EXPEDITION NEWS, founded in 1994, is the monthly review of significant expeditions, research projects and newsworthy adventures. It is distributed online to media representatives, corporate sponsors, educators, research librarians, explorers, environmentalists, and outdoor enthusiasts. This forum on exploration covers projects that stimulate, motivate and educate.
February 2018 - Volume Twenty-Four, Number Two
Celebrating Our 24th Year!
EXPEDITION NOTES
Richard Wiese returns to drive The Explorers Club in 2018-19
Richard Wiese Elected President of The Explorers Club Once Again
The
Explorers Club Board of Directors elected Richard Wiese its 44th
president on Jan. 28. He assumes office on Mar. 11 after the Club's
annual meeting at its New York headquarters.
Wiese
has served in many capacities over the years, including as president
from 2002 to 2006. Under his previous administration, the Club began its
"Classic Series Books" which included the well-known and successful As Told at The Explorers Club
(Lyons Press, 2005) edited by George Plimpton. An accomplished
explorer, Wiese is both executive producer and host of the award-winning
and highly popular weekly PBS television series, Born to Explore.
His professional achievements have earned him numerous awards, including two Daytime Emmy Awards. He is author of the book, Born to Explore: How to Be a Backyard Adventurer
(Harper Paperbacks, 2009), and first climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro at the age
of 11. A resident of Connecticut, he is married with three young
children.
After
the announcement, Wiese posted on Facebook, "In my lifetime, science
and nature have never been under such siege. Our world needs scientists
and explorers more than ever before. I am proud to say, since 1904, The
Explorers Club has stood for innovation, conservation and the value of
different cultures. Our members make a difference. I am honored to serve
as its next president."
Not just a toy, drones get more respect everyday.
Drones to the Rescue
Like
them or not, drones are getting the job done. A lightweight inflatable
rescue tube called Restube can now be delivered by drone. It easily
stores in a fanny pack and could be the next must-have accessory for
waterborne expeditions.
Two
swimmers ages 15 and 17 got into trouble on the New South Wales coast
in Australia near Lennox Head, about a half-mile from shore. Within
minutes, a rescue drone flew out and deployed the buoyancy device which
inflated upon contact with water. Thanks to the buoyancy both were able
to reach the beach safely.
The
Deputy Premier of New South Wales, John Barilaro, says, "Never before
has a drone fitted with a flotation device been used to rescue swimmers
like this."
The
German Red Cross in the north German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is
starting a pilot project involving 15 drones equipped with Restube
buoys.
Learn more here:
John Roskelley to be honored in Boston (Photo by Keith Curry)
AAC Honors Five at Feb. 24 Annual Dinner
Each
year the American Alpine Club recognizes outstanding achievements in
conservation, climbing, and service to the climbing community. This year
is no exception. Five individuals will be recognized for displaying
monumental drive, courage, and commitment in the mountains and in their
lives.
Awardees are:
Honorary Membership: John Roskelley
The Robert And Miriam Underhill Award: Alex Honnold
Heilprin Citation: Ellen Lapham
The Robert Hicks Bates Award: Margo Hayes
The David R. Brower Conservation Award: Former Secretary Of The Interior, Sally Jewell
The
2018 Annual Benefit Dinner, Feb. 24, 2018, at the Fairmont Copley Plaza
in Boston features a keynote from Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner, the first
woman to climb all fourteen 8000 m peaks - including K2 - without
supplemental oxygen or high altitude porters.
For more information:
King of the World
Apparently if you're rich enough and have a strong bladder, you can be part of the team visiting the wreck site of the Titanic
for the first time in 13 years. OceanGate Expeditions, based in
Everett, Wash., is selling 11-day missions starting this June to the
famed shipwreck for a cool $105,000. There is space for nine people per
mission to join the expedition crew 380 miles off the coast of
Newfoundland as they dive to 12,500 feet to, "explore the wreck, view
artifacts, and capture images of the ship before she surrenders to the
elements," writes OceanGate president Joel Perry.
Passengers
will descend in a 22-ft. titanium and filament wound carbon fiber
submersible called Cyclops 2 which is vaguely reminiscent of the late
singer/songwriter Amy Winehouse's eyeliner. The descent for four
passengers and one pilot will take 90 minutes; total time in the
submersible is six hours. The submersible has enough life support on
board to sustain five people for 96 hours.
So-called
amateur Mission Specialists will join at least one submersible dive to
the ship and have the opportunity to train and support the submersible
operations in roles such as sonar operation, laser scanning, navigation,
communications, camera operations, and data logging.
A
number of estimates have been made about the length of time left before
Titanic is no longer recognizable as a shipwreck. The range of opinions
is due, in part, because only a small amount of data has been collected
during the limited number of manned and unmanned expeditions to the
site, according to the OceanGate website.
Says
OceanGate advisor David G. Concannon, Explorers Club member and leader
of the effort to recover the Apollo F-1 rocket engines that launched men
to the moon, "I led the last expedition to explore the Titanic
using deep submersibles back in 2005. This was my third expedition in
five years, and the wreck had badly deteriorated from year to year. It
will be interesting to see how it has held up over the past 13 years,
and to see what the future holds.
"As
for the cost, it isn't cheap to build a deep diving submersible. Nobody
has ever built one that can go below 1,000 meters, and there are no
government subs available that can reach the depth of Titanic,
so the price reflects this. Furthermore, more people have stood on the
top of Mt. Everest in a single day than have seen the Titanic
underwater, so the price also reflects the scarcity of the opportunity,"
Concannon tells EN.
As
for having a strong bladder, snacks and water are allowed, however, due
to limited bathroom facilities, limiting consumption throughout the
dive is recommended. "There's actually something called a low-residue
diet they use for the space program," OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, tells
HuffPost (Jan. 22).
"Inside, the humidity's very high so you don't have a need to drink water. As long as your system's empty you're OK."
Still,
the sub will be equipped with a portable toilet with a little screen
for "semi-privacy," Rush said: "That's mostly so people don't worry
about it as much."
The mission support fee of $105,000 per person is about as much as First Class passage on Titanic's inaugural sailing after adjusting for inflation.
Learn more at:
Tough Sledding
American Astronaut Scott Kelly is hosting a VIP Astronaut Challenge in Norway, well above the Arctic Circle, Apr. 1-7, 2018.
Cost
of the one week trip is approximately $12,500 and no previous outdoor
skills are required, although we imagine it does help to have a
tolerance for cold. A maximum of 26 people at least age 16 or older will
be invited. Activities include cross country skiing, fat biking,
snowmobiling, and learning dog sledding skills.
The slightly younger astronaut Scott Kelly
Kelly will participate and share his space experiences with the group,
talking about shaving 13 milliseconds off his Earth age during his
340-day mission on the International Space Station, spacewalking, and
the scientific value in sending an identical twin into space. Proceeds benefit the UK-based charity International Space School Educational Trust which works
in partnership with some of the world's leading space organizations to
deliver unique learning opportunities for people of all ages.
For more information:
Johan Reinhard on Llullaillaco Volcano (Photo courtesy of Johan Reinhard)
Reinhard Wins Hillary Medal
Anthropologist
and archaeologist Dr. Johan Reinhard received the Sir Edmund Hillary
Mountain Legacy Medal for remarkable service in the conservation of
culture and nature in mountainous regions.
The award was presented at the Mountain Museum in Pokhara, Nepal, on Dec. 11, 2017, during Nepal's annual Mountain Festival.
Reinhard
is a National Geographic Explorer, Senior Fellow with The Mountain
Institute, and Research Professor with Future Generations University. He
has published groundbreaking research on sacred landscapes, notably
relating to Tibetan Buddhist beyul (hidden valleys that helped form the
basis of the Shangri-La legend), Himalayan shamanism, sacred lakes of
the Aztecs and Incas, and mountain-top Inca burials.
Dr.
Kumar Mainali, president of Mountain Legacy, notes that the Medal both
recognizes Sir Edmund Hillary's own service on behalf of mountain people
and their environment and also encourages the continuing emulation of
Hillary's example.
Read the story here:
FEATS
So that's what flares are for? Record or not, this has to be one of the best end-of-adventure photos we've seen in a long time.
Pringles Power
An
18-year-old New Jersey man became the youngest person to row solo
across the Atlantic Ocean when he finished an arduous 3,000-mile journey
on Jan. 28. Oliver Crane arrived on the Caribbean island of Antigua
after a 44-day trek that began off the coast of Northwest Africa on the
Canary Islands, according to ABC News.
"You
are out there with just you, the boat and water, day after day. You get
really lonely. And then coming into Antigua harbor, seeing my family
and friends. I've never felt so much joy, seeing them all, never felt so
much love. It was an amazing experience," Crane says.
The teenager rowed in a 23-foot custom-made boat that had a solar-powered water maker but no toilet. He used a bucket instead.
"I
ate mainly junk food," he says. "I was supposed to eat freeze-dried
food as my main energy source, but I had a hard time getting it down, so
I lived off of Pringles and candy for a long time." Spoken like a true
teenager with a cast iron stomach.
Crane beat the previous record set by then 22-year-old Katie Spotz in 2010.
With
the trip, Crane raised money for homelessness and is already planning
his next adventure - this time on terra firma. "Maybe climb a few
mountains," he said. "Land-based, definitely. I'm going to take a break
from the ocean for a while. I'm enjoying solid ground."
He
was participating in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, billed as
the world's toughest row. He now plans to tour schools and yacht clubs
in the U.S. to talk about the challenge and ocean conservation.
See his website at:
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
"Adventure
is putting yourself in an uncomfortable place and dealing with it.
Exploration is part of human nature to find out and discover - to see
something and come back with knowledge. For 7-1/2 billion people to
exist on this one small planet, we have to discover things."
- Conrad Anker, 55, American rock climber, mountaineer, and author, speaking at the Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show trade convention in Denver.
From
Dec. 1-17 the North Face Climbing Team consisting of Conrad Anker,
Jimmy Chin, Savannah Cummins, Alex Honnold, Anna Pfaff, and Cedar
Wright, climbed a collective 15 summits in the Fenris Kjeften ("the lap
of the wolf god") or the Wolf's Jaw in the Drygalski Range of the
Orvinfjella in the Queen Maud Land Region of Eastern Antarctica.
The
team was able to explore the range in a variety of climbing
styles collectively ascending 12 new routes/first ascents from alpine
style rock ascents to big wall climbing and a new route on Ulvetanna
Peak, the crown jewel of the range.
Explaining the extreme conditions during the expedition, he joked, "We entered the pain cave. We revisited the hurt locker."
Members of The North Face-sponsored expedition. (Photo courtesy of The North Face/Pablo Durana)
MEDIA MATTERS
How Tall Is Mount Everest? It Depends.
The
height of Mount Everest is widely recognized as 29,029 feet. But the
calculation is inexact and subject to multiple factors. Nepal is sending
a team of surveyors to the summit to settle the "how tall?" question
for themselves, according to a New York Times story (Feb. 4) by Bhadra Sharma and Kai Schultzfeb.
Teams
from around the world, including China, Denmark, Italy, India and the
United States, have come up with other calculations, which have
sometimes strayed a little bit higher, or a little bit lower, than that
figure. Italy, in 1992, lopped seven feet off the standard height,
measuring it at 29,022 feet. In 1999, a measurement by American
scientists pushed the peak a little higher, saying the mountain reached
29,035 feet, according to the Times story.
Now,
for the first time, Nepali surveyors are limiting intervention from
foreign powers and sending a team to the summit to settle the height
question for themselves. In addition to the science, a bit of national
pride is at stake.
"Mount
Everest is our treasure," said Buddhi Narayan Shrestha, the former
director general of Nepal's Department of Survey. "What will happen if
foreign experts continue to reduce the height of our mountain without us
participating?"
Read the full story here:
Keep the Mountains Dangerous
Another Times story (Jan. 13), an opinion piece by Francis Sanzaro, argues that the mountains should be kept free ... and dangerous.
Last
August, after several accidents and deaths among climbers on Mont
Blanc, Western Europe's highest and most treacherous mountain, Jean-Marc
Peillex, the mayor of the French town of St. Gervais-les-Bains, issued
an order: Anyone attempting to climb the nearby Gouter route up the
mountain must now have specified gear including a harness, rope and
headlamp. Those who do not take these precautions are to be fined,
according to the story.
Sanzaro
writes, "... the decree appears to be a first - no such regulation
exists on any of the world's mountains, and it threatens to unravel a
centuries-old ideology based on the understanding of mountains as wild,
inherently risky places of conquest, not to be confused with busy
boulevards and cafe-lined city streets.
"Around
the country, parks are getting sued for wild animal attacks on visitors
within their boundaries, for falling trees or for not warning visitors
for the most obvious of risks, such as rivers flooding during storms.
These cases indicate a population out of touch with natural danger.
"Mountains
are inherently dangerous. But just as free speech makes a place for
disgusting speech, wild places need to make a place for irresponsible
activity. It is our life, after all. Right? Not really. Our right to
life doesn't always include our right to risk it. If that thought
doesn't feel strange to you, think about it again. It should.
Sanzaro
concludes, "This is basic stuff, and the mountains do this for tens of
millions of us annually. If we make the mountains safe, perceive them as
urban space and demand to have them as regulated as city blocks, we
have not only lost 'the mountains' but that part of us only they can
foster."
Read the story here:
WEB WATCH
Climbing Everest for Love
While the last thing Everest needs is more inexperienced climbers attempting to summit, The Climb,
a subtitled 2017 film from France, is the story of a Senegalese-French
man from humble roots who sets out to climb Everest to impress the woman
he loves - and slowly becomes a media sensation. Had he climbed a much
tougher mountain, the relatively unknown K2 for instance, it wouldn't be
the same. Everest has a much better publicist. The Netflix movie is
surprisingly engaging and stars relative acting newcomer Ahmed Sylla.
See the trailer here:
IN PASSING
Everest Watchdog Elizabeth Hawley Dies at 94
Elizabeth
Ann Hawley, an American journalist who chronicled Mount Evereest
expeditions for more than 50 years from her home in Kathmandu, died Jan.
26 at the age of 94.
Though
she never scaled a mountain herself, to maintain accuracy in the
Himalayan Database she co-founded, she grilled mountaineers before and
after summit attempts, traveling to their hotels in her trademark powder
blue Volkswagen Beetle. As the saying goes, if she hasn't certified
your summit, you haven't summitted.
If Elizabeth Hawley hasn't certified your summit, go back and climb it again.
Luis
Benitez, Everest guide and six-time summiteer, posted to Facebook: "I
am at a complete and utter loss. Ms. Hawley always knew when you landed
and was ringing the hotel right when you walked in the door. She was the
keeper of all our Himalayan secrets and successes. ... thank you for
being an example for so many young guides on how to truly be a
professional in a profession of chaos."
She kindly granted EN an interview in 2013 (see EN,
June 2013). Knowing her prickly personality, we were on our best
behavior when we met at the famed Hotel Yak and Yeti in Kathmandu.
"The
fascination with Everest will never go away, so long as it remains the
highest mountain on earth. But half the people there don't belong on the
mountain - many of them can't put on crampons or tie knots."
Oldest
man, youngest man, first amputee - these "firsts" are not basic to
climbing, she told us. "They may be relevant to humans, but these firsts
don't matter much. What matters are pioneering new routes; it's not
about a line of ants climbing up mountains."
Hawley
continued, "Today's advanced equipment and fixed ropes and Sherpa who
push and pull have made it easier to get up Everest, but certainly not
easier to survive."
Read her New York Times obit here:
ON THE HORIZON
The SES Explorer Awards 2018, May 22, 2018, London
This
celebration of exploration, innovation and leadership takes place May
22, 2018 at the Imperial College - City and Guilds Building in London.
The
UK-based Scientific Exploration Society (SES) leads, funds and supports
scientific discovery, research and conservation in remote parts of the
world offering knowledge, education and community aid. Theme for the
evening is "Pioneers With Purpose."
For more information:
EXPEDITION CLASSIFIEDS
Get Sponsored!
Hundreds
of explorers and adventurers raise money each month to travel on world
class expeditions to Mt. Everest, Nepal, Antarctica and elsewhere. Now
the techniques they use to pay for their journeys are available to
anyone who has a dream adventure project in mind, according to the book
from Skyhorse Publishing called: Get Sponsored: A Funding Guide for Explorers, Adventurers and Would Be World Travelers.
Author
Jeff Blumenfeld, an adventure marketing specialist who has represented
3M, Coleman, Du Pont, Lands' End and Orvis, among others, shares
techniques for securing sponsors for expeditions and adventures.
Buy it here:
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Editor/publisher: Jeff Blumenfeld. Research editor: Lee Kovel. ©2018
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