It’s the weekend. That means it’s time to find out what’s new in the mountains. Here’s a selection of news, articles, posts, videos, photos, and other intriguing things that we think you’d like to know about. Enjoy!
- Obama: Even The Best Job On Earth Deserves A Better Minimum Wage – Outside Online – President Obama wants to pay anyone who works on federal lands, including guides, a bit more money. Thank you Mr. POTUS!
- NZ Police Suspect Avalanche Buried Canadians Weeks Ago – Yahoo News – Police found the bodies of backpackers Louis-Vincent Lessard and Etienne Lemieux buried in an avalanche on the Kepler Track on New Zealand’s South Island. RIP.
- Climbers Finish First Ascent On Mirror Wall – Outside Online – British climbers climbed the northwest face of Greenland’s Mirror Wall. Despite polar bears, crevasses, and snowstorms, the team still covered 25 pitches in 12 days to summit the 1,200-meter peak.
- Seven Summits Pioneer, Snowbird Founder Dick Bass Dead At 85 – Forbes – Dick Bass was the first person to climb the Seven Summits. The Texas oilman also founded Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort. It’s sad that he has passed on, but his legacy in the skiing and climbing world will always be remembered. Buy Dick Bass’s Seven Summits book.
- Man Carries Bathtub Up Kilimanjaro – Outside Online – Robbie Dowling carried an 88-pound bathtub named Shiela to the top of 18,652′ Kilimanjaro to raise money for the Amazon Children charity. That’s quite a way to raise awareness.
- Polish Ski Mountaineer Logs 1st Ever Decent of 26,414′ Broad Peak | Other Skier Missing – SnowBrains – Andrezej Bargiel, 27, climbed and skied Broad Peak (near K2) in Pakistan. It’s the 12th highest mountain in the world. Unfortunately, another skier, Olek Ostrowski, is missing on Gasherbrum II and possibly fell in a crevasse while skiing from Camp 2 down to Camp 1.
- Himex, Madison Mountaineering Abandon K2 Attempt – Outside Online – Madison Mountaineering and Himalayan Experience (aka Himex) have cancelled their K2 summit bids due to high avalanche danger.
- Timberline Lodge/Mt. Hood, OR To Close Early For 1st Time In 10 Yrs. – SnowBrains – After a low snow winter in the PNW, the summer skiing at Timberline Lodge will close early. Next year will be better!
- The Regular Northwest Face Of Half Dome Has Been Restored – Climbing – Last month, over 2,500 tons of rock tumbled off the face of Half Dome destroying a standard climbing route. This week Joshua Reinig and Howard Ballou figured out how to safely link the missing pitches together.
- Montana, Wyoming Receive Unusual Late-July Snowfall – Weather.com – It snowed in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem this week. After an exceptionally cold weather system passed through the area, the mountains were covered in white. Who got the first turns of the 2015/2016 season?
- Britain’s Chris Froome Lands Second Tour De France Title In Three Years – The Globe and Mail – Of 198 racers, only 160 completed the 3-week, 3,354 km bike race through France. Congrats to Chris Froome who won the Tour for the 2nd time.
- Beijing Named Host City Of Olympic Winter Games 2022 – Olympic.org – The final vote was between Almaty, Kazahshtan and Beijing, China. The International Olympic Committed has officially chosen Beijing in 2022. Hope it’s snowy!
If you’re in Salt Lake City, Utah this week don’t miss the Outdoor Retailer Show August 5 to 8.
Have a good one!
