2013 › June

Video: 100 Years Of Climbing Mt. McKinley

by Kraig Becker on

Standing 20,320 feet in height, Mt. McKinley is the tallest mountain in North America and one of the most challenging climbs in the entire world. While it doesn’t rival the big Himalayan peaks in terms of altitude, it more than makes up for it with a number of technical climbing challenges and notoriously fickle weather that can even be bad during the peak climbing season of May and June.

Last week marked the 100th anniversary of the first ascent of McKinley, which is generally referred to by its native Koyukon name of Denali in mountaineering circles. On June 7, 1913, Walter Harper, Harry Karstens, Hudson Stuck and Robert Tatum became the first men to stand on the summit of this imposing peak. A century later the route to the top remains nearly as elusive as it was when they first made the journey.

To celebrate this impressive milestone, the National Park Service released the following video that not only commemorates the accomplishment of the first ascent but also attempts to answer the age old question of why we climb. It is an inspiring and thought provoking short film, to say the least.

Photo Of The Day: Vientiane Traffic Jam

by Adam Hodge on

Vientiane may be the quietest national capital in the world. The common aphorism that Lao PDR stands for “Lao, Please Don’t Rush” is particularly appropriate given the laid-back nature of Laos‘ capital. The Mekong river maunders next to the city and seems to vacuum out the impetus and pressure of daily life here.

But quiet though it may be, it is suffering from a growing traffic problem as more people purchase cars. Of course, compared to any other major Asian capital, its traffic jams are laughable. The above photo from Flickr user rkzerok shows central Vientiane around rush hour.

However, Vientiane was never meant to handle much traffic at all. Its tiny roads can seem pretty packed despite only boasting as many cars as a Wal-Mart parking lot. And in response, the Lao government has even implemented laws to ease the congestion.

Have a great travel photo you’d like to share? Add it to our Gadling pool on Flickr. We choose the best to feature as our Photo of the Day.

Four Down Two Across: Fairbanks And Ping-Pong Shenanigans

by Will Shortz on

The thing about Fairbanks at this time of year is that the sun sets for only a couple hours a day. Even after setting, the sun is just below the horizon, so it’s not really dark out. I feel like I have jet lag, even though I’m completely adjusted to Alaska time and am sleeping fine.

Robert and I started the day at the Mr. McKinley Princess Wilderness Lodge at the edge of Denali National Park. The previous evening, as we’d been driving up, we had tried to figure out, through the haze, which of the monstrously high peaks in the Alaska Range was Mt. McKinley. We’d finally settled on one, which seemed higher than all the others, even though it didn’t match the pictures we’d seen.

Well, in the morning, with a clear sky, we finally saw the real mountain, which is twice as tall as the one we’d previously picked out. It is unbelievably huge, taller than anything you’d imagine — awesome in every sense of the word.

From the lodge we continued north toward Fairbanks, arriving in a little under four hours. We’re staying at the home of Jamo and Jane Parrish, members of the Fairbanks Interior Table Tennis Club, who are a retired lawyer and retired mediator, respectively. They have converted the garage of their beautiful, modern home into — guess what? — a table tennis room, with an athletic floor and excellent lighting. The four of us played there for over an hour.

Next we went to an outdoor party at the home of Diann Darnall, who runs the Fairbanks club. About 20 club members were there. Besides the potluck dinner, Diann led everyone in a couple original ping-pong-related games — like matches played with a 5″ rubber ball on a 3’x8′ table using egg cartons as paddles. Robert beat me in the final, and he was on the winning team in another wacky game later. In each case he analyzed the game before playing, figured out a strategy, and then applied a deft touch to his play. It’s no surprise he’s so good at table tennis, too.

From 7:30-10:30we played real table tennis with the Fairbanks club at the Patty Center at the University of Alaska. More than 20 players took part, with everyone playing everyone else. It was good fun. We’ll do it again tomorrow, this time with the event open to the public.

Regarding yesterday’s puzzle, my answers were DENIAL, NAILED, and LEAD-IN.

Here’s a new teaser: Take the last name of a famous person in American history. It has 8 letters, all different. The vowel-consonant pattern of the name is cccvccvv. What name is it?

Follow Will and Robert’s Trip across Alaska through next week at “Four Down Two Across.”

Asylum Sailing To Australia Takes Deadly Turn

by Chris Owen on

In North America, we occasionally hear stories of cruise ships spotting and assisting a raft-full of Cuban refugees seeking asylum in the United States. Australia has a similar situation with refugees from Indonesia. Now, the dead and missing numbers are not looking good for these asylum seekers, missing after their boat capsized near a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean. It highlights just how dangerous life at sea can be.

A full-scale hunt using 15 ships and 10 aircraft is under way in a giant search and rescue mission. That’s because 55 men, women and children were on deck when the vessel was first spotted via aerial surveillance. Taking the next logical step, a navy vessel was sent to intercept. Arriving on the scene, the asylum ship was gone. The following day, aerial searches caught the ship’s submerged hull.

Survivors, on the other hand, have options.The U.S. wet foot/dry foot entry test is a simple “did ya or didn’t ya get here on your own?” thing. If they did, they stay. If not, they go back rather quickly. The Indonesian version is a bit different.

The trek from Indonesia to Australia is a much more dangerous, 500-mile ocean voyage. Cuba to the U.S. is just over 100 and a good raft will get you there. In the past, when refugees got picked up by ships in Australian waters, they might have been offered the “Pacific Solution.” Under that policy, the asylum seekers were taken to the nearby Republic of Nauru where their refugee status was considered, rather than in Australia where it is not.

The current Australian government’s policy is mandatory detention for asylum seekers until their status is determined, a process that can take up to two years or more. In this case, it appears that few of the refugees will get that opportunity.

“We are humans and the human dimensions of the circumstances are very difficult to deal with,” Border protection commander Rear Admiral David Johnston said in a New Zealand Herald article.

This video gives us a nutshell version of the issue involving asylum seekers and refugees and their impact in Australia.

Sweden’s Male Train Drivers Wear Skirts Following Row Over Uniform

by Reena Ganga on

At least a dozen train drivers in Sweden have taken to wearing skirts as they go about their job after their employer banned them from wearing shorts.

The men, who operate trains north of Stockholm, wanted to wear shorts during warmer weather but were forbidden from doing so after their train line was taken over by a new company this year. The drivers said they collectively decided to wear skirts once summer started because they were much more breathable than pants.

“The passengers stare at us but so far no one has said anything – well, not to me, anyway. And I don’t mind as it’s more about comfort,” one driver told the BBC.In an interesting twist, the company operating the train line has given the male conductors the green light to continue wearing the female attire. A representative explained the decision to a local newspaper, saying, “Our thinking is that one should look decent and proper when representing Arriva and the present uniforms do that. If the man only wants [to wear] a skirt then that is OK. To tell them to do something else would be discrimination.”