Green ESCAPES
2 GREEN LIVING
Fed up with rest, recovery and relaxation? SARAH MARSHALL finds greater rewards in eco-themed holidays in the UK and abroad
Earthwatch works with volunteers to promote Kenya’s wildlife
EARN YOUR STRIPES There’s a scientist lurking in all of us, and Earthwatch are determined to bring it out. The international environmental charity currently has 3,500 volunteers involved in 140 projects in 50 different countries. Their aim is to work alongside scientists and local communities to protect biodiversity, promote sustainable economies and manage human interactions with wildlife. Participants in the Samburu Communities and Wildlife project help monitor six of Kenya’s large predators: wild dogs, lions, cheetahs, striped and spotted hyenas, and leopards. You’ll visit villages to investigate carnivore kill sites, study dens, and discuss conflicts with livestock with local residents.The Samburu region is
GREEN LIVING 3
also among the last strongholds for the endangered Grevy’s zebras; there are currently 2,000 in the region. Your work will help researchers produce maps of their distribution. You’ll also work with local communities to identify medicinal plants, document their uses, and investigate whether some could purify water for drinking. Accommodation is in shared basic rooms in the village of Wamba in the foothills of Kenya’s Mathews Range. ■ Trips take place in June, July, August, October and November for 13 days and cost a minimum contribution of £1,795. See www.earthwatch.org for more information. The endangered Grevy’s zebras inhabit the Samburu region
ANIMAL ADVENTURE Bridging the gap between professional researchers and enthusiastic individuals, Biosphere Expeditions organise hands-on conservation holidays around the world. There’s the option of taking part in one or two-week projects, and even UK-based taster weekends for those who are new to conservation work. These take place in the New Forest National Park and Broads National Park, and give people an insight into what it’s like to conduct wildlife research and help to protect animals and habitats. If you’re feeling more adventurous, book on to the two-week Mountain Ghosts Expedition, surveying snow leopards in the mountains of the Altai Republic, Central Asia. You will be working as part of a small international team from a base camp set at 2,200m at the foot of a 3,500m remote mountain
BREAK THE ICE
Biosphere Expeditions offers conservation holidays
range. Covering ground in Land Rovers and on foot, you’ll be searching for tracks, kills, droppings and the animals themselves. ■ A UK taster weekend costs £195. Bookings are currently being taken for June and July. The Mountain Ghosts Expedition costs £1,480, with trips in June, July and August. Visit www.biosphere-expeditions.org for details.
SEE THE WOODS
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Few tourists in Iceland venture further than the hip and quirky bars of Reykjavik. But beyond the buzzing capital lies a mesmerising landscape more akin to stepping foot on the moon. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains, glaciers and vast black plains, the Vatnajökull National Park is the largest protected wilderness in Europe. Volcanoes, lava flows, powerful waterfalls, canyons and calderas, sand flats, rivers, lakes and lush vegetation can all be found within its 13,000 sq kms. Despite the challenging terrain and occasionally brutal weather conditions, tourists are drawn to this mysterious space. Offer a helping hand, while enjoying the dramatic scenery, by taking part in a conservation holiday run by BTCV in
Scotland’s Caledonian Forest in the Highlands, west of Inverness, was once a staggering 1,500 sq km in size. Today, only one per cent of the original forest remains. The award-winning Trees for Life charity plans to change all that by asking volunteers to plant 250,000 new trees by the end of 2009. Each Conservation Volunteer Week enlists 10 volunteers and two specially trained leaders. Accommodation and meals are provided, along with transport from Inverness, with cooking and chores done on a voluntary rota basis. Anyone over the age of 18 can take part, although the work can be physically demanding. But glance at the dramatic forest, rivers and mountains around you, and it suddenly all feels worthwhile. ■ The autumn season of Conservation Volunteer Weeks runs from August 29 to November 14, 2009. Costs are on a voluntary basis – ranging from £50 for an unwaged member to £300 for an unsubsidised place. For more information visit www.treesforlife.org.uk Volunteers can head to Scotland’s Caledonian Forest to plant trees and enjoy the dramatic landscape
Tourists can take part in practical management tasks in Iceland
THE LAZY WAY...
www.greenwoodforestpark.co.uk for more information.
If conservation projects are too worthy for your liking, there are plenty of other ways to save the planet… or at least reduce your impact on the environment.
CONSERVE YOURSELF
Eco-friendly GreenWood Park
ECO THRILLS GreenWood Forest Park in Snowdonia, Wales is the UK’s only eco-friendly fun park with green-themed rides including the only people-powered roller coaster in the world. Over the course of a year, the ride generates more electricity than it actually uses. First, visitors travel down the hill in a funicular, which produces power to pull the empty coaster cars up the hill. Then, as they climb inside the cars, gravity takes over. Other attractions include a woodland water course and the BareFootTrail, where you walk barefoot over a variety of terrains. Elsewhere visitors can learn how to build a den, walk on stilts, shoot a Welsh Longbow like Robin Hood or scramble about on TreeTop Towers, a high-rise assault course of platforms, slides, ladders and netted walkways. ■ A family ticket (two adults and two children) costs from £22.50. Visit
Save the world – and your own skin – with a trip to the AquaCity spa resort in Slovakia. Named the world’s leading green resort in the World Travel Awards 2007 and 2008, AquaCity saves around 27 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each day by using geothermal water to heat and power the resort. Set in the foothills of the High Tatras, the tallest peaks of the Carpathian Mountians, the resort sits above a vast lake of underground mineral water naturally heated to a temperature of 49 degrees. Spa facilities include 15 saunas, steam rooms, hot tubs and whirlpools. But it’s not all hot stuff: cool off in the snow room (where it snows all year round) or take a plunge in the cryochamber, where people are exposed to temperatures as low as minus 120 degrees. It’s thought the practice helps relieve joint pains, reduces stress and releases endorphins. ■ Double rooms from 140 euros per night. Cyrotherapy costs 11 euros for guests. Non-guests can use the wellness facilities for 15 euros a day. See www.aquacityresort.com for information. AquaCity spa in Slovakia
conjunction with the Icelandic Environment Agency. Volunteer teams take part in a variety of practical management tasks, such as building stone drains, resurfacing paths with gravel and the construction of timber bridges and walkways. This summer the project will focus on repairing a woodland trail overlooking the Skaftafell Glacier. Participants will need to bring a sturdy tent, although these can be hired from the organisers, with hot showers and laundry facilities available at base camp. Thankfully it’s not all work and no play: excursions are available to Jökulsarlón, a glacial lagoon full of icebergs, and Ingólshöf, an island known for its variety of birdlife. ■ Trips take place in June, July and August and cost £450 for a week. Book through www.responsibletravel.com or www.workingabroad.co.uk
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