I remember wandering in and instantly being transported back to another era, the 1920’s and ‘30’s: a jazz record on the Victrola; sultry, sweet female voice–husky from whiskey and cigarettes–singing of far-off places, muted, languid, trumpet melody. Just ahead, off to the side: an Army-green,  weather-beaten jeep with muddy...

The dismal particulars of not having a car at my disposal sunk in over the weeks I was without one. It had been such a great idea: Wait to replace my old beater that had given up the ghost. Save money during a time when COVID lockdown and winter...

I was back in New York City, working at a trade magazine and combing the classified for singles listings that wouldn’t feel like a meat market. “Campers’ Group” caught my eye. I hadn’t been camping since before my divorce and a big city group with camping as an agenda...

If I were to think back to times of great peace and joy, they were such simple, fragile things. I return to riding at Price Canyon ranch in the Chiricahua Mountains on horseback along a narrow trail  900 feet above a rock canyon floor on the first of the...

Broome County boasts a fleet of buses with convoluted routes that snake through main roads and side streets to cover as much of the widely spread-out population pockets as possible. The county even operates special transit to accommodate the disabled and seniors—but you need to obtain a special ID...

The bus driver was trying to tell me something after pulling up at the stop but not opening the doors. I thought he was telling me to use the side door instead and I tried it but that door didn’t open either. He finally opened the bus’s front doors...

I was in my 20’s before I went camping for the very first time—if you don’t count the overnight slumber party in a big tent in Lizzie Warner’s backyard across the street when we were 13. I’d married an outdoorsman passionate about hunting, fishing and hiking who was just...

You can’t read a travel or adventure blog without tripping over camping. Frustrated by lockdowns and seeking socially-distant alternatives to vacations and getaways, people are hitting the road and sleeping in vans, campers and tents. What was once reserved for grade-school scout troops or extreme backpackers has suddenly become...

“Je t’accuse…” He had a round face, was almost completely bald except for close-cropped gray fringe, wore short sleeve shirts and a bowtie every day. With a sly look and a hint of merriment, he’d burst into the classroom, remove his jacket and place it on the back of...

Another ongoing collateral casualty of COVID is the American vacation. Not just the traditional two- weeks-a-year off from work but the shorter three- and four-day holiday weekend breaks and summer weekends at the lakeside cottage, mountain cabin or beach bungalow. Airlines, cruise lines, hotels and restaurants have all taken...