He’s 80 and has been walking the world for 16 years

by Abha Malpani on

Sometimes it’s years before we hear of the real vagabonds; I wonder how many we never hear of at all! Henry Lee McGinnis has been walking the world for the last 16 years, Google him and I find nothing other than a one-minute video on BBC.

So far he has walked over 80,000 miles across the US and 66 other countries. He is currently entering South America and will finish around 2010 in Texas, after passing through Central America and Mexico.

According to his website, the former Methodist minister and World War II army sniper, carries a 100-pound rucksack with everything but a kitchen sink, and a six-foot steel-tipped walking staff for protection. When he is not camping out, he looks for local hosts for a bed.

Inspired by reading National Geographic since he was 6, at the tender age of 9, he knew this is what he wanted to do. He believes that most people are searching for answers to the following questions: Who am I? Why am I here? Where am I going? This walk is an inner and outer pilgrimage for Mcginnis.

At 80, the man is still full of life: he wants to write a book of his journey and learn to play tennis before he is 100!

On the video, he leaves one message [paraphrased]: “When you are retired, don’t sit in front of the TV set and gain 20-50 pounds drinking beer and eating sandwiches, go see the world!”

Prime example of the “it’s never too late” notion: If he could start his pedestrian world tour dream at 62, we really have no excuse to follow ours!

Photo of the Day (04/21/08)

by Iva Skoch on

I would call this photo Light at the end of the tunnel. The tall, thin silhouette symbolizes our times almost too well: Black and white, always rushing somewhere “better.” If only he knew what the man at the end of the tunnel probably already knows and what we’ll never know.

Bernard-SD took this awesome photo in Hyderabad, India in March 2008.

***To have your photo considered for the Gadling Photo of the Day, go over to the Gadling Flickr Pool and post it. Make sure it is not copyrighted, otherwise we can’t post it here.***

No Wrong Turns: How to Surf, by a Wannabe Surfer

by Kelsey Mulyk on

I believe the time people put in working, running errands, going to the gym and all the other daily stuff we feel we have to do starts to take its toll on how we live and think. This is a big reason why Tom and I decided to pack up and leave for a little while…to put things in perspective, do a bit of work on the road and to surf (ok…learn to surf for me).

My surfing experience is limited to three times…once in New Zealand, once in Australia and one time in Costa Rica where an encounter with a jellyfish put my surfing attempts on hold. But now, since we have stopped in the Baja and there are some good learning beaches, I have decided to dedicate a few months to surfing, though the extent of my abilities so far is to stand up on my board. I’m working on it.

A few things beginner surfers need to know and remember: it is not as easy as it looks. No matter how athletic you are, expect to fall over and over and over again; practice makes perfect. Coordination, decent physical fitness and sheer determination (stubbornness…call it what you will) to get back up and keep trying are ideal traits if you want to learn how to surf.

Get the right gear

Extreme beginners should rent a foam long board. These range from 9 to 10 feet long and are wider than most surfboards, which provide more stability allowing more opportunity for “newbies” to pull themselves up. Make sure your board has a leash to prevent it from getting away from you or from maiming some poor innocent bystander — drawing blood isn’t a good way to make friends.

You are going to be out there for a while so a wetsuit is vital. Keeping warm while you are battling the waves helps you focus on learning to surf instead of wondering why you can’t feel your feet.

Figure out your lead foot

Your lead foot is the foot that feels most comfortable in front when you are standing on the board. If you snowboard or skateboard you won’t have any trouble figuring out which foot feels more natural as your lead foot; if you have no clue ask for assistance at the surf shop. Or have a friend stand behind you and, when you are not ready, give you a little push…whatever leg comes out first to prevent you from falling is your lead foot. “Regular” stance is left foot front, while riding “goofy” refers to those who prefer their right foot forward. If you still cannot figure it out you just have to get out there and see what feels best to you.

Take a Lesson

From my meager experience it is valuable to either take a lesson or have a seasoned surfer walk you through the motions of surfing on the beach. Walking into the ocean without any idea of what you are supposed to do is a waste of your time and the surfboard rental fee.

How to stand up on your board

(Explaining this definitely makes it sounds much easier than it is.)

  1. Lie down in the center of your board with your feet just hanging over the tail end and your head facing the top (the “nose”) of the board.
  2. Grip the “rails” (the sides) of the board and push yourself into a “push up” position and drag one knee through your arms so you are in a crouching-lunge position.
  3. Use your front foot and push yourself up to stand.
  4. Try and stand with your feet about hip distance apart with your lead foot in the middle and you back foot closer to the tail end of the board.
  5. The most important thing you can do to keep your balance is to try and keep your feet around the center of the board.

Walk through these steps a few times on the beach before hitting the waves. After a couple run-throughs, pick up your board, strap on your leash, imagine yourself catching a wave and get out there. Though I would never call myself a “surfer,” in the past few weeks I have managed to stand up on my board. I am definitely not consistent but with a bit more practice I can only get better. I should warn you: once you start to get the hang of surfing it’s hard to think about anything else but getting back in the water. Oh yeah and one more tip from this wannabe surfer: keep your mouth shut when you wipeout.

Salt mine tours for health and fun

by Jamie Rhein on

Tom Barlow over at Wallet Pop and I started talking about salt mines a few days ago. He mentioned a post he wrote about the health benefits of salt mines and places one can go to see them. An impressive one that neither of us have been to, but agreed that we should is the Wieliczka Salt Mine near Krakow in Poland. It’s a World Heritage site, and part of it has been carved into a salt cathedral. Our talk reminded me of my own salt mine tour in Germany.

Touring the salt mine in Berchtesgaden was a totally funky, touristy thing to do, but one I have remembered over the years as a high point. Perhaps, it doesn’t take much for me to be amused.

We donned mining outfits (over their clothes), put cloth mining hats on our head and gathered with the other English speakers at various points along the way to listen to recorded messages about the history of the mine and how it works. The guides spoke in German. Part of the tour involved sitting, one of us in front of the other, astride two wooden chutes which we slid down to get to a lower section. One of the reasons for the mining outfits was to protect our clothing from the salt. Plus, it was a chance to play dress up and add some ambiance to the experience.

Berchtesgaden may sound familiar. It is also where Hitler hung out at Eagle’s Nest. This area in the German Alps is gorgeous.

Other salt mines to tour:

Also in Poland, there is the Bochnia Salt Mine which is older than Wieliczka, and from the comments people have written about it, sounds like it’s worth a visit.

There are three mines near Salzburg, Austria. Here’s the link that leads to info on all three of them: Salzwelten Salzburg, Hallstaat and Altaussee. There are discount tickets for family travelers. Rick Steves has recommended Hallstaat, according to what I’ve read.

The Kansas Underground Salt Museum in Hutchinson, Kansas. The museum is housed inside a working salt mine where you can learn about salt mining first hand.

Gadling Gear: Burton’s Sleeper Hoodie v2.0

by Grant Martin on

One of my favorite ways to pass time on my regular 6AM flights out of New York City is by boarding early, cashing out and sleeping until touchdown in Detroit. I’ve even got a favorite hoodie for the occasion, this brown zipup I bought in Sweden that I can stuff my hands into, pull up the hood and promptly start snoring in. What a waste of a first class seat.

Looks like the folks at Burton smell what I’m cooking and have designed a sweatshirt specifically for this task. We covered last year’s model with all of it’s nifty features, including a built-in inflatable pillow, ear plug and passport pockets and light shield over the hood. This year, they’ve also integrated a travel toothbrush into the mix. It looks like the total package for anyone wanting to integrate comfort and efficiency into one piece of drool-friendly apparel.

Good lucking finding one of these gems on the white market though. Burton and all of their distributors have sold out completely and they’re going on Ebay for upwards of 200$.

Meantime you can check out specs and some images of the hoodie directly from Burton.com.