While It Lasts

At BeeTopia, travelers can pull on a veil, approach a working hive and taste the landscape from a beekeeper’s point of view. Photo Credit: Gentry Hale I used to believe all honey was created equal and that bees were something to run away from. Then I booked a tour of Savannah Bee Company’s new BeeTopia experience. The tour begins at the company’s new headquarters at 313 Stiles Ave. in Savannah, Georgia, a 65,000-square-foot warehouse near Enmarket Arena.

There’s a fleeting window in Aspen when summer lingers, but autumn is already whispering through the high country days are still warm enough for hiking, biking and afternoons on the water, while cooler nights and the first hints of gold in the aspen groves signal that another season is on its way. Labor Day weekend lands right in the middle of this magical season. This year, the long weekend also brings some big names to the mountains.

September ushers in spring in South Africa and is one of the most interesting times of year to visit. September is shoulder season, meaning you can expect fewer crowds and pleasant weather while still experiencing once-in-a-lifetime sights. South Africa is a large country, bigger than every state in the United States, except Alaska. This means that even though it’s officially spring, climates across the country can differ, and so can the changes that happen during this special time.

When summer vacation is over and the Wyoming air starts feeling the first hints of fall, the crowds dissipate across Jackson Hole and Grand Teton National Park. At the same time, the park comes alive with resident wildlife beginning to prepare for winter. Bull elk bugle across the valley and begin to gather their harem for the upcoming rut. Mother moose lead their calves, now close to four months old, through the park, teaching them the skills they will eventually need to survive on their own.

From the cliffs above Walker Bay, it can take a minute to realize that the dark shape in the water isn’t a rock. A broad back breaks the surface, followed by a puff of mist. Sometimes a tail rises behind it, and if you’re lucky, the body of a whale comes out of the water, briefly suspended above the waves before crashing back into the bay.