by Helen Sowers
Finally I was on my own, backpacking in the Sierra. It hadn’t been easy. When I proposed a solo hike, my husband had been adamantly opposed, citing all sorts of dangers. I persisted. I had always wanted to test my abilities alone. Finally I said, “Well, I won’t [...]

by Nancy O’Connell
An unearthly pitched shriek pierced the night. Our soup spoons stopped in midair. The cry of distress was close, a few yards away. Thousands of miles from America and all that was familiar, we’d just begun our dinner. Now we fell silent. What was happening?
Just beyond our patio wall [...]

by Peter Mandel
The Rio Negro, I am told, is a river like any other.
This is Brazil, the jungle, so it keeps tropical fish. It’s an air force base for brightly colored birds. And like the Amazon, which it empties into, it supports our boat.
But the Negro that I know a little now isn’t [...]