Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 8/27/15

Important Legislative News:

--The Land and Water Conservation Fund is about to expire. This important piece of legislation has funded parks and public lands for a generation. Here's a quick explanation of the legislation from the Mountaineers Blog:

LWCF was created in 1965, with the idea that a small portion of the revenue from offshore oil and gas drilling would go back to conservation. The LWCF Coalition calls the fund: “a simple idea: use revenues from the depletion of one natural resource - offshore oil and gas - to support the conservation of another precious resource - our land and water.”

If you'd like to learn more about this legislation, click here to read a post about it from the Outdoor Alliance.

The Outdoor Alliance has also created a portal that you can easily use to write your representatives. To support the renewal of this important legislation, click here.

Northwest:

Liz Daley

--On Saturday, September 26th, there will be an event in Tacoma celebrating the life of AAI Guide Liz Daley. Liz was tragically killed in an avalanche last September. This event is a fundraiser to build a climbing park called Liz Rocks at Point Defiance Park. To read more, click here.

This is a map of the Puget Sound with the fires overlayed on top of it,  just to give you an idea of how much has burned.
Fires essentially cover Everett to Tacoma.  See more, here.

--Some are wondering how this has affected AAI programming. Rest assured, AAI has a lot of commercial operating permits and as such we are just avoiding areas where there are fires.

--With wildfires straining resources, Washington officials say that for the first time in state history they're coordinating help from residents who have and can operate equipment like backhoes and bulldozers to dig fire lines. The Department of Natural Resources says its command posts have been inundated with offers. Public Lands Commissioner Peter Goldmark says his agency appreciates the support, but he wants the fire officers on scene to be able to stay focused on actually fighting fires. To read more, click here.

--Washington Fire Lookouts are being impacted by the fires too. It looks like two have been burned and three more are threatened. To read more, click here.

--A disastrous year is unfolding in 2015 for North Cascade glaciers, if normal melt conditions continue the range will lose 5-7% of its entire glacier volume in one year! To read more, click here.

--Paul McSorley, Mayan Smith-Gobat, and Ines Papert recently put up a new mixed line on the remote Southwest Buttress of Mt. Waddington (northwest summit) in British Columbia. To read more, click here.

Sierra:

--British big wall climber, alpinist and writer, Andy Kirkpatrick recently soloed the Sea of Dreams (A4+, 5.9, VI) in Yosemite. To read about the ascent, click here.

--So this woman plans to eat nothing but bugs on El Cap.

-- It was announced this week that there are going to be several changes in Mammoth Resorts’ Executive Management Team. Greg Dallas, Chief Operating Officer for Mammoth and June Mountains, announced his resignation and will be leaving the company this fall to pursue other endeavors. To read more, click here.

Desert Southwest:

--Moab, Utah is one of the most popular outdoor meccas in the western U.S. Boasting national parks, incredible rock climbing, and world famous mountain biking trails, the Moab region attracts millions of visitors every year. Moab is also home to significant oil, gas, and potash resources, some of which are adjacent to the Colorado River or to campgrounds and climbing areas. In the past, the nearly million-acre region was managed with a plan that offered numerous oil and gas leases in areas adjacent to protected landscapes, including Delicate Arch in Arches National Park. In response, President Obama and former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar decided to develop a process to help balance conservation, recreation, and development in this important area. To read more, click here.

Colorado:

--Nine volunteers from Mountain Rescue Aspen spent the night with a 55-year-old climber from Milwaukee who was injured after falling 25 feet near the summit of Pyramid Peak Friday. To read more, click here.

--On Saturday, a large group of climbers gathered in Rifle Canyon in remembrance of Dave Pegg (1967-2014). This iconic climber was a force in the Colorado climbing community and will be missed. To see some photos of the event, click here.

Notes from All Over:

--Two women died when they fell about 200 feet while trying to climb a mountain in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. The National Park Service says the accident occurred around 11 a.m. Saturday on the 12,300-foot Teewinot Mountain, the sixth-tallest peak in the Teton Range. To read more, click here.

--An injured rock climber dangling from a rope, lost and injured hikers and campers, and a lost canoeist were among in dire situations recently helped by state Department of Environmental Conservation forest rangers in the Adirondacks. To read more, click here.

Helicopters used to fight fires in Leavenworth, WA

--It's easy to forget sometimes that if you don't pay attention to the mountains that many people have no idea what's going on with this fire season. A San Francisco based blogger notes, that Everything is on Fire and No One Cares. It's our duty to make sure non-mountain people know what's going on too. This is a big deal.

--How young is too young for Mount Everest? It appears that a 12-year old will be attempting the mountain next year. Expedition writer Taylor Zajonc has written an editorial about this attempt. To read the editorial, click here.

--Nepal is reopening Mt. Everest for mountaineers after a massive earthquake hit the country in April. To read more, click here.

-- Scott Bennett and and AAI graduate Graham Zimmerman climbed a new route on K6 West, a 7,040-meter (23,097-foot) peak in the Karakoram that had only received one other ascent. To read more, click here.

--Do killer grizzly bears deserve to die?