Category: Alaska (Page 1 of 2)

Dick Proenneke thriving alone in the wilderness of Alaska

2023.06.03 / Robert

Dick Proenneke in “Alone in the Wilderness” is the story of Dick Proenneke living at Twin Lakes in the Alaska wilderness.

Dick retired at age 50 in 1967 and decided to build his own cabin on the shore of Twin Lakes. He filmed his adventures so he could show his relatives in the lower 48 states what life was like in Alaska, building his cabin, hunting for food, and exploring the area.

Bob Swerer has used some of the footage from Dick’s films and created 4 videos about Dick, “Alone in the Wilderness”, “Alone in the Wilderness part 2”, “Alaska, Silence and Solitude” and “The Frozen North”. They can purchase from Bob Swerer Productions at the DickProenneke.com website.

Below are some excepts from these films.

Top States for hiking in the USA – according to Forbes

2021.08.24 / Robert

Joni Sweet, at Forbes, ranked the top ten states for hiking in the US »

1. Alaska
2. Arkansas
3. Hawaii
4. Washington, D.C.
5. Iowa (tied for 5th place)
5. Arizona (tied for 5th place)
7. Utah (tied for 7th place)
7. West Virginia (tied for 7th place)
7. Nevada (tied for 7th place)
10. North Carolina

The article ranked Kentucky, followed by New Hampshire at the bottom of the list.

The most expensive mountains to climb in the world

2021.07.30 / Robert

Mount Everest

To compile the list of the most expensive mountains to climb, Outforia looked at everything from the cost of joining a guided climbing group, acquiring the necessary permits, the required equipment, to guides and sherpas to hire.

Carl Borg, Outforia »

Scaling the highest peaks in the world requires a combination of hiking, rock climbing, ice climbing, and cold endurance, which naturally makes it quite a niche activity. You need to be mentally and physically ready, have expert skills and equipment, be experienced and aware of the dangers, as well as being able to fund your trip.

As there is so much preparation and equipment involved in tackling these daunting climbs, they can cost eye-watering sums in total. You’ll likely be going as part of a guided group, led by someone who is familiar with the mountain and has completed the climb multiple times before.

The top 10 most expensive climbs in the world (US$)

Mount Everest, Nepal » 29,032 ft » : $84,123
Mount Vinson, Antarctica » 16,067 ft » $46,618
Cho Oyu, Tibet » 29,906 » $33,703
Puncak Jaya, Indonesia » 16,023 » $27,449
Denali, United States » 20,310 » $12,086
Monte San Lorenzo, Argentina » 12,159 » $9,095
Mera Peak, Nepal » 21,247 » $9,000
The Eiger, Switzerland » 13,025 » $8,462
Aconcagua, Argentina »22,841 » $8,395
The Matterhorn, Switzerland » 14,692 » $8,212

The Newcomers’ Guide to The Seven Summits and the continental conundrum

2021.06.03 / Robert

Seven Summits (Source » Wikipedia)

Martin Walsh, Explorersweb »

The Seven Summits has become part of the adventure lexicon, shorthand for the highest mountain on each continent.

The most commonly accepted list is:

Mount Everest, Asia, 8,849m

Aconcagua, South America, 6,961m

Denali, North America, 6,194m

Kilimanjaro, Africa, 5,895m

Mount Elbrus, Europe, 5,642m

Mount Vinson, Antarctica, 4,892m

Puncak Jaya/Carstensz Pyramid, Oceania, 4,884m

Mountaineers have sought to climb the highest peak on each continent since at least 1956 when American William Hackett completed five of the seven. However, he climbed Mont Blanc rather than Mount Elbrus and Mount Kosciuszko rather than Puncak Jaya, as these were considered the highest peaks in Europe and Oceania respectively at the time.

The People’s Congress in Beijing formally announced it will construct the “Polar Silk Road” through the Arctic, despite not being an Arctic nation

2021.03.09 / Robert

Heiner Kubny writing for the Polar Journal »

China has been steadily increasing its presence in the Arctic since it defined the far north as a “new strategic frontier” in 2015 and began promoting a “Polar Silk Road” three years later. Moreover, in 2018, Beijing declared itself a “Near Arctic State,” a move that primarily served to underscore the interests of its Arctic claim.

The government in Beijing has its eye on lucrative minerals and other raw materials in addition to the Arctic transport link. There is particular interest in interests in the Canadian Arctic and in mining rights in Greenland. This is because the Arctic is rich in natural resources such as fish, precious metals and fossil fuels.

Read the whole article at Polar Journal »

China is pushing it’s vision for ‘Polar Silk Road’ across the Arctic

2021.01.27 / Robert

Reuters is reporting that China has unveiled its ambitions to extend President Xi Jinping’s signature Belt and Road Initiative to the Arctic by developing shipping lanes opened up by global warming. The Chinese are calling it the Polar Silk Road.

“China hopes to work with all parties to build a ‘Polar Silk Road’ through developing the Arctic shipping routes,” the paper, issued by the State Council Information Office, said.

China, despite being a non-Arctic state, is increasingly active in the polar region and became an observer member of the Arctic Council in 2013.

Among its increasing interests in the region is its major stake in Russia’s Yamal liquefied natural gas project which is expected to supply China with four million tonnes of LNG a year, according to the state-run China Daily.

Shipping through the Northern Sea Route would shave almost 20 days off the regular time using the traditional route through the Suez Canal, the newspaper reported last month. COSCO Shipping has also previously sailed vessels through the Arctic’s northeast passage.

Updated 2021.03.09

The 14 mountains over 8,000 metres elevation

2020.08.25 / Robert

A morning shot of Fairy Meadows and Nanga Parbat. » Photography by Imrankhakwani

Mount Everest
» 8,848 metres (29,029 ft) above sea level
» Located on the border between Nepal and the autonomous region of Tibet (OpenStreetMap / Google Maps)
» First summitted by Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay in 1953
K2
» Also known as Mount Godwin-Austen or Chhogori
» 8,611 metres (28,251 ft) above sea level
» Located on the border between China and Pakistan (OpenStreetMap / Google Maps)
» First summitted gy Lino Lacedelli and Achille Compagnoni in 1954
Kangchenjunga
» Located on the border between Nepal and India, approximately 125 kilometres from Everest (OpenStreetMap / Google Maps)
» At elevation of 8,586 metres (28,169 ft), it is the second highest mountain in the Himalayas
» First summitted by Joe Brown and George Brand in 1955 Continue reading

Watch » Bikepacking Alaska to Argentina and around the world. The story so far (2014 – 2019)

2019.06.29 / Robert

Iohan Gueorguiev’s videos are well made, but they are generally an hour long.

With this video Iohan recaps his trip so far, from Alaska to Argentina, in less than 15 minutes.

If you like this, you’ll love his full length videos.

Updated: See The World Through Iohan Gueorguiev’s Eyes

2019.06.01 / Robert

Updated June 1, 2019 to add link to his latest video.

In May 2014, Iohan Gueorguiev (website – YouTube – Twitter – Instagram) started cycling from the Arctic Ocean at Tuktoyaktuk, in Canada’s Northwest Territories. The plan was to cycle to the tip of South America in a year, maybe a few more months.

Mushers, an Impenetrable Blizzard, and The World’s Hardest Dog Sled Race

2019.05.05 / Robert

It’s not the Iditarod, but about the 1,000-mile long Yukon Quest.

Elisa Shoenberger, writing in Deadspin:

Today, the Quest winds its way up through the Yukon and Alaskan wilderness, passing villages and remote houses along the way. The middle point is historic Dawson City, the capital of the Klondike Gold Rush, filled with casinos, dance halls, hotels, banks, and luxurious shopping back in the day. It was even once called “The Paris of the North.” The first musher to Dawson City wins a few ounces of gold, a nice nod to the city’s heritage.

The first race was won by Sonny Lindner in 12 days and 5 minutes; the fastest finish was by Allen Moore in 2004 in 8 days, 14 hours, 21 minutes. Aliy Zirkle was the first woman to win the race in 2000. The closest finish was in 2012, when Hugh Neff beat Allen Moore by only 26 seconds.

The Yukon Quest is a smaller and younger race than the Iditarod. The latter is better known and is much more commercialized, bringing bigger sponsors and media attention. There’s also a bigger prize for mushers who win or place high enough. It therefore attracts greater numbers of mushers: the Iditarod had 52 mushers participate this year while the Quest had 30. Some feel that the focus on money in the Iditarod has moved it away from the real stars of the show: the dogs and the mushers themselves.