Have You Been Remote?

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I can't say I have been to many remote places in the world. They may have seemed remote, like the Atacama, Siberia, or the Arctic Circle. But check this out! Looking to really get off the grid? Welcome to Point Nemo, which gives a whole new meaning to the term “middle of nowhere.” Officially known as the “the oceanic pole of inaccessibility,” Point Nemo is the oceanic point that is the farthest from any shore — you may actually be closer to astronauts in the International Space Station than you are to any human on Earth. Located in the Pacific Ocean, Point Nemo got its name from the Latin word for “no one,” as well as the fictional sailor from “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.” When drifting at Point Nemo, you are surrounded by well over a thousand oceanic miles in every direction; the closest land masses are the Easter Islands, the Pitcairn Islands, and an island off the coast of Antarctica. Animals seem to steer clear of it too — it’s been called “the least biologically active region of the world ocean.”The point I wanted to make is that travel should be meaningful to you. I generally will not go somewhere just to say I have been there. I really want to experience the places on my narrowing travel radar. Maybe the Death Road and Uyuni (salt flats) in Bolivia, Belgrade (Serbia), and Yerevan (Armenia)?Siberia, and the Atacama were both about as remote as I am comfortable with. Being stranded in either place would have been serious trouble. Finding a cold beer in either place is next to impossible.I know a few of you have been to more remote places. Kudos to you!

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