Adventure Tours

by Neil Woodburn on

The centerpiece of this year’s Men’s Journal Adventure Issue is the adventures
themselves.  The May issue highlights a great selection of
“Classic Adventure Trips” and tells
us how to do them right.  Although I’m always a little skeptical when such articles point us directly to
tour outfitters who will help us do such things, the writers have at least included enough information to whet
appetites and get the old adventure spirit pumping.

While some of the Classic Adventures can be accomplished easily enough on your own—diving the Great Barrier
Reef, cycling through Tuscany, and surfing Scorpion Bay in Mexico—others are far more involved and you might do
well to consider some of the tour operators even if you hate this type of organized travel as much as I do. 
Let’s face it; you’re never going to raft the Zambezi River or race a sailboat across the Atlantic on your
own. 

Late Snow Skiing

by Neil Woodburn on

Spring is here and the ski season is winding down.  As the weather warms up and resorts go
offline one by one, dedicated skiers continue searching for un-seasonal storms, lone slopes facing away from the sun,
remote resorts chilled by late winter winds or any other place where weather anomalies help keep the season running
just a little bit longer.

Rebecca Abrams of The Guardian, has uncovered one such place; the Swiss town of
Chandolin.  Located 2,000 meters above sea level,
this relatively unknown town of only 50 people is the “highest inhabited village in Europe.”  Long
after snow melts elsewhere, skiers are still merrily swooping down the area’s 75 kilometers of slopes.  And
they are doing it in relative isolation according to Abrams who reports that very few skiers make it this far off the
beaten path—despite Chandolin being only two hours from Geneva. This is what I found particularly
appealing.  Chandolin is not a swanky, ski-bunny resort, but rather an unpretentious, low key haven of quaint
chalets and quite village life.  Screw ski season, I want to visit in the summertime.

Powder Magazine Video

by Erik Olsen on

Sure, we’re reaching the end of the ski season and
people are now thinking more about climbing and paddling and hiking and whatever. But I’m having a hard time saying
good-bye. It was a slim ski season for me. I got in a few days in Utah this year, but not nearly the amount of skiing I
normally get…which probably has a lot to do with living in New York City, not exactly the ski capitol of the world.
But as the season finishes up here, I figured I’d let y’all know about a sweet little video site over at Powder
Magazine that has got a bunch of excellent little online videos for your lunchtime viewing pleasure.  This one on
the Telluride Open is good, and even better is this piece on some of the back-country opps near Tahoe. The footage comes from Adventure Film works.

Men's Journal Adventure Issue

by Neil Woodburn on

The
May issue of Men’s Journal is their annual Adventure Issue.  Unfortunately, they post very little of it
online.  I’ve only just started thumbing through it and am disappointed we can’t share links to all
the great articles the editors have shoved in this year’s issue. 

But, what we can do is summarize some of the articles and direct you to your nearest newsstand to pick up a copy
for yourself.  That’s the only way you can read about Tony Hawk snowboarding in Alaska, Richard
Branson’s wild adventures, an Alaska to Panama road trip, adventure photographers, and a piece on what it took to
accomplish the world’s greatest quests.  There are plenty of other goodies in the issue as well—such as
a gear guide.  And it wouldn’t be Men’s Journal without a workout routine and a model
shoot. 

So, sorry if this sounds like one big plug for the magazine, but this is one worth picking up. In the meantime,
check back on Gadling for a couple of brief summaries on some other articles in the issue that we will be discussing in
a little more detail.  Tomorrow: Men’s Journal tackles the 20 Greatest Adventure Authors.

Skiing Utah

by Erik Olsen on

Folks,
am in Salt Lake City this weekend and doing some skiiing at Park City and Deer Valley. Figured I’d post a photo of the
ride up the lift. We’ve had a couple of really great days of weather and the snow is fine. Not quite as powdery as I
might otherwise like, but since this is our first time out this season, it works fine. Hitting Park City again in the
morning.