Nat Geo Invites You To Hangout With The Adventurers Of The Year

National Geographic, and the wonders of modern technology, are giving all of us the opportunity to hangout with the 2014 Adventurers of the Year next week. On January 15, Nat Geo will host a Google Hangout with five of these amazing men and women, who will share their stories of courage and determination with us online.

The virtual meeting will take place from 1-2 PM Eastern Standard Time next Wednesday and will include the following adventurers: ultra-runner Kilian Jornet, surfer Greg Long, explorer Sarah Marquis, endurance swimmer Diana Nyad and snowboarder Kevin Pearce. The event will also be hosted by Fitz Cahall, who is the mountaineer and filmmaker who has been instrumental in telling the stories of this year's crop of winners.

Questions for the group can be submitted via Twitter, Google+, Facebook, and YouTube using the hashtag #AdvOfYearChat. Due to time constraints, those questions will be reviewed ahead of time and submitted to the adventurers during the Hangout.

And don't forget you can still cast your votes for the People's Choice Adventurer of the Year. Voting remains open until January 31, with the winner being announced in February.

This should be a fun way to use modern technology to learn more about these amazing athletes and explorers. I know that if I have that hour free, I am going to try to be there for the event.

Video: Meet The Bush Pilots of Ketchikan

Even in the 21st century there are plenty of places in Alaska that remain cut-off from the rest of the world. The wild and expansive landscapes of that state makes it impossible to build a road system that can accommodate everyone. That's why so many people own airplanes there and use them to fly between destinations. In this video, we meet some of the bush pilots of Ketchikan, which have a reputation for being able to fly anywhere, anytime, and do it with style. This short documentary tells their story, and offers some amazing looks at the great scenery that is so common in Alaska. Get comfortable for this one, you're going to want to watch it all the way through.

Ketchikan: The Bush Pilots from Ketchikan Visitors Bureau on Vimeo.

Tomorrow is the Opening Day for Trails!

Need yet another excuse to get outside and hit a trail this weekend? Than let the Rails to Trails Conservancy provide one. The non-profit has declared Saturday, April 16 Opening Day for Trails in celebration of all of the great trails that are available to outdoor enthusiasts in the U.S.

The Rails to Trails Conservancy is an organization that is dedicated to taking unused railway corridors and converting them to trails for use by hikers, mountain bikers, trail runners, or anyone else is looking for a good place to enjoy nature. Their goal is to have 90% of all Americans living within 3 miles of a trail system by 2020. That's an ambitious, but noble goal for sure and one that I'm sure Adventure Blog readers can relate to.

For Opening Day for Trails there are over 140 free events taking place across the U.S. to celebrate the arrival of spring and our ability to hit the trail once again. Some of the great events on tap include organized bike rides, group hikes, bird watching excursions, and more. Events are scheduled in 25 states and the District of Columbia.

Of course, you don't have to attend one of these outings, as you can also just organize one for you and your friends locally too. The point is to head out on a trail and enjoy the benefits that those routes provide in terms of health and well being. But, if you head over to the Rails to Trails website and take the pledge to get outside, you can also be entered to win one of two Fuji bikes as well.

Seems like as good of a reason as any to get outside this weekend. Find out more at RailstoTrails.org.

Video: Paragliding Video Will Make You Believe You Can Fly!

The sensation that comes along with flying is one of the allures of paragliding for sure. But if you're not sure you could ever actually take up the sport, this video may be the next best thing. It gives us some great shots of paragliders doing what they do best, often with some great scenery for the background.

Video: The Seasons of Norway in Timelapse

We all know that Norway is home to some incredibly beautiful landscapes, but in this amazing timelapse video we get to see some of those places as they are transformed by the passing of the seasons. The timelapse images are incredible to behold, as spring turns to summer, which passes into fall, heralding the arrival of winter not long after. This is one captivating clip to watch unfold, and well worth a few minutes of your day.

 SEASONS of NORWAY - A Time-Lapse Adventure from Morten Rustad on Vimeo.

Video: Another Look At Angels Landing In Zion National Park

A few weeks back I posted a great video of Angels Landing in Zion National Park, sharing a glimpse of what that great hike has to offer. The video below shares even more of that impressive trail, which appears to be a "must-do" for anyone who loves to hike, particularly in a national park. It is a beautiful setting, with an adrenaline inducing view.

Angels Landing :: Zion from JC Ferrer on Vimeo.

Men's Journal Gives Us a Three-Year Plan for Climbing Everest

For a lot of people, climbing Mt. Everest is the dream of a lifetime. But thinking about everything that goes into preparing and planning for such an expedition can be overwhelming. Fortunately, Men's Journal is here to help, giving us a three-year plan to making Everest not just a dream, but a reality.

MJ's article was actually written back in 2014, with the plan of reaching the summit of Everest in the spring of 2017. But, if you ignore the precise dates, and focus just on the plan itself, the schedule can remain the same. And fortunately for all of us, the training starts in May.

The first stage of the Everest prep plan is to start getting into shape. The article says that you should start getting ready by building a strong fitness base of cardio, strength, and balance. Over the course of the three year program, that will be the focus of getting your body ready for the challenges of the Himalaya.

Next up, you'll also need to start seeing how your body does at altitude, so the plan is to bag a 14er, or a fourteen-thousand foot peak. This will not only allow you to put your fitness gains to the test, it'll let you build leg strength and lung capacity. With its 53 different 14ers, Colorado is a natural destination to bag one of these mountains, but there are plenty of others around as well.


The rest of the plan includes pushing your physical boundaries even higher by attempting more challenging peaks (Mt. Rainier for instance) and adding altitude. The Men's Journal schedule recommends traveling to Ecuador to climb Cotopaxi to get a taste for altitudes above 19,000 feet, although Tanzania's Kilimanjaro will do too. From there, it's on to Denali in Alaska – described as a "mini-Everest" – before attempting an easier 8000-meter peak like Cho Oyu. After that, Everest will be in reach.

In terms of creating a strategy for getting yourself ready to climb the Big Hill, this is about as good of a plan as any. You could literally go from zero mountaineering experience, to Everest in just three years if you stick to the schedule closely. What it doesn't offer is advice on how to pay for it all. Mountaineering expeditions aren't cheap, and even travel to and from these locations can be pricey. For most of us, that would turn this three year plan into one that would probably take a decade or more to wrap up.