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Norway
Extreme North Polar bears, ice fields, forbidding
cliffs. Welcome to Arctic Circle yachting. Rob Buchanan sets sail for the island of Spitsbergen,
Rock star: Italian climbing guide Michele Maggioni in Songfjorden, on Spitsbergen’s northeast coast.
I ’ M WA L K I N G D OW N A N E M P T Y S T R E E T I N A C I T Y I ’ V E
Cruising’s cutting edge: The Pelagic Australis, arguably the world’s finest high-latitude charter yacht, sleeps 12.
never seen before. Or, rather, I’m trying to walk. Every few steps, some giant unseen hand begins to push against me until, strain as I might, I eventually grind to a halt. Then, a moment later, the hand releases me and I go reeling forward, barely able to keep my feet. It’s strangely exhilarating, this lurching promenade, but as soon as I start to enjoy it, I wake up—not in an alien city but in a narrow bunk in a
Photographs by Rob Buchanan
the North Pole’s nearest neighbor
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Ski & Stay in north america
Our readers point you toward the best on and off the slopes—from virgin powder begging to be carved to hotels that elevate après-ski to new heights
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The ski industry continues to shine. A staggering 60.1 million lift tickets were issued in the United States last winter, an increase of almost ten percent over the previous year. As a new season gets under way, ski areas are responding by offering better-quality rentals, a greater
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choice of groomed trails, and, in these economically challenging times, packages priced more competitively than ever before. And since the overall scores have been climbing each year for the mountains and properties reviewed on these pages, prepare to be dazzled.
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