Catch a jumbo squid in CA

The Los Angeles Times reports on the jumbo squid swarm off Newport Beach that has created a fishing frenzy.

The invasion of the jumbo squid in Orange County -- not to be confused with the exceedingly rare and much larger giant squid -- has prompted fishing-boat operators to add nighttime voyages.

The operators have reported that since Thursday evening, anglers have landed more than 1,000 of the squid.

Scientists say El Nino conditions and global warming are most likely bringing the cephalopds into the area.

Read the full story: Jumbo squid ink-jet their way to Newport Beach

Photo by Liz Garcia / Newport Landing Sportfishing

Bears prefer minivans

Los Angeles Times travel blog reports on the study showing that bears at Yosemite National Park prefer to break into minivans more than other types of vehicles.

[The] Journal of Mammalogy study [was] drawn from seven years of park data on bear-related break-ins.

Analyzing reports on 908 Yosemite Valley vehicle break-ins, authors Stewart W. Breck, Nathan Lance and Victoria Seher classified automobiles in nine categories. They found that 26% of the victimized vehicles were minivans.

The authors offer four possible reasons, beginning with one that won’t surprise many parents of small children. Perhaps, the authors say, the black bears like minivans because “minivans are more likely to emit food odors, based on the fact that minivans are designed for families with children, who are more likely to spill food and drink in a vehicle."

Read the full story: Yosemite bears' car of choice

Photo by Gary Kazanjian / Associated Press

A visit to eco-city Freiburg, Germany

The Los Angeles Times visits the green city of Freiburg, Germany.

Renewable energy and public transportation are actively encouraged in this city of 220,000 nestled in the Southwest corner of the country.

The Best Western Premier Hotel Victoria, built in 1875, was even part of the green movement, billing itself as a "zero emissions" hotel. It uses no more power than it generates, thanks to its solar roof, an investment in a windmill and an eco-power supplier.

Read the full story: Freiburg: A very eco-friendly German city

Photo from Wikimedia

Exploring New Zealand by camper van

The Los Angeles Times reports on writer Mary Engel's and her husband Nolan Hester's 19-day a camper van trip through New Zealand's South Island.

Since they'd explored much of the world by trusty VW pop-up wagons, they wound up with an orange rental for their trip.

My husband, Nolan, and I had pulled in next to a train station to make coffee in our rented Volkswagen Vanagon camper when a wiry, red-haired man ambled over and knocked on our sliding door. It was our first morning in New Zealand, and we assumed he was going to tell us we couldn't park there.

Hands in the pockets of his fleece jacket, he smiled apologetically at interrupting our breakfast, and leaned in.

"What year is it?" he asked, meaning our bright orange van (a 1982). We'd hired it the day before in Christchurch from Classic Campers, which we'd found on the Web as renting "stylish retro campervans."

It was then that we noticed an almost identical orange Vanagon across the parking lot.

Read the full story: Rolling and roaming in New Zealand

LA ports clean-trucks program delayed by Feds

The Los Angeles Times updates the story about the L.A. and Long Beach ports adoption of clean-trucks - which now is under a federal inquiry that could push back its October 1 launch.

A nine-page request for information issued by the Federal Maritime Commission questions the ports' landmark clean-truck program, scheduled to start next month:

"The agency could go to federal court to block implementation if it doesn't like the answers.

At issue is the first effort by a major U.S. seaport to reduce diesel truck emissions by banning the oldest trucks that move cargo to and from the docks. The Port of Los Angeles program would require the creation of trucking companies or concessions to hire drivers who now operate as independent owner operators."

Read the full story: Federal inquiry could delay clean-trucks program

Dominica, meant to be explored on foot

The Los Angeles Times reports on the natural wonders of the Caribbean island of Dominica; the best way to enjoy it is by foot:

"It's crawling with natural hiking trails adorned by 1,200 species of plants and flowers. There are spectacular waterfalls and hot springs, including the huge Boiling Lake in the center, and the island is surrounded by waters clear enough for snorkeling, deep enough for diving and just choppy enough to make kayaking interesting."

Read the full story: Dominica: an ecological escape

Polar bears, see before extinct

The Los Angeles Times reports on a small Canadian town besieged by polar bear viewing tourists - and because the bear was officially designated as endangered - will most likely see a tourist upswing.

"Tourists come to Churchill, a town about six blocks long, to see the bears; there are about 900 polar bears in the area. They go out on the tundra in buggies, peer at the animals through windows of the specially designed vehicles and get super-close to the bears -- without setting foot in their habitat."

But some tour operators are hopeful that the endangered tag will bring better protection to the bears as well as more recognition of the affects of global warming on melting ice.

Read the full story: Now endangered, polar bears a bigger draw to Churchill, Canada

Fishing, hiking and camping along California's Kern River

Hugo Martin of the Los Angeles Times compiled a list of great fishing, camping and hiking spots along the non-crowded Kern River.

Martin, a "spring fever" trout fisher, says fishing should not be a "contact sport" like it is at popular angler spots along the Owens River Valley.

So he set off to find less-crowded spots to enjoy his pastime as well as other outdoor activities.

The Kern is located about 150 miles northeast of Los Angeles and just east of Bakersfield.

Read the full story: The fishing's fine along California's Kern River

LA Times showcases desert wildflowers

The Los Angeles Times highlights four of its famous deserts and the beautiful and rare blooms that have been bringing in wildflower tourists like mad this month.

Ecotravel News wrote a previous post about this spring being a peak year for western desert wildflower viewing, because of the very rainy winter.

The Times article says it's almost past peak viewing in the Anza-Borrego Desert, Death Valley and Joshua Tree parks but the orange state flower - California Poppy - is just beginning to carpet the Antelope Valley. For arm-chair desert wildflower viewers, the article has a wonderful photo slide-show and links to real-time desert flowers.

For the full LA Times article: California's deserts ablaze with wildflowers

Grand Canyon's man-made and damaging "flood"

The Los Angeles Times reports today on the first of several Grand Canyon "flushings." The flushing is a series of controlled water surges or floods recommended by Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne. Grand Canyon national park officials criticize the controlled flooding as favoring hydroelectric power producers and not helping to "clean" the canyon's river bottom as promoted:

"Grand Canyon National Park Supt. Steve Martin said he was given a day to formulate comments to a cursory environmental assessment of the project. In those comments, he wrote that statements by the Bureau of Reclamation used to justify the flows' timing were "unsubstantiated." Far from restoring crucial sand banks and other areas, the flows could destroy habitat, Martin said."

Mr. Kempthorne was heavily criticized by the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) when given the job of Secretary of the Interior in 2006:

"Kempthorne became governor of Idaho in 1998. During his first four and a half years in office, the state's air got dirtier, more rivers were polluted, fewer polluters were inspected, and toxic emissions increased, according to a Knight Ridder analysis of Idaho pollution data from Environmental Protection Agency and state records. Kempthorne cut the state's environmental services budget three times in two years."

Read the full story: Plan to 'flush' Grand Canyon stirs concerns

The Everglades, Florida's quiet national park

The Los Angeles Times reports on the laid-back natural wonder of Florida's Everglades National Park. Writer Thomas Swick, a Florida local, also notes that even though the Everglades are close to large metropolitan areas, it's still relatively empty of tourists and even the locals shun it:

"A large part of its appeal is in its absences: of noise, summer crowds, things blocking the horizon. Even its stars, the alligators, often appear less lifelike than audioanimatrons. Of course, in most parks the fauna keeps its distance, frustrating visitors accustomed to zoos."

Swick's adventure through the Everglades includes hiking, which he describes as more of a slog through water and muck while looking out for alligators. He also learns about deciduous trees and spots manatees. A very interesting eco-trip.

Read the full story: Still waters run deep

Alaskan island of Kivalina victim of global warming

The Los Angeles Times published a story about the impact of global warming on the Alaskan island of Kivalina. Ocean ice that once protected the fragile shorelines now is open water that is causing major soil erosion. So much so that engineers predict that in 10 to 15 years the entire island will wash away.

Read the full story: An Alaskan island is losing ground

LA Times tells where to view fall folliage

The Los Angeles Times showcases their five best picks for viewing autumnal colors.

Read the full article: The hunt for Red October

Seeing stars at Joshua Tree

Another way to enjoy nature is to visit national parks and gaze upward at the beauty of the starry night sky that is rarely as visible when viewed from a city. The Los Angeles Times had a eye-opening feature about the growing popularity of astronomical interest as viewed from Joshua Tree National Park.

Read the full story: Star-gazing parties light up Joshua Tree's low desert

Bear attack reminds about nature's unpredictability

The LA Times had a gripping two part series about a father and daughter hiking team who were attacked by a grizzly bear in Glacier National Park. Experiencing nature is a wonderful thing but encountering wild animals can be hazardous. It's one of the ironies of ecotravel. Most who go explore nature appreciate and want to preserve it, but no matter how ecological one is, if wild animals deem you a threat, they will do what they can to protect themselves. This becomes more of a problem as people begin to encroach on wilderness areas and wild animals become used to people and find foraging in garbage is an easy way to get food.

Read the full story: A hike into horror

Lhasa train excites tourists, but with no mention of environmental or cultural controversies

LA Times travel writer Susan Spano recently made a trip on the new-ish train connecting Beijing and Lhasa. Unfortunately it was more about her own personal observations rather than any insight into the environmental and cultural problems that the train line created. Mostly it was "white person in China" drivel such as:

"When it was time to eat, we filed into the dining car for an unappetizing meal served on tin plates: potatoes, cabbage, greens, a slice of Spam, half a hard-boiled egg and rice."

She did mention one line about the controversy of the train exploiting the mineral riches of "Tibet," but without doing the homework of what "Tibet" really is. Tibet proper consists of the provinces Kham, Amdo and U-Tsang. What westerners call Tibet is really the Tibetan Autonomous Region, or TAR, predominantly in the U-Tsang area. Kham and Amdo lie in China. When the Chinese government "liberated" the region of Tibet in the 1950s it sliced through the middle of the historical Tibetan area and created the TAR in 1965 for "administrative purposes." The Chinese slaughtered and drove out thousands of Tibetans including the Dalai Lama for their own selfish ruling purposes. Western nations refuse to do anything about the "Tibet situation" because of their own dealings with cheap labor and manufacturing that China represents.

The train to Lhasa has brought cultural and environmental concerns. Firstly, it will bring more of the Han Chinese (the predominant chinese ethnicity) to distill the already distilled Tibetan culture. A major health concern from this is the heightened risk of HIV/AIDS which could blossom under the "frontier-like" conditions created by the railway construction and subsequent tourist industry.

Secondly, the environmental concerns of building and running a train over previously undisturbed natural areas has been addressed by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. The embassy released a 2003 report criticizing the Chinese so-called environmental protection during the building process. The protection and health of the natural tundra and native species disturbed during the building of the rail line were of major concern. Another key point was the long-term effects hundreds of travelers will have on the delicate eco-system. Where will the waste and garbage be disposed of? How will the train disturb wildlife's natural migrations? And what will be built to support the tourists at proposed rest stops during the train ride?

Glad to see that for western writers the thrill of the train ride is much more important than what the full cost of the train line really represents.

Read more about the entire region of Tibet: The Government of Tibet in exile
Read the U.S. Embassy report: Environmental protection along the Qinghai-Tibet railway
Read the full LA Times article: Beijing-Lhasa Express the train ride of a lifetime

Stay tuned for more "white person in China" stories from Ms. Spano because the paper touts that luckily she: "will take us behind the scenes in Beijing, from its hutongs to its luxury hotels. She will also explore lesser-known corners of China that are made for the cultural and adventure traveler."