While I’m not much for jaunty caps and green tights, I have to admit that I kinda dig the “another day, another adventure” spirit that runs through the whole Robin Hood legend.  And, if the crazy number of times Hollywood has retold the story of the world’s most famous outlaw hero is any indication, apparently I’m not alone in this.

Like a lot of the cool adventures portrayed in movies and television shows, however, watching the exploits of Robin Hood and his band of merry men on the big screen this past weekend got me to thinking about one of XTRORD.com’s most important guiding principles.  Namely the one about how reality kicks virtual reality’s butt every time.  In other words, I figure it’s always a safe bet that you’ll have a lot more fun having a once-in-a-lifetime adventure for yourself than watch someone else having it on-screen.

Which is why I thought I’d do a little digging to see if there were ways modern-day Robin Hood wannabes could actually experience the life and times of the gold-hearted gang from Sherwood Forest.  Here’s what I came up with:

• Visit Nottinghamshire’s annual Robin Hood Festival for all manner of medieval merriments from sword fights to men in tights.
• Test your skill with a bow and arrow at this archery range in Sherwood Forest.
• Hoist a pint to the memory of Robin Hood at the oldest inn in Britain, Nottingham’s Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem.
• Feast at a banquet hosted by Robin Hood’s evil nemesis, none other than the Sheriff of Nottingham himself.

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Extraordinary Family Experiences: Why Just Read About History When You Can Live It?

Standing atop a steep sandstone bluff overlooking a broad expanse of central Montana’s still-wild Missouri River, it’s not hard to understand why the journals of Lewis and Clark’s Corps Of Discovery are filled with entries that convey a sense of wonder:

“This senery already rich, pleasing, and beatiful was still farther hightened by immence herds of buffaloe, deer, elk and antelopes which we saw in every direction.”

— Merriwether Lewis,  September 17, 1804

To put these wide-eyed moments into perspective, you have to remember that the vast swath of land known as the Louisiana Purchase was little more than a blank spot on the map when Merriwether Lewis and William Clark set off from St. Louis on May 14th, 1804.  Fast forward 200 years or so and you’ll find that much of the landscape Lewis and Clark traveled through on their 8,000-mile journey remains largely unchanged.

To find these places, however, you’ll need a knowledgeable guide every bit as much as Lewis and Clark did.  Which is where these three tour companies come in:

• Lewis & Clark Trail Adventures offers three-day canoe trips on portions of the Missouri River that can be combined with hiking or mountain biking extensions along portions of the historic Lolo Trail traveled by the Corps of Discovery.  Some departures are also accompanied by noted Lewis and Clark experts including Stephenie Ambrose Tubbs, author of The Lewis and Clark Companion: An Encyclopedic Guide to the Voyage of Discovery.
• Shebby Lee Tours has put together a 15-night motorcoach tour that covers the Lewis and Clark expedition’s entire route, from the Corps Of Discovery’s starting point on the banks of the Mississippi River all the way to the Pacific Ocean.
• Odyssey Tours offers an eight-night canoeing and hiking exploration of Montana’s White Cliffs of the Missouri River and the Bitterroot Mountains that includes camping at actual Corps Of Discovery campsites, special insights from Lewis and Clark historian Clay Jenkinson, and a special evening visit with a costumed Merriwether Lewis reenactor.

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Pony Express: Saddle Up To Ride Horseback In The Hoofprints Of History

Voyages Of The Great Explorers

Of all the extraordinary experiences I’ve had over the years, the chance to take the controls of a 55-ton British Chieftain battle tank has to be among the most memorable.

Unfortunately, the Dallas-based operation that gave me that opportunity is no longer in business. The good news, however, is that I’ve found a couple places that still allow ordinary civilians to have similar tank-driving adventures:

Lazer Tanks

This small mom-and-pop shop located just north of Reno, Nevada is now the only place in North America where individuals and small groups can spend time in the driver’s seat of Cold War classics including a Soviet-era T-55 battle tank and BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle.

Tanks-A-Lot

Think of this well-established British operation as a military hardware theme park, where you can run British Chieftain tanks on a dedicated off-road course that includes the uniquely geeky thrill of driving one of these massive machines over a parked car. They also usually have a number of tanks for sale in case you’d like to bring home the ultimate souvenir!

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Summer Skirmishes: Playing Army At The Annual War & Peace Show

In a world where many people have come to view flying as an ordeal to be endured, there are still lots of us for whom the act of leaving terra firma behind remains an adventure to be savored. If you’re one of us, you owe it to yourself to book a seat on the first zeppelin to take to the skies above the U.S. in more than 70 years.

The company responsible for the zeppelin’s return to America, Airship Ventures, offers one- and two-hour flight-seeing tours around San Francisco Bay in the 246-foot helium-filled Eureka, as well as occasional cross-country flights as they reposition the zeppelin for tours in southern California or Monterey (if you have your private pilot’s license you can even take a turn at the controls). Between the zeppelin’s gentle flight characteristics—three 200-horsepower engines in rotating nacelles allow pilots to make this 747-sized airship hover, climb, and descend like a helicopter—and its huge panoramic windows, there simply isn’t a better platform for airborne rubbernecking out there.

Then, of course, there’s the sheer rarity of the experience. The Eureka is the largest airship in existence and one of only three zeppelins operating anywhere in the world, facts that should earn you some bragging rights back home.

Ultimately though, all that grown-up appeal vanishes the moment you climb aboard. From aerial views of Alcatraz and the city’s dramatic skyline to an amazing Golden Gate fly-by, even serious “been there, flown in that” aviation geeks (umm, like me for instance) are likely to find themselves with their noses pressed up against the glass like wide-eyed 10-year-olds.

In the end, it’s this sense of wonder that makes these zeppelin flights such an extraordinary experience. Even for all those poor jaded folks who insist they don’t like flying.

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Hoof-beats ring out in the night as the trail-hardened Pony Express rider approaches the lonely Nevada waystation. In one fluid movement he leaps off his tired mount, grabs the mail pouch stuffed with urgent letters from points east, vaults aboard his fresh horse and is off again at a gallop before the cloud of dust he’s stirred up even has a chance to settle.

In the 150 years since the first horse and rider left St. Joseph, Missouri on April 3, 1860, the Central Overland & Pike’s Peak Express Company—better known as the Pony Express—has become an undeniable legend of the Old West. What few people realize, however, is that each year a dedicated group of volunteers gives horse lovers and history buffs a chance to saddle up for a firsthand horseback experience of what this incredible 10-day journey from St. Joseph, Missouri to Sacramento, California was really like.

• PONY EXPRESS—BY THE NUMBERS
• 24: Hours per day the original mail pouch was kept moving.
• 12-15: The number of miles the average horse was ridden at a full-on gallop before being swapped for a fresh mount.
• 75-100: Number of miles each rider covered in one shift, though one rider covering two back-to-back stages was not unheard of.
• 20: Number of pounds each mail pouch weighed; also the weight of the rider’s other equipment including a water sack, bible, and two pistols.
• 125: Maximum weight of the rider in pounds.
• 18: Number of months the Pony Express service actually ran before being made obsolete by the telegraph.

As it turns out, there are actually several ways to participate in the National Pony Express Association annual re-ride of the entire 1,966-mile route. Anyone can pay $5 to send a commemorative letter along in the ail pouch—a relative bargain, considering it’s the same price the original Pony Express charged 150 years ago—or attend some of the dozens of events along the eight-state route. To be one of the 500 or so riders who annually recreate the ride of the Pony Express, however, you’ll need to become a member of the organization.

To learn more about this unique but short-lived chapter of American history, check out the National Park Service’s Pony Express National Historic Trail website, which has lots of info on the route and its history, including details on historic outposts that can be visited by car, 4WD, horseback, and hiking.

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Wagons West: An Authentic Wagon Train Adventure

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Tad Pierson

If you’re more than just a casual fan of the blues—someone who can trace the connection* between blues legends like Lead Belly and Muddy Waters, for example—sooner or later you have to make the pilgrimage to the land where this distinctly American art form was born.

While you could certainly explore the area on your own, I’ve discovered an alternative that will help you get a lot more out of your visit.  Namely a plugged-in local guide by the name of Tad Pierson, a one-man college of musical knowledge whose decades of experience can help you develop a much greater appreciation for the music and the landscape that spawned it.

Blues is easy to play, but hard to feel.

— Jimi Hendrix

Rather than being packed into a soulless tour bus and fed a canned recitation of local lore, Pierson’s Memphis-based American Dream Safaris offers tours designed to allow you to actually feel the unique vibe here from the back of his 1955 Cadillac.  His repertoire of excursions ranges from a three-hour “Greatest Hits” spin through the streets of Memphis to all-day expeditions along the deserted back roads of the Mississippi Delta.  Along the way you’ll be served up heaping helpings of everything from Elvis shrines to rocking gospel choirs to smoke-filled juke joints.

More than anything else, however, Pierson’s tours offer blues aficionados something as rare as an original 78 of by Blind Lemon Jefferson: A chance to have a truly extraordinary experience.

*Both were interviewed by and made their first recordings for American ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax.

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When I read that today was William “Buffalo Bill” Cody’s birthday, it made me wonder whether anyone out there was still putting on the kind of Old West extravaganzas this larger-than-life showman made famous in the waning days of the American frontier.  What I discovered will surprise city slickers and delight all those folks for whom cowboy skills are much more than just quaint historical relics.

You see, it turns out that Buffalo Bill’s Wild West is currently gearing up for its 39th season full of trick riders, fancy ropers, stagecoach robberies, Native American dancers and much more.  Modern-day impresario Montie Montana Jr. says he likes to think of this blend of history and theater as the kind of show old Buffalo Bill himself would be putting on if he were still with us.

While that’s all well and good, what makes this such an extraordinary experience is the fact that Montana holds open tryouts the morning of every performance.  Virtually everyone who turns up can earn a spot in the over-the-top grand finale of that night’s show, while a lucky few may be offered a permanent spot in the show’s internationally touring cast.

To find out where you can see Buffalo Bill’s Wild West—and possibly audition for what’s sure to be an unforgettable moment in this living-history spectacle—check the show’s online calendar.

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Panning for gold in Woods Creek

There are certain moments in history I would love to have been present at.  Not the least of which is the frosty morning of January 24, 1848 when carpenter James Marshall found those first few gold nuggets just downstream from the sawmill he was building on American River.

That’s because it was this chance discovery that started the California Gold Rush.  An event that quite literally made the Golden State what it is today.

But you probably knew that already, didn’t you? Well here’s something you might not know:  There’s still plenty of gold in the cold, clear creeks of those Sierra Nevada foothills, just sitting there waiting for someone to take it home.  And with gold prices at record highs, there’s no better time to go out and get your share.

Whether you decide to make your search for the shiny flakes a leisurely family outing or a serious full-time pursuit, the folks at Gold Prospecting Adventures in the tiny village of Jamestown, California can set you up with all the tools and instruction you need.  But one word of caution based on personal experience: Once you see those first flakes show up in the bottom of your pan, you’re liable to get a little excited.  And it’s this sense of exhilaration that I’ve found gives new meaning to the term gold rush!

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Gem Hunting In San Diego

Just heard an interview with a women who arrived at a southern California mall at 4:30 this morning because she thought joining the crowds lined up for the traditional day-after-Thanksgiving deals would be an interesting “experience.” I’m sure she’s right on some level, though honestly battling the Black Friday throngs for questionable deals on things I have no real use for is one adventure I have absolutely no interest in.

As a matter of fact, I’ve long been a proponent of the philosophy that we’re all burdened by way too much “stuff.”  All of which will wear out, go out of style, or just plain get ignored at the back of the hall closet much sooner than we’d care to imagine.  Which explains why one of XTRORD.com’s core principles is that “Possessions don’t last but memories do.”

With that in mind, it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that I recommend giving the gift of an extraordinary experience this holiday.  Besides providing your giftee with a day they’ll never forget, you can also take satisfaction in knowing that you’ll be able to avoid the whole hassle of standing in line at the Returns counter when you discover that your friends and relatives already had one.

If you’re in need of some specific ideas for once-in-a-lifetime adventure gifts, here are a few I can highly recommend based on personal experience:

• Let your favorite guitar hero live out their rock star fantasies (minus the groupies) at Rock-n-Roll Fantasy Camp.
• Give her an experience that’s as unique as she is by creating her own one-of-a-kind custom fragrance.
• Honestly now, what guy (actually, I’m told girls like it too) wouldn’t dig spending the day operating a 10-ton bulldozer or excavator?
• Top Gun wannabes can take the controls of their own fighter plane at Air Combat USA and go head-to-head with an opponent in full-on dogfights.
• If you know someone who has dreams where they find themselves flying like a bird, make those visions come true on a tandem paragliding flight.
• Find out what the whole surfing craze is about with these affordable surfing lessons.
• This drag racing school is one of the few places where putting the pedal to the metal is actually encouraged.
• History buffs and aviation geeks will both love these one-hour flights aboard an authentic World War II-era B-17 bomber.
• If you know someone who enjoys sailing, it’s a pretty safe bet they’ll get off on taking the wheel of a genuine America’s Cup yacht.

Myrtles Plantation/St. Francisville, LA

Maybe you’ve heard about this new movie Paranormal Activity, which is supposed to be the scariest new movie to come along since The Blair Witch Project made us all think twice before heading into the woods with a video camera back in 1999.

Of course, watching a  movie like this is just one way to get that spooky feeling that makes a shiver run up your spine.  For a more authentic paranormal experience, I’d highly recommend you spend the night at St. Francisville, Louisiana’s Myrtles Plantation.

This grand 1796 antebellum home has seen so much tragedy over the past two centuries that it’s no wonder many paranormal experts believe it to be one of the most haunted homes in the U.S.  You’re bound to get goose bumps just listening to the guide’s tales of ghostly encounters that actually seem to get more frequent when guests are present.  If that’s not spooky enough for you, you can arrange to spend the night in one of the rooms of the main house where former guests have heard everything from the sounds of some long-ago social event to a mortally-wounded man staggering loudly up the steep wooden stairs.

And while there’s no guarantee you’ll see a ghost, it’s a safe bet that you’ll come away with some great stories to tell at your next Halloween party!