Although not a reality yet, Backpacker Magazine heralds
Glen Canyon as the next great national park. Almost a year after Erik wrote about the
re-emergence of Glen Canyon, the magazine gives us an
updated peek at the amazing natural restoration that is unfolding in southern Utah. This
narrated slideshow vividly illustrates how the
disappearance of Lake Powell is bringing renewed life to over 125 canyons for wildlife to flourish and for hikers to
explore. Learn more about conservation efforts at the Glen Canyon Institute
and read about grassroots efforts to get national
park status for the area.
See Through You – the Backscatter
Remember when comic books carried those great ads selling anti-gravity machines and X-ray glasses? The ad for the
glasses always had a kid checking out a woman, and giggling as the goodies beneath her dress (um, you know, her
underwear). Of course, in our hearts most of us knew such things were fake, but there was always a childish hope that
someday, yes, Virginia, there would be x-ray glasses.
And so here we are. Sort of.
Turns out the Transportation Security Administration
has been testing a new device called a backscatter that beams low-level X-rays through people’s clothing and can
reveal a great deal more than the keys in your pocket, and especially if you really ARE happy to someone. In fact, the
pictures can be so revealing that the good ol’ American Civil Liberties Union has
called the backscatter a “virtual strip search.” But the government wants to push ahead, believing that this may be the
best thing to happen in security since that fancy metal-detector wand thingy.
Great American Motorcycle Tours
In 2000, motorcycle enthusiast and writer Gary McKechnie wrote the widely acclaimed
Great American Motorcycle Tours, the first guide of its kind. A second edition
was released in 2002 and Gary is now preparing to publish the third early next spring. To celebrate this upcoming
release, Gary is auctioning off the dedication of the newest book on Ebay this week. The winner of the auction (already
in progress here) will have up to 50
words to write his or her own dedication at the front of the guidebook. Proceeds will go towards a scholarship in honor
of Gary’s mother (Get additional details on the dedication
here.)
Gary’s goal was to write a
book that would make planning motorcycle trips easier that surfing the net. I think he’s done an excellent job,
providing detailed itineraries for twenty tours, including address, phone and website information for lodging, food and
attractions, which makes it easy for readers to head to the web to do further research or book reservations. Inspired
by traveling correspondent Charles Kuralt, Gary has created a guide that even non-motorcycle riders can use to plan
exciting excursions through the backroads of America.
The “two-wheeled vacations” included in the book range in length from 100 to almost 500 miles, and offer additional
side trip suggestions. Gary provides plenty of details on what to see and do for each of the tours, peppering his
write-ups with humorous asides and special tips catered specifically to riders (like how to handle repairs or keep your
leg muscles loose on long drives). Each chapter ends with a resources page that includes a list of bike shops for the
states covered in each particular tour, as well as general travel information for the regions covered.
I enjoyed Gary’s review of his favorite US city, Saratoga Springs (since it’s
one of my favs too), and liked the creative themed tours,
like the Blues Cruise musical route or the Civil War Run. Gary’s very open to receiving feedback and additional
suggestions from readers and riders. After the first edition, readers requested a more varied accommodations listing,
so Gary made an effort to include independent hotels, inns and B&B’s in the second edition. We already know that
the third edition will have five new tours, as well as the most
current travel data for his existing tours. Watch your local bookstore early next year to grab a copy…and see who bids
highest for a bike lover’s book dedication!
The Arctic Gold Rush
First the bad news: the Arctic is melting and sea levels may rise wiping out a good portion of life on the planet or
at the very least affecting things from weather patterns to species extinction. Now the good news: You might be able to
make a buck from the whole process!
Yes, according to
this piece in the New York Times, the melting of the Arctic has created a new gold rush for the entrepreneurial
minded as folks head to the far, far North to stake a claim to land, oil and whatever else they can get their hands on.
It’s actually a fascinating read, and opens up a whole series of interesting questions about the future of the Arctic
region and what company, country, person will control the potential resources up there.
Melting World
A while ago, the Seattle Times devoted a vast number of space to its lead story,
The Truth About Global Warming. The writer, Sandi Doughton, researched the story after attending a
forum for science writers in 2004, where she said that numerous scientists complained that “skeptics of
global warming get equal treatment in news coverage [with science], as if scientists are hopelessly divided on the
question.”
They are not, we learn. Doughton decided to explore the claim, and the article is the result, essentially making the
case that this is no longer a theory, and that we better get smart about what to do. I have heard that a big story is
coming soon as well in the Times. Stay tuned.