Ice Fall Off Ghost Glacier Closes Trails At Jasper National Park

by Jessica Festa on




On August 10, 2012, tons of ice fell off Canada’s Ghost Glacier on Mount Edith Cavell in Jasper National Park. The massive avalanche, which accounted for 50% to 60% of the glacier, fell into Cavell Pond at the base of the mountain, causing a mini-tsunami that flooded the area.

On the Jasper National Park Facebook page, they have stated, “Visitor safety is Parks Canada’s primary concern at this time. The 14 km Cavell Road is closed from its intersection with highway 93A to Mt. Edith Cavell, until the safety conditions in the area have been thoroughly assessed.
Access to the area trails, picnic areas, and Mt. Edith Cavell Hostel, will not be possible during this time.”

According to news.com.au, no one was injured.

One person caught the icefall on video, which you can see above. You can also click here to see photos.

Photo Of The Day: Golden Kayakers

by Chris Owen on

This Photo of the Day comes from Gadling Flickr pool member James Wheeler who captured this image titled “Golden Kayakers” with a Nikon D-5000.

James captions the image: “Kayaking the Vancouver shoreline is a common activity for tourists and many can be seen enjoying the view in the summer. I took this photo from the shoreline below BC as the sun set on a long Vancouver summer day.”

Upload your best shots to the Gadling Group Pool on Flickr. Several times a week we choose our favorite images from the pool as Photos of the Day.

Tips for getting featured: in your Flickr account, check “Privacy and Permissions,” and check “yes” on “Allow others to share your stuff.” Adding information about your image does not hurt your chances either.

Sick Of The Heat? 40 Places Where You Can Cool Off

by Dave Seminara on

Most people look for warm places to visit. I look for cold ones. I live near Washington, D.C., and by mid-July, I’ve had it with the suffocating heat and humidity. I’ve taken escape-the-heat trips almost every summer over the last five years to places like Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Maine and the Pacific Northwest.

The lower the temperature the better as far as I’m concerned, especially this summer, which has been one of the hottest in American history. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, more than 40,000 daily heat records had been obliterated by the Fourth of July. Take a look at the USA Today weather map and you’ll see a sea of depressing deep red all over the country.

If you’re looking to escape the heat, check out these possibilities (with high and low temperatures for July 25 listed) for some immediate relief. And if you know someone like me who sweats like a pig and is always carping about the heat, forward them this list!North America

Cape Breton, Nova Scotia- 71/64- Cape Breton is one of my favorite summer escapes. It has stunning natural beauty, great beaches, whale watching and traditional Celtic music and dances every night of the week in the summer.

Rangeley, Maine– 76/54- The tourist hordes flock to the Maine coast each summer, but if sitting in huge traffic jams and paying $300 a night for a motel room doesn’t appeal to you, try this classic lakefront resort town, which is just 2.5 hours north of Portland, Maine.

Lunenburg, Nova Scotia– 70/59- This enchanting waterfront town has a terrific old town that is a UNESCO World Heritage Sight. With its treasure trove of historic homes and B & B’s, you’d think it would be mobbed with tourists in the summer, but I was there a few years ago in August and it was blissfully quiet.

Twillingate, Newfoundland-71/58- You can actually buy a rustic little vacation home for less than it would cost you to rent a similar place in the Hamptons for a week. This is a delightful, end-of-the-world fishing village where you can watch icebergs float by from May-July. Don’t go to the only Chinese restaurant in town though, it might be the worst food I’ve ever had in my life.

Mexico City, Mexico– 73/58-(see photo above) Mexico’s capital gets a bad rap, but I love the place. It’s full of interesting neighborhoods, terrific museums, amazing archaeological treasures and the best public square in North America. Best of all, with an altitude of 7411 feet, the climate is moderate all year round.

Alaskan cruise– (Juneau- 66/50)- According to www.priceline.com, you can book a seven-night Alaskan cruise, passing through Anchorage, Hubbard Glacier, Juneau, Skagway, Icy Strait Point, Ketchikan, The Inside Passage, and Vancouver for as little as $499 per person. Summers’s like this one were made for Alaskan cruises.

Glacier National Park, Montana– 71/43-(see top photo) I visited Glacier in late August two summers ago, and they had snow on the famous Going to the Sun road the week before our visit. Be sure to make a trip out to the Polebridge Mercantile, just outside the park to see one of the most off-the-grid settlements in America.

Vancouver, British Columbia– 76/60- Vancouver is one of the greenest, prettiest cities in North America with terrific natural beauty, great food and a Pacific Rim flare. You might encounter rain, but it won’t be scorching hot.

Seattle, Washington– 79/60- Seattle is one of my favorite American cities, and not just because of its temperate climate. Pike Place Market is one of the best of its kind in the country and the city’s stunning geography, islands, and nearby natural splendor make this a can’t miss mid-summer vacation spot. Google Kurt Cobain’s house and you can make a pilgrimage to the house where the punk icon died.

San Francisco, California– 63/52- The Bay Area can be downright cold in the summer, but I don’t mind. SF is easily the country’s most atmospheric city. A mecca for creative types, this is a great city for walkable neighborhoods, great bookstores and every type of ethnic food imaginable.

San Diego- 71/64- For my taste, San Diego has the best climate in the country. It’s relentlessly sunny but so temperate you don’t even need air conditioning. Great beach towns like La Jolla and Del Mar make this region one of my favorite parts of the country.

Grand Canyon National Park– 78/49- You’ll be sharing the awesome vistas at this majestic site with millions of others, but at least you won’t be baking in 100 degree heat.

Banff National Park, Alberta– 72/47- Banff is spectacular. If you’re looking for a mountain retreat with cool weather, fishing, hiking and mountain biking, look no further.

And here are some other ideas outside North America:

Galway, Ireland– 67/53
York, United Kingdom– 73/58
Isle of Skye, Scotland– 60/53
Brugge, Belgium– 77/61
Copenhagen, Denmark– 74/62
Stockholm, Sweden– 76/61
Yaroslavl, Russia– 78/60
Tallinn, Estonia– 76/59
Reykjavik, Iceland– 58/49
Khövsgöl Nuur, Mongolia– 70/39
Thimphu, Bhutan– 77/65
Kathmandu, Nepal– 77/68
Auckland, New Zealand– 62/51
Sydney, Australia– 69/52
Santiago, Chile– 64/35
Easter Island, Chile– 66/62
Bogota, Colombia– 68/49
Machu Picchu, Peru- 70/33
Buenos Aires, Argentina– 60/39
Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay– 56/40
Potosi, Bolivia– 59/30
Quito, Ecuador- 73/51
Mendoza, Argentina– 63/35
Cape Town, South Africa– 70/51
Kruger National Park, South Africa– 68/38
Swakopmund, Namibia– 76/59
South Georgia Island, Antarctica– 34/32

[Photos by Dave Seminara]

Ultimate Dinosaurs Exhibit In Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

by Sean McLachlan on


We all know about the Tyrannosaurus Rex and Triceratops, but what about the Gigantosaurus, pictured above, or the Amargasaurus? These are just a couple of the little-known dinosaurs highlighted at a new exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada.

“Ultimate Dinosaurs: Giants from Gondwana” looks at recently discovered dinosaur species from South America, Africa and Madagascar, some of which have never before been displayed in Canada. Not content with simply assembling the skeletons and putting them on a pedestal, the curators have painted the walls with richly detailed murals and have also created Augmented Reality experiences where visitors can interact with the displays to learn more. You can even flesh out a dinosaur skeleton to see how paleontologists recreate these fearsome beasts from the bones they find.

The exhibit looks at how continental drift affected the dinosaur evolution during the Mesozoic Era 250–65 million years ago. At the start of this period there was one giant land mass called Pangaea. This later divided into Laurasia in the north and Gondwana in the south, which in turn separated into the continents we’re familiar with. This increasing isolation led to dinosaur species evolving separately.

Some of these unusual dinosaurs will surprise you. The long-necked Futalognkosaurus was one of the biggest animals to have ever walked the earth, measuring 110 feet long and weighing as much as 10 elephants. Suchomimus had a face like a crocodile and the Majungasaurus appears to have been a cannibal. Majungasaurus bite marks have been found on the bones of other Majungasaurs.

“Ultimate Dinosaurs: Giants from Gondwana” runs until March 17, 2013.

60 Years Of Royal Travel: Queen Elizabeth II’s State Visits

by Meg Nesterov on

This week, the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries are celebrating the Diamond Jubilee, commemorating 60 years of Queen Elizabeth II on the royal throne. The Times has an interactive, multimedia infographic detailing six decades of royal travel. Each decade details her Commonwealth and international trips with video and photographs from some of her most important visits. The 1970s-’90s mark her most prolific time as a traveler, with over 60 countries visited in those three decades. She slowed down a bit in the past few years, with just four foreign countries (plus Canada and Australia, members of the Commonwealth) visited since 2010 – but still pretty impressive for a senior citizen. Since her coronation in 1952, she’s visited an impressive 161 countries and spent a total of 3.5 years abroad.

[Photo courtesy The British Monarchy on Flickr, copyright Press Association]