What is a good adventure travel trip?

[chindiver]

okay, so my work is requireing me to take vacation days and I have vacations in July and December. I am going to the Sea of Cortez for 10 days in july, but I want to do something different for my trip in december. I would love to do some type of big adventure trip, but I am not sure where to look. I want to do something really challenging and difficult, kind of stare death in the face type of trip. Has anyone on the board done a trip like this and if so can you help me decide? Thanks

 

[scubatwinned]

Madagascar, no really Madagascar, the diving is amazing and the on land stuff is even better. Above and below the water everywhere you look something is moving. You can for about $10us(3 days 2 nights or longer for pennies more) go down a river from the mountains to the coast in a dug out canoe with no tent( tent for pennies more all is negotiated before one leaves), sleep on sand bars (make sure you find lots of wood before it gets dark) surrounded by fires to keep the Nile crocks at bay!!! Once you are set with fires and wood, sit and watch the hundreds of fruit bats use the river as a road to do their foraging!!! The guide bought our food live from local villagers(when you pass one) had duck one night, a bunch of small fish another. The guide will pluck, kill and cook whatever they buy and you eat. they also do all the paddling. You need to bring your own water and it's Africa hot so bring alot!!! Also you are in a open canoe - no roof, in the jungle - lots of mosquito repelent ya. I had to use my walkman to sleep after a rain - to drown the mosquito noise around ones head!!!

I did my diving just north of Tulear in the south... aaaahhhh memories drift back. Most people go to Nosy Be and area in the north, is where the tourists go. If what you say is true go south, you have a reef as long as the Barrier all to yourself. Most densly shark populated waters in the world!!! It was march break and the French expats had their kids at the hotel, around $15us a night, great food, air con if you need. Place is run on it's own generator. I had to share the boat I think 2 or3 days out of 7. Hard bottom zodiac, sweet to enter and exit. Was the only place that had a dive charter/shop at the time.

This is all off the top of my head so if you are serious let me know and I will look up the place in my dive logs. I was there in 95 or 6. You could walk all day on the beach and see NO ONE except when the fishermen went out and came back. I was there for 3 months, not near enough time. You can live there for a month for what it would cost you a day in Florida. I really don't think it has changed that much because of the unstable gov't situation - no investors. Have a great trip!!

 

[caymaniac]

We too spent some time in Africa. We went to South Africa where we stayed in Krugar Natl park. We rented a car for the trip and drove mostly in the middle to southern part of the park. The park is over 100mi. wide and I think about 3 to 400 mi. long. We were chased off the road by elephants, saw nine lions finish up a girrafe, we saw animals that I've never heard of. Herds of animals, cape buffalo, impala, wildebeast, waterbok, springbok, and we also saw the "big five" on two different days ( lion, buffalo, rhino,
elephant, and lepord) We saw cheetah, croc, baboons and bushbabies I could go on and on. We also spent sometime on the coast diving out of Sodwanna which has a most southernly reef.
Another adventure trip we've done was to do a 5night liveaboard out of N.E. Australia and we did some land tours as well. While we were in Oz we went into the rainforest to spot animals in the daytime and nightime.