When we’re not outdoors, we get our adventure fix by exploring social media and the web. Here are some of the best adventure links we’ve discovered this week.
The First Women to Complete the Yosemite Triple Crown: On June 8, Kate Kelleghan and Laura Pineau became the first all-female team to complete Yosemite’s legendary Triple Crown in a single push. They linked Mount Watkins, El Capitan’s Nose, and Half Dome in just 23 hours and 36 minutes.
Covering roughly 77 pitches, nearly 2,500 m of climbing, and 30 km of connecting runs, it is no surprise that only 11 other teams have managed the route in 24 years.
Scotland’s Epic 330km Bikepacking Adventure: The Badger Divide runs through the Scottish Highlands from Inverness to Glasgow. Covering roughly 340km, the cycling route passes lochs and glens, and crosses moors, forests, and up the relentless Corrieyairack Pass. Despite its growing popularity, the trail isn’t marked on maps or signposts.
The Corrieyairack Pass. Photo: Darren Waters
Reporting a shipwreck
What To Do If You Find A Shipwreck: Stumbling upon a shipwreck might seem unlikely, but with over 10,000 in North America alone, it could happen. If you find one, there are certain rules you should follow. First, resist the urge to treat it like buried treasure. It is crucial to leave artifacts undisturbed. In the U.S., it is illegal to take items from a shipwreck. You need to report the wreck to the authorities.
Amelia Earhart’s Reckless Final Flights: Amelia Earhart’s 1937 round-the-world flight attempt made her legendary. Many describe her as an aviation hero, but pilot testimonies, flight logs, and overlooked technical records suggest she was undertrained and relied heavily on co-pilots and navigators.
After crashing in Hawaii just a few months before her fateful trip, Earhart took off with stripped-down equipment, no Morse code receiver, and a navigator with a drinking problem. Pushed by her husband and publicist George Putnam to finish the flight for book deals and headlines, Earhart pressed on and vanished over the Pacific Ocean.
Maryam El Gardoum surfing. Photo: Maryam El Gardoumh
Morocco’s surfers
Breaking New Shores For Morocco’s Indigenous Surfers: Maryam El Gardoum started surfing when she was 11. From a young age, she battled sexism in the sport. At 13, a man pulled on her board’s leash and told her, “This isn’t your place, go home and help your mum.” She went on to become a five-time national champion and one of the first Moroccan women to compete internationally. After an injury in 2022, she founded Dihya Surf School, the country’s only women-led surf school.
Rick Steves is Still a Travel Icon at Age 70: Guidebook legend Rick Steves is trading city squares and museums for alpine air and hiking trails. In 2021, he went on a six-day trek around Mont Blanc and has been hooked ever since. Now 70, he’s embracing long-distance hikes. He talks about recent and upcoming adventures, his secrets to enjoying hiking, and why influencers will never replace travel experts.
An advertisement for Bogners from October 1977. Photo: POWDER Archive
Ski fashion then and now
The Evolution of Ski Fashion: From the woollen stylings of the early 20th century to more technical ski wear today, style on the slopes is always changing. Starting with bulky ski skirts for women in the 1910s, by the 1950s, there were Bogners stretch pants. The 1980s brought neon onesies, quilted jumpsuits, and Gore-Tex. Now, there is edgy, oversized snowboarding apparel and the resurgence of the retro ski suit.
Surfing’s Nostalgia Virus: Sam George was surfing off California’s Point Conception, thinking about a famed 1960s line-up. But his friend brought him back to Earth, pointing out that surfers in the ’60s had no wetsuits and terrible boards.
George takes a look at the modern advantages that those with the surfers’ nostalgia virus take for granted: flexible wetsuits, surf forecasts, interchangeable fins, CAD-shaped boards, sturdier leashes, and safer surf travel.
