October 24, 2016 Wilderness: n. An uncultivated, uninhabited, and inhospitable region. “I am losing precious days. I am degenerating into a machine for making money. I am learning nothing in this trivial world of men. I must break away and get out into the mountains to learn the news.” – John Muir From the heavy depths of the steamiest jungle to the jagged, frozen peak of the highest mountain, from expanses of coastline teeming with life to vast grasslands rippling in the wind like water, the world’s wildernesses have one thing in common: quiet. This isn’t absolute silence, but a busy hush, the soft song of nature, as far removed from the electrical, mechanical hum of day-to-day life as it’s possible to be. The personal importance of taking time away from the headlong charge of the civilised world can’t be overstated. Heed the call of the wild with our top five places for wilderness lovers… Finland Unbroken blankets of snow lie like blank sheets of paper over evergreen forests. Mountains stand tall over clear blue lakes, reflecting the sky. The Northern Lights dance and whirl overhead like magic. Finland is as wild as they come. Take me there: Finland Holidays Mongolia The steppes of Mongolia seem to stretch into infinity. The world’s most sparsely populated sovereign country spans deserts, mountains and grasslands alike beneath impossibly big blue skies. Take me there: Mongolia Holidays Ecuador Ecuador is a truly diverse paradise; ranging from the mighty Andes to the Amazon and, of course, the Galapagos Islands, teeming with unimaginably bizarre and beautiful wildlife. Take me there: Ecuador Holidays Antarctica There’s nowhere wilder than this. After a voyage to the literal end of the Earth, disembark in an alien, isolated landscape of ice sculpted by nature. The stillness is broken only by groaning glaciers and calving cliffs of ice, and penguins waddling about their business. Take me there: Antarctica Holidays Botswana Botswana is home to the Okavango Delta, the world’s largest inland delta. Its swampy depths buzz with life; these wetlands have a heavy, slow energy, and are home to countless animal species, including hippos, crocodiles and elephants. There’s no light pollution in this place; the milky way is visible on a clear night. Take me there: Botswana Holidays