Just a quick post here to give some props to our sister site BBHUB, which is all about the Blackberry, aka Crackberry, which as many know also serves as a decent (albeit not great) photographic device (aka camera). This shot of frosty Denali from the plane was shot by a BBHub reader named Eric, who very recently flew from Anchorage to Fairbanks, Alaska and got the Granddaddy of all American mountains is full grandeur.
Gordon Wiltsie on NPR
Who among you out there doesn’t like outdoor photography? Not a single one of you, I imagine. There is something deep down genetic to our love for the outdoors, to our appreciation for color and form and harmony in nature. I know that whenever I travel, I simply MUST carry a camera, not simply because I want to remember the places I’ve been, but because the photos I take are a reminder of the beauty that lies outside my door, outside my city.
And if there were any single ideal job (other than being Hugh Hefner) it would have to be adventure outdoor photographer. I have sitting here on my book shelf several volumes of outdoor photography by folks like the late Galen Rowell and James Balog. And over at NPR I noticed that there is a new volume worth checking out by the well-known photographer Gordon Wiltsie.
Wiltsie has shot some of the world’s best mountain climbers and explorers while out on expeditions, and he has compiled some of the best among those photos in a new book called To the Ends of the Earth: Adventures of an Expedition Photographer. In this NPR interview, Wiltsie talks with Alex Chadwick about his adventures and profession, including some of his other work as a writer. To wit, he was the author of a critically acclaimed study of the nomads of Mongolia’s Darhad Valley that was featured in the October 2003 National Geographic.
Take a moment away from you day and give a listen.
Red Corner: Slovak Mountains
I’ve often wondered if I’ve actually been to Slovakia. I visited the region while it was part of Czechoslovakia but haven’t had the chance to go back once it became its own country.
I did like what I saw when it was part of Czechoslovakia, however.
For example, Slovakia boasts the semi-majestic High Tatras. I never got too deep into these mountains but now wish I had after reading Nick Middleton’s recent account in The Sunday Times.
Middleton traveled to Slovakia’s famed mountain range for a week of trekking and discovered, what he claims, is “the wildest and oddest corner” of Europe. I’m not sure I entirely agree with him.
He was fascinated, for example, how the ugly socialist architecture in many small towns suddenly gave way to charming, medieval town centers. He ran across joggers in very cold weather, and some slightly different food. Oddest? I don’t think so. Wildest? Perhaps. Middleton writes fondly of the wild nature scattered throughout the Tatras, and the accompanying peace, punctuated occasionally by other hikers.
Given the option, I’d still choose California’s Sierras over the Tatras, but while in Europe, they sound like a rather special place.
Nat Geo on Sherpas
On a few occasions in the past we’ve linked to stories about the famous Sherpas of the Himalayas, those hearty, hale and, well, helpful souls who basically make it possible for Western climbers to summit tall mountains. Without the Sherpas, it’s doubtful that we’d see nearly as many Gortex-clad city slickers summiting mountains like K2 and Everest.
The Sherpas are, without a doubt, the unsung heroes of mountaineering.
And if anyone out there can be trusted to put together a fine homage to the Himalayan Sherpas, it would be National Geographic. And so it goes. This wonderfully done multimedia feature provides text by the writer T.R. Reid as well as gobs of excellent photos, maps and even some downloadable audio for your listening pleasure. The photos are particularly good, but trust me, if you are interested in what the Sherpas are all about you can spend a few educational and entertaining minutes perusing this feature.
Paddle Books
Well, we’re drawing to a close a rather wonderful summer. I don’t know about you, but out on the East Coast things were relatively mild and there were lots of opps to paddle, hike, bike or whatever. I got to do a piece about rock climbing that took me to the world-famous Gunks, and I had a killer time rappelling off a 200 foot cliff face. All cool. But what I’d really like to discuss briefly is paddling, and more than than, I want to discuss paddle books. You see, it’s about to get so cold that many will not be able to paddle, so the next best thing, I suppose, is to read about paddling. And so herewith, I offer you a solid feature from the folks at Sea Kayaker on hard to find paddling books.
Before I discuss some of the books listed here, let me briefly mention a few others I’ve enjoyed or plan to read. A while back, I bought Jon Bowermaster’s Alone Against the Sea and Other True Adventures, and while I STILL haven’t read it, I am confident it’s going to be great because I’ve liked all of Bowermaster’s other work. Also, sitting on my shelf at home is Eric Stiller’s Keep Australia on Your Left, which I enjoyed, even if it rambles a bit at times. It helps that Stiller is a friend and I am rather in awe of the expedition described in the book (attempting to circumnavigate the continent of Australia. Yes, you heard that right.
But to the list. Many of these books can’t be fond on Amazon, so I have no idea how you’d find them, but take the book Kayaks to the Arctic (1967)
by E. B. Nickerson. Tell me that the story of a women and her family paddling 1,000 miles down the Mackenzie River in Alaska and then hanging with the Inuvik doesn’t sound like compelling reading. Then, there is Enchanted Vagabonds (1938) by Dana Lamb. The Lambs, Ginger and Dana, left San Diego in 1933 and paddled and sailed their hybrid kayak/canoe/sailboat to the Panama Canal. Amazing. And I’m surprised in a way that this hasn’t been done yet as reality TV.