THE STATE OF CONTRARIAN TRAVEL - 2007

It’s been a brutal and complicated year for contrarian travel. Many contrarians have called it “The Nightmare Year.” Others, such as Lael Powell-Rushing have been even more pessimistic. Last month, Lael suggested that 2007 is the beginning of the “Contrarian Travel Apocalypse.”

Reasons for pessimism are obvious: favorite destinations are being ruthlessly exposed at an alarming rate. In September of 2007, the New York Times runs a spectacularly detailed 2,000-plus word story about Yemen (a contrarian fave), complete with suggestions for hotels in and around Sanaa, as well as hikes and architectural history. Then, still in September, the Chicago Tribune splashes its cover page with a feature called “Biking through Yooper Land” — yes, that’s Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, a spot near-and-dear to us, a spot breathtakingly free of tourists. Meanwhile, earlier that summer, the Washington Post ran stories about touring Greenland and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and worst, California’s Anza Borrego Desert State Park. And the Los Angeles Times puts Bhutan – yes, mfing Bhutan — on its cover.

It’s bittersweet. We’re excited. Yes, we were happy to learn about a crop of ski resorts in Bulgaria’s Pirin Mountains. (We love Contrarian skiing in obscure mountain ranges in Eastern Europe) But we were troubled to learn about these resorts in the Time’s Travel section, along with a million other readers, including the same assholes who ski at Hunter Mountain that we’re trying to get away from.

The point: In 2007, it finally became undeniable. The mainstream travel press is contrarian. Sure, travel sections — from the Times to the Toledo Blade — have always been running stories about offbeat, quirky, adventures, but the difference is now it’s EVERY FRIGGIN WEEK, and the quirky story, once a 15 inch story buried on E-12, is now on the COVER.

Finally, finally, we spoke with Lael Powell Rushing the other night about his Idaho Panhandle Trip. Lael, as many of you know, has recently been struggling with a rare combination of carpal tunnel and strep throat and has been difficult to reach. We just wanted to tell him that all of us at the CT wish him a speedy recovery, and we hope that he can hit the road again soon.

This is an excerpt from our initial De-Brief with Lael, in which we talked about a couple of key issues, such as where to stay, why to go, and the economics of Idaho’s extreme north. Judging from Lael’s testimony, we’ve determined that there are Five Key reasons to head to the furthest reaches of the Idaho Panhandle. The most compelling reason is clearly Number 5: “$165 in Lift Tickets — Panhandle style.”

1. See the Lake Tahoe of the Panhandle, Investigate Rumors of “The Paddler.”

Sandpoint sits on the shores of Lake Pend Oreille, which is a large, deep, clear lake. Very beautiful. Apparently, it’s one of the few places with an inland, freshwater Naval submarine facility. There’s also local lore of the deep-water beast, “the Paddler”, as well as some really far-fetched ideas about deep, under-ground canals linking Lake Pend Oreille to Flathead Lake in Montana, and even the Pacific. (This was told to Lael by a drunk local, originally from St. Paul, MN, late at night in Eichard’s (More on Eichardt’s later in the Good Bar section.

2. Experience British Columbia… at Lower Prices.

Lake Pend Oreille sits between the Selkirk Mountains and the Cabinet Mountains. Never heard of the Selkirks or the Cabinets? That’s because they’re Canadian. Both are long, gorgeous mountain ranges that reside overwhelmingly in Canada and only duck into the northern Panhandle. It’s definitely a maritime influenced climate and ecoregion, with a deep snowpack and dank, dark forests. In other words, a lot like southern B.C.

3. Obnoxious Texans, Affluent Californians, New Yorkers with Bling — Not Here

The main resort in the area is Schweitzer. It’s a cool ski resort, sort of well known because of it’s proximity to the capital of the Inland Empire (Spokane - 2 hrs. from downtown to ski resort), and Coeur D’Alene. (Lael estimates that the whole Spokane/Post Falls, Coeur D’Alene, megalopolis have at least 500k - this has not been verified)…. It’s privately owned, which is kind of a bummer, because it means that the trajectory of condos and development around the ski area is likely to continue, and probably in a big way. Right now, it’s not that out of control, and Sandpoint (population 6,000) is definitely low-key, but this could all change in the future. The mountain itself is pretty impressive and boasts some world-class terrain. I’ve been there on 4 different trips, and had some good days there. Big parts of the mountain are “backcountry-like”, so it appeals to backcountry skiers, and there’s lots of easily accessible backcountry outside of the resort. But it’s got lots of “family” terrain too.

4. Eichardt’s — A Good Hippy, Gay, Metrosexual Friendly Bar.

Editors’s Note: Let’s face it. If northern Idaho has a reputation of anything, it’s for right wing, wack job extremists. This is the home of Ruby Ridge. It was a retreat for Ted Kacynski and Mark Furman. There are plenty of hostile local folk, said Lael. (Lael, as you know, with his dredlocks and hemp clothing is not the most discreet hippy traveler.) That said, Lael was enthused a bar in Sandpoint.

“Eichardt’s bar and restaurant in Sandpoint is a gem. Amazing food, great atmosphere, and a killer game room upstairs (pool, ping pong, darts, and a great shuffle puck board). Very hip place. We went there 4 nights in a row for dinner, because frankly it would have been impossible to find a better place in Sandpoint that met all of our needs (food, games, attractive, hip people). Meanwhile, across the street was an old-timers bar, I sent a photo, with a sign out front saying “Tervan” on one side and “Tavern” on the other. We went in for a beer and definitely did not feel welcome. The 3 of us stand out quite a bit I’d say - I’m the shortest at 6 feet, and I’d wager that our “ethnic” looks and fancy sportswear did not go over well. It was that experience that reminded me how contrarian the Panhandle is for dudes like us. (NOTE: By us, Lael means western hippy Jews, who car camp, and have dredlocks)

One older, drunk woman did come up to us as we were all watching this show on the TV about tattoos, and she asked us if we knew anything about getting our “dickies” tatooed. At that point, I was glad that I was only Jewish, and not gay. It was time to go. Back across the street — at Eichardt’s — we were where we belonged. Where Jews and Gays belonged. And Eichardt’s couldn’t be warmer.

5. $165 Worth of Free Lift Tickets — Panhandle Style.

Note: The final Lael remark that sold us on the Panhandle, involved his friend Noah, a Toyota, and the Schweitzer ski resort. Noah is — believe it or not — even taller and more rabbinic looking than Lael. Here is Lael:

Schweitzer’s had a special promotion during our visit, if you drove a Toyota to the mountain, they’d give the owner a free lift ticket. Noah has a Toyota with 215,000 miles. So he figured they owe him 1 ticket per 100,000 miles. Now, at a resort like Vail or something, if there was a give-away like this going on, you’d figure you’d have to go inside, fill out some kind of form, give away your SSN and your telephone number, talk to a Toyota rep, and the whole nine yards. Well, we’re heading up to the mountain, and we get to this lower parking lot, a full 9 miles away from the resort at the bottom of the mountain, and we pull in, and there’s this parking lot dude, you know, a real dude, some 35 year old dude, standing there with a pocket full of lift tickets and he’s handing us one as well pull up, since he recognizes the Toyota!

Sweet deal. So Noah pulls out his shtick about 1 ticket per 100,000, and the dude barely pauses and pulls out another ticket. Sweet. But there’s 3 of us, so I’m like, “hey, do you think our buddy could get a ticket”, pointing to Gus in the back seat, and the guy pauses, and he’s like, “you guys must be panhandlers! no prob!” Sweet! Fucking unreal. $165 dollars worth of free lift tickets. That doesn’t happen at Vail, or really anywhere for that matter. And I videotaped the whole interaction in stealth mode, and we had to reanalyze his comment about pandhandlers, and we now think it was a compliment.

You guys must be Panhandlers!

For more on the Idaho Panhandle, Lael or Noah’s Toyota, check back next month, when we talk with Lael about his visit to the urban core of the Idaho Panhandle.

When Rob Jordan, the CT’s Southeast Asian editor, finally returned to his native land last week, CTers noticed a change. It wasn’t in his physical appearance. Basically, looks like the same guy, albeit shaggier and bronzer. It wasn’t in his productivity — the guy still has the remarkable Alice Waters-like ability to whip up a competent bouillabaisse in less than two hours.

No, the difference in Jordan — who was incommunicado for nearly 18 days — was in his nerves. Jordan was uncommonly at ease. His inimitable voice (think a young Carl Kasell) sounded the same, but no longer was it peppered with hesitation — the pregnant pauses, the “uhs.” His nail-biting vice — gone. What’s more, his trademark — a ferocious need to SEEK, to find The Next Great Place, to find a Better Restaurant, to Find a Better Pad Thai, was seemingly gone. For the first time ever, Jordan confessed that he wasn’t really that hungry for the next trip. ‘Eventually, of course. But right now, I’m OK.”

Tres bizarre? When we finally confronted Jordan about this statement — so antithetical to the CT’s “Travel today, because you could be dead tomorrow” ethos — he explained his new found cool. It was not a life-changing conversation with a Buddhist monk or a tryst with a Bangkok dancer or some other Farang Trail epiphany. Apparently, Jordan was just relaxed because of… “The Most Laid Back Capital in the World.”

He spent 10 days in Vientiane, Laos. Doing, he said, “not much. And that’s the point.”

Of Vientiane’s activities, Jordan said, “You can kick back with a beer, watch the sun set over the Mekong, eat pate sandwiches for 50 cents, and sleep in an affordable but non-flea bag hotel. It’s restorative.”

We spent a few minutes last week talking with Rob about his extended stay in the Laotian capital — why he’s so chill now, why we should go, and, if we do, what we should eat there.

1. Vientiane has the prettiest name of any capital in Southeast Asia, no doubt. But why’d you go?

I went there because it’s the capital and was supposed to be vaguely interesting — big stupas (DESCRIBE) mellow city, life of real Laos peeps, riverside beer and bbq, etc.

2. You described Vientiane as “most laid-back” in world? Please explain. In what ways?

Imagine a national capital that feels almost like a suburban town - quiet, clean streets and sleepy people. Colorful Buddhist temples dominate the skyline. No one’s in a rush. No building (except for a hideous government hotel on the edge of the city) is more than seven stories tall

3. I know you spent most of your time chilling by the river, drinking beer, but you were there for 10 day!? What can you do there other than chill?

Not much. That’s the point, I think. See a few temples, check out the (unimpressive) giant, gold Great Stupa, eat at a bunch of places with
cuisines of the world, wander the sparse propaganda-tinged National Museum, check out the dusty not-so-exciting Central Market…

4. Again, we know you spent most of your time chilling — at that explains your self-improvement. But are there any compelling day trips outside of Vientiane?

I have heard good things about trekking up north (Luang Nam Tha area) and far south (Pakse area) for waterfalls, elephants, etc.

5. Some context please. You’re the CT’s veteran SE Asian editor. You’ve scoured Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, now Laos, for us. Do you like Vientiane more than, perhaps, other places???

It’s not so much that I like it more than other places, as I respect it for being unique. It’s rare to find such a relaxing city in Asia. It is, I imagine, the ideal place to end any Asia journey. You can kick back with a beer, watch the sun set over the Mekong and sleep in an affordable but non-flea bag hotel. It’s restorative. .

6. While we’re chilling… what’s the cheap food/eat options in Vientiane?

Didn’t explore that too much because I was too busy chilling by the river. But I’d have to say its “pate” sandwiches. They’re sold on the street for about 50 cents, and they’re the way to go for cheap eats. The “Vientiane pate” is simple. It’s a nice big baguette stuffed with a slimy, local pork product they call pate (no resemblance to the pate we know), veggies and chili sauce.

7. Bars? The Times recommends cocktails at a fancy hotel? What’s a cheap option?

You can’t go wrong with a 24-oz beer and a sunset view on the river - $1

8. OK. We must ask. Clearly, Vientiane is about “chilling.” So… are there any “tools” to enhance the laid-back ness?

Dunno, but I’m sure weed is in abundance. Waking up at the butt crack of dawn helps keep things mellow in the heat of the afternoon.

9. The burning CT question. Are they onto it? The Germans, the Dutch, the Lonely Planet-toting kids from Oberlin? The Farang trail heads?

Don’t know of any particular buzz on the Farang trail, but a few travelers told us Luang Prabang was one of the best spots they had visited in SE Asia. (It’s no doubt beautiful, but the charm is under siege. More on that later.)

10. One final question.. the name. Vientiane. That’s what intrigued me? Is it French?

Great question. That’s something that intrigued me, as well, and the name of the city has an interesting history. It’s ultimately derived from P??li, the literary language of Theravada Buddhism. And its original meaning was “The king’s grove of sandalwood”, this tree being prized for its fragrance in classical India. I have also read that the original name of Vientiane means “City of the Moon” in the native Lao language. The romanized spelling “Vientiane” is, yes, of French origin, It shows how difficult it was for the French to pronounce the hard “ch” syllable of the Lao word.
For “The Complete Rob Jordan Guide to Vientiane, Laos 2008″ - and other insider tips on Un-Touristed South East Asia –subscribe to The Quarterly Contrarian.

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What is the CT’s favorite panhandle? Hint: For the geographically challenged, there are four American panhandles to choose from… Oklahoma, Texas, Florida or Idaho?

Answer:   We love them all.  Seriously.  We can’t decide.  Too hard. In fact, the word “Panhandle” sends any Contrarian into a state of thrall. Why?

The Panhandles are perhaps the most overlooked, most frequently ridiculed, most culturally unique, most culinarily under-rated places in the United States.  The Panhandles: home to some of our favorite American towns — Lubbock, Tallahassee,  Destin, Coueur d’ Alene, Pensacola, Amarillo – our favorite beaches (St. Joseph Peninsula State Park), our favorite badlands (Oklahoma’s Black Mesa State Park), our favorite mountains (the Selkirks), and, perhaps most important, our favorite steak place (Amarillo’s The Big Texan State Ranch).

The Panhandles… virtually un-stained by the rank stench of tourism.  Sure, in the Panhandles, you might occassionally encounter a hostile Matt Kenseth supporter with a pre-1965 mindset on certain social issues, but…  it’s worth it. 

We’re deploying several of our crew to the Panhandles this year, to uncover some Panhandle secrets for the CT Members Only section.  (I mean, come on,  we have to be a little discreet about our Panhandle enthusiasms. And please, please — if you’re not a member –  do not tell the New York Times Escape section about this Panhandle stuff…  If you’re already a member, please send us some tips on Panhandle places/faves to check out. We will go. And we will cite your tip in our Panhandles Guide)

Meantime, our first Panhandle Report is from Lael Powell Rushing, who just returned from a car-camping trip to the northernmost reaches of the Idaho panhandle. He lefty us a scratchy,  nearly breathless message about his stay/ski-trip in Sandpoint, Idaho. 

The cell coverage was bad on Tuesday night, but we thought we could discern Lael saying something about Canada. Making a favorable comparison between Idaho’s Panhandle and some of the ski towns in south eastern British Columbia we dig, outside of Fernie.  Due to the unfavorable US dollar-to-Loonie exchange rate, we advise against travel in Canada this year. 

Lael send us a clarification:  

“As I said in my voice mail about Sandpoint, if you were a movie producer, and you couldn’t afford to do your movie in the U.S., so you looked for a Canadian venue, but then realized that the Canadian dollar is quite high, so instead looked again at the U.S., you might choose the Panhandle.  Especially if your movie was set in Wilkes-Barre, PA,  or Ithaca, NY.”

We’ll post Lael’s full Sandpoint report next week.  And for those of you who want up-to-date, insider Panhandle information, and promise not to contact the New York Times, please subscribe to The Quarterly Contrarian. 

Special Introductory offer, first eight Issues for the low price of Free!!  

In December, several CTers grew worried. One speculated that Jordan, believed to be in Bangkok, had fallen under the spell of a radical form of Thervada Buddhism. Another CTer, Grinnell, The Urbanologist, suggested that Jordan was likely at the Full Moon party in Koh Phangan. (Jordan, like all of us at the CT, is constantly in pursuit of a cheap bohemian paradise).
Weeks passed. Hannukah turned into Christmas. Christmas faded in Kwanzaa. Then New Year. Each week, we waited with expectation. But none of Jordan’s meticulous missives about the charming gardens, the architectural stylings, the history, the culture, bistro food of Southeast Asian arrived.
Finally, just as the Alpha Contrarian was on the verge of making the maverick gesture of contacting Jordan’s next of kin, we heard word from Southeast Asia. Jordan was not in Bangkok (his usual base), nor Chiang Mai, Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Luang Prabang, Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi or Angkor Wat.

Jordan explained tersely, but enthusiastically, that he had scoured Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, that he had celebrated Christmas cruising the Mekong, and that, at last, lat week, he had found peace.

“I have found the most laid-back capital in the world,” Jordan wrote.

That was all we heard. He wrote back again, with no further info. We grew intrigued. We started doing research. Days later, we found a link on the New York Times site; Jordan was not the only one who was smitten with the Laotian capital. The New York Times had recently ranked Vientiane, Laos as one of its Top Destinations for 2008.

Daniel Altman writing in the Times sounded eerily like Jordan.
“It’s easy to turn into a turbo-tourist in Southeast Asia…A vacation can start to feel like a mail route… When it’s time to take a break, there’s Vientiane. Laos’s relaxed capital is rich with pleasures.”

OK. So we read the Times – and it only intensified our intrigue. We were, of course, seduced by its description of this sleepy pleasure dome in the Times. We learned that there are several temples, a wonderful open-air market, that Laotian food is like a mix of Thai and Vietnamese, that the there’s a bar called Jazzy Brick that has wicker-backed armchairs and 100 plus cocktails. There are, the Times tells us, some fine boutique hotels in town.

But really, what is Vientiane like?

The Contrarian Assessment: Vientiane.

Once again, the New York Times has found an off-beat, unconventional place — touted its virtues to the world. Told us that it’s safe to visit (boutique hotels, temples, decent food, and colonial bars), yet we have little sense of place.

So… next week, Jordan is, at last, back. We’ll corner him. Pester him with questions. Then feature this, “Our Contrarian De-Brief” with Jordan on the this soon-to-be-popular capital — when to go, where to stay, how long to stay, how to approach Laos like a true contrarian. And Rob - as always — will answer the burning question: “What the New York Times Won’t Tell You about Vientiane, Laos?”

In advance of Jordan’s De-Brief, we urge you, though, to check out this slide show, by an NYT-paid photog.

Sometime in early March, we will complete our most ambitious project — our first-ever “Contrarian Guide to New York City.”

The NYC Guide will answer some basic burning CT questions.

For one, where can you get a decent meal for under $5?

What the is the one remaining secret neighborhood in the most completely covered, explored, touristed zip code in the world?

The best of Off-Off-Off Broadway.

Why we love Queens!

And.. some fundamental stuff. What’s the best time of the day to visit the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, and Grant’s Tomb?

The CT’s Gotham Guide will be emailed to members of the CT Quarterly. Subscribe Now. 8 issues for Free!

When most of the CT staff headed for Europe last month — December and January is our favorite time in Paris and Rome (no tourists!)– our West Coast editor jumped into his Ford Escort, said goodbye to family and friends, and embarked on Road Trip #256.

A December road trip in Montana? Abandoning friends and family and pets during the holiday? Yes, it could only be our Extreme Car Camping Guru, Lael Powell Rushing.

Earlier this week, we spoke briefly with Lael, at a rest stop off of I-15 south of Dillon, Montana, a few miles north of his most recent squat, the Clark Canyon Reservoir camp site.

“Car camping can be an incredibly cheap and enjoyable way to see the world,” Lael said. “But you have to be smart.”

Lael gave us this short list of his Top Ten Car Camping Tips — some of this might be obvious for car-camping veterans. But if you’re a newbie, read carefully…

1) Site Selection — aka How to Avoid Losers. This is the biggest key to successful car camping. The last thing you want is to be awoken during the middle of the night by a bunch of rowdy locals. Avoiding losers is all about site selection. Don’t choose the scenic, road-side, obvious spot to spend the night. This is a recipe for disaster. If you see beer bottles, broken glass, and shot-gun shells around the ground at an otherwise prime spot, move on. It’s not worth the inevitable hassle.

2) BYOW. You’re car camping after all. Don’t forget to fill up a 5-gallon container of water before you leave town. The last thing you want to do, after finding that primo spot is to have to leave to find water. If you have water, you are completely independent. It opens your mind to a whole new range of potential camping sites. Want to camp in the middle of a dry lakebed? Sure, why not, you’ve got plenty of water.

3) The devil is in the details: the topo map. Perhaps the most important single item, after water, is a good map. I’m not talking about a road-map. I’m talking about a topographic map. There’s no substitution for finding that extreme car camping site. I recommend the DeLorme Gazetter series. At the state level, it combines the best of road information with the best of topographic information. If you’re feeling very extreme, however, even this will not suffice. Then I recommend having even more detailed topographic maps on hand, like USGS 7.5′ topo quads. With these, you can pretend that you’re backpacking, and the skies the limit as far as navigating your vehicle to the premier camping spot.

4) Don’t be afraid to trespass. Very often, while extreme car camping, the need arises to ignore certain trivial laws. Of course, context is very important here, and you need to be careful. But when it comes to distinguishing between miles and miles of open BLM land versus scattered private inholdings, it’s anyone’s guess whose land your on (your forgot the map, right?). You never know, the ideal camping spot might just be around the next corner.

5) Make yourself invisible. This goes along with tips #1 and #4. Make sure your car/tent/etc… are invisible from the road, if possible. Privacy is the key to successful, and uninhibited car camping. If you can tuck your car behind some trees, you’re golden. Again, the last thing you want to do is invite trouble to your camp.

6) Don’t hesitate to leave on a moment’s notice. You have to be on your toes when you’re extreme car camping. If a wigged-out meth-head shows up in your camp in the middle of the night, it’s time to leave (true story). If you ever hear losers nearby, it’s time to leave. Never try to rationalize with losers in the middle of the night. Especially if you’re driving a Subaru, or Volvo.

7) Self-medicate. No-one ever got a DUI sitting around a camp-fire. Don’t worry about Tip #6. You can’t prepare for all contingencies.

8) Unveilings. This is an important aspect of extreme car camping. You don’t want to take the self-medication for granted. Save up for special occasions. A primo vista of a new mountain range. The first distant view of the ocean. Ecotones. You’ve been on the road for days. Things get stale. Look for places where scenery or events unveil themselves to you in a new way, leverage that feeling, and take advantage of tip #6.

9) Keep your eyes open for foxes. It’s late, way past dark, and you still don’t have a camping spot. Don’t despair. Follow your instincts and keep heading for that chunk of wilderness on the map. The more foxes you see, the better your chances of landing that primo spot. In other words, stay optimistic, and don’t ever give up.

10) Know the best route home. You’re out there in the wilds. You’ve looked at the map a hundred times. You know it’s going to be a long ride home, but you have no choice. Don’t hesitate to pick a route that would seem otherwise unconventional. Sometimes, the fastest way back from the Alvord Desert to Portland, OR is via Boise, ID, or Winnemucca, NV.

Sometimes.

We just wanted to let you all know that we’re alive. We’re just out of the office, away from our desk, not checking email, voice mail, or any of your notes. We’re traveling, and we hope you understand.

One of our founding mottos at the CT is: