The Stars at Night are Big and Bright in the Maldives
Any Texan can finish that song but few have seen a Maldivian night sky. Not only are the stars big and bright on a clear night, but they are out in abundance. This was just one of the highlights of the tiny island nation south of India. I’d looked at my island screensaver long enough, dreaming of actually being there, and after a year of the pandemic I didn’t want to dream it any longer.
I’d seen pictures of Maldivian islands, with their turquoise waters and picture perfect sand. So, if I was going to go anywhere during a pandemic, a remote tropical island was calling my name. It would take 8 flights and 4 covid tests to get there and back, but I would do it all again.
Everyday we explored different beach spots on the island. Except at the restaurants, it always felt like you had the island to yourself. Some beach spots had swings or hammocks in the water, or covered lounge chairs to enjoy the afternoon away. The restaurants, each with a different cuisine, were also spaced along the island, with shuttles always running to give you a lift.
One of the most amazing aspects of these resorts are the over water bungalows. The rooms were amazing, but this isn’t a place you spend much time inside. The bungalows have their own private pools, but another perk was just being able to snorkel right off the back deck. We swam, snorkeled, biked, ate, drank and woke up everyday being thankful. Not only did everything look like paradise, it felt like it too.
The hardest part of this trip was deciding which island resort to stay at. Each island has it’s own resort, as the islands are quite small, and they all looked amazing. For me, my search criteria boiled down to distance from Mali, price and resort activities. After all those flight hours just to get to the capital island of Mali, I didn’t want to spend more time on a boat or plane to get to the resort. I was also concerned that spending a week on an island that’s only a mile long and not very wide wouldn’t offer much to do, but I was very wrong because spending hours lying on the beach drinking cocktails is a very important activity!
Distance from Mali
Once at the capital island’s international airport, most resorts offer a faster, more expensive seaplane ride or a slower, cheaper speed boat. So, I decided on a 25 minute seaplane ride. The process was very easy – we were picked up immediately after departing the international flight, it didn’t take long to get to the seaplane terminal, there was a really nice lounge with snacks and coffee, and covid tests were administered right there. It immediately felt like we were on vacation. When we arrived at the Lux resort on the South Ari Atoll, it was everything I dreamed. Flying over from Mali was a stunning glimpse of the crystal waters and many tiny islands that dotted the ocean. Our concierge told us only about 6% of their guests are Americans, probably because the Maldives are literally on the other side of the world, but I’ll tell everyone that it was absolutely worth the travel hours.
Price
It’s gonna be expensive. But I felt it was definitely worth it. You won’t have any options to eat outside of the resort you choose, especially during the pandemic but the all-inclusive package included a coffee bar, snacks and an ice cream shop. Besides food and drink, non-motorized sports were available and daily activities (more on that below).
Resort Activities
As for the activities, well a week definitely wasn’t long enough. Ten days probably would have been better, although we met people that had been there two weeks. We rented bikes for $5 a day, even though the island wasn’t that big, it was fun to cruise around. There were different daily activities like painting, yoga and meditation, as well as a gym, a gorgeous glass enclosed library, paddle boards, kayaks, and a daily message in a bottle hidden with prizes, which we called the hidden immunity idol.
Although there was rain in the forecast everyday, it only rained once. Even so we still biked and snorkeled right through it. We could see each storm on the horizon but we were rarely affected. Really the sun is the biggest threat to side line your trip, so reef-safe sunscreen is imperative.
The highlight of the trip though was snorkeling with a whale shark, manta rays and turtles. The size of these beauties was breathtaking. We booked the three hour speed boat, but I could have done it all day.
Right off the seaplane dock, blacktip reef sharks, manta rays and large fish would feed at night. We could sit on the dock and watch the show beneath the dock lights, but this is not the time to swim! During the day you would watch various colorful fish, turtles and rays swim beneath the wooden walkways, from your breakfast table or when lounging in the over-water hammocks.
The Maldives is an island nation not to be missed. In the best of travel times, I’d visit and in the worst of times, it rejuvenated my soul.
Tips:
- Bring water floats to lounge in the shallow water.
- Do the snorkel trip on the speed boat if you aren’t a scuba diver.
- Bring aloe, lots of sunscreen, a hat, a rash guard; all the sun protection because you’ll need it.
- Drinks are hit or miss, bring the recipe for your favorite to help the bartenders out.
An Ultimate Hike in the Wonderful Woods of Arkansas
Five years ago I started coaching hikers to complete a one day charity hike with Cure Search’s Ultimate Hike, raising money for children’s cancer research. One of those years Hurricane Harvey hit, which closed down Sam Houston Forest’s Lone Star Trail and delayed our hike a couple months. This year a pandemic hit and delayed our hike, well canceled our hike really. But we decided to ride the wave this year has been and hike the Ozark Highland Trail in Arkansas, 6 months after our original planned hike. With about 6 weeks notice, we started training for the 23 miles of multiple mountain peaks. However, the Texas Hill Country doesn’t really have adequate mountains to prepare one for the trail. But we soldiered on, because at the end of the day this hike would not be about us.
After a few training hikes, the most I’d hiked was 10 miles (not recommended). I was excited for the new scenery, terrain and cool weather. About 25 hikers, coaches, and volunteers socially distance together for the weekend, temperatures were taken and high fives were discouraged. I keep coming back to hike with Cure Search because it starts to become a family when you see the same people year after year and get to meet really cool new people each hike.
We started before dawn at 5:00 a.m. from Fane Creek concerned about our first water crossing, shortly after the trailhead. Luckily there wasn’t enough rain the day before to fill the cree. So we were able to cross without it filling our hiking boots and start our ascent.
After a couple hours, the sun started to rise, birds chirped and when the autumnal colors showed themselves we were awestruck. Coming from Texas, where it was still practically summer, I realized this is why people think October is Fall! We arrived at our first aid station about 6 miles in, 3 hours later. We stopped to refuel our water and have a snack, making sure to mask up before getting too close to any volunteers that might have to bandage our blisters.
Normally, now that we had light, we’d hike faster but the next section was the hardest, at 8ish miles. That took us up and down two strong peaks, across some shallow water crossings, and by waterfalls. We even met a couple that saw a bear a couple miles ahead of us but we never encountered it ourselves. Although we’d done all right following the blazes in the dark, in the daylight the trail was well marked with mile markers also, making getting lost one less worry!
Our second aid station was at the top of White Pass Mountain, a campsite of stunning views of the forest with bright reds and oranges and greens as far as you could see. Even though we were exhausted we didn’t spend too much time resting. We still had the last 8 miles to Dockery’s Gap. Our goal was to finish by dark, plus sitting around made us cold. So after I chugged a cup of Gatorade and had my third Uncrustable for the day, we set off. At that point I was hiking with three other Texans. Even though the last section was demanding with constant climbs and significant elevation change, now every tiny hill felt significant.
The last section always seems longer, but hikers sign up for this type of event because they know they can survive it. Many hikers have survived cancer themselves or with someone they love, and pushing your body for one day is nothing compared to the grit they’ve already demonstrated. And it’s an honor for me to remind them of that. So when the sun set, we put our headlamps back on for the final push. Unfortunately this was straight up another mountain! We were greeted by the cheers of the waiting volunteers shortly after sunset, 13 and half hours after we started. We were emotionally and physically spent. And I may or may not have eaten a whole pizza before sleep overcame me.
The next morning we shared battle wounds, tears and laughs before departing for the one of our many home states. But I was still on a high from the weekend. So I decided to drive to Mount Magazine and tackle the state’s highest point. Lucky for my legs, I was able to drive most of the way, and the round trip hike was only 1.5 miles! The area was gorgeous and worth the detour despite it being so foggy but I didn’t get to fully appreciate the stunning views I’d heard you get at the lodge.
During the pandemic, I’ve found myself even more thankful for parks, nature and so much outside space to explore. In that, Arkansas has a lot to offer. Driving home, I passed many signs for state parks and couldn’t resist also stopping at Devil’s Den. Also, a wonderful pit stop, if you are in the area. Trails vary in length and that take you to caves and waterfalls. All in all, Arkansas has some superb parks. I know I’ll be back to explore more on foot and bike.
Tips:
- Hiking poles are highly recommended for this trail.
- Check out one of the Ultimate Hike info sessions at REI or calls to learn about to join a hike.
- The more you hike, the more snacks you get to eat. It’s just a fact.