Articles tagged “adventure travel”

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National Parks Conservation Association rallies public support for park funding

by Kraig Becker on

The National Parks Conservation Association wants the U.S. government to stop cutting critical funding to national parks – and apparently many Americans agree. Earlier this week, the NPCA announced that it had garnered more than 105,000 signatures from its supporters asking Congress to put an end to budget cuts to the National Park Service, asserting that those cuts that are endangering the future of parks.

Back in May, the NPCA kicked off its National Parks Protection Project which was designed to educate members of Congress and the American public about the importance of proper funding for the national parks. When that initiative got underway, an online petition was also included, with the goal of attaining 100,000 signatures asking the government to stop slashing funding to the parks. After all, the NPCA points out, the Park Service’s budget is just one-thirteenth of one percent of the total federal budget.

For that relatively small amount of money, the national parks generate quite a return on the investment. Not only does that funding go toward protecting and promoting the most amazing park system in the world, it also has an important impact on the communities that surround those parks. It is estimated that the national parks are responsible for contributing more than $13 billion to local economies each year while also creating nearly 270,000 private-sector jobs.

Now, just over three months after the petition went online, the NPCA has not only met its goal, but exceeded it. In fact, the organization’s president, Tom Kiernan, has said “This is by far the most successful petition drive we’ve ever had – in nearly 100 years of operations – and it’s time for Congress to take notice of how many people have joined this effort.”

I tend to agree with Kiernan. The national parks are a fantastic resource and one that we need to protect for future generations to enjoy as well. Unfortunately, budget cuts have made those efforts incredibly challenging. But considering what the parks give back to us, both tangibly and intangibly, perhaps it is time to stop looking solely at the bottom line.

Underground river discovered beneath the Amazon

by Kraig Becker on

A massive underground river has been discovered beneath the Amazon Rainforest that is actually larger than the famous waterway that meanders through the jungle above. Researchers say that the new river –dubbed Rio Hamza after the leader of the team that found it– is located 2.5 miles beneath the surface and is many times wider than the Amazon River itself.

Both the Amazon and Hamza can trace their origins back to the Andes Mountains, flowing west-to-east from there. Each is also more than 3700 miles length and both eventually empty into the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of Brazil. But while the Amazon can reach an impressive 60 miles across at its widest point, the Hamza ranges from 125 to nearly 250 miles in width, making it far more massive than its cousin on the surface. The Amazon bests it in speed however, moving at a rate of up to five meters per second, while the Hamza creeps along at less than one millimeter per hour.

The discovery was made by a group of Brazilian scientists who studied 241 deep wells that were drilled, and later abandoned, by an oil company. The team recorded changes in temperature at various depths of those wells to help locate and measure the massive river. Their findings were first revealed at a meeting of the Brazilian Geophysical Society last week.

The team now hopes to continue their studies of the Hamza and hope to have a better understanding of its size and scope in the next few years.

Ride Mammoth mountain bike park into the fall

by Kraig Becker on

Mammoth Mountain, located in California’s Sierra Nevada range, is probably best known for its spectacular skiing. The resort averages roughly 400 inches of snow each year and is amongst the most popular ski destinations in all of North America. But not everyone knows that it is also home to a fantastic mountain bike park, which gives visitors a reason to visit during the warmer months as well.

With over 70 miles of single-track trail to explore, and 3000 feet of vertical descent to enjoy, the Mammoth Mountain Bike Park is a truly unique experience in and of itself. With routes that spider-web across the area, riders will experience everything from wide-open, scenic vistas, to twisting, technical rides through beautiful pine forests. This year, the park has added some new additions as well, building several jump runs and expanding existing routes even further. As a result, an already amazing mountain bike run has gotten even better.

Along with these expanded routes, the resort has also announced an expanded schedule. The mountain bike park will remain open daily through September 19 and on weekends until October 2. After that, it’s time to put the bikes away for the season and get ready for the winter ahead.

September should be an amazing time to visit Mammoth and go for a ride in the bike park. The resort makes it incredibly easy to do just that, offering shuttle service to the park itself and gondolas to the top of the mountain. After that, all you have to worry about is whether you want to bomb down the course, or enjoy a more leisurely pace back to the base of the hill. Either way, Mammoth is a mountain biker’s paradise, with something to offer all skill levels.


Become a Nomading Film Fest Ambassador, get NoFF perks

by Grant Martin on

Our friends at the Nomading Film Fest don’t believe in refractory periods. Mere months after the first successful Nomading Film Festival in New York City they’re already planning for future events, for bigger, better film festivals. As part of this plan they’re recruiting ambassadors to spread the word on the festival, carrying the NoFF banner across the world and getting some free goodies to boot.

It’s a great organization to take a stake within, and were our editor a better on camera personality he’d be filming right now. For the rest of you wandering story tellers, however, you can get some of the details in the video above or here.

Climbers summit K2 for first time in three years

by Kraig Becker on

K2, arguably the world’s toughest mountain to climb, was conquered for the first time in more than three years earlier this week, when an international team of three men and one woman reached the summit. They were the first people to stand on top of the mountain since the tragic 2008 climbing season, during which 11 people lost their lives.

Located in the Karakoram mountain range, K2 straddles the border between Pakistan and China and stands 8611 meters (28,251 ft) in height. It is the second highest peak in the world, behind only Mt. Everest, although it is orders of magnitude more challenging to climb. While each year more than 500 people summit Everest, the top of K2 is rarely visited at all due to its extreme technical challenges and notoriously bad weather. In fact, K2 has earned the nickname “the Savage Mountain” because of its high level of difficulty and the fact that for every four climbers who have successfully reached the top, one has died trying.

On Tuesday, Austrian climber Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, along with Polish mountaineer Darek Zaluski and Kazakhs Maxut Zumayev and Vassiliy Pivtsov ended the three-year drought on K2 by reaching the summit from the Chinese side of the mountain. Climbing for nearly 18 hours, the team endured waist deep snow and -25ºF temperatures on their way up, although the winds were mercifully light and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. That afforded them some great views from the summit, but the exhausted group didn’t linger for long, as they still had a long trek back to their high camp below.
The successful summit earned Kaltenbrunner the distinction of becoming the first woman to climb all fourteen of the world’s 8000-meter peaks without the use of supplemental oxygen. While most high altitude mountaineers wear an oxygen mask and tank to help them breathe in the thin air, she did it using just her own lungs, which puts her in a very elite squad of climbers.

The team has now descended back to their Base Camp, where they are collecting all of their gear and are preparing to head home. After spending two months on K2 preparing for this summit push, they are no doubt more than ready to get back to their friends and families, not to mention a few creature comforts. I’m guessing a warm shower, a comfortable bed, and their favorite foods all sound pretty good about now.

[Photo credit: Kevin Mayea]