Video: The New Northwest Passage

Back in 2009, explorer Cameron Dueck successfully sailed through the Northwest Passage where he witnessed first hand the impact of global climate change on the Inuit people that live there. The four-month long voyage was an adventure in and of itself as Dueck and his three-person crew contended with massive storms, icy waters and the challenges of navigating through unknown waters. On April 10 a book entitled The New Northwest Passage: A Voyage to the Front Line of Climate Change will be released. That book will chronicle the 15,000km (8100 nautical mile) journey that was both an amazing adventure and a revealing look at the impact of global warming on a group of people who are witnessing its effects first hand. The promo video below gives us a tiny glimpse into what that voyage was all about.


Book Promo -- New Northwest Passage: A Voyage to the Front Line of Climate Change from Cameron Dueck on Vimeo.

Adventurers Push Boundaries on Long Distance Equestrian Expeditions

Thanks to my friends at the Long Riders Guild, I've been made aware of two fantastic long distance expeditions that are gearing up to get underway, both of which will use horses as an integral part of their journey.

The first of those expeditions will be undertaken by Long Rider Filipe Leite, who is planning to travel 16,000km (9942 miles) on horseback from Toronto, Canada to his home town of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Filipe is calling his expedition the Journey America and he estimates that it will take him roughly 2 years to finish the ride, crossing through 11 countries in the process. Along the way, he'll be shooting a documentary of his experiences as he travels across North, Central, and South America. He'll take two horse with him on this trip which is slated to get underway later this spring.

The second expedition isn't scheduled to begin until May of 2013 but is even more ambitious than Filipe's journey. Dubbed One Steppe Ahead, this expedition will send Brits Matt Traver and Jamie Maddison on a 30,000km (18,641 mile) journey on foot, bike, rail, and horseback across the Eurasian continent. Their path will follow that of British explorer Howard Bury, who was the leader of the 1921 Mount Everest Reconnaissance Expedition which eventually paved the way for climbers like George Mallory and Sandy Irvine to visit that mountain. Bury's travels took him all over Asia however, and Matt and Jaime intend to explore much of the same territory, including the Jungar Alatau mountain range, the wilds of Eastern Kazakhstan, remote regions of Russia, and much more. It should be an exciting expedition to follow next year.

Because these two expeditions have the Long Riders Guild seal of approval you know that the horses that they use on these journeys will be treated well and cared for throughout their journey. They are amazing animals that can travel for many miles provided they are treated well along the way. The Guild's Hall of Shame is filled with the names of other riders who haven't been so kind to their mounts.

Good luck to Filipe and Matt and Jaime on their respective expeditions. Both should be amazing journeys to follow.



An Introduction by Matt and Jamie from Ugly Monkey Productions on Vimeo.

North Pole 2012: Season Officially Begins!

The 2012 North Polar season is a go as ExWeb reports that the first skiers are now en route to Cape Discovery, the launching point for their Arctic journey. Aboard the first plane out should be Irish duo Clair O'Leary and Mike O'Shea, as well as Japanese solo skier Yasunaga Ogita.

The flight from Resolute Bay to Cape Discovery is not a short one. The explorers will cover 1000km (620 miles), and make a fuel stop at Eureka Weather Station, located on Ellesmere Island, along the way. Once there, they'll be offloaded with all of their supplies and gear and will likely spend the night prepping for an early morning departure tomorrow. That means by early next week we should be getting our first reports back from the ice and a good indication of what the current conditions are.

Last year poor weather delayed the start of the Arctic season for several weeks and effectively closed the window on the North Pole before most of the teams could even think about getting underway. Its good to see that the weather has improved for the start of the 2012 season. At least for now anyway.

Good luck to the explorers. Godspeed!

North Pole 2012: Explorers Ready To Go!

The beginning of March can mean only one thing in the adventure world – a new Arctic season is about to begin. This is the time of year when our attention shifts away from the South Pole and instead turns toward the North. As we speak, several teams have already gathered in Resolute Bay, Canada where they are waiting for word on whether or not they can get underway with their respective journeys. Most will depart from Cape Discovery, where they will begin the long and arduous trek to the top of the world.

Traveling to the North Pole presents some very unique and difficult challenges over a journey to the South. For starters, Antarctica actually has solid land underneath the polar icecap, while the Arctic is actually one giant slab of ice floating above the Arctic Ocean. That means that the ice is far less stable, and Arctic explores often have to deal with large open areas of water, called leads, that they must somehow find a way around, or cross. In recent years, those open leads have become larger and more frequent, particularly at the start of the journey, with global climate change usually being blamed.

Arctic explorers also have to deal with a frustrating phenomenon known as negative drift as well. Negative drift is caused when the large slab of ice they are traveling across actually floats further south, carrying them away from their intended destination at 90ºN. It is not uncommon for someone traveling in the Arctic to spend a full day covering ten miles of distance, only to stop for the night and have negative drift carry them in the opposite direction. More than one Arctic explorer has found that they are significantly further away from the North Pole when they wake up the next morning than they were when they went to sleep.

Those aren't the only challenges to Arctic travel either. For instance, the unstable nature of the ice can cause large areas of it to collide with one another, causing it to crack and break. This can create large debris fields filled with massive boulders of ice which can be extremely difficult to cross, particularly when you're dragging a sled filled with equipment and gear behind you. Additionally, when traveling through the Arctic, explorers need to carry a shotgun with them to help dissuade the polar bears from getting a little too close. In the Antarctic, explorers never encounter anything more vicious than a penguin.

As I write this, two expeditions are preparing to get underway. The Irish North Pole team, consisting of Clair O'Leary and Mike O'Shea, are waiting for word on whether or not their flight to Cape Discovery will fly today. Joining them on that flight will be Japanese solo skier Yasunaga Ogita, who hopes to complete an unsupported journey of his own to the North Pole.

In the days ahead, more teams, including a large contingent from the Indian Army, will head out on the ice. Lets just hope they have better luck than last year, when bad storms at the start of the season delayed flights long enough that most of the explorers simply gave up and went home. The window for skiing to the North Pole is a very narrow one, and the journey has only gotten tougher in the past few years. I hope that everyone at least gets a fair shot at achieving their goals in 2012.

Hugh Neff Wins 2012 Yukon Quest

The 1000 mile long Yukon Quest sled dog race was won by veteran musher Hugh Neff earlier this week, when he crossed the finish line just 26 seconds ahead of second place finisher Allen Moore. It took Neff just 9 days, 16 hours, and 5 minutes to cover the course, which is run annually between Fairbanks and White Horse. Neff managed to make up 42 minutes of time over his rival in the final 100 miles, to nip him at the finish line.

Third place in the race went to Lance Mackey, who has won the YQ on four occasions. He was about 5 hours and 20 minutes off the pace, but says he felt like he actually won, since his dogs were on all three of the top teams. Jake Berkowitz and Brent Sass rounded out the top five at the event.

The Yukon Quest is always in interesting preview of what to expect at the Iditarod, which gets underway in about two weeks time. That race will actually be shorter than the YQ this year, dropping to 975 miles in length, due to changes in the course and the ceremonial start in Anchorage. Still, it remains one an amazing event, and should be fun to follow once again this year.

2012 Yukon Quest Underway

One of my favorite events to follow each year is the Iditarod sled dog race, which will begin on the 3rd of March. One of the best precursors to that event is the Yukon Quest, which got underway last weekend. The YQ is a 1000-mile long race that stretches from Whitehorse, in Canada's Yukon province, to Fairbanks, Alaska. It generally lasts somewhere between 10 to 15 days and features some of the top mushers in the sport.

A quick look at the current standings shows some very familiar names at the top of the leader board. Lance Mackey is currently out in front, and as a four time winner of both this event and the Iditarod, he is certainly a threat to take the crown once again this year. Mackey is the only man to win both races in a single season as well. Just minutes behind him is veteran musher Hugh Neff, who holds a slim lead over Allen Moore as well, although the live tracking actually shows Mackey and Moore neck and neck at the front of the pack.

The 2012 Yukon Quest is just over three days old at this point, which means there is a lot of racing yet to come. So far, the weather hasn't been particularly bad and temperatures have been hovering around 15 to 20ºF/-9 to -6ºC, which is down right balmy for the Yukon this time of year. Hopefully conditions will stay good through the end of the race, which will probably be sometime early next week.

Video: Redbull Supernatural Snowboard Competition

This past weekend a new snowboard competition kicked off in British Columbia, where 18 of the best riders in the world hit a custom built run that resembled something out of a video game. The event, called the Redbull Supernatural,  was created by Travis Rice, who also won the competition, was not without controversy. In order to build the wooden platforms and rails used in the race, a number of tress throughout the area were topped or removed altogether, angering environmentalists in the process.

That said, this looks fun as hell!

Antarctic Gear: What Do You Need For A Trip To The South Pole

Ever wondered what kind of gear you need to ski solo and unsupported to the South Pole? If so, you'll probably really enjoy this blog post from Mark Wood from a few days back. As you may recall, Mark recently completed that journey, and is now en route to Canada, where he'll soon begin the second part of his expedition, during which he'll ski solo to the North Pole as well.

In the blog post, Mark lists out all the kit that he took with him on his Antarctic adventure and shares a video with details on ten of his favorite items. You'll find the video below, but you'll need to click over to the blog to see the rest of his gear, which is broken up into the following categories: Tent Items, Clothing, Kitchen Items, and Communications and Filming gear. Under each of those categories you'll find listings of the particular gear he took and which brand he used along the way, as well as the quantity of those items too. In some case, back-up gear was necessary, so you'll see multiple version of that item included in the inventory.

He also lists one item under "Missing In Action" as well, which is his iPod. Apparently the device broke on day two of he expedition, and he had to spend the next 48 days without any kind of audio to help pass the time. Many polar explorers like to load up their iPod with plenty of music, podcasts, and audio books to help pass the time on the trail, but for Mark, that wasn't a luxury he was able to enjoy.

The North Pole season is now just a few short weeks away, and it won't be long before more teams are gathering in Resolute Bay to start their expeditions. Mark hasn't posted his current whereabouts, but make no mistake, we'll be following him on his journey North as well.

An African Adventure With Canadian RMC Cadets

In late December, a team of young cadets from the Royal Military College in Canada traveled to Africa, where they had quite an experience. The team went there to climb Kilimanjaro, with the hopes of raising $20,000 for a new "Summit Scholarship" that would allow a former child solider from Africa to attend university in Canada. While any Kili climb is an adventure in and of itself, that was just the tip of the iceberg for what they found on their journey through the continent.

You can read the long and detailed, yet very interesting, trip report by clicking here. It has some great insights into climbing Kili, which will definitely be appreciated by anyone considering a climb of their own, but also discusses the other aspects of the cadets' journey through Africa as well. For instance, upon their arrival to Nairobi, Kenya they spent the first couple of days visiting local hospitals and slums and getting an education on what life in Africa is truly like. It was an eye-opening experience for the young men and women on the trip. They also had an opportunity to interact with African wildlife, visiting rehabilitation centers for elephants, giraffes, and other creatures.

After getting their legs back under them, and acclimatizing to the sights and sounds of Africa, it was time to move on to Tanzania and Kilimanjaro, which they climbed along the Umbwe route. As I mentioned above, they go into good detail on their climb, sharing all kinds of experience from the trail, which was a focal point of their visit. Their African adventure wasn't over after a successful summit however, as they then moved on to Rwanda, where they spent a week learning about the culture and history there, including the horrible genocide that went down in the 1994. Some of the team even ventured into Volcanoes National Park, where they had the opportunity to interact with the famed mountain gorillas that live there.

The story is such a good one, as I can tell from reading about the cadets' experiences that they fell in love with Africa as much as I have. It is a complex, wonderful place, that once it gets into your heart, it is hard to shake. Their experiences were not the norm for many travelers, which makes it all the more interesting to read. It seems pretty clear that this group of young people didn't come home unchanged by their travels.  This sounds like it was an amazing journey and one that I would have loved to have been a part of.

Thanks to John Matlock for sending me this story a few days back.

Video: Paddling Granite Creek on Vancouver Island

While we're on the subject of cool videos today, check out this one from Quebec Connection, which features a group of kayakers paddling Granite Creek on Vancouver Island. That river features a 5km (3.1 mile) stretch that features some amazingly beautiful scenery and a number of fun, clean drops that look like a blast to run.


Granite Creek, Vancouver Island ! from QuebecConnection on Vimeo.

Video: Big Wave Kayak Surfing In Canada

Every spring the winter run off swells the rivers in and around Quebec, creating some of the most amazing conditions for freestyle paddlers to surf some very big waves. This past spring, kayaker Tyler Fox took is video camera along to shoot the action, and as you'll see below, the results are nothing short of spectacular. The water really is huge and that allows these talented athletes to really show off their abilities.

After you're done picking up your jaw, head over to Canoe & Kayak where you can read an interview with Tyler, where he talks about the experience of being out on the water in these conditions, as well as the "biggest, most gnarly wave ever surfed."


Spring Fever - Big Wave edit from Tyler Fox from Tribe Alliance on Vimeo.

Video: Therapy On A Bike

Adventure Journal delivered up another fantastic video this morning, this time in the form of Suspension Therapy. This beautifully shot mountain bike video that will leave you longing for more days on the trail – which are becoming increasingly rarer here in the Northern Hemisphere, as the colder weather sets in. Even the music is hauntingly beautiful in this short film.

Apparently the video was shot as a promo for a new business, aptly named Suspension Therapy, which helps riders to properly tune their bikes. Not sure how the business is doing, but the video is an absolute success.


Suspension Therapy from nsmb.com on Vimeo.

Video: The Yukon Arctic Ultra Endurance Race

The Yukon Arctic Ultra is one of the toughest endurance races on the planet. The event takes place each year in Canada during the dead of winter and sends athletes on a 430-mile run along the Yukon Quest sled dog trail. To say it is cold would be an understatement and athletes need tobe self-sufficient while out on the trail.

A new documentary captures the spirit of the race very well, showing us why athletes push themselves to the limit in such a harsh environment, while also demonstrating why this just might be the toughest race on the planet. You can watch the entire video online, and I've embedded it below. It is a little more than an hour in length, so pop some popcorn and get comfortable.




The Yukon Arctic Ultra from Yukon Arctic Ultra on Vimeo.

Polar Bear Cam Brings Cuddly Carnivores Into Our Living Room

I'm a sucker for great wildlife videos, but even more so when they're actually streaming live. The video below is sent back to us from live cameras aboard a Tundra Buggy in Churchill, Manitoba. The buggy goes out each and every day looking for polar bears and other animal that wander the area. I was tipped off to this live cam by reader Alan Curr, who discovered it on National Geographic's site, who recommend watching it between 7:00 AM and 4:30 PM, or generally when the sun is up.

If you don't see any bears wandering around when the camera is running, be patient. They're bound to show up again. When I first logged in, there were two bears wrestling and chasing each other around. It was quite fun to watch, and I'm sure you'll be able to see similar activity.

The camera is brought to us by Explore.org, Polar Bears International, and Frontiers North.