This is a stunning photo of Crater Lake, Oregon that can be seen in National Geographic Magazine. You may wonder why someone would travel to an area with zero light pollution to look up at the stars, only to strap on his headlamp. Well, the thought is that the light shining from his head symbolizes the light he is seeing on the other stars. So imagine someone on a distant star is laying down looking up at the sky and the light they see is actually coming from this guy.

Last week, Scott Williamson of Truckee, California, set a new speed record on the Pacific Crest Trail. Williamson completed the 2,627-mile Pacific Crest Trail hike in a speed-record time of 64 days, 11 hours and 19 minutes. This is not the first time Williamson set a record on the PCT. Back in 2007 and 2009 he set speed records, but was with a hiker partner during the trek. This time he was solo.
“The main factor was being solo, and the other factor was going southbound,” said Williamson, 39, a tree …

Thanks to The Adventure Blog for reminding me that the Reel Rock Tour starts this week – Thursday to be exact. The Reel Rock Tour is a film tour featuring the newest/best climbing films out there, including Origins: Obe and Ashima, Race for The Nose and Project Dawn Wall.
Check out the trailer:

The Reel Rock Tour will be on the road all over North America, so be sure to check out their clanedar to find out when they’re at a locaiton near you.

This video of a polar bear was recently captured in northern Alaska at a construction site. An Italian oil drilling company set up a research rig. In the video you can see a momma bear and her cub walking around the construction site after 6 months of hibernation. They don’t seem to mind too much, but you can imagine what it would have been like to go to sleep in a frozen snowfield only to wake up next to an oil rig.

Fitz and Becca Cahall (with the help of Bryan Smith — what project isn’t this guy involved in these days?) hit a homerun with The Love Letter, just released this morning. The Love Letter chronicles Fitz and Becca’s 300+ mile trek through the Sierras. They put life in the city on hold and escape to a place to put their minds at ease.
Check it out:

Notice all those phone calls and e-mails bothering Fitz at the beginning of the film? Part of me thinks we might have contributed to that madness …

Last night, I watched the premier of Human Planet on Discovery Channel. It’s very similar to the Planet Earth and Life series they aired over the last year or so, except this time they focus on how people live in far off places. It was truly spectacular – both the stories told and the cinematography.
From last night’s episode, two stories stood out to me:
1. The Mongolian hunters
2. The Tibetan father taking his kids to school
The Mongolians capture baby eagles just after they hatch and then train them to …

Here’s something you don’t see everyday in the city:

Photo was taken along Highway 191 & 287 north of West Yellowstone.

Federal researchers officially declared the eastern cougar extinct yesterday. The “ghost cat” was thought to have been extinct since the 1930s, but was placed on the endangered species list in the 1970s because of the numerous sightings. The eastern cougar was given the nickname “ghost cat” because no one ever recorded a sighting of one. People claim to have seen them, but there’s just no evidence.
Some locals to the backcountry of the eastern United States still believe they exist. From Yahoo:

Ray Sedorchuk, 45, an avid hunter and outdoorsman, said he …

Why carry your backpack when you can just push it? No more strain on your back. No more shoulder strap burn…

Last night I happened to come across an episode of Top Gear on the History Channel. I’ve only seen this show one other time, but this particular episode caught my eye. They were in the Alaskan wilderness driving three massive, American-made pick-up trucks. One driver had a Chevy, another had a Dodge and the final driver had a Ford. The drove across the state completing in multiple off-roading challenges… the winner ultimately having to touch a glacier with their truck.
It was an exciting episode filled with awesome trucking, stunning …