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By Root 723 0

’ll have the opportunity to talk with your guide rather than sitting in a nose-to-tail group. As the conversation deepens, you’ll learn about medicinal plants as well as the history of the people and what they consider their holocaust, how they were treated by the Spanish before and after the 1680 revolt, the 1847 siege by U.S. soldiers, and how Teddy Roosevelt took their land for the Carson National Forest—and how that land was returned by President Nixon.

The land around Taos, New Mexico, is beautiful, rugged horseback riding terrain.

You shouldn’t visit Taos without going to the Pueblo, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The existing structures are more than 800 years old, and the land has been continuously occupied for more than a millennium. Taos Pueblo residents are conservative and private, limiting most visitors to the town plaza area and casino. Stormstar says Taos Ranch is the only authorized guide into the foothills.

Much of the tourist activity in Taos itself centers on the Plaza and the surrounding blocks. It’s like a smaller Santa Fe without the kitsch. The range of art galleries, museums, shops, and restaurants satisfies all tastes and budgets. The Taos Ski Valley, about 18 miles (29km) from town, accommodates all skier levels but encompasses some of the toughest runs in the country. Nearby Angel Fire Resort affords skiing, golf, fishing, and, in late August and early September, a wonderful series of classical music concerts. —LF

Taos Pueblo, Veterans Hwy. ( 575/758-1028;www.taospueblo.com).

Tour: Taos Indian Horse Ranch, 340 Little Deer Run Rd. ( 800/659-3210 or 505/758-3212; www.taosindianhorseranch.com).

When to Go: Year-round; best riding May–Oct.

Albuquerque International Airport (135 miles/217km).

$$–$$$ Casa de las Chimeneas, 405 Cordoba Rd. ( 877/758-4777 or 575/758-4777; www.visittaos.com). $–$$ Taos Hampton Inn, 1515 Paseo del Pueblo Sur (& 800/HAMPTON [426-7866] or 575/737-5700; www.hampton.com).

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Killer Whale Safari

Orcas in the Lofoten Islands

Nordland, Norway

Imagine, if you will, a string of northerly isles where colorful fishing shacks stand against a backdrop of craggy granite cliffs, where red-cheeked children play in the shadow of rugged gray pinnacles. Beautiful and awe-inspiring, the Lofoten Islands are a Grimms’ fairy tale come to life.

The Lofotens are a remote island archipelago in the north Atlantic and a district in the county of Nordland, Norway. The landscape is breathtakingly cinematic, with ice-tipped peaks fringed by deep blue seas and a rocky shoreline fronted by sandy beaches. The Lofoten islands stretch 250km (155 miles) south-southwest from the fjord of Ofoten to the outer Roest islands. Although the islands lie north of the Arctic Circle, the passing Gulf Stream keeps temperatures relatively mild. The air is fresh and clean, kissed by sea spray and Arctic breezes.

The main islands are Austvågøy, Gimsøy, Vestvågøy, Flakstadadøy, Moskenesøy, Varøy, and Røst. On the eastern coast of Austvågøy, Svolvær is the largest town in the archipelago. A Norwegian fjord, the Vestfjorden, separates the islands from the mainland. This body of water is the heart of the Norwegian cod fisheries. If fishing for monster cod is on your agenda, head to the old fishing camp of Henningsvar, with its quaint waterfront, rorbu cabins (www.henningsvar-rorbuer.no), and fish-drying racks—nicknamed “Lofoten’s cathedrals.”

In late autumn, when the herring return to the Vestfjorden for the winter, they are chased by between 500 and 700 hungry orcas, also known as killer whales. Orcas can grow up to 4 to 5 tons, live to be 60 years old, and hang out with their family their entire lives. (Well-mannered, too; they eat only one herring at a time.) You can take a “killer whale safari” to see these amazing animals up close with one of several outfitters, including Orca Tysford ( 47/75-77-53-70; http://tysfjord-turistsenter.no/safari), which takes visitors out on the sea by large boat or inflatable dinghy and—if you’re really crazy—lets you snorkel as a pod of killer whales passes by. GoArctic/Orca