(driving rock music) - Welcome to "Adventure Cities," where we are exploring Lexington, Kentucky.

(laughing) Whoa, Chip!

- From that one.

- Hit low, hit low.

(yells) Chip!

What the hell?

This isn't a tree house.

It's a tree palace.

I think this is the first time in my life that I've been more excited about the glass than the drink.

I didn't expect to find a forest like this in Kentucky.

- So you ready to go for a ride?

- Yeah, I'd love to.

- All right.

(upbeat music) I'm Jonathan Thompson, an international travel writer on a mission to discover the most dynamic, adrenaline fueled destinations on the planet.

Come with me as I explore the world's best adventure cities.

Adventure Cities is made possible by the following Alaska by rail.

Passengers can travel the coasts and wilderness of Alaska with baggage, service, meals, and wheelchair access.

Information available at AlaskaRailroad.com Discover the World.

Collette offers small group explorations tours destinations and local experiences designed especially for small groups Explorations by Collette Guided travel since 1918 ♪ upbeat music In4adventure.com Inspiring, educating and encouraging outdoor adventure Host- And by these additional sponsors ♪ upbeat music (twangy guitar music) Welcome to Lexington, Kentucky, a lively city once nicknamed the Athens of the West, but better known today as the horse capital of the world.

Whether you're a history buff, a bourbon drinker, a nature lover, or an adventure seeker, or all of the above, this warm southern town has something for you.

To begin my journey.

I head for one of Kentucky's famous horse farms, where visitors can get up close with some of the world's most majestic thoroughbreds.

- We are a thoroughbred nursery, so all we raise are thoroughbreds, which means that after they leave us, they're taught how to be ridden.

And then after they're taught how to be ridden, they would go to the pros at the racetrack.

- So what are you looking for when you're breeding?

You're looking for a certain kind of shape or length of leg, or how does that work?

- Yes, all those things.

But ultimately you're looking for willingness.

A horse's desire to win.

- So really, you are breeding character.

- Yes, you are trying to find the character because the character is that desire to win, blended with the athletic ability.

I want you to meet one of our most famous residents, Oscar Performance.

He's the world record holder at a mile.

He ran it in one minute, 31 seconds.

- So what does he do now?

He's retired from the track.

- He hangs out.

He's got this nice two and a half acre pasture.

And during the breeding season, mares come and visit him because they demand his offspring.

- They demand his Oscar Performance.

- Correct.

Exactly.

- [Jonathan] A short drive from Lexington, you'll find Red River Gorge, one of the few places on the planet where you can experience underground paddle boarding.

How long were they mining down here for?

- It started in the late 1800s and mined all the way up until the 1980s.

So it gave them plenty of time to clear out this limestone.

- [Jonathan] And so they used the limestone for roads, right?

- [Drew] Mainly road constructions to open up eastern Kentucky to some developments.

- [Jonathan] And by digging out this to make the road, they've made us a road for today, right?

- Yes, exactly right.

And what I think is awesome is there used to be trucks cruising down here, and that's something that's so easy to forget with up to 30 feet of water below us.

If you talk to the drivers, they have some fun stories about their time driving down here when it was an active mine.

- I bet they do.

It almost looks fake.

It almost looks like we're on a ride in Disneyland as well.

Have they ever filmed any movies down here?

- I've heard back in the day, they filmed a few horror movies.

Not all successful, not all great plots.

- I mean... - But, horror nonetheless.

- [Jonathan] They may not have had great plots, but they certainly had a great setting.

Rich, caramel-colored bourbon has been synonymous with Kentucky since the 18th century.

Today on the creative east side of the city in the warehouse block, there's one place where you can get hands on with the drink in a completely different way.

Morning.

- Hey, good morning.

Welcome to Trifecta Glass Art Lounge.

- Thank you very much indeed.

- I hope you got your dancing shoes on, because glass is very much a dance and you kinda have to go along with the steps.

We want you to just kind of free yourself up and come in and explore the material.

And so Shane, our studio manager, he's going to take you through that process and won't let you mess up too much.

- [Shane] You ready?

- Yeah.

Let's make something cool.

- Cool.

Let's do it.

- Blowing my own bourbon glass from scratch is mesmerizing and gratifying in equal parts.

It's a moment of connection, not just with the art, but with the spirit of Kentucky itself.

I think this is the first time in my life that I've been more excited about the glass than the drink.

- That'll hold some bourbon.

- [Jonathan] That will definitely hold some bourbon.

While my bourbon glass cools, I'm off to experience another of Lexington's unexpected adventures.

This time above Boone Creek.

Just 10 minutes drive from downtown.

- We call ourselves a canopy tour because everything is built into the canopy.

Once you get on that first platform, you're gonna be elevated the rest of the day.

Alright, let's get kicked up and get involved.

(driving rock music) - All right.

Now just to check the tightness on that.

You're at a Metallica concert.

Gimme a good headbang.

Alright, I think we're good to go there.

- All right, see you later.

(zipline whirring) - [James] Gotcha!

- [Jonathan] I brake too much.

- Got here safe and sound.

That's the primary objective.

- I didn't expect to find a forest like this in Kentucky.

- When most people think of central Kentucky, they think of rolling hills, those horse farms.

But right here in Fayette County, we also have big deep gorge with Palisades all around, creek running below.

People don't understand that we have that geography right here in Fayette County.

You don't have to go further into the mountains to get to that.

- See you on the other side.

Whoo!

Yay!

(driving rock music) I've stayed in some hotels before, which don't have elevators, but this, this has to be some kind of record.

One thing about this place is, you can guarantee you're gonna sleep well after all the exercise it takes to get to your bed.

I mean, talk about retreats.

We're in the middle of an enormous forest in one of the most spectacular accommodations that I have ever seen.

This isn't a tree house, it's a tree palace.

And to get this for the night is extraordinary.

Whew!

Well, that was well worth the effort, but now, I'm so tired after the climb, I think I need a little nap.

Ah, lucky the bed's comfy.

After some well-deserved rest, I'm ready to see Kentucky from a different perspective.

The railway tracks.

Hello.

You must be Corrine.

- I am, nice to meet you.

- Very nice to meet you.

So this is our ride, is it?

- It is.

This is what we call a rail bike.

Are you ready to go for a ride?

- Yeah, I'd love to.

- All right.

Being on the rail cars is almost like riding a racehorse because you put in a little bit of effort, but really, the car itself is doing most of the work.

- So as long as the person in the right seat is keeping a consistent pedal, that motor's working in full operation.

- Wait, are you telling me, Corrine, that I'm not doing anything, even if I'm going- - You are!

You wanna know what you are?

You're moral support.

(Jonathan laughs) - [Jonathan] As we got to the end of the rails, we ended up on this incredible clifftop outlook.

- It's absolutely gorgeous.

You're right over top the Kentucky River down below, the longest S bridge there, and right there across the way is Wild Turkey Distillery.

- You know what that makes me think?

The next place I'm gonna visit is there.

- I would definitely suggest that.

(both laugh) - [Jonathan] Today 95% of all American bourbon is produced in Kentucky.

Much of it in and around Lexington.

Across the region, scores of distilleries craft their smooth, smoky magic, drawing visitors from all over the world.

- I'm Chris.

- I'm Jonathan.

Yeah, very nice to meet you.

- Welcome to RD One.

- [Jonathan] Chris invites me to taste some of his award-winning bourbons, and introduces me to a rather curious tool called a thief.

This large copper drinking straw allows us to steal a taste of each bourbon directly from the barrel, giving us an authentic taste of Kentucky's finest.

- This is an applewood finish.

- And this is a rum cask finish.

So we take casks that were finished with rum and we put that wood actually into the barrel.

- Okay, so this is the applewood finish.

- Applewood finish.

- Ho ho ho!

That is a feisty little number, isn't it?

- And then you can come do the rum cask finish.

- Yeah, this is the one that I'm interested in.

- All right.

Let's see what you think of that one.

- Oh, that's glorious.

- Yeah.

- That is absolutely glorious.

- It's a good one.

- [Jonathan] Kentucky's countryside is just as rich and appealing as its bourbon, with rolling fields and forests waiting to be explored.

But to do it properly, you have to harness some different horsepower.

- It's a 2016 Jeep JK Rubicon.

We recommend at least 35 inch tires to run the trails we ran today.

- Looking really good right now.

- Good.

- I think you're a natural, Johnny.

- Well, we'll see.

Famous lost words, Chip.

There were moments where I thought I was going to tip the Jeep, but my instructor Chip always seemed relaxed, at least outwardly.

Now what?

- You're good.

Come in this way, just a little.

- Whoa, Chip!

What the hell?

- That hit, though.

(Jonathan yells) - Chip!

What the hell!

This cave is awesome!

- This is amazing.

- Are we going in?

- This is our go-to place.

We're going in.

- Okay.

This is it.

This is the final challenge.

(driving rock music) Here we go, here we go, here we go, here we go!

Yeah!

Come on!

- [Chip] I can't believe you made it!

- I know.

Do you feel relieved now?

- I do.

I was really nervous to begin with.

- Yeah, yeah.

- You did great.

Yeah, well, we survived.

And this place is amazing!

(inspiring music) I always knew Lexington was a horse town, but this trip showed me so much more.

It's a food town, an entrepreneurial town, a creative town, a place you experience with all your senses.

From the raw countryside, to the rich culture and the smooth bourbon, I've seen sides of this Kentucky winner that are both unexpected and unforgettable.

Welcome to "Adventure Cities," where we're exploring wonderful Whistler, Canada.

Get down, get down!

(Jonathan yells) - [Guide] When people are coming rafting here, they don't expect the river to be that big.

- See you later!

Yeah!

There it is.

One more push.

Oh, wow, that was absolutely crazy.

I'm glad I wasn't driving.

(upbeat music) - Consistently ranked among the top ski resorts in North America, Whistler is the opposite of a well-kept secret.

But while its winter charms are well known, there's plenty in this Canadian mountain town for thrill seekers to discover during the summer months too.

After the short drive from Vancouver International Airport, I'm greeted by an indigenous welcoming ceremony at Whistler's Squamish Lil'Wat Cultural Center.

- The song that we share with you from the Lil-Wat nation is called the Friendship Song.

The Friendship Song is a song that we sing as we welcome guests to either stopping by to visit or passing through our territories.

(singers chanting) - So I've been zip lining in lots of places, but this experience was very different.

- This is 1.2 kilometers, so you'll be fine from Rainbow Mountain over to Cougar Mountain.

Jonathan seemed pretty pumped.

- See you on the other side, Anna.

Yay, look at that view!

Whoa, yeah!

Yeehaw!

That was incredible.

Honestly, it felt like being a bird.

- We are currently on our fastest and longest zipline.

On a really, really good day.

You can get into the 100 kilometers.

- Gonna have a little race?

- Oh, game on.

- And see how fast we can go.

- Deal's on.

- What's the best dessert in Whistler?

- Cows Ice Cream.

- Cows Ice Cream?

Okay, right, so three scoops of Cows Ice Cream where the loser has to buy the winner.

And I thought I would have an advantage because I weighed more than her.

But actually because of her experience, she knew exactly how to position herself, and she completely destroyed me.

Come on!

Whoo!

Whoa!

(yells) - Winner winner, Cows dinner!

- Well, you smashed me there.

- Thank you so much for a brilliant time.

- Glad you enjoyed it.

- Now I guess I have to buy you some ice cream, huh?

- Yeah!

(upbeat music) - I'm actually surprised by how many bikers there are here.

It's a ski resort, obviously, but it seems like it's almost as popular amongst bikers in the summer.

- And when the bike park opened 25 years ago, it was still kind of small and niche.

And right now the bike park is just as popular in the summer as the skiing is in the winter.

- [Jonathan] I didn't have much mountain biking experience, but luckily I had a brilliant guide.

I'm ready to rumble!

(Jonathan grunts and laughs) As I was coming down the mountain, we got to a skill section where we saw a couple of what I thought were quite big jumps hanging off the side of the hill.

- Jonathan, I've been watching your ride and you're totally ready for this.

I'll give you a demonstration so you can see it in action and then you can give it a try.

- Alright.

I must confess I'm a little bit terrified, but it appears there are a load of 5-year-old children going down a more difficult ramp, so, in for a penny, in for a pound.

(intense music) Whoo!

That was really easy.

(music slowing down) (Jonathan laughs) Okay, that was a bit easier than I thought, so, now I'm feeling confident, I'm gonna try the second one, see if I can get some air this time.

Pride comes before a fall.

Feeling pretty proud right now.

Here we go!

(upbeat rock music) Whoo!

Yeah!

That was great.

- Nice work!

- How was the technique?

(crickets chirping) Good?

(laughs) Not that good.

- You landed.

(both laugh) - So I'd never really come across adventure dining before.

- There's an ATV ride all the way up Blackcomb Mountain to the Crystal Hut, about 6,000 feet where you get to experience a wonderful salmon bake dinner.

How was the ride up?

- Absolutely loved it.

I loved it.

- Nice, good, eh?

- But now I'm hungry.

- Yeah, yeah, I hear you.

- Let's do this.

So Brock, why is Whistler called Whistler?

- Because of that furry little friend just down there that you can hear whistling periodically.

- What is it?

- It's a little furry friend, yeah.

- There he is!

- That's a hoary marmot.

Yeah.

- A horny marmot?

- You got it, yeah, no, hoary.

- Oh, hoary.

(Brock laughs) - [Jonathan] Thanks for sharing that with me.

- [Brock] Yeah, pleasure, man.

(relaxed music) After a long day on the mountain, it's important to relax and recharge in the best way possible.

And luckily, Whistler has plenty of options on that front too.

It was great to get the opportunity for a little bit of downtime at the Scandinav Spa.

It gave me a chance to recharge before I experienced my final set of adventures.

(upbeat rock music) It's a little bit calm for rafting by the looks of it.

- Yeah, so what we're doing here is we start here, we cross the lake, you see over there, the river mouth is just on the other side of that, - What was cool about the rafting experience was the contrast between Green Lake and the Green River.

One minute, you're in an area where locals are sunbathing, playing with their dogs.

The next minute you're about to start heading down these epic rapids.

- And get down, get down!

All right, thank you, thank you.

Get down!

- Come on!

- Alright, Zach, oh, stay down, stay down!

- [Jonathan] There were definitely some areas of extreme turbulence as we were going down the river.

Luckily we managed to hang on.

We followed Emil's instructions, and we all survived.

Until as late as the 1960s, this was just a quaint mountain town with no road access, no electricity, and no running water.

The real game changer came in 2010 when the Winter Olympics came here.

And since then, Whistler hasn't looked back.

The Olympic legacy can be felt all over the city, and visiting the Whistler Sliding Center where the bobsledding events took place is an awesome way to experience the same racing conditions as the world's best athletes.

- There's two things unique about the Whistler Sliding Center.

It's the fastest track in the world by far, and it's also the steepest.

And also we do something really cool with the guests during the summer.

We walk them down the track.

- [Jonathan] Starting from corner seven, which is where the public tours begin.

There are 16 total corners.

So if you start from the very top, you're just going way too fast.

- [Announcer] The track is clear.

(bell rings) - There we go!

(upbeat rock music) (bobsled rumbling) (Jonathan yelling) - Wow, that was insane.

That was absolutely insane.

I could see why that's an Olympic sport.

Honestly.

I'm glad I wasn't driving.

Thank you so much.

- [Corey] Hey Jonathan.

- Very nice to meet you.

You must be Corey.

- Nice to meet you.

Stoked to be at Via Ferrata today?

- [Jonathan] I'm really looking forward to it.

- [Corey] It is a steep, thrilling climb.

And such a beautiful place here in Whistler.

- The approach to the Via Ferrata was quite daunting.

We saw just how steep it really was.

I dunno how many rungs there are between me and the summit.

But at the top we should get some spectacular views.

So let's get started.

(bright music) - [Corey] So use the natural rock here, and eventually get to the next rung.

- [Jonathan] Ah, this is cool, so the rock is now our ladder.

- [Corey] Yeah.

- And the whole point of Via Ferrata is to bring mountain climbing like this - to the general public, yeah.

- To people like me that aren't experts.

- Exactly.

- So we get to experience the thrill of being on a raw rock face like this and seeing these incredible views without having to put any of the effort into train like you.

- Exactly.

- Well, thank you.

I felt that I didn't just achieve the summit.

I also achieved a lot of knowledge in terms of rock climbing.

Come on!

Yes.

We made it!

- Nice.

This is the summit.

- [Jonathan] As I looked down, I could not only see the whole of Whistler, but I could see all of the activities that I'd experienced during the week and really reinforced what a fantastic place this is.

- Whistler has so much to offer in the summer.

It's not just the winter that provides.

- Even if you're not into adventure sports, the accessibility to see the beautiful alpine lakes, to take lifts up to the top of a mountain, it's like no other being able to see this in the summer.

- I love living here.

This is my idea of heaven.

- [Jonathan] Whistler might be best known as a winter wonderland, but it has just as much, if not more to offer in the summer months.

Up here in the beautiful mountains of British Columbia, adventure never takes a season off.

All right.

How do we get down?

- The chairlift.

- Oh, well that's a bit easier.

Adventure Cities is made possible by the following Alaska by rail.

Passengers can travel the coasts and wilderness of Alaska with baggage, service, meals, and wheelchair access.

Information available at AlaskaRailroad.com Discover the World.

Collette offers small group explorations tours destinations and local experiences designed especially for small groups Explorations by Collette Guided travel since 1918 ♪ upbeat music In4adventure.com Inspiring, educating and encouraging outdoor adventure Host- And by these additional sponsors ♪ upbeat music