Tours offer adventures near and far

That first birthday together says so much. We’d been dating about five months when my future husband called me out to the back yard. There, he unloaded my unwrapped gift out of the back of his truck.

It was … a cot.

Never having experienced any particular need for a cot, nor having expressed a desire to own one, I was perplexed. But all became clear soon enough.

Within a couple of weeks, he loaned it to his friend Dave and off they went to go camping.

I stayed home to contemplate an existence spent acquiring gear. And today, I’m living the dream.

REI counts on people like my husband, people who believe there’s always a newer, better gadget out there, without which you are some sort of recreational barbarian.

Lest you ever think you have enough gear, REI organizes a series of hiking, cycling, paddling and climbing adventures all over the world intended, no doubt, to helpfully showcase the holes in your inventory.

This year’s menu of more than 90 trips includes several right here in the neighborhood.

The seven-day, 40-mile backpacking tour of Mount Rainier, for instance, meets in Seattle before heading to Berkeley Park. You’ll spend the night there, then hike through meadows full of wildflowers to Lake James. As you make your way over the next several days, you’ll descend into the Carbon River Valley, cross a suspension bridge, visit Mystic Lake, pass the Winthrop Glacier and look for wildlife near Burroughs Mountain.

The $1,199 price tag for REI members covers meals, group gear like tents and stoves, ground transportation between Seattle and the trailhead, one night at Skyscraper Mountain Lodge, guides and instruction. Nonmembers pay $1,350; both figures are based on double occupancy.

Departure dates for the Mount Rainier backpack are: July 17, July 25 (women only), Aug. 14 and Aug. 22. The group size ranges from four to eight.

Another option, the San Juan Islands Kayak, loads four to 12 of you in double sea kayaks to look for bald eagles, harbor seals, sea otters and other critters near the coves of San Juan, Stuart, Jones, Shaw and Turn islands. Guides provide instruction in paddling basics and safety procedures, help set up camp, and turn out tasty meals like smoked salmon fettuccine, Thai food and lasagna.

Choose from the following dates: July 17-22, July 31-Aug. 5 (women only), Aug. 21-26 and Sept. 4-9. The first three trips run $999 for members and $1,125 for nonmembers, based on double occupancy. Take $100 off for the September one. All depart from Friday Harbor.

Another kayak tour takes off from Vancouver Island, and British Columbia’s Gulf Islands host a seven-day cycling trip. Or can you go as far afield as you like – hiking along the Italian Riviera, cycling through Vietnam or climbing Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro.

There’s a complete schedule of 2005’s adventures at www.reiadventures.com, along with equipment lists and skills levels for each trip. You also can call (800) 622-2236.

Chateau it all out

Shout, shout, let it all out. These are the things I can do without. Come on, I’m talking to you. Come on.

Indeed.

What ever happened to those guys? With lyrics like that, Tears for Fears certainly deserves their place in the pantheon of pop. I mean, come on.

Or at least onstage at a winery near you.

Your wait is over. On July 27, they’ll dust off “Shout” and, one can hope, other hits like “Sowing the Seeds of Love” and “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” as part of Chateau Ste. Michelle’s summer concert series at the Woodinville, Wash., winery.

Seattle’s Hotel Vintage Park doesn’t want you to miss out, so it’s packaged up two reserved seating tickets with overnight accommodations in the Chateau Ste. Michelle Suite, a bottle of wine, town car service to and from the show, overnight parking and breakfast for two in the hotel’s Tulio Ristorante.

The promotion is good for the entire schedule of concerts: Gipsy Kings (Aug. 5), the KWJZ Smooth Jazz Festival (Aug. 6-7), Pink Martini (Aug. 19), Amy Grant (Aug. 21), Ben Folds with Rufus Wainwright and Ben Lee (Aug. 26), Steve Miller Band (Sept. 4) and Madeline Peyroux (Sept. 17).

Prices start at $759. Visit www.hotelvintagepark.com or call (800) 853-3914 for reservations.

Regional events

•Just Add Water/West, July 15-17, Portland. Portland Center Stage’s seventh annual playwrights festival mounts four full-length productions along with a theater fair and an evening of seven shorts centered on the spot along the Willamette River where Portland began. (www.pcs.org/503-248-6309)

•Pilchuck Glass School Open House, July 17, Stanwood, Wash. Once a year, the school ushers the public into its studio facilities for demonstrations by international glass masters, an artist slide talk and a peek at the work in progress. (www.pilchuck.com/206-621-8422)

•Whistler Music and Arts Festival, July 22-24, Whistler, B.C. Organizers have packed the second year of this festival with concerts, street entertainment and the Children’s Art Festival, which includes juggling workshops, circus workshops, storytelling and more. (www.tourismwhistler.com/877-991-9988)