel between the major cities of Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal, plus there is a service which links Montreal and Quebec. ‘The Canadian’ takes four nights to complete, traveling all the way across Canada from Toronto to Winnipeg, Edmonton, Jasper and Vancouver. ‘The Ocean’ is also a spectacular route along the St. Lawrence River between Montreal and Halifax. There are also plenty of day trips: you can travel between Victoria and Courtenay on Vancouver Island, do the ‘Whistler Sea to Sky climb’ with Rocky Mountaineer between North Vancouver and Whistler, or take the train between Toronto and Niagara Falls. Rocky Mountaineer offers three rail routes through the Canadian Rocky Mountains so you can observe the magnificent snow-capped mountain peaks from the comfort of a luxurious train.

Accommodation on trains

If you choose to take ‘The Canadian’ with VIA Rail, considered one of the world’s best train journeys, you’ll be travelling in an original 1955 stainless steel coach. You can either choose to sit in a reclining seat in Economy Class, or travel in a private sleeping car with meals included in ‘Sleeper Touring Class’.

The Rocky Mountaineer has three classes of service: RedLeaf, SilverLeaf and GoldLeaf. The RedLeaf coach has large picture windows and you can sit back in a roomy, reclining chair. You receive complimentary soft drinks and snacks, as well as chilled meals served to your seat. The SilverLeaf coach is a single-level glass domed coach with large windows. You get roomy, reclining seats, breakfast and lunch served to your seat, plus complimentary soft drinks and snacks. GoldLeaf is the most luxurious coach; a two-level, glass domed coach with full-length windows and exclusive dining room, gourmet hot meals and complimentary beverages and snacks.

Rail Passes

If you’re backpacking Canada on a budget, then you can save money on train journeys by getting a rail pass with VIA Rail. The Canarailpass-System is best if you are travelling coast to coast, and is valid for 7 one-way trips in Economy Class within a 21-day period. There is also the Canarailpass-Corridor, which is suitable if you are exploring southern Ontario and Southern Quebec. This pass is valid for 7 one-way trips in Economy Class within a 10-day period. Traveling by train all the way across Canada can sometimes be expensive, but you can cut down on the cost by focusing on one region or looking out for special deals with VIA Rail or Rocky Mountaineer.

Thanks to Iain Miller for today’s guest post. If you are interested in guest posting with IShouldLogOff, email us at info [at] ishouldlogoff.com. Thanks!

Pictures courtesy of freewallpapers.com, titanhitours.co.uk and,VIA Rail Canada.

Strange Bikes

May 20, 2011 By Jillian

It’s the end of Bike to Work week in the U.S. and I thought we’d end with a few bicycles you may never have seen before. Frankly, I’ve only seen one of these on the road before.

The pedal bike bar. A genius idea or a really stupid one? I can’t tell, but the idea of this bike is that 16 people pedal while someone serves food and drink from the middle of the bike. We saw this in Cologne, Germany. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but honestly, I’m not sure if I’m that coordianted.

Mountain Bike Backpack. Forgive me, but I just don’t see hiking with a mountain bike on my back. I’m not lazy, but admittedly I’m not that extreme. Folding bikes however, are cool…

Folding Bike. I actually think this is kind of cool, especially if you commute in the city and don’t want pieces of your bike stolen during the day. I saw seat posts, pedals and all sorts of difficult to lock and yet essential bike components stolen in DC. This is small enough to take up to your office or cube.

Walking Bike. I said strange. This almost looks like a joke, I had my doubts as to whether this actually worked. Apparently it does:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSzzgFb5rkg&feature=player_embedded

Thanks to velomobiling.com, lowriderbikespicture.com, blog.tradetan.com, toxel.com for the incredible bike pictures!

Great Places to Rent a Bike

May 18, 2011 By Jillian

Even if you aren’t an avid cyclist, there are times when it’s just nicer to be on bike than in a car or bus. The ability to ‘stop and smell the roses’ so to speak and go at your own pace is an aspect of travel that can’t be ignored. Here are a few places we were glad to rent a bike:

1. Florence, Italy. I lived in Florence in 2004 and when it came time for high tourist season the downtown area was packed! Unfortunately that’s also when we had our visitors so we had to think of something different and fun to do that would give our visitors a sense of Italy. Fortunately we found this great Italian-American guy who was just starting bike tours. He took my roommate, her mom, aunt and I on an unforgettable journey through the Tuscan countryside through Fiesole and into Arezzo. We went through historic villages and stopped at a delicious little restaurant for lunch. Admittedly there was plenty of wine at lunch, but thankfully the road back to Florence was downhill.

2. Cappadocia, Turkey. Although we got a little lost, cycling through Cappadocia was amazing. We were able to stop and explore all the different formations, fairy chimneys and caves, and despite the fact the area is so touristy, we were alone all afternoon! We rode through farmers vegetable plots and nearly ran into a horse on a cart. It was a lovely afternoon, even though we ended up hiking a lot!

3. Berlin, Germany. We didn’t have to rent a bike in Berlin, our CS hosts had extras, but boy were we glad. It was incredibly easy to zip around the city on bike and having our own transportation meant we could hit more museums and sites in a day. We found the city really bike friendly, and no one looked at us twice when we walked into a shop holding our helmets.

4. Vang Vieng, Laos. Admittedly Vang Vieng is renown for other things besides biking, but the area has a lot more on offer than ‘Happy Menus’ and reruns of ‘Friends’. Renting a bike in Vang Vieng meant we could see the Limestone caves on our own, meaning we could go to the ones that the tour groups didn’t go to! We made it to the Blue Lagoon very late in the afternoon, just before closing. It was a special experience to be inside the cave at dusk, with light just touching the reclining Buddha statue inside. Unfortunately we also got a flat and Danny ended up riding into town on the back of a tractor.

5. Mendoza, Argentina. There had to be at least one wine region on our list didn’t there? We got off the bus in wine country and bike tour touts approached us, the first and only time that ever happened. Although we rented independent of a tour, we did get a map. Had we made it to the area earlier in the day I would have enjoyed going to some of the further away wineries where there was more of a country feel. Ultimately we ended up passing hours at a winery at the furthest end of the wine region. A good bottle of wine, a picnic lunch and our bikes, nothing could be better!

Taking the Bike to Work

May 16, 2011 By Danny

I love cycling to work. I avoid road rage and replace it with my daily exercise. Overall it saves me tons of time and makes me a happier person all at once. Add to those wonderful things that I also save money and it’s really a no-brainer for me. Every time I share with someone that I bike to work I’m greeted with shock and dismay. How do you do that; aren’t you smelly at work? Isn’t it dangerous? For many, seeing a different way to do things (like taking two years off in your 20’s to travel) is scary and therefore they’re unwilling to give it a try. For the rest of you, keep on reading.

By the way, this week is bike to work week in the USA. Go ahead, give it a try, now is the time.

There are a few things you need to be sure of before hopping into the saddle:

1. Endurance. Make sure you can bike that far in one go, and that you’ll still have energy at the end of the day for the return trip. I find that my energy levels are higher when I exercise but I still have to take my mileage into account. My current ride is about 7.5 miles each way. At one point in DC that one-way distance was closer to 12. It might take time to work up to doing a round-trip multiple times in a week so be sure to try just one day first, or even a practice ride over the weekend.

Checking out the Map — I thought it was a left at the interstate…?

2. Scout a route. For me, I prefer sidewalks because there aren’t cars. Still though, I usually try to ride on the right hand side of the road so that cars trying to enter the roadway are looking my direction. The route you drive might not be the best route to take on a bike. Seek roads with less traffic or wider sidewalks, many areas even offer bike trails. You may find that your bike route is shorter on the miles.

3. A person is smart, people are stupid. Same rules apply to drivers. You can never be sure what they are thinking or doing or whether they see you or not. Be careful. Check out the League of American Bicyclists five steps to riding better.

4. Know what you need. Invest in yourself and your gear, but first figure out what it is you actually need. If you bike a couple of days with a backpack you’ll soon feel the need for a rack system to put over your rear tire. Don’t just go out and buy all the stuff first, instead get to know what you have and buy it for yourself as a reward. You’ll be more likely to ‘use it in good health’ rather than to regret all the cash you threw down. (Just for the record, you don’t need a $1500 bike and a lot of spandex. My bike cost me just $100 on Craigslist, I’ve been using it for years, and a normal wicking t-shirt does me just fine.)

Kids race at the 2010 Tour de France — These kids are starting early with spandex.

5. Shower before work. Many office buildings have showers, you just need to ask around and you’ll eventually find them. If not, try to find a gym nearby…some even offer ‘shower’ memberships to cyclists. Don’t be that gross guy in the office.

6. Enjoy! A few of my favorite things: the morning mist on the ranch I pass at the start of my morning ride. The kids waiting for the school bus. People walking dogs. Time yourself and make the ride into a race, try to beat your speed from the day before. Whatever it is, just make sure you enjoy the ride.

Biking really is a nice way to start and end a day. My 7.5 mile commute, in traffic, takes about 20 minutes and will take about $3 in gas each day. My bike ride takes about 25 minutes (I tend to ‘avoid’ traffic signals) and costs nothing. I love it, and you will too!