Backroads committed to reducing environmental impact of travel

04-17-2008

 

BERKELEY, CA (April 2008)—Bike-to-Work Day is everyday at Backroads, the world’s #1 active travel company.

When Backroads Founder and President Tom Hale embarked on a 5,000-mile bike ride that jump-started his company 29 years ago, he was not only traveling responsibly, but also setting the tone for the active travel industry. Nearly three decades later, Backroads continues its low environmental impact philosophy by leaving no trace during its trips while creating lasting active travel memories.

Non-motorized travel is by its very nature low-impact. In choosing to travel by bike, on foot or floating down a river, Backroads guests are selecting a form of travel that has a more positive environmental and sociological impact than mechanized forms of transportation such as tour buses and cruises.

Just as Hale began to view the world differently during his inaugural biking reconnaissance to Death Valley, Backroads active trips continue to open travelers’ eyes to the world and global responsibility.   

“I simply can’t imagine a better way to immerse yourself in the life of a region, to explore hidden corners and appreciate nuances while enjoying the benefits and enormous satisfaction of traveling under your own power,’’ Hale said. “These are experiences you cannot have behind the wheel of a car, or on a train or a tour bus, or in a few excursions from a cruise ship or a secluded resort. Active travel is, at its heart, a way of connecting more authentically with the world. ”

Through its partnership with Native Energy, Backroads offsets the carbon footprint of support vans on its trips by contributing to a fund that develops new wind turbines in Alaska’s native villages. Backroads will offset 897 tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2008, enabling Alaskans to produce equivalent amounts of alternative sustainable energy.

Ecotourism is woven into every Backroads trip from traveling responsibly to recycling to respecting the natural beauty in all 40 countries it visits.

“Ecotourism means having ones eyes wide open to the effect one has on a place, because no matter what, no matter how well intentioned one is, by definition there is an effect,’’ Hale said. “Make it a good one or at least as good as it can be. Remember that travel is or should be an inherently positive act that opens people's eyes and minds to other people with different values and expectations, and that this is a very good thing.”

Backroads reaches out to many communities worldwide. For example, in Baja, Mexico, Backroads supports a local children’s bike club. 

In Costa Rica, Backroads financially supports the Rainmaker Conservation Project, a privately owned rain forest reserve that spans over 1,530 acres of 80 to 90 percent virgin forest. The project aims to preserve one of the last remnants of primary rain forest along the Central Pacific Ocean, where 70 percent of Costa Rica’s flora and fauna species can be found.

This year, Backroads is a sponsoring partner of Climate Ride 2008, which seeks to raise money and call attention to climate change and renewable energy legislation. The five-day, 320-mile ride from New York City to Washington, D.C., will take place Sept. 20-24.

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