Multi-day river trips are a gear junkie’s dream, even better than car camping trips. Anything you can strap to the raft or stick in a dry bag is fair game. You’ll need PFDs, throwbags, a pump, a backup pump….whatever, snooze. This is the stuff you REALLY need: Limes Beer, especially cheap beer, tastes 30 percent [...]
water
More than 70 million people living in the western United States rely on the Rocky Mountain snowpack for their water, and a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey does not bode well for long showers: Since the 1980s, the snowpack has dropped 20 percent. “Until the 1980s, the northern Rocky Mountains experienced large snowpacks [...]
This edition of 15 Seconds takes a look at the sun from under water. What is 15 Seconds? For the backstory, go here. *More or less. Probably more. Don’t be literal.
Beach season is just around the corner, and federal scientists say they’ve developed a new water quality test that may help reduce human exposure to waterborne illnesses and prevent unnecessary beach closures. The same-day test was recently evaluated by the U.S. Geological Survey, which found that results from the rapid test met EPA’s safe swimming [...]
When was the last time you went swimming in an ice-covered lake? What’s that, never? Yeah, well, me neither. I’ve jumped in ice-covered rivers and ice-covered swimming pools, but somehow this looks far more manly. Documentary filmmaker Steve Olpin, a.k.a. the Talking Fly, tends to shoot artists and athletes because of their passion, and he [...]
To snatch a moment from the wild and capture it in words that pulse with life is quite a feat. Stephen Grace, author of the 2004 novel Under Cottonwoods, makes it seem effortless. When he describes sandhill cranes rising from the wetlands of the Blackfoot Valley, the reader can almost hear the thunderous applause of [...]
After getting a six-year reprieve from the National Park Service, jet ski riders at Lake Powell will have to make sure their personal watercraft meet 2006 emission standards established by the EPA back in 2006. The Park Service delayed implementation of the regulation for ten years to minimize impacts to personal watercraft owners and provide [...]
Some 80 groups and companies that want public land to remain open to the public have signed a petition to stop a Canadian developer from building a gondola to hook together two ski resorts near Salt Lake City. Traversing about 30 acres of what is now Wasatch National Forest, the gondola would benefit the Talisker [...]
It’s destiny that the granddaughter of Jacques-Yves Cousteau would have water in her blood, but Alexandra Cousteau’s message is that water is in everyone’s blood — that water is the connective and vital thread binding all of us to life, that without clean and healthy water, there is no life. Through her Blue Legacy foundation [...]
When it comes to environmental impact, most surfers can’t exactly claim a clear conscience. Polyurethane boards are swathed in polyester resin and fiberglass. Wax is brimming with petroleum jelly. And wetsuits are a patchwork of glues, solvents, and neoprene. Over the years, some surfboard and surf-accessory manufacturers have tried to chip away at the use [...]
On any given day, and especially after rainstorms, you’re likely to find lots of nasties swirling in the water at your local beach, lake, or river, and to limit your risk, states regularly test water based on guidelines issued by the Environmental Protection Agency. This week, after relying on the same criteria for the past [...]
Many of the West’s rivers are facing unrelenting pressure from unsustainable water use. Some have already been pushed near the brink, including the iconic Virgin River in Southern Utah, recently named as one of ecosystems most at risk from water development in a recent report from the Endangered Species Coalition. “The problem is pretty simple: People [...]
After spending more than $14 billion on the response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, BP will pay another $4.5 billion in penalties under a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the biggest fine ever levied by the department. Federal officials said they will also pursue gross negligence charges under the Clean Water Act, [...]
Pedro Valdeolmillos was not happy when he crashed his boat into a rock off the coast of Ibiza, despite taking every precaution. He was so not happy, he decided in 2009 to build an information-rich platform for the ocean, where sailors, surfers, kayakers, divers and casual beachgoers could go for beta beyond what’s found in [...]
The Daily Bike, May 24, 2013
Boy Scouts to Allow Gay Members
The Daily Bike: Mountain Bike Enduro World Series Kicks Off
Overlandia: Driving a 1936 Rolls Royce Across India
15 Seconds: Driving Indian Creek, Utah
The Man Who Skied Down Everest Climbs it at 80
National Avalanche Legend Doug Abromeit Passes Away
Smokey Is Fighting Fracking and the Feds Don’t Like It
Prickly, Beloved Mountain Gazette Print Version Shut Down
Historical Badass: Alpinist Alex Lowe
Volunteer Fired at Saguaro National Park for Reporting Graffiti
Sierra Club Joins Lawsuit Against Mountain Bike Park
Driver Busted After Bragging on Twitter About Hitting Cyclist
The Daily Bike: Les Granges du Galibier, Giro d’Italia 2013
