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.
Igor Holler Repeats His Tatras Masterpiece 51 Years Later: Slovakian climber Igor Koller has repeated his ‘Bonbónová Cesta’ (Candy Route) on the west face of Lomnický štít in Slovakia’s High Tatras, 51 years after first opening it with Andrej Belica in 1974. The climb was among the most difficult in the region at the time, with its first free ascent only achieved in 1983.
Now 73 years old, Koller returned to the route with partner Martin Krasnansky. On August 13, he completed it free, leading the two trickiest pitches.
Can This Sherpa Change Mountain Climbing?: Eighteen-year-old Nima Rinji Sherpa is the youngest climber to summit the 14x8,000’ers. He completed his last peak, Shisha Pangma, in October last year.
Nima Rinji hopes his achievement will help to reshape the Sherpa identity in mountaineering. Westerners often associate Sherpas with mountain jobs, but Nima Rinji wants to show that they are athletes and pro climbers, not only guides and porters.
Nima Rinji Sherpa. Photo: Krystle Wright
Endurance sport travel
Why Endurance Sports Are the New Escape: Endurance sports have become a significant driver of travel. Events like Croatia’s UltraSwim 33.3 — a four-day, 33.3km open-water challenge — attract participants who want both a physical challenge and a meaningful experience.
These trips blend extreme sports with fine dining and sightseeing. They offer everything from ultramarathons in the Sahara to cross-country skiing in the Arctic. Organizers say these events boost tourism and extend travel seasons. Psychologists say they fulfil a deep human need for challenge and discomfort.
No Food, No Water, and a Broken Leg: American journalist and hiker Alec Luhn survived six days in Norway’s Folgefonna National Park after a fall left him with several broken bones, no water, and no working phone. Stranded on steep terrain, he prayed his wife would raise the alarm when he did not get on his flight home. He resorted to desperate measures, including drinking urine and sucking rain from his gear.
Alec Luhn. Photo: Veronika Silchenko
Deaths in Snowdonia
Seventh Person Dies In Snowdonia During Deadly Season: A 36-year-old man has become the seventh person to die in the UK’s Snowdonia National Park this year. The man slipped from Crib Goch ridge on Mount Snowdon on August 16. Rescuers pronounced him dead at the scene.
This has become a deadly year in the park. In February, Charlotte Crook fell and died on Glyder Fach; days later, university student Maria Eftimova passed away from her injuries after tumbling on Tryfan’s north ridge; in May, another walker fell from the perilous Y Gribin scrambling route; and in June, two women were swept to their deaths at a swimming spot in Nant Gwynant valley.
The Coldest Night of My Life Was In Patagonia: In an excerpt from her upcoming memoir, Pay No Mind, climber Fallon Rowe recounts a harrowing night in Patagonia.
Rowe and her partner, Dan, had failed to ascend Fitz Roy and were descending with all of their kit. Both had stomach issues, Dan rolled his ankle, and before they knew it, it was pitch black. Once off the mountain, things did not improve. Their car had been written off in a hit-and-run a few days prior, and their plans to hitchhike back to town were stymied when they found no cars on the road.
After walking a mile, they found that the hostel that had been their last resort was closed. In a desperate bid for warmth, they huddled on cold concrete and started a small fire to try to stave off hypothermia.
Fallon Rowe in Patagonia. Photo: Fallon Rowe
Never too old to climb a mountain?
This 102-Year-Old Says You’re Not Too Old To Climb A Mountain: Kokichi Akuzawa, a 102-year-old Japanese hiker, has become the oldest person to summit Mount Fuji. Despite going through heart failure, shingles, and a hiking fall earlier in the year, Akuzawa made the three-day ascent this month. Akuzawa continues to hike weekly and even celebrated his 99th birthday by summiting Mount Nabewari.
More Than 60 People Rescued Via Helicopter After Flooding in British Columbia: On August 17, rescue services airlifted around 60 hikers and campers to safety from Bugaboo Provincial Park in British Columbia. Sudden flooding made trails impassable. It took seven hours and 10 helicopter trips to rescue everyone after an alpine tarn cut a new channel, unleashing fast-moving, debris-filled water.
