DUSK: On the day of the full Moon, take Colorado 160 toward Wolf Creek Pass, turn north onto Forest Service Road 402, and follow to the trailhead lot.
10 P.M.: Continue up the lunar-washed Divide Trail, above treeline, the light ghosting the San Juans to the south and north, the delineated ground spilling east and west.
MIDNIGHT: Finger a ripple into Archuleta Lake—on this night, the ultimate reflecting pool.
92. Spelunk
93. Skate a River
Try the one closest to home. Or, if your timing and your legs hold, a run in the Elfstedentocht, a 124-miler through the Netherlands' province of Friesland that links 11 towns and numerous streams in a Brinkerian bind. It's held whenever conditions allow a perfect freeze—so far just 14 times this century.
94. Motorcycle Iceland
From any European port, ferry a motorcycle to Reykjavìk. The older the bike, the better. Roam from the glaciers of the Snåfellsnes Peninsula to the midnight sun of the north to the gurgling volcanic lake M þyvatn, an odd and singular and unforgettable ride. Oh, go in summer.
95. Cross the Sahara with a Tuareg Caravan
Only a handful of researchers and Tuareg nomads can lead you to the just-discovered, 8,000-year-old Niger Sahara rock carvings, which include a spectacular 20-foot rendering of a giraffe, the most exquisite rock art in Africa. The Tuaregs are better guides. (Ever hear a good sand-devil yarn from a bespectacled scientist?) You might barter your way onto one of their camel trains, or Irma Turtle of Turtle Tours (888-299-1439), a one-woman company that specializes in such things, can probably arrange for a Tuareg to take you.
Nomads Have More Fun
Get out, get wild, with these 53 awe-inspiring, soul-soaring journeys.
The Man Who Knocked the Bastard Off
Edmund Hillary, a self-described "average bloke," made one of the 20th-century's landmark feats seem properly human and straightforward.
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