My Bucket List

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Bucket List Item Description
Hike the Chilkoot Trail The Chilkoot Trail is a 33-mile (53 km) trail through the Coast Mountains that leads from Dyea, Alaska, in the United States, to Bennett, British Columbia, in Canada.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilkoot_Trail

Sea Kayaking in Haida Gwai Haida Gwaii is an archipelago approximately 45-60 km (30-40 mi) off the northern Pacific coast of Canada. Part of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the islands were formerly and are still commonly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haida_Gwaii

Eat in a few more Michelin-StarredRestaurants Although I have eaten in Chez Panisse in Berkley. I have always wanted to eat in another few of these Michelin Restaurants (without going bankrupt) 

Here is a link through Thifty Nomads of some cheap Michelin Restaurants 

https://thriftynomads.com/cheapest-michelin-star-restaurants-world/

Barge Through the English
Midlands
This always seemed like a relaxing way to go through some of the prettiest countryside. I would love
to start in Camden Locks in London and go north.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/cruises/river-cruises/UK-Classic-canal-routes/

USA Today suggests ABC Boat Hire, one of the U.K.’s biggest “self-drive” boating holiday operators, specializes in weekend river barge travel holidays and guidance in the form of preplanned routes. Waterways Holidays, another major U.K. operator, offers last-minute discounts. Shire Cruisers rent a stable of lovingly maintained, colorful vintage boats and provide training to nervous newcomers. Check Gumtree, a Craigslist-esque online classifieds, for individuals seeking to rent out their privately owned narrowboats, or boatrent.co.uk, which brokers long-term narrowboat rentals.
Hike Across England at Hadrians Wall Hadrian’s Wall was the north-west frontier of the Roman empire for nearly 300 years. At 73 miles long it marches across northern Britain from sea to sea. The most famous of all the frontiers of the Roman empire, Hadrian’s Wall was made a World Heritage Site in 1987. Explore ruined forts, the museums and a Roman town along the wall to find out more about life on the northern frontier

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hadrians-wall/
Hike the full Camino De Santiago The Camino de Santiago  known in English as the Way of Saint James is a network of pilgrims’ ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the saint are buried

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camino_de_Santiago
Explore Carcassone in Southern France Carcassonne is the largest walled city in Europe (among those that have their defensive wall still intact). It’s citadel known as the Cité de Carcassonne, is a medieval fortress dating back to the Gallo-Roman period, and was restored by the theorist and architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc in 1853. It has been added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1997

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carcassonne
Canoe the Canal du Midi from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The Canal du Midi is a 240 km (150 mi) long canal in Southern France. The canal was at the time considered one of the greatest construction works of the 17th century.

The canal connects the Garonne to the Étang de Thau on the Mediterranean and along with the 193 km (120 mi) long Canal de Garonne forms the Canal des Deux Mers, joining the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The canal runs from the city of Toulouse down to the Étang de Thau near the Mediterranean.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canal_du_Midi

Explore Languedoc-Roussillon by Bike and Scooter Languedoc-Roussillon is a former administrative region of France. Since 2016, it is part of the new region Occitanie. It comprises five departments, and borders the other French regions of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, Rhône-Alpes, Auvergne, Midi-Pyrénées on the one side, and Spain, Andorra and the Mediterranean Sea on the other side. It is the southernmost region of mainland France

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languedoc-Roussillon
Visit the Papal Palace in Avignon and bike the surrounding countryside Avignon is a commune in south-eastern France in the department of Vaucluse on the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 90,194 inhabitants of the city (as of 2011), about 12,000 live in the ancient town centre enclosed by its medieval ramparts.

Between 1309 and 1377, during the Avignon Papacy, seven successive popes resided in Avignon. Papal control persisted until 1791 when, during the French Revolution, it became part of France. 

The historic centre, which includes the Palais des Papes, the cathedral, and the Pont d’Avignon, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. The medieval monuments and the annual Festival d’Avignon have helped to make the town a major centre for tourism.

Avignon has 110 km (68 mi) of bicycle paths.It has a bicycle sharing system called the Vélopop’

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avignon
Run (and finish) the London Marathon One of the World Majors  – run through the heart of London. (Also the setting for the movie Run FatBoy Run

https://www.virginmoneylondonmarathon.com/en-gb/
Spend a day in the British Museum Admiring the thefts of thousands of items during the years of British exploration and empire. The the Parthenon friezes and the Rosetta Stone among others
https://www.britishmuseum.org
Explore Trinity College in Ireland and see the Book of Kells Trinity College is surrounded by central Dublin and is located on College Green, opposite the historic Irish Houses of Parliament. 

The Library of Trinity College is a legal deposit library for Ireland and Great Britain, containing over 6.2 million printed volumes and significant quantities of manuscripts, including the Book of Kells.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinity_College_Dublin
Publish a Photo in the National Geographic Magazine Although I am a member of severalFlickr groups comprised of people with the same aspiration – I hold a secret hope to one day be published in this magazine

https://www.flickr.com/groups/national_geographic_channel

 National Geographic Wannabes

https://www.flickr.com/groups/ngmanimallovers/
Guide a Tour of Downtown Toronto Although I have taken friends and family on tours of downtown Toronto, I would like to take a tour group and show them some of my favourite things about Toronto
Go Canyoneering in the Phillipines Kawasan Badian National Park is apparently an amazing place to go canyoneering (and it is warm) 🙂
Take the Gorge Swing at Victoria Falls  I saw this on the Amazing Race and immediately added it to the list

https://www.zambiatourism.com/activities/adventure/gorge-swing/

https://www.victoriafalls-guide.net/victoria-falls-bridge-swing.html
Visit Victoria Falls and see the Smoke That Thunders… Although Africa was not one of my top destinations, I am warming up to it. I would love to see Victoria Falls. Here is what the tourism folks have to say

One of the greatest attractions in Africa and one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the world, Victoria Falls is located on the Zambezi River, the fourth largest river in Africa, which is also defining the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Victoria Falls is the only waterfall in the world with a length of more than a kilometer and a height of more than hundred meters. It is also considered to be the largest fall in the world.
The noise of Victoria Falls can be heard from a distance of 40 kilometers, while the spray and mist from the falling water is rising to a height of over 400 meters and can be seen from a distance of 50 kilometers. No wonder that the local tribes used to call the waterfall Mosi-o-Tunya “The smoke that thunders”.

https://victoriafallstourism.org
Hike to the base and take photos of Iguazú Falls Iguazú Falls or Iguaçu Falls are waterfalls of the Iguazu River on the border of the Argentine province of Misiones and the Brazilian state of Paraná. Together, they make up the largest waterfall system in the world. The falls divide the river into the upper and lower Iguazu. The Iguazu River forms the boundary between Argentina and Brazil.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iguazu_Falls
Hike and Photograph the Torres del Paine in Patagonia, Chile Declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO and the eighth wonder of the world in 2013, Torres del Paine National Park is undoubtedly a world-class tourist attraction that delights for so many reasons that it becomes difficult to put it into words.

https://torresdelpaine.com/en/
Hike the Colca Canyon in Peru Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru, located about 160 kilometres (99 mi) northwest of Arequipa. With a depth of 3,270 metres (10,730 ft),[2] it is one of the deepest in the world. The Colca Valley is a colorful Andean valley with pre-Inca roots, and towns founded in Spanish colonial times, still inhabited by people of the Collagua and the Cabana cultures.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colca_Canyon

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20121012-exploring-perus-epic-colca-canyon
Hike the Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon. (I would say run the Rim to Rim to Rim – but I am not sure I could do it!) https://www.trailrunproject.com/trail/7011064/rim-to-rim-to-rim-r2r2r

https://www.runnersworld.com/advanced/a20820373/running-rim-to-rim/
Skiing in Slovenia Bled is almost equidistant from three very different resorts – small, tranquil Vogel there’s bustling Kranjska Gora, and Krvavec.. I would use the SKI PASS SLOVENIAN ALP http://sloalps.com
One ski pass for top 5 Slovenian ski resorts plus 1 in Italy and 1 in Austria
KRANJSKA GORA
KRVAVEC
VOGEL
KANIN – Sella Nevea
3LAENDERECK – ARNOLDSTEIN
CERKNO
• 150km of ski slopes between 569m – 2293m

Then travel 200 km by car to the town of Maribor.

Maribor is the second most important centre and the second largest city of Slovenia. It has about 114.000 inhabitants who live embraced in its wine growing hills and the Mariborsko Pohorje mountain. Located near the Slovenian border with Austria, beside the Drava River and at the centre of five natural geographic regions, Maribor is the capital of Štajerska, the Slovenian Styria
Descend into the Salt Caves in Poland The “Wieliczka” Salt Mine was the pride of kings and the source of the country’s wealth. Today, it is the wealth of Pole’s culture in which they take pride like kings of the past.
In 1976, the “Wieliczka” Salt Mine was entered on the national register of historic monuments and already in 1978 it was entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

https://www.wieliczka-saltmine.com
See the Aurora Borealis Would love to see the Northern lights and shoot photos. It is just deciding where to see them. The Yukon, Northwest Territories, Iceland, Russia, Norway – the list goes on…

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aurora
Explore the Anasazi Cliff Dwellings in New Mexico at Places like Mesa Verde The Anasazi disappeared without explanation, abandoning magnificent stone structures like the Cliff House cliff dwelling and a half-million gallon reservoir at Mesa Verde National Monument in Colorado, a five-story pueblo “apartment house” of 800 rooms at Chaco Cultural National Historic Park in New Mexico, and a huge sunken kiva with a 95-ton roof supported by four wooden posts at Aztec Ruins National Monument, New Mexico.

https://www.cliffdwellingsmuseum.com/history/the-anasazi/

https://www.nps.gov/meve/learn/historyculture/cliff_dwellings_home.htm
Go Houseboating on Lake Mead Unlike Tommy Lee Jones and Pam Anderson, I think my houseboatingtour will be a little less well publicized.

Lake Mead is the largest man-made lake and reservoir in the United States. It is located on the Colorado River about 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, between the states of Nevada and Arizona. Formed by water impounded by Hoover Dam, it extends 110 miles behind the dam, holding approximately 28.5 million acre feet of water.

https://www.houseboating.org/Lake-Mead-Houseboats-for-Rent?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj4D22ane3gIVNP_jBx052A_jEAAYAyAAEgJs5fD_BwE

https://www.houseboating.org/Lake-Mead-Houseboat-Rentals
Go Snorkeling/ Cave Diving in a Mexican Cenote Cenotes are limestone cave systems, many of which are on the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexica

https://www.spotmydive.com/en/news/cenotes-diving-mexico
Learn Surfing in Costa Rica There are a ton of surf camps in Costa Rica and I have always wanted to surf since I watched Gidgit movies in the 60’s 🙂

https://www.travelchannel.com/interests/beaches/articles/surfing-costa-rica
Write a Fiction Novel I am a voracious reader and I am always thrilled when an author can pull me into a different world. I read mostly thrillers and mystery books.I love “science Fact Novels” like Michael Crichton, Dean Koontz, Douglas Preston etc.

One day I will sit down and take the time to write a novel if just to satisfy myself
Write a Non-Fiction Book. I think some kind of tell all book about Human Resources or IT Project Management and all the ways that companies waste money and venerate the results they expected. 

Of course I always think I am the smartest guy in the room, (not always, because I have been fortunate enough to work with some very smart people)
Go Zorbing – Maybe in New Zealand A Zorb is a large inflatable ball that you actually crawl into (along with a few gallons of water) and then roll down a hill. You slosh your way down being cushioned and sliding around in the water.

https://www.zorb.com/page/homepage
Ride the “Vomit Comet” The Vomit Commit is a converted plane which flies upward and then abruptly goes into a dive and provides you with a few minutes of weightlessness. 

It always looks really cool when theAstronauts do it. However at $5,000US a ride, I think I will wait until I win the lottery.

http://www.spaceadventures.com/experiences/zero-gravity-flight/
Hike Through New Zealand’s “Lord of the Rings” Trail There really is a majestic trail that I can hike, just like the Hobbits, but with smaller feet.  One of the shooting locations is Mount Sunday (Edoras), Canterbury, South Island

https://www.outsideonline.com/1856836/top-10-new-zealand-hikes
Visit “Hobbiton” the Hobbit Village in New Zealand Now a tourist attraction, this is the set that Peter Jackson created for the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/07/travel/new-zealands-hobbit-trail.html
Dive the Great Barrier Reef in Australia The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,300 kilometres (1,400 mi) over an area of approximately 344,400 square kilometres (133,000 sq mi).

The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. It supports a wide diversity of life and was selected as a World Heritage Site in 1981

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Barrier_Reef
Walk the Sydney Bridge You can walk to the middle of the bridge for free or pay $170 to climb the bridge. I think I would like the climb – I wonder if they have Groupons???

https://www.bridgeclimb.com/climbs/#types
Get my Motorcycle License  My mother always warned me not to ride a motorcycle. She was an ER Nurse and claimed that they referred to motorcyclists as “Walking Organ Donors”.

That said (and now that my mothers passed away), I have always wanted to try motorcycle touring in the countryside.
Motorcycle Tour of Ecuador (or even South America) I have aways thought that a riding a motorcycle would be a great way to tour a country and take photos. 

https://freedombikerental.com/index.php/component/sppagebuilder/123-self-guided-tours
Boat Tour of the Galapagos Islands Following in the footsteps of Charles Darwin but with a guide and SCUBA tanks. I am looking forward to the biodiversity and the Blue FootedBooby.

https://www.galapagosislands.com
Take Photos on the Bolivian Salt Flats The salt flats create amazing optical illusions. After a rainfall they turn into the worlds largest mirror

bolivian salt flats tour
See the Nazca Lines from the Air I missed this when I went to Peru. The Nazca Lines are one of the great mysteries. They can only be seen from the air – who created them and why?

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/archaeology-and-history/archaeology/nasca-lines/
Hike and Photograph the Rainbow Mountains in Peru. Another missed opportunity. These mountains have an eroded mineral composition that creates a beautiful natural rainbow.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2017/01/21/welcome-rainbow-mountains-peru/#2d7b9ddd6f70
Shoot Land and UAV Photos at the Kukenhof in the Netherlands One of the largest tulip gardens in the world. Would love to spend a day there and bike the fields around it.

https://keukenhof.nl/en/
See a White Spirit Bear in Haida Gwai https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/rare-white-bear-key-saving-canadian-rainforest-180956330/
Whitewater Raft the Nahani River in the Northwest Territories  https://nahanniwild.com/nahanni-rentals-overview
Learn to Fish in the Northwest Territories or Nunavut Apparently some of the greatest fishing in the world. The only thing I have ever caught is a cold…

These are some big fish!

https://www.plummerslodges.com
Do a Forward Rappel or RAP Jumping in Australia Whether down a cliff or a building – this would be really cool.

https://rapjumping.com/win-news-cairns-2014/
Kayak Through Nan Madol in Micronesia Nan Madol is an archaeological site adjacent to the eastern shore of the island of Pohnpei, now part of the Madolenihmw district of Pohnpei state in the Federated States of Micronesia in the western Pacific Ocean. Nan Madol was the capital of the Saudeleur Dynasty until about 1628.

Although privately owned, tours can be arranged for the Venice of Asia

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/nan-madol
Tour Moscow and St. Petersburg byDriving the Golden Circle Through Russia Might not be the easiest drive but I really hate tours.

Maybe return to Moscow by boat from St Petersburg on the Volga River

https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/02/travel/driving-russias-revived-golden-ring.html
Visit the Maldives  Stay in an over water bungalow like in a tourist magazine 🙂

https://visitmaldives.com
Spend a Week in Mauritius Cycling and swimming off the African Coast.

Mauritius, an Indian Ocean island nation, is known for its beaches, lagoons and reefs. The mountainous interior includes Black River Gorges National Park, with rainforests, waterfalls, hiking trails and wildlife like the flying fox. Capital Port Louis has sites such as the Champs de Mars horse track, Eureka plantation house and 18th-century Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Gardens

https://mauritiusattractions.com/tourist-attractions-in-mauritius-i-38.html

Learn to Snowboard  Although I have tried it in the past, I am much more comfortable on Skis
Go Powder Skiing by Helicopter or SnowCat This would be one of the awesome ones

https://www.cmhheli.com
Race Car Training  With Toronto traffic, having some racing training might be a lifesaver. Plus – I really like to drive fast.

https://canadiantiremotorsportpark.com/pages/bridgestone-academy
Try the Skelton and the Luge at Lake Placid (or some other track) Plunging head first down an icy track on a mountain – YES!

https://www.whiteface.com/activities/skeleton-experience
Ride the Bobsled as a team member Probably as the middle guy who does very little except lean left and right 🙂

https://www.whiteface.com/activities/bobsled-experience
   
Climb Mount Olympus in Greece Hoping to see a god or two…

https://www.theoutbound.com/greece/hiking/climb-mount-olympus
Do an Alpine Hike in the Swiss or French Alps Having seen Lauterbrunnen and Kandersteg in the winter, I would lobve to do a spring alpine trek of 7-10 days through the Bernese Oberland Traverse

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/expeditions/destinations/europe/active/swiss-alps-hiking-trip/

https://www.alpenwild.com/trip/bernese-oberland-traverse/overview/

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hiking-in-the-swiss-alps_b_1271715

Visit Tallin in Estonia I love medieval walled cities and this is a great example

Unlike many other capital cities in Europe, Tallinn has managed to wholly preserve its structure of medieval and Hanseatic origin. Due to its exceptionally intact 13th century city plan, the Old Town was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997,

Maybe do the Tartu City Marathon a cross country trail race 

https://www.tartumaraton.ee
Travel Through Serbia, Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Romania & Bosnia Maybe by bike? or motorcycle or car


Tour Morocco by car Could be combined with a tour of Andalusia in Spain. I thought a car trip around all of the major sights – Casablanca, Fez, Marrakesh, etc
Sahara Safari Take a camel trek out into the Sahara Desert. I would like to see the massive sand dunes. 

However – I am not a big fan of camels so…
Take a Yoga Retreat in Goa Part of the hippie scene in India, Goa offers amazing beaches and a TON of yoga schools/ retreats
https://www.thrillophilia.com/popular-yoga-retreats-goa
Relax on a Houseboat Trip ThroughKerela Although divested by flooding earlier this year, Houseboat trips continue in Kerela.

https://www.tripsavvy.com/guide-to-hiring-houseboat-in-kerala-1539782
Fire a Barrett Sniper Rifle The Barrett M107 is a .50 caliber, shoulder-fired, semi-automatic sniper rifle. Like its predecessors, the rifle is said to have manageable recoil for a weapon of its size owing to the barrel assembly that itself absorbs force, moving inward toward the receiver against large springs with every shot.

Vegas Baby!

https://www.battlefieldvegas.com/weapon/sniper-rifles/
Drive a Tank While I am at it there is an opportunity to drive a tank over a car for a mere $2,500 

I would kind of like that for Toronto traffic
Tour a Newer Aircraft Carrier While I have been on a number of aircraft carriers in Oakland (Wasp)and New York (Intrepid), I would love to visit a current operating carrier. Something like the USS Nimitz or the USS Carl Vinson.

Even a WASP Class Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) amphibious assault ship full of helicopters and Harriers 
Fly in a Cobra Helicopter But I would be even happy to watch one flying 🙂

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_AH-1_SuperCobra
Go to Burning Man in the Black Rock Nevada Desert Although not quite a hippie. I would love to spend a couple of days there seeing what it was like.

http://time.com/money/4459656/how-much-burning-man-costs/
Do an African Wildlife Safari Why is this so far down the list? 

Well it was really not even on the list until I saw some of the photos my friends have taken and they are National Geographic worthy
Take a week long Cooking Class in Tuscany or Thailand Really learn how to master the dishes and cuisine.
Work for a Few Weeks in the Kitchen of a Classy Restaurant Although I have worked as a waiter, I would like to try my hand at cooking in an operating kitchen.
Dive Truk Lagoon in Micronesia Chuuk Lagoon, also previously known as Truk Lagoon, is a sheltered body of water in the central Pacific. About 1,800 kilometres north-east of New Guinea, it is located mid-ocean at 7 degrees North latitude, and is part of Chuuk State within the Federated States of Micronesia.

This is where the US sank a large part of the Japanese Pacific fleet. It is probably the premier wreck diving site in the world

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g311328-d447377-Reviews-Truk_Lagoon-Chuuk.html
Dive Coron Bay in the Philippines Located off Palawan there are a large number of ships in relatively shallow water.

http://divemagazine.co.uk/destinations/philippines/6541-wrecks-of-coron-bay-2
Shave my Head Always wanted to do this but I think I will wait until my hair is so thin that I can no longer get away with looking like I have a full head of hair. 

I will buy a supply of Lollypops
Learn how to Hang Glide Preferably somewhere in the mountains so I can get a really good ride
Learn how to Operate a Powered Paraglider Maybe one of the backpack ones or one of the tricycle 2 passenger ones

https://www.poweredparaglidingontario.com
Take the Orient Express The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is the most storied set of carriages in the world. It promises to take you not just across Europe, but to transport you back in time. With its polished wood, sumptuous upholstery and antique fixtures, the train epitomises the glamour and elegance of the Golden Age of travel.

London to Venice 2,450 Euro

https://www.belmond.com/trains/europe/venice-simplon-orient-express/
Take the Rocky Mountaineer through the Rockies to Vancouver Travel through the legendary Spiral Tunnels and pass by Craigellachie, the spot where the last spike on the Canadian Pacific Railway was driven, celebrated for connecting Canada from East to West.

https://www.rockymountaineer.com/
Take the Trans Siberian Express Take the longest train journey in the world – the Trans Siberian Express.

https://www.transsiberianexpress.net/trans-siberian-trains.html
Take the Train Through Copper Canyon in Mexico This railroad marvel took almost 90 years and 90 million dollars to complete. The Copper Canyon railway is a stunning piece of engineering achievement. Opened after decades of construction in 1961, the railway was designed to connect the Pacific Ocean with Mexico’s central desert territory and Chihuahua.

https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/mexico/articles/10-things-to-know-before-riding-the-copper-canyon-railroad-mexico/
Take the Swiss Cog Railway  SINCE 1889 FROM ALPNACH AND UP THE PILATUS
Commissioned in 1889, a gradient of up to 48 percent, about 30 minutes travel time: that is the steepest cogwheel railway in the world in figures. Meter by meter it scales the way from Alpnachstad to the Pilatus Kulm, passing alpine meadows and striking rock formations.