25 Transformative Trips Every Guy Should Take

Tackle 300 miles of some of the most powerful white water on the planet the old-school way, in a wooden boat.

Why: Spending 13 to 18 days navigating the Colorado River through the mile-deep canyon, gazing up at 2 1/2 billion years' worth of the earth's crust on a nimble dory that launches you off the lips of roiling rapids turns you into a geologist, a waterman, and a more humble human being.

For the truest racetrack experience, skip the supercar challenges that cost thousands of dollars. Instead, hit the Bondurant High Performance Driving School in Phoenix. For groups of 8 or more, you can try the facility's Pro Kart Racing program, where you’ll race in their go-karts that go up to 50 mph.

Still have a need for speed? Try their Dodge/SRT Drag Racing program, where you can drive the world’s only drag racing course that features the 840-horsepower Challenger SRT Demon.

Why: Apart from the thrill (and the sweet smell of burning rubber), you'll learn skills that could make you a safer driver.

Steven Raichlen, the of Planet Barbecue!, teaches a 3-day barbecue course called Barbecue University twice each summer at the five-star Broadmoor resort in Colorado Springs. To Raichlen, barbecue is more than just an American obsession with fiery regional rivalries. It's a global cuisine. And his syllabus reflects that with recipes from Argentine steak houses, Thai street carts, and Korean BBQ joints.

This year, the course is heading to the Montage Palmetto Bluff resort in Bluffton, South Carolina, but it's already sold out. Keep an eye on Raichlen's website for the next dates.

Why: After Barbecue University, everything you cook on the grill—salmon, steak, vegetables, and desserts (like pear and raspberry crumble smoked in a cast-iron skillet)—will taste better.

The Chyulu Hills of Kenya—the inspiration for Hemingway's Green Hills of Africa—are where three national parks converge to protect lions, rhinos, elephants, buffalo, and leopards—the big five—and Masai warriors have become its conservationists and guides. Campi ya Kanzi, a Masai-owned lodge here, combines luxury and wilderness. Game runs in open-top jeeps ensure that you see as much wildlife as possible, while daily hikes let you feel the pulse of the land.

Why: A safari is a once-in-a-lifetime primal experience that connects you with beautiful, and often endangered, species.

Stalking, hooking, cleaning, and cooking your own trout is a rite of passage. The Ranch at Rock Creek, in southwestern Montana, is "A River Runs Through It" country and the place to hone your fly casting. Ride into the Sapphire Mountains, spend the afternoon strategically positioning your fly in the watery path of wild rainbow, brown, bull, and cutthroat trout, and then grill your catch whole over the fire.

Why: It's the Western movie fantasy of horses, fishing, and mountains incarnate.

The world's largest mammal can reach lengths of 100 feet (think three school buses) and weigh in at 200 tons—more than an entire herd of elephants. Hundreds of these leviathans winter in the Sea of Cortez, at a preserve off Baja Mexico called Loreto Islands Bay Marine Park. It's the only place in the world where you're likely to be able to paddle with them.

Why: Sidling up to a submarine-size blue in your 17-foot Sea Quest Expeditions kayak will remind you of your place in the pecking order.

Think you know wine? Wait till you're standing among the vines at a Russian River Valley winery with a harvesting knife in your hand. Head to the Buena Vista Winery for their Winemaker for a Day experience, where you'll be able to blend your own bottle of red wine. The property is California’s oldest commercial winery, and you can also try their walk-in bar tastings, a museum tour, and a barrel tasting.

Why: Anyone can make beer. You'll gain a deeper insight into the art and science of what makes a great wine.

Head to Oregon City, let your inner kids out, and climb up Pagoda, a 75' Oregon White Oak. As Tree Climbing Planet explains, the tree is perfect for training because it has "stout lateral branches for easy crown movement."

Tree Climbing Planet teaches its patrons how to recreationally climb trees, and you can opt for a day lesson or stay for a week to learn even more. As a reporter from Vice noted, some students get to comfortable being up in the air that they'll string hammocks between tree branches and literally sleep under the stars.

Why: It's fun, and you'll contemplate your own humble existence in the shadows of these giants that are the only native oak species in British Columbia, Washington, and northern Oregon.

The mountain might rumble, hiss, and spew fiery boulders at any time, your shoes will probably melt, and you can roast a marshmallow at the 8,373-foot summit of Guatemala's Volcán Pacaya. Most hikers do this trip in a day, but if you camp overnight on the volcano, you'll hear the lava roll through the forest crunching vegetation, and see it light up the night sky without another traveler in sight.

Why: Where else can you walk up to globs of 2,000? F–plus liquid and see inside the earth's core?

Going face-to-face with penguins, iguanas, blue-footed boobies, and sea lions trumps peering through binoculars from the deck of a cruise ship, which is how most travelers experience the Galápagos. You could also head to the islands with a tour group.

Why: It's a time warp: Limits on development mean the islands look much as they have for eons, and the animals are every bit as innocent, inquisitive, and bizarre as they were when Darwin encountered them on his Beagle voyage 175 years ago.

You'll be stripped of your watch and cellphone. You'll carry no pack, sleeping bag, headlamp, or tent. And, after instructors at Boulder Outdoor Survival School teach you which plants are edible, how to find drinkable water, and other survival skills, you'll be guided into the red canyons of southern Utah. Toward the end of your course, you'll go on a solo expedition.

Why: You'll live in the moment. In fact, you'll never feel more alive or empowered than when you conquer nature using nothing but your wits, a poncho, and a big knife.

There's a better way to protect the earth than sending a check to some green charity: Go there yourself. Hook up with a scientific expedition for a week to assist research efforts in the world's most biodiverse jungle. Earthwatch Institute organizes trips to different regions of the world, and you can choose from a multitude of voyages, from going to Uganda to help investigate threats to chimps, to heading to Bali to combat plastic pollution.

Why: You'll see things you never imagined, and make a hands-on difference in protecting the planet.

A weeklong canoe trip on the Allagash River has been a classic wilderness expedition since Thoreau did it in 1846, 1853, and 1857 for his book The Maine Woods. A roughly 100-mile stretch in the state's northern tip is still untamed and now protected. It starts at Chamberlain Lake, meanders through thick pine forests skirting desolate ponds, rushes down a 9-mile stretch of Class II rapids, and emerges at Allagash Village.

Why: The rhythm of the river and the sounds of the forest will reboot your priorities.

Reliable 15 to 25 mph winds riffle the shallows of Cape Hatteras National Seashore, which stretches for more than 70 miles on North Carolina's narrow Outer Banks, making it the ideal beach to learn to kitesurf. The sport, which is a hybrid of surfing, skateboarding, snowboarding, and kiting, has a steep learning curve, but beginners typically start skimming across the water in 3 days. And on the off chance of a windless day, you can always learn to paddleboard.

Why: This is the closest feeling to soaring like an eagle.

The world's second-largest barrier reef, off the coast of Belize, brims with so much marine life that scientists have identified only a fraction of the species living there. It's home to the world's largest West Indian manatee population, 500-plus species of fish, 65 kinds of coral, and a jamboree of sharks, turtles, and birds. It's such a diverse ecosystem that it was named a World Heritage Site—and you don't even need scuba gear to appreciate its splendor. Just bring a mask and snorkel.

Why: The 185-mile-long reef, considered one of the world's seven underwater wonders, could soon go the way of Hanging Gardens of Babylon because it's under threat from warming temperatures and ocean acidification, among other factors.

Imagine a week on a tropical beach that leaves you trimmer and fitter yet still feels like a vacation. Southern California–based West Point graduate and international fitness champion Sonki Hong takes his fitness boot camp methods—which combine everything from plyometrics and beach running to body-weight drills and martial arts—to Waikiki Beach in the spring and Maui in the fall for 7 days each. You'll also be kayaking, swimming, surfing, snorkeling, and scarfing ultrafresh sashimi.

Why: Training fads wash in and out, but the discipline and fitness techniques you pick up in Hawaii will help you stay lean your whole life.

Hike the 150-mile trail around the 26,545-foot shark tooth that is Annapurna, and do it the way a local would, by eating and staying at teahouses in Nepalese villages. Going without a guide lets you set your own schedule, so you can spend an extra day or two in favorite spots.

Why: Two reasons. First, large segments of the circuit are expected to be turned into roads in the next couple of years, adding unwanted company to the climbs up 17,000-foot passes and polluting the pristine Himalayan views. Second, every time you look in the mirror afterward, you'll see the guy who trekked Annapurna without a guide. For details on trip and route planning, pick up Trekking Annapurna, a book by adventurer Bob Gibbons.

Galloping across the grasslands of South Dakota, Montana, and Idaho with a Lakota Sioux horse expert gives you a window into modern and ancient Native American life. You'll ride among herds of bison, see a wolf-recovery refuge, and visit the site of Custer's Last Stand and the Crazy Horse memorial.

Why: It's the history lesson you never really had, and a way to connect with America's indigenous culture and people.

Most travelers simply watch at Carnival, which is actually a giant samba contest, but you can participate and groove your way through the streets surrounded by glamazons in feather headdresses. First, choose a samba school—Salgueiro won in 2009. Then plan to arrive several days before the event to practice your moves, laze on Ipanema beach, and sip caipirinhas.

Why: Every time you hit the dance floor in the future, it will be with a surer step.

Moab meets the Grand Canyon 200 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border, in the state of Chihuahua. The Copper Canyon is 20 red-rock canyons plunging nearly 10,000 feet to a web of rivers. The network of singletrack trails are courtesy of the Tarahumara, Native American long-distance runners who have been pounding the dirt here for centuries.

Why: Riding to the bottom of the canyon and all the way back up tests your mettle and your quads, and instills a sense of awe for geological phenomena.