AMERICA'S FIRST COWPOKES
by Vicki Hoefling Andersen

As the skills of the Hawaiian paniolos grew, they not only created a style of herding tailored to a tropical island, they shaped an amazing cowboy culture nearly a half-century before America's cowboys hit the range.

WRITERS ON TRIPS
Offpiste Humor by Steve Giordano

Receptions and "research'' trips are great sport, but they're the opposite end of the fun spectrum from the 15-hour days at the computer.

"What's your day like?'' I was asked by a ski hill owner who's about half my age.

HIKING ALONG OREGON'S MCKENZIE RIVER by Lee Juillerat

What makes the trail tempting, and well-traveled, are its surroundings - thundering waterfalls, lava fields, old-growth forests and its single-most spectacular feature, the incredibly blue-blue Tamolitch Pool, better known as the Blue Pool.

DR. MOTION COMPRESSION SOCKS
Product review by Lynn Rosen

Ugh! Compression stockings? Thick, unattractive flesh-colored knee-highs you used to see worn only by your granny or your pregnant pals? Not anymore. Compression sox are the new "it" for athletes, travelers and everyday people.

ADVENTURE POEM: The Duke of Dance
by Timothy Pilgrim Adventure Poet Laureate

Duke of Dance

He kicks high, jumps, spins,
kicks again. The duke is sixty,
doesn't know it. His knees work.

MORE TO SEE THAN CAN EVER BE SEEN IN PARIS by Brad Hathaway
There are landmarks everyone must check out in Paris, of course. But there is so much more - and we wanted to sample and share some things we'd heard about but never had a chance to see in person. So here are some wonderful spots you might consider seeking out if you visit the capital city of France.

IN PURSUIT OF THE FOREVER BIKE
by North Bennett
Every bicycle is built of a collection of ancient, venerable forms: two circles and two triangles. We associate the first shape with perfection and the second with strength. I kept imagining a forever bike glinting into sunset after sunset. I saw it roll on and on - well, duh - forever.

EYE TO EYE: A Whaling Adventure by Diana Hunt
In nearly all scenarios, touching wild animals is unethical. But in the Baja, the whales seek out human interaction. That interaction is carried out at the instigation of the whales, with their consent. They seem to know who humans are and respond differently than any other creature on Earth.

SHOULD THEY ALLOW PHONES ON PLANES? by Christopher Elliott

The pro-call passengers wonder how making phone calls became such a controversial topic. After all, you could make a call from a plane until 2013, when the last Airfones were decommissioned. What happened in the decade between?