Chase after the biggest storms
Denver, Colorado, USA
Believe it or not, storm chasing is one of the fastest growing tourist activities in the US – and it’s not just bleach-blonde adrenaline junkies who are getting involved. Every year from June to August, America is pounded by supercell storms with some towns finding themselves under attack from raging 100mph winds and hailstones the size of golf balls.
If this sounds like your idea of fun, there are companies offering trips that take you to the heart of the action – and sometimes a bit too close for comfort. After boarding a ‘battle bus’ with satellite storm-tracking technology, the mission each day is to rendezvous with the biggest storm you can find. Then just sit back and admire it all (from a safe distance) as the huge blue skies overhead become engulfed by a swirling mass of grey and black.
If you’re lucky it might even turn into tornado chasing.
Fear factor 6/10
Unless you get caught in the eye of a storm.
Difficulty 2/10
Just sit back and enjoy the show.
A six-day storm-chasing trip costs from £1,595. Book with Silver Lining Tours (+1 832 717 4712, www.silverliningtours.com).
British Airways flies to Denver from London Heathrow. Visit ba.com.
Stake out snakes on safari
Watamu, Kenya
Mention the Big Five to most people and they immediately think of lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant and the black rhino. However, on the east coast of Kenya, it means something more slippery – and toxic. The coastal region around Watamu is renowned for having the biggest population of deadly snakes on the planet – 126 different species, to be exact.
Book a place on the snake safari and you’ve got a good chance of getting up close and personal with all of them. It’s run by snake expert Royjan Taylor and the aim is to educate people that snakes are not all bad.
Days are spent roaming the bush in search of green and black mambas, puff adders, pythons, cobras and the boomslang – all of which are lurking closer than you might think. Taylor is one of the world’s leading snake experts and operates a free removal service for the local community as well as running a snake farm that produces anti-venom.
Fear factor 7/10
Depending on your fear of snakes, of course.
Difficulty level 4/10
Luckily you only have to watch.
The snake safari costs from £49 for a day. Book with Bio-Ken Snake Farm (+254 423 2303, www.bio-ken.com).
BA flies to Nairobi from London Heathrow. Book a flight on ba.com now.
Drive a dragster at 200mph
Santa Pod Raceway, Northamptonshire, UK
The statistics of this alone are enough to have your palms sweating. Drive from a standing start to 170mph in less than eight seconds. Even in the mad, bad world of motorsport, dragsters are still regarded as rather ‘edgy’.
Ask BBC Top Gear presenter, Richard Hammond, who was lucky to escape with his life after a mechanical failure in the jet-powered car he was driving in 2006. While the safety procedures at Santa Pod Raceway are incredibly strict and the American-built ‘funny car’ immaculately maintained, driving a dragster is still seat-of-the-pants stuff. Bolted in just inches away from your head is a 1,000bhp engine.
Even the driver becomes something of a passenger once he drops the clutch. And just to make sure that you don’t back out at the last minute, there are two packed grandstands of spectators watching. You have been warned.
Fear factor 9/10
This is awe-inspiring stuff.
Difficulty level 4/10
Assuming you don’t get travel sick.
Dragster rides cost from £250. Book with Santa Pod Raceway (+44 (0)1234 782 828, www.santapod.co.uk).
‘Ash’ board down a live volcano
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is renowned for the number of craters that punctuate its landscape from north to south. All but seven of them are now dormant, which makes for some great hiking. But that would be too tame.
Instead, head to Cerro Negro, the country’s most active crater, where you can strap on a snowboard a volcano to the bottom on a bed of steaming hot ash. A two-hour hike to the top brings you to the belly of the beast, where smoke and lava still spew from its red-hot centre.
Fear factor 6/10
If Cerro Negro erupts mid-ride, you might want to reassess.
Difficulty level 8/10
Snowboarding on ash is a tough call for anyone.
Trips cost from £1,899, for eight nights, including flights and B&B. Book with Black Tomato (+44 (0)20 7426 9888, www.blacktomato.co.uk).
BA flies to Managua via Miami from London Heathrow and Gatwick. Visit ba.com for details.
Go to the next page for diving with sharks, bungee jumping and more extreme adventures.
Make the most of the sunshine with the five best outdoor workouts. Read about them here.
