Outdoor Schools

by Erik Olsen on

When you spend most of your life in
the city, the idea of going to an "outdoors" school is about as far out as the idea of studying
Serbo-Croatian. To be honest, I don’t know a lot of New Yorkers who have taken the time, say a week or two, to
challenge themselves in the outdoors with an organization like Outward Bound. But I’ve long wanted to enroll myself in
one of these courses, to take one of their epic paddle trips in Baja or a survival class in the wilderness. But words
are weak. I’ve yet to actually enlist.

But you can. And to help you make your decision which outdoor school
might be right for you, the good folks over at Stellar Magazine, one of my favorites,
have got a solid little piece on how you ca get started. They really only cover the big two: the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) and Outward
Bound, providing links and some of the basics about what these schools offer,. Your best bet, really, is to go to
the sites themselves and browse the catalogs, considering which type of sports you are most interested in, and avoiding
those you might not be suited for (i.e. agoraphobics might avoid rock climbing courses).

One of these days, I
am definitely going to take one of these courses. In the meantime, I’d love to hear what others experiences have been.
Anyone taken a NOLS or Outward Bound course out there? Let us know what you thought.

Banff Mountain Film Festival Comes to Town

by Neil Woodburn on

We posted a few weeks ago about the Banff Film
Festival’s annual road trip in which they take the
very best outdoor/mountain films submitted to their annual competition, and trek them around the world for various
showings. This weekend the tour finally made it to my home town.

I have to admit, I wasn’t as impressed as
I have been in the past.  It wasn’t a bad show, but the collection of short films usually leaves me inspired
and motivated and eager to really embrace life in the outdoors. It didn’t so much this year. 

The
showing included the usual snowboarding/skiing selection which wasn’t as awe-inspiring as past efforts as well as
two rock climbing films which I found a little boring.

I was, however, impressed with a 7-minute film
called Balancing
Point, another about kayaking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and a very funny one about the thoughts that run
through your head while riding up a ski lift called Solilochairliftquist. The real crowd pleaser, which also
won the Best Film on Mountain Sports category, was Praszczur
(Grandpa).  It was a little slow, but if you find it good fun to watch an 80 year-old Polish man dragged down a
mountainside before finally getting airborne with his paraglider, than this is the film for you.  My personal
favorite, Hockey Night… in Ladakh, featured some out-of-shape Canadian diplomats who take on a
Himalayan hockey team located high in the mountains of northern India.

Overall I still highly recommend
checking out the Banff Film Festival tour when it arrives in
your home town. Different films are screened on different nights so I may not have caught the very best ones on the
night I went.

Virtual Volcano

by Erik Olsen on

One of my favorite adventure travel experiences of all
time was when I hiked to the top of Villarica
volcano in Chile and stared down into the bubbling red guts of Mother earth. I had to wear a gas mask, lest the
poisonous fumes emanating from the crater enter my lungs and take my life away, but looking down was an exhilarating,
once in a lifetime experience.

Of course, if you want to see the inside of a volcano, I’d certainly suggest
you buy a ticket down to Chile. But if that’s not on your immediate agenda, well, you can have a somewhat similar
experience by going to this site about the Augustine
Volcano in Alaska, a fiery peak on an uninhabited island about 175 miles southwest of Anchorage, which came to life
on January 11 with an explosion that shot ash miles into the air.

The site is popular among both
vulcanologists, vulcans and amateurs alike, and even if the volcanoes live Web cam is not showing showers of lava at
the moment, you can check out the archive of cool photos that does show
some excellent action. And of course, there is also a lot of information about the volcano itself so you can beef up
your understanding of one of or planet’s more fascinating phenomena.

St. Helens Trail to Crater Opening?

by Erik Olsen on

Some
good to great news for hikers who fancy a little bit of sulphur during their walks. Not to mention great views. Looks
like the epic trail to the crater of Mt. St. Helens in Washington State might reopen. it has been
a long long time since they cut off access to it…around 2004, since the lava dome started building and scaring
geologists that another big eruption was on the way. But the trail, so I’m told, I’ve never done it, is supposedly
gorgeous, offering  sweet views inside the crater itself. They say the trail may reopen as early as this year, so
strap on your hiking boots, put on your gas mask, and get yourself a virgin.

Cerro Torre Photos

by Erik Olsen on

Gadling fans know that I have long extolled the
virtues of Patagonia. The region on the southern tip of South America is probably the most beautiful, pristine
wonderland for adventurers on the planet. I thin it is better and more beautiful than Yosemite, especially if you have
ever dared to go to Yosemite during the high tourist season in summer. If you have ever experienced the traffic,
pollution and the gazillions of families in the valley with their RVs, you know what I’m talking about. Well, to show
you what I mean, take a
look at this wonderful series of photos taken by the ballsy team that recently climbed Patagonia’s Cerro Torre.
These are stunning images that very much back up what I’m talking about.