We all know the feeling of remoteness. The stillness. The perspective. It's part of what keeps drawing us outside. But what does it feel like to be standing, literally, in the most remote place in a state? In the country? And what might those places reveal about the fate of our country's wild lands? In 2010, Ryan and Rebecca Means embarked upon Project Remote to find out. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
“With steely determination, I pointed my tips downhill and tried to power through the deep snow, but I was doomed,” remembers Julia Rosen. “I started to do the super slow splits as my skis drifted further and further apart under two piles of snow that felt like wet concrete. My feet stopped, but my body lurched forward and I was thrust into an unwelcome downward dog.” Anyone who’s skied powder remembers this fall. Anyone who, like Julia, learned to ski pow as an adult remembers it more clearly. ...
Plastic bags. They clog drawers, landfills, coastlines and trailheads. Recycling them is confusing and inefficient. But what if there was a way to turn the trash into something of value? Enter Industrial Designer Will Wells . Today, we bring you our annual Year of Big Ideas. We talked to contributors and friends about their goals for the coming year. Here's to going big, traveling to new places and trying something new. And here's to making something that will inspire others, even if it's small....
Powerful ideas often demand that we leave the comfort of a safety net. We quit a nine to five. We take out a second mortgage on our house. Along the way, we can expect to be called a crazy one day and brilliant the next. In the late 1990's, Jeff Pensiero had an idea--to build a backcountry ski lodge that catered to snowboarders. It was outlandish--targeting a market that barely existed—and yet perfect. But, like any dream, it took years of sweat, worry, right people-right time connections, and d...
Significant life tumult propelled Nick Triolo to leave his home and move to Todos Santos, Baja earlier this year. As an ultra-runner, he instinctively explored the area on foot. As he settled into the town and its community, he became aware of a growing resistance to proposed mining in the area. And he knew he wanted to help. But how? It might have been easy for Nick to shrug off the feeling. Instead he thought big-- he would organize a protest run across the 70-mile wide stretch of the Baja Pen...
Is there something out there? It’s a question that lurks in the back of my mind. Probably in yours too. It’s one of the very reasons why I love the outdoors: the unpredictability. Over the years, I’ve collected experiences. Moments, like bits of data, that, collectively guide my intuition. And yet. We’ve all had that moment where hairs stand up on the back of our neck. Was it heightened perception? Or did the wind just blow in just the right way? And if you convince yourself it was the wind, doe...
"It's the unpredictable elements that throw our lives off course, for better or for worse," writes Niki Yoblonski. We leave a trailhead with some idea of what we're seeking, but on true adventures, what we walk away with is never what we expected. When Niki and her boyfriend, Jason, set out to climb Mt. Darwin one Labor Day weekend, they didn't take home a summit photo, or a bag of shiny coins, but, by a series of slim chances, they took home a treasure perhaps more valuable than anything they c...
Walking into someone's apartment, house, van, tent or trailer for the first time can feel sort of like flipping open the first page of their journal. The places we choose to call home and the way we assemble them say a lot about who we are and where our priorities lie. But at some point, our environments can start to construct us as well. In the two months between the end of a semester of college and the beginning of a seasonal job, Ethan Newman loaded all of his belongings into his Saturn sedan...
"We had the discussion around the campfire one night of trying to define 'what is wilderness'," John Stoneman remembers. "We determined that if you get hurt or you have a problem and there's really no way out, you're in the wilderness." Despite the fact that 29,000 people raft down the Colorado River every year, the Grand Canyon is still unquestionably that-- wilderness. But what happens if you do need to get out? When the one place you need to be is a thousand miles away and you are off the gri...
There's a story that you may have heard kicked around in the newspapers and nightly news for the last few months. It's as unsettling as it is tragic. The rate of suicide among active military personnel, reservists, and veterans has increased to nearly 22 suicides a day. 22 every day, even as more resources are being allocated to prevent it--and finding a solution is likely as complicated as understanding why. Veterans Stacy Bare and Nick Watson know the struggles that service members face as the...
"Three months ago, I'm not sure I would have considered myself a patriot," writes Hilary Oliver. "Mentally, I separated my nation―government, states, and people―from my country: the mountains, deserts, plains and oceans that took my breath away. Maybe I had taken my privileges for granted, but I couldn't tell you the last time my heart swelled with love or pride for my nation." Then she drove into Zion National Park. With it's soaring sandstone walls, and man's will imposed upon the landscape to...
We've told stories about people quitting jobs, ditching mortgages and selling worldly possessions to go live life on their own terms. But what if you had lived your entire adult life on the road? If you'd never signed a lease or even paid rent. Passion can lead to the most incredible places, even to the most American of dreams -- Buying a home.
Our baptism in wild places is different for each of us. For some, it's ingrained so early in life that it hardly registers as a memory. For most, it was probably a little awkward, a bit daunting, yet so compelling that we wanted to do it again. For Wendy Irwin, it began with, "a soft-shell cooler, a MacGyver like trust in the magical properties of duct tape, and a 'Tent for Sale' ad in the classifieds." Though much went wrong on Wendy's first backpacking trip, the tendrils of nature's beauty wou...
Our second installment from the third annual Live from 5Point in April at the 5Point Film Festival . If you missed the last episode, we talked with snowboarder Kevin Pearce and skier Chris Davenport. Today, we present stories from James Walsh and Kyle Dempster. James has focused his camera lens on the biking culture within African. But the creative process can be a frustrating journey where you have to be doggedly determined to succeed. Today, James talks about the odyssey of being a filmmaker ....
We're back for our third annual Live from 5Point event. Today we present two stories from snowboarder Kevin Pearce, about finding happiness after suffering a traumatic brain injury, and big mountain skier Chris Davenport, about the aesthetics of the lines he chooses and what he loves about mountains, especially those close to home.
As the days grow longer and warmer, the road beckons us. And while we can pile gear into the car until we can’t cram anything else in, packing some items take a bit more thought. Like, how will I keep the cheese cold? “The ice chest is the vagrant’s culinary miracle. It allows you to transport cold, somewhat-fresh food to almost anywhere your beater car can haul it,” writes Dean Fleming . But it can still break the bank. Fortunately, he has extensive experience living on the road and scraping by...
"We traveled in an ode to that particular brand of privileged American adventure, the cross-country drive, funded in equal parts by savings from crappy after-school jobs at a camping store and graduation money from loving parents," writes Graham T. Beck . Fresh out of high school, Graham and his friend, Tim, headed to Yellowstone National Park for a backpacking trip. They knew they were in bear country. But only after they'd hiked 40 miles in could they begin to understand the horribilis of the ...
Great stories often have these 5 words, “and then it got dark.” But how can carefully executed alpine starts and planned summits turn into watching stars dot the sky? Well, getting benighted can happen for a few reasons. One- unforeseen circumstances. Two- complete denial of reality. Or three- getting too comfortable in the dark. Kelly Cordes , Ryan Peterson, and Jay Puckhaber share their tales of being out, long after the sun has set. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
While climbing Castleton Tower, Brendan Leonard watched a climber cruise past him, take on a piece of gear, and then fall onto a ledge right at his feet. The immediate moment had Brendan dealing with the logistics of how to help someone when you're a pitch off the ground and initiating a rescue for the climber. But the image of what he saw lingered long after the ambulance left the parking lot, and had him questioning his own climbing motivations. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
Love- It's life's great surprise. You can try to pin its origins in brain chemistry and hormones. Or the right timing. But those don't explain why tough guys make slow rock mixes or why a timid person suddenly introduces themselves to the person of their dreams. Why it works for one couple and not another is beyond me, so I've stopped trying to guess. Your mate could be across the ocean or right next door. But if you find him or her, it feels as though every moment lead to the perfect culminatio...
Ever managed to talk yourself into an adventure or a job only to realize you have gotten yourself in way over your head? Sometimes these scenarios lead to embarrassment. Sometimes they begin horror stories. But, sometimes, they provide unexpected opportunities for growth. In 2007, Jen Altschul talked her way into a job as a ski patroller. And then the snow began to fall. Today, we present her story of learning how to be one. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
You might remember a story about climbers in the Magic Kingdom . It sounded like a dream job- climbing, secret lairs and cutting to the front of the roller coaster line. Our inbox flooded with emails about how to apply. But the program was canceled in 2007. Until last year. In an audition room filled with sponsored climbers and underground crushers, Susanica Tam felt her resume paled in comparison. Could climbing a mini-Matterhorn change Susanica's outlook on climbing? Today, we present our annu...
Greg May signed up as a rookie for the 24 Hours of Exposure at the heckling of his friends. But as he stood on the start line he felt under prepared, under biked, and overweight. "Probably not the thought you want before your first 24 hour mountain bike race." Though Greg wanted to finish, he'd also needed a distraction from writing his Ph.D. thesis. Laps spun to hours, and Greg found that pushing his body stopped the whir of thoughts. As he nerared the finish line, he wondered whether his body ...
Alastair Humphreys has biked around the world, crossed glacial highlands and desert lands. But in 2011, he stayed in Britain, focusing on trips close to home. The idea of backyard adventure wasn't new, but he put it in terms everyone could understand. While Alastair was perfecting the microadventure, Josh Norris and Ty Atwater were distilling down the elements of past adventure and cramming them into an all day-- well, Sufferthon . Can they create Type 3 fun without leaving Oregon? CLICK HERE TO...
In 2010, Seth Adams worked in Ecuador with Round River Conservation Studies . He was there as part of an effort to show the locals the importance of conserving the surrounding forest and wildlife. Yet, the longer that he was there, interacting with locals like Don Manuel and Stu , the more he began to reflect on his own perspective. Could the Ecuadorians show Seth something about himself? CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
We've all day dreamed about it - becoming a pro. What would it be like? Well, besides getting to do the thing you love everyday, you'd probably get free gear, meet incredible people, get your photo taken, maybe travel the world. You might even get paid. We call it living the dream. And it's good work if you can get it. But, how do you get the gig? And is it really all that it's cracked up to be? Zack Giffin and Timmy O'Neill share their stories of finding the spotlight and moving beyond it. CLIC...
Ever walked through the woods late at night and felt like you were being followed? Had a strange feeling about someone you just met? Encountered the strictly inexplicable that led you, abruptly, to pack up and bail? Often, we rationalize these instincts – just a bird in the trees cracking limbs, just a strange fellow with good intentions, or, well, our senses simply must have failed us. But what about when these warning signals don’t go off? Today, Micah McNulty, Trey Johnson , and George Braun ...
Steve's typical weekend would make any dirtbag jealous. Concerts by the river, sunrise climbs, hiking a new trailhead just because. He's living his own version of the dirtbag dream; the one he wanted to achieve for so many years. Until one day, he realized the dream he chased, wasn't all that he'd imagined it to be. Could he change his dream to reflect the reality he now wanted? CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
"A friend of mine said that it was worth getting a budget flight to Morocco just to eat an orange. After that you could turn around and fly home content." Writer, photographer, and surfer Mat Arney was ready for a break from his routine; and really ready to go surfing. While driving or flying was the simple solution, Mat made the journey equal to the destination, taking the train from England to Morocco. As the landscape outside the train's window subtly change, he enjoyed the slow release and f...
Drive it until it dies. That's the motto I lived by as my truck, Crash, crisscrossed the West. Family members would doubtfully ask, "Are you sure you want to drive there?" I did. Friends would ask about Crash's well being as though he was my aging dog. Though I knew the day was coming, I was still blindsided when the gears ground to a halt on my way to Yosemite. Could my belief in Crash transcend beyond the hulk of metal? CLICK HERE TO LISTEN...
