Saturday, September 1, 2012
#EOTC2 Round Up: Getting Shots With The Pros
My teammate Drew Tabke and I dance underneath a near-full moon. Handstands. Fancy feet. Anything to kill time and stay warm while waiting for our film crew across the valley below to reposition for the next shot. It?s day two of the Eye of the Condor film and photo competition in La Parva, Chile. Conditions are, well, sporty. Drew drops in first. Braving an icy wind, down into the abyss. I watch Drew?s headlamp disappear into the shadows. I feel alone. I?m isolated atop ?La Chimenea.? It?s one of La Parva?s quintessential lines?a long couloir located a short hike from the resort. My radio cuts in and out. It?s our photographer Jordan Ingmire. He wants to move his location again?farther down into the resort. ?Where are those guys?? I think to myself, peering into the darkness. With reluctance, I give him a ?ten-four.? The next 40 minutes will be brutal. To make things worse, some chump across the valley in the tiny Chilean mountain town of Farellones starts painting my line with a green laser beam. This is a sick joke. The beam is blinding. To throw off the shooter, I turn my headlamp off. I pray he loses my silhouette. It?s cold and I retreat to a less exposed position. It doesn?t matter?I?m freezing and the laser beam is relentless. I just want to ski. After an eternity, my radio cuts in. The internal conversation I?ve been having with myself for the last half hour all but disappears. Jordan?s ready for my shot. I glance down the couloir wishing my headlamp wasn?t so dim. It?s too late. There?s only one way down. I call ?thirty seconds,? and skate to the edge. Reluctantly, I turn my headlamp on. ?Dropping!? All hesitation disappears. But four turns into my line the laser hits me again. Turn after turn eerie green snow erupts around me. I?m skiing by feel through lime-lit rock walls. Finally I get a view of the exit. I dodge scree and breathe a sign of relief. Seeking shelter beneath a large rock I spot the tormenting light. It?s searching for my headlamp. I catch my breath, turn my light off, and point my skis down the fall line.All this for a photo?---Check the green light out seen here @ 3:41 of Team WIDSIX's EOTC2 Video For Part 1 click HEREStay tuned for part 3 Tomorrow. Heliskiing the Andes.
Advice for a great cat skiing BC
Cat skiing BC is a unique experience that may reward you with the best days of your life due that you are able to venture on uncharted routes covered with the most pure and fresh power snow and the weather conditions are not an impediment because the transportation on these routes is by a snowcat
Swimming above skyline in Singapore [PICs]
If you?re wondering if it?s possible to take a dip in this rooftop infinity pool, the answer is yes.
The Radar: Surreal Coastlines, Thai Food Secrets, The Sword in the Stone
The Radar: The top travel news, stories, trends, and ideas from across the web. Got Radar? Follow us on Twitter @NatGeoTraveler and tag your favorite travel stories from the Web #ngtradar. Check back on the blog for our roundups. Photograph by Jeremie Noel, My Shot.
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Mammoth's Tamarack Lodge Offers Discounted Fall Color Package
Filed under: Biking, Hiking, North America, United States, Hotels and AccommodationsLabor Day weekend always seems to mark the unofficial end of summer, even though the season doesn't actually change for another three weeks. But we all know autumn is just around the corner and with it comes cooler temperatures, crisp air and the changing of the leaves.
This year Mammoth's Tamarack Lodge is offering visitors a chance to experience the brilliant colors of fall in the Sierra Mountains at an unbelievably affordable price. The rustic lodge, which has been named one of the Top 10 lakeside resorts in North America, will offer rates starting at just $49 per person per night between September 4 and November 11. That's the perfect time to witness the changing of the seasons for yourself.
This isn't a bare bones lodge experience, however. Upon check-in visitors will be given a complimentary bottle of wine and continental breakfast service is available daily. They'll also receive two hours of boat rental for free, as well as complimentary fishing rod rental too. Additionally, guests at Tamarack Lodge also have access to the resort's adventure activities, which include guided hikes, bike tours, fishing clinics and more.
The calendar may still say its summer but fall will be here before we know it. It's never too early to start planning your escape and there are few places better to be in the autumn than the Sierras.Mammoth's Tamarack Lodge Offers Discounted Fall Color Package originally appeared on Gadling on Sat, 01 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
This year Mammoth's Tamarack Lodge is offering visitors a chance to experience the brilliant colors of fall in the Sierra Mountains at an unbelievably affordable price. The rustic lodge, which has been named one of the Top 10 lakeside resorts in North America, will offer rates starting at just $49 per person per night between September 4 and November 11. That's the perfect time to witness the changing of the seasons for yourself.
This isn't a bare bones lodge experience, however. Upon check-in visitors will be given a complimentary bottle of wine and continental breakfast service is available daily. They'll also receive two hours of boat rental for free, as well as complimentary fishing rod rental too. Additionally, guests at Tamarack Lodge also have access to the resort's adventure activities, which include guided hikes, bike tours, fishing clinics and more.
The calendar may still say its summer but fall will be here before we know it. It's never too early to start planning your escape and there are few places better to be in the autumn than the Sierras.Mammoth's Tamarack Lodge Offers Discounted Fall Color Package originally appeared on Gadling on Sat, 01 Sep 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Emma's Eccentric Britain: shepherding in Devon
Fresh from her triumph on a surfboard, Poppy the beagle takes lessons from a sheepdog in Devon. Or at least that was Emma Kennedy's planDavid Kennard is, it turns out, famous. He's the human star of Mist: Sheepdog Tales, a children's TV series that airs in more than 20 countries. But he's no actor; he's a farmer through and through."I only appear in it when I absolutely have to," he says, softly. "It's the dogs who are the real stars."He's not lying. His sheepdogs are amazing, and I'm at Borough Farm near Woolacombe with him and Fly, one of the stars of the show. She's a young collie, bright-eyed, lean and eager. She takes one look at my dog, Poppy, laziest beagle in the universe, and ignores her. It's a bit like an Olympian being forced to hang out with Jabba the Hutt."How is she with sheep?" David asks as I heave Poppy into his Land Rover. I have no way of knowing. "She barks at pigeons," I offer. "And she chased a squirrel once.""Hmm," says Dave.David's Land Rover is a treasure trove of organised mess. It's lovely, old and battered and it's still got a cassette player."I've had this in every working vehicle I've ever had for nearly 30 years," David tells me, proudly, holding up a weathered-looking tape of the Pretenders album Learning to Crawl. "I know all the words on it now. Can't sing, mind."He starts to sing Show Me but gives up after the first line. "We'll head up to the cliffs now, I think," he adds, after a small cough. "Show you how I work the sheep."At a point just past Mortehoe we put Poppy on a lead, (David loses sheep annually to holidaymakers' dogs chasing them over cliffs) and strike off into a low-hanging mist."Can't even see the lighthouse," says David, gesturing westwards. "We used to be wreckers round here. Villagers would stand with lanterns and lure ships onto the rocks and then club to death anyone who made it to shore. So when they built the lighthouse, in 1872, everyone round here was livid. Meant the end of their livelihood. Ah, here it comes. Mist's rising."As the fog lifts, the lighthouse and a flock of sheep come into view, hugging the clifftop. We're standing above them on a peak and Fly is alert, tail tucked, crouched and waiting. Poppy is behind me, rolling in something unspeakable.David gives a tiny, soft whistle and Fly is away, edging to the right, following his every command. She negotiates brambles, comes round the flock's flank and then, as David's whistles pierce the air, she drives the sheep away from the cliff and up a narrow path in the gully below us."Do you think Poppy could do that?" I ask, nodding down towards my beagle, who is yawning."No," says David.It takes at least two-and-a-half years to train a sheepdog, and to get them to the next level, working a brace (two dogs at the same time with different tonal whistles), takes further years of constant practice."Fly's been a nightmare to train," David says as she races back to us. "It's been like driving a Formula One car with your wellies on."There's a fine line between herder and killer. All dogs have the instinct to hunt and chase, but a good sheepdog needs bravery too. "A weak dog will let its tail rise. The rams know this and they'll take advantage. The dog needs to stand her ground.""Look at that," David adds, pointing to a white orb below us. "Chinese lantern. I'm constantly having to pick those things up. They wreak havoc. If they land in a silage field, the wire gets churned up in the machines into tiny bits, the cows eat it and they have to have an operation. They're a menace. People let them off, think "Ooooh, aren't they lovely!" and don't give a thought to where they land."It's a real treat spending the afternoon with David. He's glorious company: he takes me off the beaten track to show me the best of the Devon coastline and creeps with me down a steep incline where we can watch seals gather in a pool below us. Not only that, but he regales me with endless local tales."They say there's bodies buried over there," he whispers, gesturing to a small plain between two peaks. "Old Ray in the village reckons so. He's the last of the Wreckers.""Is your favourite film Babe?""Yes," nods David, smiling. "I had a friend once tried to train up a pig. It didn't really work out. Nothing's cleverer than a dog."Poppy's eating some horse manure. I beg to differ.? Borough Farm (boroughfarm.co.uk) runs the last of its summer displays by the stars of Sheepdog Tales at 6pm next Wednesday. Adults �5, children �2.50. A shepherd's experience with David and his dogs costs �20 for around two hours Follow Emma Kennedy on Twitter at @EmmaK67DevonDay tripsShort breaksUnited KingdomEuropeEmma Kennedyguardian.co.uk © 2012 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
Highway Hypnosis And How To Avoid It
Filed under: Learning, North America, United States, Transportation, Budget Travel, Women's Travel, Luxury TravelI've logged about 4,000 road miles (all solo) in the last few weeks, most of it in stunningly monotonous landscape. Fortunately, I've never fallen asleep at the wheel, but I've definitely had to pull over for a power nap on a number of occasions in the past.
What I tend to get is "highway hypnosis," also known as driving without attention mode (DWAM), or "white line fever (I always thought that was a reference to a different kind of white line, but what do I know?)."
Highway hypnosis is a trance-like mental state brought on by the monotony of the road. In other words, you're zoning out, and while one part of your brain is still able to operate your car, the other half is in la la land. If you've ever driven a stretch of highway and have no memory of it, you've had white line fever, baby. The important thing to take away from this is that it's nearly as dangerous as nodding off at the wheel.
A 2009 survey conducted by the CDC cited that nearly five percent of adults had fallen asleep while driving in the past 30 days. Those are some scary statistics, as are those from a 2007 National Sleep Foundation poll that stated more than one-half of American drivers (at the time, over 100 million people) had driven while drowsy.
Thousands of people die every year due to drowsy-driving and highway hypnosis-related crashes. Some experts claim falling asleep at the wheel is more dangerous than driving while intoxicated, because you have zero reaction time. With highway hypnosis, your reaction time is so compromised, you may as well be asleep.
With Labor Day weekend looming, I thought I'd provide some tips on how to avoid highway hypnosis, and what to do if you need to pull over for some zzz's, after the jump.Continue reading Highway Hypnosis And How To Avoid ItHighway Hypnosis And How To Avoid It originally appeared on Gadling on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
What I tend to get is "highway hypnosis," also known as driving without attention mode (DWAM), or "white line fever (I always thought that was a reference to a different kind of white line, but what do I know?)."
Highway hypnosis is a trance-like mental state brought on by the monotony of the road. In other words, you're zoning out, and while one part of your brain is still able to operate your car, the other half is in la la land. If you've ever driven a stretch of highway and have no memory of it, you've had white line fever, baby. The important thing to take away from this is that it's nearly as dangerous as nodding off at the wheel.
A 2009 survey conducted by the CDC cited that nearly five percent of adults had fallen asleep while driving in the past 30 days. Those are some scary statistics, as are those from a 2007 National Sleep Foundation poll that stated more than one-half of American drivers (at the time, over 100 million people) had driven while drowsy.
Thousands of people die every year due to drowsy-driving and highway hypnosis-related crashes. Some experts claim falling asleep at the wheel is more dangerous than driving while intoxicated, because you have zero reaction time. With highway hypnosis, your reaction time is so compromised, you may as well be asleep.
With Labor Day weekend looming, I thought I'd provide some tips on how to avoid highway hypnosis, and what to do if you need to pull over for some zzz's, after the jump.Continue reading Highway Hypnosis And How To Avoid ItHighway Hypnosis And How To Avoid It originally appeared on Gadling on Fri, 31 Aug 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
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