You are invited to set out on an amazing journey across East Africa, beginning October 5. You will trek through thick jungles, scorching deserts and the Serengeti Plain, where lions, elephants and zebras roam. You will scale snowy Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. Along the way you will meet scientists, animal experts and the people of Kenya and Tanzania. You may even get a chance to solve mysteries about the origins of man or come up with answers to problems hurting Africa's environment.
Joining you will be Dan Buettner, the expedition's leader, and seven scientists and explorers. They will make the grueling six-week, 1,500-mile trip on mountain bikes loaded with 100-pound packs holding laptop computers and supplies. Riding 60 miles during the day, camping out at night and reporting on scientific findings will test the group's endurance. Your travel plans are easy: you will tag along on the Internet.
Buettner, 37, has set three world records for long-distance bicycling. "Bicycle travel is the greatest teacher of all," he says. Six years ago, he began to team up with scientists and make his adventures available to schoolkids on the Internet. This year's trip is called AfricaQuest, and it can be followed at this website: www.classroom.com. For a $95 fee, a class can take a more active role--e-mailing the group, asking questions and voting for what route the team should take.
Last year Buettner led an exploration of Central America's Maya civilization. During that journey, kids gave scientists the key to figuring out the population of an ancient city. Buettner tells young explorers, "Your ideas count and may lead to some great discoveries!"