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Friday, April 18, 2014

The Adventure Blog

The Adventure Blog

Video: Alaska In Full Technicolor

Posted: 18 Apr 2014 02:00 PM PDT

We'll round out the week with this beautiful video, which is a timelapse taken in Alaska, and capturing the night sky in all of its glory. Simple, beautiful, and breathtaking.

Technicolour Alaska from Alexis Coram on Vimeo.

Video: The Running Connection From Mountain Hardwear

Posted: 18 Apr 2014 12:00 PM PDT

For an outdoor gear company, Mountain Hardwear sure is great at making videos. Case in point, this beautiful clip that features some of their sponsored athletes talking about why they love trail running in the mountains. Sure, the MH gear is prominently displayed, but for what is ultimately a commercial, the focus is squarely on getting outside and doing what you love. Oh, and the settings that these folks are running in are certainly easy on the eyes as well.

The Running Connection from Mountain Hardwear on Vimeo.

Video: Mountain Biking The Tour du Mont Blanc

Posted: 18 Apr 2014 09:00 AM PDT

The Tour du Mont Blanc is one of the best hiking trails in all of Europe, if not the world. At 170 km (105 miles) in length, it circles its namesake mountain, and passes through three countries - France, Italy, and Switzerland – in the process. Typically it takes 7-10 days to walk the entire route, but last summer a team of Belgian mountain bikers rode the entire thing in three days. The video below tells their story, and it is a good one. The 17-minute short film, will leave you wanting to ride and/or walk this route too.

Big thanks to reader Mar Knox for sharing this great video.

Himalaya 2014: Progress Reports From Other Mountains

Posted: 18 Apr 2014 07:30 AM PDT

While hearts are heavy with the news from Everest today, climbers on other peaks have been checking in with progress reports as well. Much like the teams on the Big Hill, they are mostly just getting underway, and starting their acclimatization process. But with the season starting to roll, there will be more things to report soon.

Denis Urubko and his team, which includes, Artem Brown, Adam Bielecki, and Alex Txikon, are on their way to Kangchenjunga where they will soon begin their attempt of a new route on the North Face of that mountain. At 8586 meters (28,169 feet) in height, it is the third tallest peak in the world, behind only K2 and Everest. It is also a considerable challenge to climb no matter which route you choose. After acclimatizing in the region, Denis and company will attempt an alpine style ascent, without Sherpa support at altitude. They should arrive in Base Camp this weekend.

Mike Horn and Fred Roux are now in BC on Makalu, where they'll be attempting an alpine style ascent as well. They'll also being going up without Sherpa support, and sans bottled oxygen. They are just starting to get settled into place, and haven't posted too many updates just yet, but expect to hear more from them soon. Makalu is the fifth tallest mountain in the world, standing 8481 meters (27,825 ft) in height.

Aussie climber Chris Jensen Burke has her sights set squarely on Makalu this spring as well, and should arrive in Base Camp today. She reports heavy snow on the trail, but BC is said to have no powder at the moment. This will serve as a warm-up for other things to come. This summer, Chris will head to Pakistan to attempt K2.

Finally, Mike and Matt Moniz are on Cho Oyu, where they are acclimatizing for their first 8000 meter peak of the year. The father and son team (Matt is just 16 years old), are attempting to put together a Himalayan triple-header this spring. Once they wrap up their climb in Tibet, they'll jump back across the border to Nepal, where they'll attempt Everest and Lhotse as well. They report that things are going great so far, and their first rotations have been successful ones.

Everest 2014: Avalanche Near Camp 1, Numerous Sherpas Dead

Posted: 18 Apr 2014 02:02 PM PDT

Update: The death toll on Everest has climbed to as many as 16, as some of the missing climbers are found amongst the snow and ice that tumbled down the mountain. That is making things even more somber in Base Camp, as the names of the dead have now been revealed. Alan Arnette has a full list, as well as other info about which teams will be impacted by this accident. Certainly a rough day for all.

Sad news from the South Side of Everest this morning, where reports have come in that a major avalanche has claimed the lives of numerous Sherpas working near Camp 1. Preliminary reports from the mountain indicate that as many as 13 have been killed, with several more missing. Search and rescue efforts are still ongoing at this time, and all climbing activities have been suspended.

The avalanche came off of the West Shoulder, sweeping down the mountain as the Sherpas were shuttling gear up to Camp 1 and 2. There were few western climbers on the slopes at this point, as most were still acclimatizing in Base Camp, or on other nearby peaks. 

Alan Arnette has posted reports from major teams operating on Everest, and most didn't have any Sherpas involved in the accident. Those that did, suffered only minor injuries. There are quite a few smaller teams that guide climbers up the mountain, and presumably most of the dead were working with those companies.

Because of the size of this avalanche, and ongoing rescue operations, all of the climbers have been restricted to BC for now. Reports indicate that more than 150 people are stranded above the slide however, so some efforts will need to be made to help them get down. Helicopters will be brought in today to help retrieve bodies as well. 

If 13 Sherpas have indeed died in this avalanche, and all indications are that those numbers are accurate, it would be the single biggest accident in Everest history. That is a sad way to start the season, and once again the Sherpas are taking the brunt of the losses. Thankfully, this avalanche did not occur next week, when there likely to be more climbers in C1 and C2. The loss of life could have been considerably higher then. 

My condolences go out to the friends and families of the Sherpas who have perished on Everest today. I'm sure their loss will have an impact on the entire season as it unfolds. Lets hope that this isn't a sign of things to come, and that there are no more deaths on the mountain this spring. 
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