Climbing and Outdoor News from Here and Abroad - 9/8/16

Northwest:

--A pair of Northwest hardmen freed the Liberty Crack on Liberty Bell this summer! To read more, click here.

--Bellingham paraglider pilot and ultra runner Jesse Williams recently made a flight around both Mt. Baker and Mt. Shuksan. This was the first time this has been done in a paraglider. To read more, click here. To see a video about the flight, click below:



Desert Southwest:

--Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area’s developed campground will reopen Friday, September 2, in time for the beginning of its busiest camping season. Cooler temperatures during the fall and winter months make Red Rock Canyon a destination for visitors from around the world. To read more at Mesquite Local News, click here.

--Just a few months ago, opponents of two major developments near the Grand Canyon seemed like they could relax, after the Forest Service shut down a proposal to build 2,200 homes and a luxury resort six miles from the South Rim and a new administration for the Navajo Nation expressed opposition to a massive tourist center proposed for the east side of the canyon, the centerpiece of which would be a tram from the rim to the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers. But now the latter project, known as Grand Canyon Escalade, has moved onto the front burner with the submission of a bill to earmark $65 million for development and approval to enter into a contract with the Arizona developers who want to build the tram. To read more from the Adventure Journal article, click here.

--Hikers be warned – the National Park Service says it’s now tarantula mating season. The mating season of tarantulas lasts through the end of October, according to the National Park Service officials at Joshua Tree National Park. Click here to read more from CBS Los Angeles.

Notes from All Over:

--The search for American climbers Kyle Dempster and Scott Adamson on Ogre II in Pakistan has been called off. Pakistani military helicopters and climber Thomas Huber participated in search and rescue efforts between August 28 and September 3rd. To read more, click here.

--A climber who reportedly fell 40-feet at Chapel Ledges in Massachusetts was rescued and transported by a LifeFlight helicopter for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries last Wednesday night. Rescue workers were called at 6:15 p.m. after the climber fell. Just down the path from where rescuers worked, other climbers said the victim fell about 40-feet into a tree. To read more from the Daily Hampshire Gazette, click here.

--Gripped Magazine is reporting that an injured climber took a massive lead fall on Canada's Yamnuska mountain. It appears that the climber took nearly a 50-foot lead fall and hit a ledge on the Diretissema (5.8+, III+) route. To read more, click here.

--The New York Times published an editorial this weekend about mountain bikes in federally mandated wilderness. They argue that bikes should be kept out. They argue that this is a slippery slope that those who wish to undermine wilderness are using for their nefarious purposes. We tend to agree. We've seen this before with an olive branch for climbers concerning the use of power drills for wilderness bolting. It's all a trick. They don't want to stop with drills or mountain bikes. They want to undermine the Wilderness Act itself. To read the article, click here.

--A massive avalanche was recently recorded on video in the Zanskar area of the Himalaya. To read more about the avalanche and the area, click here. To see the video, click below:



--On August 24, Tommy Caldwell and Adam Stack completed the first known car-to-car ascent of Mt. Hooker in the Wind River Range. The duo covered fifteen miles of trail before ascending Hooker's north face via Jaded Lady (VI 5.12a, 1,800') and hiking back to their car in 19 hours and 39 minutes. Click here to read the full report from Alpinist.

--Here's an article on how to survive a wolf attack! Though, there are very few modern accounts of people being attacked by wolves... And then the same guy wrote an article about how to survive a bear attack...

--Check out the trailer for the new film about skiing in the National Parks. The film was produced by Powder Magazine and REI. For information on how to see this film, click here.



--Here is a very disconcerting view of the glaciers in the Alps as they've melted over the last century...

--Here's an awesome piece on the White Mountain Trail crew put together by NPR.

--Record visitor numbers at the nation’s first national park have transformed Yellowstone National Park’s annual tourist rush into a sometimes dangerous frenzy. Photo-snapping visitors routinely break the rules, getting too close to elk, grizzly bears, wolves and bison. To read more at Fox 13, click here.