17-year old climber nabs Seven Summits

by Kraig Becker on

17-year old mountaineer Johnny Collinson of Snowbird, Utah has become the youngest person to climb all the Seven Summits by topping out on Mt. Vinson, the highest peak in Antarctica. The teenager reached the summit, which stands at 16,067 feet, on Monday, completing a quest to reach the top of the highest peaks on all seven continents.

Collinson is still in Antarctica and hasn’t posted to his website yet, but he was climbing with a team led by guide service Mountain Madness who updated their own blog with the news of the team’s success. Johnny was joined on the summit by three other climbers as well as well known guide Willie Benegas. And as if reaching the summit wasn’t enough, the young man elected to ski back down the mountain to their campsite.

The Seven Summits have become one of the top goals for climbers and adventurers around the planet. Besides Vinson, the peaks consist of Kilimanjaro in Africa (19,340 feet), Elbrus in Europe (18,510 feet), Denali in North America (20,320 feet), Aconcagua in South America (22,841 feet), Carstenz Pyramid in Oceana (16,023 feet), and of course Everest in Asia (29,029 feet). That tallest mountain in Australia is Kosciusko, but that peak is just 7310 feet in height and is a simple walk-up, so the list was expanded to include the taller and more technically challenging Carstenz Pyramid, located in Indonesia. Most of the climbers who complete the Seven Summits actually go for all eight peaks just to cover their bases.

Collinson may not hold on to this record for long. 13-year old Jordan Romero will be going to Everest this spring to make his bid on that mountain, and if successful there, he’ll head to Vinson in the fall as well. If he nabs both summits, he’ll be just 14-years old when he is done.

Sailor spends 1000 days at sea

by Kraig Becker on

Back on April 21st, 2007, American sailor Reid Stowe set sail from New York City on a unique, and challenging voyage. Dubbed the Mars Ocean Odyssey, the plan was for Stowe, along with his companion Soanya Ahmad, to head out onto the open ocean, and spend 1000 straight days there, without stopping for resupply or ever setting foot on land. The voyage was meant to demonstrate the feasibility of a prolonged spaceflight, such as a journey to Mars, and today marks Stowe’s 1000th day at sea.

The voyage has not been without its hardships. Just a few days after setting out, Stowe’s ship, a schooner named Anne, strayed into a U.S. Navy missile test range off the New Jersey Coast and a few weeks after that, the vessel collided with a cargo ship, and suffered damage to its bowsprit. But perhaps the biggest setback was when Ahmad was forced to leave the expedition off the coast of Australia 305 days in. At the time, it was reported that she had “debilitating sea sickness”, but It was later revealed that she was pregnant. She has since given birth to the couple’s first child, a boy named Darshen, who was conceived at sea.

Stowe continued the voyage alone, blogging his experiences at sea, and chasing his dream of proving that prolonged space travel is possible. In the process, he also set a record for the longest solo sea expedition ever, and as of today, he has achieved his other goal of spending 1000 days at sea, without resupply. An impressive feat to say the least.

You would think that after a thousand days at sea, the sailor would be eager to get home and meet his son. But Stowe has elected to stay out on the ocean for a few more months. High winds and poor weather conditions make a return to New Your City a challenging prospect at the moment, so instead, he’ll wait until June, when calmer weather will allow him to return much more safely.

After all those months at sea, what’s another six?

Stonehenge, Machu Picchu top ‘most threatened’ wonders list

by Kraig Becker on

U.K. travel magazine Wanderlust has released their second annual list of the world’s most threatened wonders, with eight very popular attractions earning this dubious distinction for 2010.

Perhaps the two most eye catching destinations on the list are Stone Henge in the U.K. and Machu Picchu in Peru. The magazine actually describes Stonehenge as a “national disgrace” and rips the stone monument for being so detached from the rest of the ancient ruins in the area that loses some of the historical context. In the case of Machu Picchu, it seems the lost city of the Inca is a victim of its own popularity, with large crowds and over zealous tourists blamed for the sad state of affairs there.

The other destinations to make this year’s list include Wadi Rum, Jordan; Yangshuo, China; Tulum, Mexico; Jaisalmer, India; Timbuktu, Mali and the Bay of Fires, Tasmania. Each has their own unique issues to deal with ranging from too much tourist traffic, a lack of security and governmental struggles over access to the places.

Fortunately, Wanderlust doesn’t just point fingers, but also suggests some ways to solve the issues facing these popular attractions. For example, in the case of Stone Henge, they endorse a plan that has been put fourth to build an underground tunnel that wold link the stone monoliths to other nearby sites that are part of the same ancient compound. And as for Machu Picchu, they put the onus on the tour operators to ensure that their groups tread lightly and leave little trace of their passing on the fragile mountain environment and the centuries old citadel itself.

This list does a good job of drawing attention to the fact that many of these locations are suffering from being too popular. Perhaps good discussions about these issues will help make us all more aware of the problems and help preserve these sites for future travelers to enjoy as well.%Gallery-64352%

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Uluru remains open for climbers

by Kraig Becker on

Last summer we reported that the Australian national parks service had recommended to the government that Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, be closed to climbers. Officials reasoned that climbing on the giant monolith was a safety risk and increased traffic there was causing accelerated erosion. Even more importantly, Uluru is held as a sacred site to the Aboriginal tribes in the region, and they have been very outspoken against allowing climbing there.

At the time of our original story, the proposal was going to be open for public discussion for two months before getting passed on to the Australian Parliament, who would make the final decision on the future of the Rock. Last week, the government handed down their decision, allowing climbing to continue on Uluru for now, but saying that it could yet be closed off in the future.

Uluru is a World Heritage Site and one of Australia’s most recognizable natural resources, rising 1,142 feet above the desert that surrounds it. Every year, more than 350,000 visitors flock to the monolith, with 100,000 of those electing to scale its sandstone walls. All of those visitors has caused environmental issues however, with trash and human waste littering the area.

The Australian government set down three very specific criteria that need to be met in order to ensure that Uluru remains open for climbing. First, they want to see the number of visitors who climb the rock drop from its current 38% down to just 20%. They also want to discourage climbers from coming to the place for the sole purpose of making a climb, and finally, they want to develop new experiences for visitors to experience, including ones that highlight the Aboriginal culture.

So, for now, climbing on Uluru is safe, and Parliament has promised that they will give at least an 18-month notice before they decide to close it in the future. Adventure travelers who still want to go to the top of the monolith are allowed to do so, but they should be prepared to tread lightly and expect to see fewer people on the routes to the summit.

Celebs complete Kilimanjaro climb

by Kraig Becker on

Last week we reported that a group of celebrity mountaineers, led by singer Kenna, were setting off on a climb to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. The group, which included actors Jessica Biel and Emile Hirsch, rapper Lupe Fiasco, and adventure photographer Jimmy Chin, amongst others, was climbing to raise awareness of a growing global crisis over the lack of clean drinking water in many parts of the world, and they hoped to inspire the rest of us to sponsor a foot of their climb to help combat the problem.

Yesterday, the Summit on the Summit website was updated with the news that the team had achieved their goal by reaching Uhuru Peak, the very top of the mountain, which is often referred to as the Roof of Africa. The climb was not an easy one however, as over the course of the past week, the celebs struggled with inclement weather, challenging trails, and the effects of altitude on their bodies.

Today the team will spend most of the day getting down the mountain. Although it has takes the better part of a week for them to reach the top of Kilimanjaro, they’ll return to the base of the mountain in just one day. Although Kili is a non-technical peak, it can still be physically demanding, and the entire group will be happy to be breathing the richer air found at the lower altitudes. Once they’re off the mountain, they’ll no doubt spend spend some time resting and reflecting on what they’ve accomplished, and enjoying the fact that their expedition was successful in more ways than one.

Congratulations to the entire summit team!