Many of you may have noticed that the US dollar has strengthened against other currencies in recent weeks. For our clients and friends who pay in US dollars, that means that we can offer some of our trips at lower prices than we posted just a few months ago. This particularly impacts our trips on the Bark Europa, for which we have to convert your dollars to Euros. So, for that trip in particular, you will see a marked reduction in prices.

When we post dates and prices each year, we try to forecast what exchange rates will be, and set fair US-dollar prices for each trip. Where we have to pay our partners in a foreign currency, we are taking on the risk of currency fluctuations for our US-dollar clients. However, when exchange rates change as dramatically as they have recently, we find it necessary to make mid-year corrections.

For our overseas clients, we know that you watch exchange rates carefully and hold us accountable to keep our prices fair and accountable. Please let us know any time that you notice that a Rannoch Adventures trip price seems high or out of step with other posted prices. We will match competitive prices whenever we see them or you let us know about them!

Rannoch Adventures will soon introduce Iceland as our newest adventure destination. Iceland is an enchanting place with warm, friendly people and European amenities. While the capital, Reykjavik offers a full range of city life the reason to go to Iceland is the stunning natural beauty and the wide range of outdoor adventures. And, Iceland is a year-round destination, which is not all that cold in the winter. Despite the shorter days, winter offers many outdoor activities, as well as many celebrations and lively social life.

Our first Iceland trips will be multi-day, horseback rides into the highlands. On these trips you will ride the winsome and athletic Icelandic horses – a breed largely unchanged since being brought to Iceland by Viking settlers over 1000 years ago. These horses, perfectly adapted to Icelandic conditions, will transport you across the volcanic landscape where waterfalls, lava fields, volcanoes, geothermal springs and glaciers all meet.

Later, we will introduce a range of self-drive 4X4 tours, multi-adventure tours featuring glacier and caving activities, and cold-water scuba diving. And, if you go in the winter, you have only to get outside of Reykjavik on a clear night to see the Northern Lights shimmering above the island. Summer, meanwhile, provides many hours of daylight in which to take in all of the things there are to do on this exciting island.

We test a lot of horseback riding trips offered by our partners, and we like to take as many photos of those trips as possible. Sounds simple, eh? Just sit on the horse and take the picture, right? Well, in our experience, it's not quite that simple. So, we thought we would pass on some of what we have learned via our Newsletter.

The first catch to taking pictures from horseback is carrying your camera safely while riding."Safely" in this case means protecting both you and the camera from injury. A camera flopping about your neck could frighten your equine friend and/or come off of you in the event of any number of things. So, how do we safely and conveniently take photos from horseback? Here are a couple of tips:

First tip is to carry as small a camera as you possibly can. Then, for maximum safety, put your camera in a saddlebag that is firmly attached to your saddle. If that won't work, or if you want instant access to your camera, carry it with the strap around your neck, but tuck it under your jacket so it doesn't flop about and scare the horse.

Whether you have opted for maximum safety and put your camera in a saddlebag, or opted for convenience and are carrying it under your outerwear, your camera is safely stowed and you are ready to ride.

Catch 2 is how to get your camera out, aim it from the back of an animal that may not want to stand perfectly still, and get that prize shot. We'll discuss some tips for doing all of that in our next Newsletter.

Many of our friends have written us following the TRAINS magazine article about the Wolsztyn Experience steam locomotive driving course.  As the article (July Edition) described, this is truly a one-of-a-kind adventure for people who like or even think they might like the thrill of driving a real, full-sized steam locomotive on a real mainline railroad.

The problem is that places for the Wolsztyn Experience fill up early.  There are only places for six participants each week and the course does not operate during July and August, traditional vacation times in Europe.  Our American friends especially are surprised to find Wolsztyn Experience books up approximately six months in advance, even into the winter months.  It turns out that a lot of European rail enthusiasts already know about Wolsztyn Experience and make it part of their holiday schedule every year.

We urge anyone who wants to experience this tremendously exciting course to book ASAP!  The course is currently booked through the end of this year, and early 2006 is starting to fill.  If you think you want to go, you should email us and let us hold a place for you now. 
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In next month's newsletter we will be highlighting some new and very exciting equestrian adventures in Uruguay and Argentina. Here's a little taste of what's to come...

Rannoch is happy to announce that we will be partnering with Sally Vergette to bring you some of the very best riding tours in South America. Our first offering is the 'Painted Bird Tour' in Uruguay. It is an outstanding combination of great, fast-paced riding, sublime scenery and gorgeous estancias which serve as your accommodations. It is a fantastic experience which will leave you wanting to return to this very pretty corner of South America.

Another exciting Rannoch exclusive is a Polo Clinic in Argentina. The Argentines have long been considered to be some of the best Polo players in the world and we are extremely pleased to present this outstanding opportunity to you.

More to come in next month's newsletter!