<p>dig - Welcome home. Glad you had a great trip. </p>
<p>I really love all the podunk towns in the Adirondacks. Speculator, North Creek, Olmstedville, Indian Lake, Schroon Lake Village, Inlet…It’s like stepping back in time. No chains, no traffic, it’s like they are frozen in time. (Now I’m not making any comment on some of the realities of that for the residents…but really it’s quite magical for the visitor.) Add to that the accessibility of the place for hiking, kayaking, fishing, whatever, it’s just magical. Plus - as a person who loves plants and nature I just can’t get enough of the Adirondack wilderness. Gardens planted from above. No weeds, no invasive crap, no non-native stuff - I love it.</p>
<p>Of course, if I had a choice this summer between, say, Italy, Slovenia, or the Adirondacks…well…familiarity might suddenly breed a little contempt.</p>
<p>Digmedia that photograph is just beautiful…I wonder what it’s like to live in an area like that - I wonder if the waterfalls and surrounding vegetation are like that all year around…</p>
<p>Moab is great, as is the Adirondacks (though the food in that region leaves a bit to be desired).</p>
<p>In January we visited Michoacan state in Mexico, and saw where the monarch butterflies spend the winters. It was a wonderful mountain fairyland, lively with the creatures!</p>
My husband was invited to a conference in Croatia this fall. He complained about how many days he lost getting there. If he’d seen anything like that photo, I’m sure he’d be singing a different tune. Wow!</p>
<p>My boys went to camp for five years on the Georgian Bay, my dog is named after our trip to Moab, we once drove through the monarchs in Mexico and my in-laws have a 20s log ‘cabin’ on a lake in the Adirondacks. never thought about Croatia or Bulgaria for vacation though–that’s a new one!</p>
<p>Is safety an issue? Ask your European friends</p>
<p>pictures do no justice</p>
<p>~ 400 mi north of here they have historical Roman and Greek spots (not very big though). then head east near/on the egyption boarder to hunt some LDG (Libyan Desert Glass) at ~ 25?19’ N & 24?18 E slightly to the east of an oil well (shell I think). but dont forget your satellite phone and GPS if you wanna do this.</p>
<p>Edit: also, if you are a racing fan, there is no driving speed limit up there, just in case you wonder</p>
<p>only the oasis thing has to do with the title, the rest must be done IMHO once you’re there. I was there Jan '06 (it was cold in a strange way) and it’s getting more crowded every year and it might not be as ‘Hidden’ few years from now.</p>
<p>Also, if you like ocean: The only place I know where slavery is still practiced, Mauritania !! I would stay away from the capital Nouakchott (that’s part of being hidden, right?)</p>
<p>Wow, melbusefi. Great photos! Some Libyan friends re-entered our lives last year after a quarter century absence. We are helping their son adjust to life here in the States. They have invited us to visit them there, and up until recently I thought, “yeah, sure, Libya, I don’t think so,” but I am beginning to change my mind. The country is full of ruined Roman cities, and now I see the lovely pictures. . . it would be a possible side trip after a visit to Europe.</p>
<p>A recent, excellent book called In the Country of Men, by Hisham Matar, provides a glimpse of what life has been like for the past 39 years under Colonel Qaddafi.</p>
<p>You’ll never see anything like it. It’s like you’re on the moon. They filmed “Planet of the Apes” there if that’s any indication.</p>
<p>And its a priceless beach vacation. Perfect weather year round, great resorts… Can’t say there are many American’s there though… Mainly German and English…</p>
<p>Also, Egypt. Cairo is life-changing, and there’s also a lot of nice resorts there. And it’s cheap… Though you feel somewhat guilty being in a resort there. Dirty capitalists…</p>
<p>SuNa, my pleasure. Im glad the photos were liked.</p>
<p>I strongly encourage a trip there if you have local friends. It’s extremely cheap and tourism agencies make alot of profit they don’t deserve. Fall is the best tim to visit. Spring tends to be a bit cold in the south, and it only once every 5-10 years in the fall (in south that is)… rain up north is more often.</p>
<p>All this talk about Brevard is creeping me out! I grew up there and actually graduated from Brevard High School. Over the years the town has morphed from a sleepy backwater to an uber-retirement-mecca.</p>
<p>I’m not really complaining. If it weren’t for the retirees, the town could easily have died, especially since much of the industrial base there has disappeared. It’s just weird to visit now and find GIFT SHOPS downtown!</p>
<p>Still, it’s very pretty. And I can also “second” those recommendations for the UP of Michigan and Georgian Bay in Canada.</p>
<p>Bandit_TX
I agree the Hill Country is a hidden treasure especially during spring when the wildflowers are blooming! Years ago, outside of Brenham we visited an isolated area where an order of Carmelite nuns(vows of silence) lived and raised miniature ponies.</p>
<p>We drove our daughter to college in NYC from Houston, TX and our favourite stops were visiting the Biltmore Mansion in Ashville, NC, Boars Head Inn and Monticello in Virginia and the Skyline Drive through Shenandoah which we much preferred over the drive through the Smoky Mountains.</p>
<p>Kristiansand, Norway - a holiday spot for Norwegians and lovely in the summer. I lived there for a few years. Sometimes cruise ships make a port stop here.</p>
<p>The Channel Islands (Jersey, Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm and Jethou) off the coast of France. I’m a descendant from one of the original Jersey families
and still have relatives living there. The islands were occupied by the Germans for five years during WWII and there are remnants everywhere.
My father and his family barely survived on the island of Jersey. It’s now popular with tourists from the UK with lovely beaches, gardens a special zoo protecting endangered animals. Sark may be reached by ferry and there are no cars allowed, only bicycles (and tractors used by the farmers).</p>
<p>The Okanagan area in British Columbia, Canada - in the summer when local fruit such as peaches and cherries can be bought at roadside stands.</p>
<p>Beautiful Qualicum Beach just north of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island.</p>
<p>For a more exotic locale - the Fishtail Lodge accessable by raft only, on a lake in Pokhara (starting point for trekking the Himalayas), Nepal.</p>
<p>The city of Vancouver, British Columbia may not be “hidden” but it’s a treasure and my home town:)</p>
<p>But continue about 20-25 minutes further up the coast to Cambria, my favorite getaway place. I like it so much that I want to be buried there. Lots of different microclimates, no chain stores except a Shell station and a Bank of America. And surprises like driving north to the Hearst Castle and seeing a herd of zebra galloping across the coastal plain at twilight. And then there are the elephant seals…take a photo and stick it on your refrigerator, great motivation for sticking on a diet.</p>
<p>Lots of places known within their region- check the “visit state XYZ” ads. Many Wis, Mich, Minn places “up north” (defined by how far south you live, Chicagoans consider southern Wisconsin “up north”).</p>
<p>June Lake loop, Eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, Calfornia.</p>
<p>A loop road off US 395 about an hour and a half south of Lake Tahoe; passes three lakes - June Lake, Silver Lake and another one. You are on the east side of the Sierras, behind Yosemite. Sheer mountains rise up from the lakes and there is a ski lift to take you for a view. A beautiful and quiet place plus interesting nearby areas to explore up and down 395, and you can drive down 395 for a couple of days. About six hours from San Francisco.</p>
<p>Berurah - does your hidden gym come with a personal trainer?</p>
