To Be, or Not to Be… Prepared

I had prepared for everything: food, snacks, extra clothing (layers), the elements, hydration. Everything but the terrain.

Level II Fun (Part 2): Out of the Pain Cave, Into the Light

If you’re new to this blog and haven’t yet read Level II Fun, Part I, you might want to go back and do so.  This post picks up where the last one left off.  For those returning to the blog, recall that I had had a very bad day on Mt. Tom, was sunburnt, dehydrated,…

The Magic Bus: Living and Dying on the Stampede Trail

Another hiker has died trying to reach the magic bus, the bus made famous by the 2007 Sean Penn film Into the Wild, starring Emile Hirsch.  That’s the headline from two days ago out of Healy, Alaska.  If you’re a reader of this blog you’ve almost certainly either read the book or seen the film. …

Level II Fun (Part 1): The Pain Cave

Why do we consciously choose to do things that cause us pain in the moment, only in retrospect to look back and say, “You know what? That was fun.” The outdoors community refers to this as level II fun. Some of the answers may be found here.

How to Build a Home: Taste the Rainbow Part Two

We who are asking to expand these definitions to create a more inclusive atmosphere are not also demanding that the industry eliminate the grandiose; rather, we ask that the humble also be part of what it means to adventure.

Adventure Time: Redefining Adventure for Everyone

When modern readers think of or read about adventure they’re probably reading about epic journeys of discovery, or thinking about trail blazers who risked life and limb in search of an ultimate prize:  Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian explorer and his team of four were the first to make it to the geographic South pole in…