2023 Holbrook calendar

Dear Holbrook friends,

I hope that you and yours are well and thriving. It is hard to imagine that this time last year I was looking back on 2021 as the year in which travel painstakingly trickled back to life. There was so much uncertainty for so long. And now as I reflect on 2022 and look forward to the coming year, I am simply amazed at the recovery we are seeing. From Chile to Canada and from Alaska to New Zealand, our travelers are once again exploring, venturing, and enjoying the adventure of travel.

Every year this letter is an ode to you—the people and organizations that we are honored to serve. Likewise, it is also a tribute to the amazing team here and in the field that make the magic happen. But this year, it is difficult to express the feelings I have as I consider that 2023 will likely rank among our best years in some time. I am profoundly grateful to you and to our team for believing in Holbrook and making this dream possible when only 18 months ago, I was not even sure that Holbrook would survive. With your willingness to travel with us again and the experienced team we have sticking with us through difficult times, what seemed impossible has become true; we not only made it through the pandemic, but we are thriving.

In addition to a coming year of growth and recovery, we will be looking forward to an exciting milestone.

2022 | Planting Seeds for Regrowth

This summer, a group of educators embarked on a special professional development program to Kenya to learn about the legacy of the late conservationist, activist, and Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai. They visited Maathai’s hometown, planted trees, met elementary school students, and connected with members of the Green Belt Movement, an environmental organization founded by Maathai that empowers communities, especially women, to conserve the environment and improve livelihoods.

This trip had already been postponed several times due to the pandemic, so it was all the more rewarding to see it finally come to fruition and watch the travelers be welcomed with open arms by the Green Belt community.

As Maathai once said, “It's the little things citizens do. That's what will make the difference. My little thing is planting trees.” These sentiments feel particularly fitting as we reflect on 2022 and look ahead to 2023. This past year brought about a steadier return to travel after the challenges and uncertainty of the pandemic, and we gratefully find ourselves planting seeds for a hopeful future—for regrowth, for renewed connections, and for a healthier planet through sustainable travel.

Andrea Holbrook returned to Cuba for the first time since the pandemic; she found it to be surprisingly accessible and the Cuban people eager to welcome back visitors. “Any traveler to Cuba for the first time sees the adversity that the Cuban people face in their daily lives. What hasn’t changed is the incredible resilience and competence of the Cuban people in facing those challenges,” she said.

Eighteen people joined us this summer on an adventure through Costa Rica on our first Nature Quest program since the start of the pandemic. Everyone was excited to be back exploring the wonders of Costa Rica and its beautiful wildlife. At Selva Verde Lodge, the group got to see monkeys, sloths, iguanas, toucans, and frogs. But their first stop was at Tortuguero, where they got to watch green sea turtles nesting—an inspiring and hopeful sight!

2024 will mark our 50th anniversary celebration. We will be celebrating five decades and two generations of pursuing our mission of creating a true connection between our travelers and the communities and environments where we operate. We look forward to crossing that milestone together with you and our team here and abroad.

Whether you are taking students into the field to Honduras (see August), or bringing families on a rainforest summer camp to Costa Rica (see July), or traveling with Road Scholar to the Galápagos Islands (see May), it is our pleasure to support you, your travelers and members, your students and your families in designing meaningful journeys and assisting you in creating stories that last long into the future. We consider each journey like planting seeds. It is not easy to predict the ways in which these experiences transform us and create lasting connections between us and the people and places we visit.

We wish you and yours the very best for the coming year and look forward to creating more stories together.

With every good wish, Andrea Holbrook

Holbrook prides itself on its commitment to providing the best educational content in travel, and a pillar of this entails cultivating our relationships with in-country guides. We are thrilled to have resumed our Group Leader Conferences this year, with several taking place in Costa Rica, Panama, and Ecuador over the summer, where we had the chance to plan and offer in-depth guide trainings in several areas across these three countries. “We all feel quite happy with how everything is going and how the whole team is working together seamlessly. This is the start of a great season!” said Pelin Karaca, Holbrook's VP of Product Development.

The Sarapiquí Conservation Learning Center has continued to nurture its community and mission with an innovative project aiming to protect critical habitat for the endangered Great Green Macaw and other wildlife while also providing sustainable income to local residents. With the help of Costa Rica Regenerativa and the University for International Cooperation, the seeds of the mountain almond tree are being commercialized to protect and promote its cultivation and contribute to sustainable development of the San Juan-La Selva Biological Corridor, ease economic dependence on tourism, and educate local communities on making use of the natural resources available to them.

Photos (from top): Jen Cullerton Johnson, Al Stenstrup, Andrea Holbrook, Carrie Auerbach, Guisselle Monge Arias, Krisztina Scheeff | KS Nature Photography, Debbie Jordan, Kevin Van Dien

Along with a return to travel, the Holbrook team resumed exhibiting at several birding, nature, and wildlife conferences this year—such as the Association of Zoos & Aquariums Annual Conference, where Holbrook travel specialist Kevin Van Dien learned about sustainable palm oil from our friends at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. After several years of virtual events, it was such a pleasure to see many familiar faces in person again, as well as to make new friends that we hope will blossom into long-term connections.

ABOUT THE IMAGE

In 10 years of travel through the deserts of Namibia, I have never been fortunate enough to see a Namaqua chameleon. They are a dramatic resident of Namibia’s desert regions. Although not endangered, they are becoming less common in accessible areas simply because those areas are so accessible. They are taken for the pet trade and their habitat is severely affected by human presence. Our journey into a controlled area of the desert was rewarded with this sighting. This giant of the desert was cruising around the rocky areas between dunes looking for grubs and worms after a foggy, rainy night along the Atlantic coast.

TODD GUSTAFSON GUSTAFSON PHOTO SAFARI

The Wild Namibia & Kgalagadi Transfrontier National Park with Gustafson Photo Safari holbrooktravel.com travel@holbrooktravel.com

New Year’s Day

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Groundhog Day

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Above: On safari at the Maasai Mara Preserve, we came upon a male and female lion. The lions were displaying their breeding behavior with little awareness of our presence. What a show!!! They sure did express themselves. Couples may have a “spat” now and then. Kenya, and this safari trip, was and is incredible.

Below: We are at Samburu, Kenya. While on safari in this desert area, I was able to capture this beautiful Goldenbreasted Starling. I didn’t know how may different birds we would see and photograph. JUST AMAZING.

LEE TAVEL WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY

Kenya | Wildstock Photography: A Unique Way to Experience the Big Five holbrooktravel.com

Presidents’ Day

Valentine’s Day

Groundhog Day NOTES

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Our trip to Iceland was phenomenal, especially since it was our first international trip since the pandemic. We fell in love with the island nation—its beauty, its people, its food. The trip offered a taste of everything Iceland has to offer, from volcanoes and geysers, to fjords and lava fields, not to mention the waterfalls and geothermal springs. We visited Hraunfossar (“Lava Falls” in English) in Borgarfjörður district on our way to the Ion Adventure Hotel on a chilly but sunny day. The falls here are a series of beautiful waterfalls formed by rivulets streaming out of the Hallmundarhraun lava field and into the Hvitá River, near another powerful waterfall called Barnafoss, or “children’s waterfall.” On our last full day in Iceland, we visited a sheep farm during lambing season, where we were allowed to hold a sweet little lamb, only a few days old. This is where we captured the image of the iconic Icelandic horse. A wonderful ending to a truly memorable trip.

RON AND DIANNE FARB

Iceland Adventure with the Climb for Cancer Foundation

Daylight Saving Time begins Spring begins

International Women's Day

Ramadan begins at sundown

St. Patrick’s Day April Fool’s Day

ABOUT THE IMAGE

The photo above is a female baboon holding her infant. We were at a clearing in Lake Nakuru having lunch when we spotted her sitting at the edge of a wooded area holding her baby.

The photo below is a female leopard in Samburu. When we first came upon her, she was relaxing on a dead, fallen tree. We followed her as she crossed a road in front of us and stopped at this dead tree on a small hill. Later, we discovered that she had two cubs hiding in the tall grass where we first saw her. Apparently, she was leading us away from them.

BILL KRACOV

Kenya | Wildstock Photography: A Unique Way to Experience the Big Five

The imposing Galápagos Hawk (above) is always ready to attack its prey without any fear; he only focuses on his goal. I was inspired to take this picture because of the deep and imposing gaze of the hawk on Chinese Hat Island.

The Road Scholar participants (below) are receiving the energies of mother earth lying on the youngest lava flow at Sullivan Bay on Santiago Island. A heartwarming and magical moment!

RENNY AGUILAR

Galápagos & Peru | From Enchanted Islands to Machu Picchu (Road Scholar)

Teacher Appreciation Day Mother’s Day Armed Forces Day Memorial Day

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Our small group left the hotel in the dark and arrived at Sossusvlei in the pre-dawn light; the landscape washed in muted shades of gray. In hushed excited tones, we began our ascent across the soft fluid sand, stopping along the way to catch our breath. At the crest of the final dune, we caught our first sight of Deadvlei. As if on cue, the sun rises and its first rays hit the far dune, turning it a vivid red orange color. Conversation halts as we encounter this ancient silent scene: a bleached white clay pan dotted with stark black trees encircled by orange dunes. Jennifer, our tour leader, walked quickly to find a spot to document the eerie beauty. The juxtaposition of past and present touches the soul. We seem so very small in this timeless landscape.

The image below is at the watering hole at Onguma Tented Camp. We had just ordered our breakfast when someone spotted movement at the watering hole, a cheetah! Everyone grabbed their cameras and began clicking, in hopes of capturing "The Perfect Shot". Our tour leader Jennifer is a professional wildlife photographer and had the only true camera with an impressive zoom lens; so no matter how hard we tried, our various iPhones and Androids could not do justice to the scene. Crouched and ready, impervious to all around, we became the quintessential tourist image. How could I resist?

CHERYL R SMITH

JUNE 2023 S T W R F M S 22 23 29 30 25 26 27 28 10 11 24 8 9 12 13 14 5 6 7 17 18 15 16 19 20 21 3 4 31 1 2 Memorial Day S T W R F M S 17 18 24 25 20 21 22 23 5 6 19 3 4 7 8 9 1 2 12 13 10 11 14 15 16 27 28 29 30 26 31 Eid al-Adha ends Eid al-Adha begins 3 4 7 31 1 2 10 11 14 8 9 17 18 21 15 16 24 25 28 22 23 1 2 29 30 8 7 6 5 5 6 12 13 19 20 26 27 3 29 4 30 28

Flag Day Juneteenth

Independence Day

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Night hikes on the grounds of the Selva Verde Lodge reveal a variety of interesting insects seen and photographed with bright headlamps. This harvestmen (above) is an arachnid and a close relative of spiders. These species of Opiliones are very diverse and abundant in the tropics. They are harmless to humans and mostly nocturnal.

Children (below) play hopscotch together at a center in the Llano Grande Community in Sarapiquí, Costa Rica. The visit to the community center is an amazing opportunity for children visiting Costa Rica to learn more about culture and traditions from Costa Rican children. When together, they practice learning each other’s languages and connect through the power of play!

KRISTEN GRACE

Costa Rica | Family Rainforest Camp with the Florida Museum of Natural History holbrooktravel.com

ABOUT THE IMAGE

The beach photo is from Water Cay. We took a 40-minute boat ride from Utila to this small cay and spent the day snorkeling, fishing and hanging out. No one lives on the island so we had the entire island to ourselves. During the snorkel tour around the entire cay we saw yellow-spotted rays, whiptail rays, and spotted eagle rays, a school of squid and nurse sharks…along with a myriad of colorful fish. It was a great, relaxing day for the entire group and the perfect way to finish off our trip to Honduras.

DAVID KNIGHT

Honduras | Natural and Maya Wonders with University High School

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Rare, unique and extraordinary are words that you will use repeatedly during a visit to the Galápagos Islands. With every hike, panga ride or swim, you will observe amazing wildlife in spectacular habitats. Upon first encountering the tortoises on San Cristóbal Island, Charles Darwin referred to the islands’ namesake creatures as “these great monsters.” While the tortoises can be observed in many places in the islands, the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz provides exceptional opportunities to view examples of adult tortoise species unique to a dozen islands as well as immature tortoises from their breeding program.

Each of the three Galápagos Islands trips that I organized with Holbrook Travel included stops on Española Island to see the Waved Albatross nesting. More than ninety percent of the Waved Albatross breeding occurs on this small island. Pairs gather in May to start the nesting process, which continues until their chicks fledge in November or December. Waved Albatross chicks are so well fed by their parents that they reach the maximum weight of their lives when they fledge. With a National Park Ranger as your guide, you will follow the trail that provides great viewing and photo opportunities of the nesting Waved Albatrosses. Each visit to the Galápagos Islands should provide close intersections with wildlife that should provide memories for a lifetime.

Galápagos Islands with Vince Lamb

holbrooktravel.com travel@holbrooktravel.com

Rosh Hashanah begins

Autumn begins

VINCE LAMB

ABOUT THE IMAGE

I traveled to Madagascar in May of 2022 with Holbrook, and our group was led by the great photographer and filmmaker Todd Gustafson. Early in our trip, we traveled to Morondava on the West Coast of Madagascar and then traveled by four-wheel-drive vehicle to the famous Avenue of the Baobabs. These trees are more than 800 years old with trunks about 150 feet in circumference. The sky was clear the night we were there and the Milky Way was just overhead. For this particular shot of a baobab, I was lucky enough to catch the red light from somebody’s flash, hence the red trunk.

We found lemurs everywhere we traveled in Madagascar. There are some 112 different species of lemur. This is a baby ring-tailed lemur we found in a park near the capital Antananarivo.

KITTY KONO COBB KITTYKONO.COM

Madagascar | An Odd Corner of the World with Gustafson Photo Safari holbrooktravel.com travel@holbrooktravel.com

Indigenous Peoples' Day Halloween

ABOUT THE IMAGE

Cordova, Alaska was full of adventure for three generations exploring Alaska for the first time. We hiked under massive Douglas fir and heard Bald Eagles, Pacific Wrens and Varied Thrush calling through the misty forest. The views show the picture-perfect mountains in the Chugach Wilderness, and the Orca Inlet was peaceful to watch the tide rise and fall.

It was peacefully quiet as we glided on the glacial lake among the icebergs from Sherman Glacier. The ice gave awesome glacial blue color and contrast to this wilderness of glacier, ice and water. The cold coming off the ice kept us moving to keep warm and the camaraderie was thrilling to experience. Our guides gave all of us confidence in kayaking in this very cold water. This circle of an iceberg was unique to have a doorway that we could go inside and feel surrounded by an ice castle.

Wonderful to take the Seawolf out to the sea otter colony near Prince William Sound. We watched the otters frolic and feeding in the Orca Inlet. The sea otters came close to investigate our boat.

PAT FOJUT, WI

An Alaskan Family Adventure

Veterans Day Daylight Saving Time ends Election Day Thanksgiving Day

holbrooktravel.com travel@holbrooktravel.com

To celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary, we joined Holbrook and the Tropical Audubon Society on their August 2022 Costa Rica Birding Trip. It was full of wonder and beauty. Our trip’s success owes a lot to the excellence of our guide, Gilbert “Chito” Molina. He brought a great deal of local knowledge about habitats, calls, and behaviors to the 11-day adventure, and by the end he helped us see over 300 species of birds. One of those was the Collared Trogon, seen here framed by a roadside bougainvillea. The day had begun with an early morning start from the Savegre Lodge with a mission to see Resplendent Quetzals. Having spent time with the Quetzals, we walked the road which Chito said could be quite productive. It was! There was a bottle brush that seemed to be erupting birds and then this fella, whose surrounding color palette really fit the bill. Another early morning marvel was this spider monkey (below). The photo was taken from the deck at the Cerro Lodge. A small troop was moving through on their way to their feeding grounds. With their extraordinarily long arms and tail they are quite adept at swinging through the canopy and a marvel to watch. This member paused in its travels to check us out. The density of the surrounding bromeliads serve a fond memory of this special habitat.

CHARLES ROBSHAW

Costa Rica | Birder's Paradise with Tropical Audubon Society holbrooktravel.com

ABOUT

THE

In the high mountains northwest of Mexico City, monarch butterflies return year after year to winter in the pine forests at 10,000 feet. They spend the night covering the trees in huge clusters. They are thought to do this to maintain body heat. When the sun rises and hits the colonies with the day’s first warm rays, the monarchs cascade off the branches and spend the rest of the day gliding through the forest. We were lucky enough to have access to a glade that offered perfect views to a clear blue sky with millions of monarchs swirling through the air. This view through a fisheye lens told the story of that dance.

TODD GUSTAFSON | Gustafson Photo Safari

JANUARY | NAMIBIA

JULY | COSTA RICA

FEBRUARY | KENYA AUGUST | HONDURAS

MARCH | ICELAND SEPTEMBER | GALÁPAGOS

APRIL | KENYA OCTOBER | MADAGASCAR

MAY | GALÁPAGOS NOVEMBER | ALASKA

JUNE | NAMIBIA DECEMBER | COSTA RICA

COVER | MEXICO