By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate As temperatures begin to soar, I dream of the rivers I have known and loved. Tension mounts as I hear the rumble of rapids roiling ahead. Sitting up straight, tucking a foot beneath the pontoon of the rubber raft, taking a secure position for the white water to come, I listen for commands. “Paddles ready!” calls the guide and then we are bouncing through rapids with cooling waves splashing overhead. Squeals of excitement fill the air as we paddle for all we are worth through the foaming rush. Next we settle back to a smooth glide down... Read More

By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate I have been migrating from Los Angles to Haines, the prettiest little town in Southeast Alaska, for the last 40 years. Like the arctic tern in its epic 25,000- mile round trip journey and the salmon’s primordial yearning to return to the clear waters of its birth, I come home. When snow-frosted peaks of the Coastal Range that hug the tiny berg and Port Seward come into view, I mist over.  Alaska is to me austere, rugged and moody, yet thrilling in its unrelenting beauty. Haines, population 2500, was once a homely pioneer town; now Main... Read More