My relationship with the US Virgin Islands National Park began when I worked with the National Park Service (NPS) at San Juan National Historic Site in Puerto Rico. In 1996 Hurricane Marilyn struck the US Virgin Islands, devastating homes, stripping the islands of most roofs, all electrical systems and water, leaving residents and NPS employees…
It saddened me to learn that Saturnino had passed on. He was someone special I met on a Machu Picchu volunteer trip. Saturnino…just his name was mystical. Named perhaps for the 6th planet from the sun or the Roman god of agriculture. We were clearly working on what he considered to be his plot of…
There is no place like Yosemite. I first visited there in 2011. I had just finished a photography class at UCLA and decided to drive up to the famous park and test out my newly acquired skills. I entered the Valley on Highway 120 and was immediately awestruck by the golden granite cliffs and sparkling…
In 2015, CONAF – the Chilean agency entrusted to manage Torres del Paine National Park – asked ConservationVIP® about the viability of converting a horse trail in the park into a hiking trail. A new trail would relieve severe overcrowding on a section of the hiking trail known as “the W”. We responded that it…
I have traveled to San Jose, Costa Rica many times to support a children’s home, but I wanted to see more of the country. I found ConservationVIP’s Costa Rican volunteer trip a way to “Travel with Purpose,” expand my interest, and to be a great opportunity to experience and serve those in remote communities. The…
“Traveling, it leaves you speechless and then turns you into a storyteller.” ~ Ibn Battuta This quote by Ibn Battuta is intensely the experience that I have on each trip with ConservationVIP. I wish I had enough page to tell you all of the speechless moments that I’ve had while traveling with ConservationVIP. The intense…