Articles tagged “adventure travel”

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Should Hunting Be Allowed In America’s National Parks?

by Kraig Becker on

Should hunting be allowed inside America’s national parks? That’s the question that the U.S. Senate will soon be dealing with as they debate the merits of HR 4089, better known as the Sportsman’s Heritage Act. The controversial bill was passed by the House of Representatives in April and could be coming to the floor of the Senate as well. If it does manage to become a law, HR 4089 would open most of the National Park System to hunting, trapping and recreational shooting.

Since their inception, the national parks have been designed to protect America’s heritage and natural landscapes, and those protections have always extended to the wildlife that roamed those regions as well. In the past it has taken – quite literally – an act of Congress to allow hunting within a park’s boundaries, but with this new bill hunting, trapping and sport shooting could become commonplace.

In addition to the traditional national parks that we all know and love, such as Yellowstone and Yosemite, the park system is made up of a number of other entities as well. These include national monuments, memorials, military and historic parks and more. All of them could potentially fall under the jurisdiction of this new law, allowing hunting in such places as Gettysburg or Valley Forge for example.The Sportsman’s Heritage Act does have specific language written into it that provides for exemptions to the law in parks and monuments specifically. But those exemptions need to be decided on an individual basis, which can be a time consuming and costly affair. Furthermore, the wording of the bill fails to mention the other park units such as memorials, historic parks and the other places mentioned above. In other words, it would encompass each of those places unless they are specifically singled out for exemption.

The National Parks Conservation Association has worked in conjunction with the law firm of Arnold & Porter, LLP to examine the legal ramifications of the bill, and they’ve found that it could be quite costly as well. HR 4089’s approach to opening the park system up for hunting, trapping and sport shooting means that each of the units will have to do their own individual study to determine if they should allow those activities or not. Considering there are 397 units within the system, that could mean a lot of money spent on conducting that research.

The NPCA is also quick to point out that the bill would allow for the use of off-road vehicles wherever they are needed by hunters and trappers to engage in those activities. Most of the parks don’t currently allow the use of 4×4’s off of pavement, but this would open it up for their use in many other places. Considering the damage that they can do to the environment, their use seems to run counter to the idea of actually protecting these wild spaces.

As a traveler, i personally enjoy exploring the national parks because they are beautiful, serene environments. I can’t imagine visiting Rocky Mountain National Park for example, spending hours scrambling to the top of the famous Longs Peak, only to be greeted by gunshots from elk hunters. Or as a parent, can you imagine having to explain to a young park visitor why the vehicle sitting next to yours has a deer strapped across its hood? The parks are places of refuge and in my opinion they should stay that way. There are plenty of other places in the U.S. to hunt and trap, but we should keep those activities out of the parks themselves. If you agree, click here to express your concerns to your local congressman.

Adventurer Prepares For Global Triathlon

by Kraig Becker on

British adventurer Dan Martin is about to embark on an epic challenge that he calls the Global Triathlon. The journey, which is set to get underway from New York City any day now, will see Dan circling the globe completely under his own power, and just like any other triathlon he’ll be swimming, cycling and running the various legs. In this case, those legs just happen to be substantially longer.

All triathlons, regardless of length, always start with a swim and Dan’s is no different. In this case, however, that swim involves crossing the Atlantic Ocean. He’ll first enter the water in the Hudson River and start heading east, continuing to do so until he makes landfall in France. Along the way, Dan will be escorted by a support boat, which is where he’ll sleep, eat and rest while en route. At the end of each day, he’ll crawl on to the boat, replace as many burned calories as he can and try to regain his strength for the next day, when he’ll return to the water and continue on.

To date, only one other person has managed to swim across the Atlantic. Back in 1998, French long distance swimmer Benoit Lecomte managed to accomplish that feat in just over 73 days. Lecomte’s efforts are contested by some, however, because he didn’t use a GPS to strictly track his progress. Dan hopes to allow others to follow his progress via his website, keeping the world updated on his position at all times.Once he does arrive in France the cycling stage of the journey will begin. Dan will climb aboard his bike and start peddling across Europe and Asia – in the dead of winter no less. If everything goes as planned he’ll eventually end the bike ride in the city of Anadyr, located in Russia’s far east. From there he’ll hop across the Bering Sea and start the finale leg of the Global Triathlon, running from Uelen, Alaska, back to New York City. When he’s done, Martin expects to have covered roughly 18,640 miles.

Dan actually thought that he would be underway by now, but a few logistical hiccups have prevented him from getting started on time. Nonetheless, he and his support crew are currently in NYC and they hope to have everything ironed out soon. You can follow his progress and updates both on his Facebook page and through his Twitter feed.

Good luck Dan!

[Photo courtesy Dan Martin]


Video: Highlining Across Morocco’s Todra Gorge

by Melanie Renzulli on




Far inland from the heavily toured bazaars of Marrakech and Essaouira lies a part of Morocco that many travelers know little about. The Todra Gorge, located in the remote High Atlas Mountains, is a sort of mini Moroccan Grand Canyon with 1,000-foot rock walls that have been carved out over thousands of years by the Todra and Dades Rivers.

In the video trailer above, we see an assemblage of four adventurers called Somewhereelseland as they attempt to highline across the gorge. Highlining is the newest extreme sport, which requires thrill-seekers to cross an inch-wide nylon line suspended in the air. Think of it as slacklining at altitude or like tightrope walking in which the rope is merely a string and the walker carries no balance pole.

“No one has ever highlined in Morocco before,” says Faith Dickey, Somewhereelseland’s female highliner. Indeed, the location and the precarious nature of the sport leave us with a desire to watch beyond the three minutes featured in this video.

8 Of The Manliest Competitions Around The World

by Dan Morgridge on

Males are naturally drawn to competition. Whether for food, mates, territory or just for sport, often you’ll find men ready to accept a challenge at the drop of a hat. But every sport has its place in the pecking order, and while the world’s fastest tandem bicyclists are no doubt phenomenal athletes, they’re not likely to cause people to turn and whisper upon entering the bar. The following contests are some of the best measures of manliness – some are displays of strength or athleticism, some a mastery of technical skills. Some are simply a display of sheer will (and or gluttony). Whichever may be true, these are some of the world’s best ways of answering the question: “Who’s The Man?”

Highland Games (above)

An event with origins that predate recorded history, the Highland Games were purportedly a large influence on Pierre de Coubertin’s creation of the modern Olympic Games. Consisting of traditional sports like the caber toss, stone put and sheaf toss, the games also showcase other feats of strength; the Maide Leisg consists of two men pressing the palms of their feet against each other and attempting to lift their opponent out of a sitting position using only the staff that they grip between them. While still very traditional in garb and style, the games have spawned numerous offshoots across the world. You could attend the largest Scottish games – held in August in Dunoon, Scotland – with some 3,500 other spectators. Or take a trip in July to Linville, North Carolina – their Grandfather Mountain Highland Games has some 50,000 visitors each year.

Arm Wrestling Championships

One of the most iconic images of male competition, two men arm wrestling is the best way to settle matters of pure machismo without resorting to blows. Although little can be added to such a pure sport, there are nevertheless modern tweaks that have created a field of competitors worthy of their own governing body and world championship series. World champions like John Brzenk use a variety of grips to turn the tables on their opponents – and sometimes experience outweighs young guns. At 47, Brzenk looks just a little older than when an audience caught a cameo of him in Sylvester Stallone’s 1987 arm-wrestling movie “Over the Top.”

Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest

While appearing to be a simple hot dog stand on Coney Island, Nathan’s Famous is the host to the highest-profile eating competition in the world. Featuring men and women attempting to eat as many hot dogs and buns as possible within ten minutes, ordinary-looking people have consumed ungodly amounts of food. The current rivalry between Japanese eating legend Kobayashi and American Joey Chestnutt has proven especially heated, with Kobayashi being banned from competition due to contractual disputes; he had two judges record him eating in time with the competition at a different location. Chestnutt won the official contest by eating 62 dogs but Kobayashi claimed to have eaten 69.

National Finals Rodeo

An overall display of cowboy knowhow and mastery of semi-wild beasts, the National Finals Rodeo is possibly even more American than apple pie. Held annually in Las Vegas, the event draws almost 170,000 fans over its ten days of competition. With contestants scoring in fields as diverse as Team Roping, Steer Wrestling and the ever-famous Bull Riding, the winners are determined by overall purse winnings throughout the year. The “World All-Around Rodeo Champion Cowboy” is the individual who earns the most money in purses in at least two different categories through the year – that title currently belongs to Ryan Jarrett, a native of Georgia (and only the second champion in history to come from east of the Mississippi River).

Iron Man World Championship

One of the most grueling physical activities a person can perform, the ironman truly measures an athlete’s all-around skill. Created to settle a dispute between athletes (truly a competition about competition) the championship course and event hosted in Hawaii consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a final run of 26.2 miles. Current champion Craig Alexander of Australia also holds the world record – an impressive eight hours, three minutes and fifty-six seconds.

Skeleton Luge

Combining the precision of bobsledding with the gutsiness of extreme sports, Skeleton has exploded in popularity after being reinstated to the Winter Olympics. Invented in 1887, the first skeleton riders were merely soldiers tobogganing headfirst. The dangerous variant took its name from a modified sled invented in 1892 – L.P. Child’s bare-bones frame (originally called “The America”) was compared to a skeleton, and the rest is history. Today these daredevil sledders take on the same tracks as luge athletes, except for the fact that they are travelling headfirst and at speeds approaching 90 mph – almost as fast as the heavier bobsleds.

Iditarod

The Iditarod is the ultimate dog-mushing race, and while the trip from Anchorage to Nome requires only a standard level of physical fitness on the part of the humans, they must still survive freezing tundra winds, traverse heavy snows and care for a pack of dogs that will ultimately decide the fate of their victory. Of course, one thing separates the Iditarod from most of the other competitions here – there is no gender divide in the competition. What’s more, women have shown they have just as much fortitude and skill in the wilds of Alaska as the men. Libby Riddles was the first woman to win the race in 1985, followed shortly by four-time winner Susan Butcher in the 1990s.

World’s Strongest Man

There are few spectacles on earth quite as masculine as the World’s Strongest Man competition. Owing some debt to the Highland Games, the strong men will even compete in a caber toss now and then. But other feats of strength have been designed for pure machismo – carrying the frame of a car over a set distance, or tossing kegs over a steel wall. And while being able to squat a certain amount of weight will win you a medal at the Olympics, there’s something much more impressive about seeing a man pull an airplane over his shoulder.

Gadling Gear Review: Lowepro Event Messenger 250 and Flipside 500 AW

by Kraig Becker on

One of the greatest travel innovations of the past two decades is, without a doubt, the digital camera. Not only have they made photography more fun but more accessible as well, allowing us to capture travel memories like never before. Over the years, digital cameras have gotten smaller and lighter, increased their megapixels, added new features and greatly reduced their prices. As a result, it is difficult to find anyone who doesn’t own one these days.

As amateur photographers have gotten more sophisticated, the digital SLR (Single-Lens Reflex) cameras have grown into the best selling segment of the market. These cameras are popular because they not only offer great image quality and fast performance, but they also have the ability to change lenses to capture just the right photo. The problem is that SLR’s tend to be considerably bigger and heavier than point-and-shoot cameras and when you throw in a few extra lenses, it can be a real challenge to lug all of that gear around. Fortunately for us, Lowepro makes a number of fantastic bags for travelers that make it much easier to carry our photography gear and keep it well organized. Here is a look at two of those bags, each designed for different uses.

Lowepro Event Messenger 250
The Lowepro Event Messenger 250 is the largest of the Event Messenger series packs and features everything that an aspiring or experienced photographer could ask for in a compact camera bag. This shoulder-sling style pack has room for a large pro-style DSLR body and up to four extra lenses, depending on size. A zip pocket on the front provides storage for accessories such as extra memory cards, USB cables, batteries and so on. The bag even has a well-padded slot for a laptop or iPad, which was a bit surprising as it doesn’t initially appear large enough to carry that much gear.I was impressed with how slim and compact the EM 250 is while still providing plenty of padding to protect the precious cargo inside. The interior of the bag is easily customizable to fit your needs and it can carry plenty of gear with ease as well. I managed to fit my Nikon D90, three Nikkor lenses, a Macbook Air, cellphone and a variety of other accessories. A well-designed shoulder strap rounded out the package, making it a breeze to carry all of that gear for a full day in the field.

Using the EM 250 was a revelation for me. Typically in the past I kept all of my gear in a standard backpack, which did little to keep my gear well organized. When I needed to access another lens or spare battery, I was often forced to rifle through the pack to find exactly what I needed. But Lowepro’s pack not only kept everything well organized but also close at hand, which made it much easier to change out a lens and capture the perfect shot.

Pro photographers will appreciate the Event Messenger 250 as a slimmed down bag for carrying just their bare essentials, while well-equipped amateurs will find that the pack more than meets their needs. At a price of just $79.99, it is a fantastic investment for protecting your expensive camera gear while traveling, and I recommend it wholeheartedly.

Lowepro Flipside 500 AW
On the complete opposite end of the spectrum from the Event Messenger is Lowepro’s Flipside Backpack. Designed for professional photographers, this pack provides far more storage than the typical amateur would ever need, wrapping it all up in a pack that is comfortable to wear on extended trips to just about anywhere on the planet.

The spacious interior of the Flipside has room for three DSLR bodies, 2-4 extra lenses (Up to 500mm!), a large flash, collapsible tripod, extra memory cards, an iPad and plenty of accessories. Much like the Event Messenger, the interior is fully customizable and very well padded, and the seemingly endless number of pockets will keep all your gear very well organized.

For a backpack dedicated to photographers, I was surprised to find a number of features that would be more common on packs designed for climbers and hikers. For instance, the shoulder straps and back padding were extremely comfortable, allowing the wearer to easily carry a large, heavy load over challenging terrain. Other nice touches include a built-in rain cover that provides extra protection from inclement weather, a tripod mount and leashes for trekking poles and more. It is even hydration ready, providing a dedicated pocket for carrying a 1-liter water reservoir. In short, this pack has everything an active photographer could hope for and then some.

The Flipside 500 AW was built from the ground up for the professional level adventure photographer. It was designed for someone who needs to be able to move quickly and easily with all of their gear, while still having their hands free to shoot photos. As such, it is overkill for the average traveler who is only carrying a DSLR body and a lens or two on a group trip. But if you’re an active, adventure traveler with lots of camera equipment, this is a no-brainer purchase. Simply put, every action photog should own one of these bags.

Lowepro lists the MSRP on the Flipside 500 AW as $249.99 and considering the market that it targets, that seems like a steal. This is a pack that will carry thousands of dollars worth of equipment with ease and protect it from all kinds of dangers. Aside from it being a bit bulky, it is an amazing piece of gear that is difficult to find fault in. If you fit the target market, and don’t already own one, add the Flipside to your gear closet now.