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.
Lion Steals Photographer’s Camera Lens: A cheeky lion in Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve grabbed a photographer’s dropped telephoto lens, complete with its camouflage cover, and casually sauntered off with it. It later dropped it near a safari truck. While the photographer managed to retrieve the lens, the hefty cat had already inflicted some damage on the expensive gear. Fellow safari-goer Dansen Raddy Raddy captured the moment on video.
A Historic Backpacking Trail is Open Again: The historic Chilkoot Trail is now fully open again. It has been closed for five years due to flooding. The 53km trail runs from Dyea, Alaska, to Bennett in British Columbia. The problem is that you will struggle to hike more than half of it. The U.S. is banning entry into the country via the trail, and whether you will be able to cross into Canada in the other direction is still pending review by Canadian authorities.
Climbing During Pregnancy: Vera Sugar shares her honest account of navigating rock climbing through all three trimesters. She explores how the changes in her body reshaped her approach and changed her capabilities. With no universal “rules” for climbing while pregnant, she urges fellow climbers to listen to their bodies, resist one-size-fits-all advice, and tailor their choices based on their own experience and comfort.
Climbing at 30 weeks. Photo: Vera Sugar Collection
Expedition paddling 2025
Meet the Gen Z Paddlers Proving Expeditions Aren’t Dead: Some Gen Z paddlers are shaking off the stereotype of being obsessed with social media and their smartphones and heading out on adventures. Their crowd‑funded expeditions are redefining modern adventure paddling. From the all‑female 1,900km canoe voyage from Lake Superior to Hudson Bay to Indigenous youth charting a new first descent of the restored Klamath River, from solo cross‑country journeys to a pirate‑costumed Great Loop circumnavigation, these imaginative trips show that expedition paddling is as vibrant as ever.
Hiker Faces Eye-Watering Fine: A hiker in Spain’s Picos de Europa National Park is facing a staggering $227,000 fine after being filmed tossing a large rock down a gorge along the Cares Trail. The Civil Guard has deemed the act a “very serious offense” due to the potential harm it could have caused fellow walkers and its damage to the environment.
The team cuts through fallen trees blocking a Brazilian river. Photo: Joao Laet
An Amazon tragedy revisited
A Treacherous Amazon Journey Tracing the Steps of Murdered Colleagues: Last month, The Guardian joined Indigenous patrols through Brazil’s Javari Valley to retrace the final, fatal trip of journalist Dom Phillips and activist Bruno Pereira. The pair was murdered in 2022. The organization that Pereira founded to defend the land from illegal mining and poaching led the initial search to discover the fate of the disappeared pair.
The Yosemite Big Wall Permit System: Since January 2023, Yosemite National Park has required climbing permits for all overnight big-wall climbs. The system was developed after a two-year pilot. During peak times from June 15 to August 15, timed-entry park reservations are also required.
Rangers will then provide daily big-wall traffic updates on social media about the number of climbers on the most popular climbs. They hope this will help curb overcrowding.
Overpacking the haul bags. Photo: Jay Bruno
In over their heads
What You Can Learn From the Mistakes I Made on ‘The Nose’: Alek Pouliopoulos writes about his failed attempt on ‘The Nose’ and what other climbers can learn from it. ‘The Nose’ was his lifelong goal, and he felt he needed to accomplish it to be a real climber.
Looking back on his attempt with two friends, he reflects that it was doomed before he even started. With hugely overpacked haul bags, slow transitions, and embarrassing themselves in front of some legendary climbers, they quickly realized they were in over their heads and retreated.
