Indonesian Digital News Archive

The North Coast Trail, located inside Cape Scott Provincial Park on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, is a 43.1 km (26.7 mile) hiking route that is considered by many to be one of the best in the world. Rugged and remote, it is a beautiful but challenging trek which my friend Rick McCharles of BestHike.com says is not so much a hike but a backcountry adventure.

Rick recently hiked the entire length of the NCT and shared the experience on the Best Hike Blog, which is always a great site for finding new trails to explore all over the world. Rick begins his initial post on the North Coast Trail by calling it "paradise" but goes on to explain why it is certainly not for everyone. He notes that the trail is so challenging at points that some groups manage a pace of just 1km (.6 miles) per hour! That's a pretty brutal pace and far from a stroll in the park. In typical Best Hike fashion, he then goes on to share logistical information for the trek, listing options for hiking this beautiful beast.

Most hikers who take on the NCT make a 7-day/6-night excursion along its length. After giving us his initial introduction, in his second North Coast Trail post Rick breaks down each of those days and tells prospective backpackers what to expect. He also shares plenty of great video and photos from along the way, helping to further prepare visitors to the trail.

For hikers looking for a remote wilderness adventure, it seems this is a fantastic option. Wildlife abounds, including wolves and bears, and the scenery is simply spectacular. Rick encountered a great deal of mud along the trail, which helps account for some of the slow progress at points, but overall he loved the experience, which involved walks along the shore, treks deep into the forest and a trail that wanders up, over and around some very beautiful places.

Check out his full trip report for more information. Then start making plans to hike this trail yourself.

Way back in March of this year I wrote about an expedition that was still in the planning stages but preparing to get underway. It was named Journey America and it featured cowboy Filipe Masetti Leite traveling on horseback from Toronto, Canada back home to Sao Paulo, Brazil – a journey of 16,000km (9942 miles) that is expected to take up to two years to complete. After months of planning, Filipe hit the trail in July and has been wandering southward ever since and documenting his progress at OutWild TV.

Over the past two months Leite has been enjoying his travels through the American west, first crossing the border into Montana and continuing South into Wyoming and now Colorado. His journey even took him through the heart of Yellowstone National Park, which had to have been a spectacular place to ride. He's averaging about 30 miles per day and has just crossed over the 1000 mile mark. In order to keep himself and his two horses fresh, he takes two days off from riding each week, which will be important for maintaing the health of his mounts over the long haul.

Filipe has reportedly been overwhelmed the support he has received on his journey. Complete strangers have given him food and supplies and offered up a place for him and his horses to spend the night. That kindness has helped make his journey an enjoyable one thus far and hopefully it will continue in that way all the way back to Brazil.



In addition to following daily updates and twice weekly dispatches on OutWild TV, Filipe is also providing information via his Twitter feed and Instagram. Considering he still has a long way to go, it should be quite an adventure to follow in the months ahead. The video below is an example of life on the road for the intrepid cowboy.

Update: Shortly after I posted this story I received a note from the Long Riders Guild informing me that before setting off on his epic journey, Filipe received advice and training from ten different members of the guild, across five different countries, that will prove invaluable on his expedition. The guild also lent him a pack saddle that he is testing on the ride as well. Apparently the pack is part of a special ten-year field test and Filipe is the most recent rider to use it on this kind of sojourn.

The Long Riders also wanted me to point out that Filipe's ride esd inspired by Aime Tschiffely, who is considered to be the greatest long rider of the 20th century. In 1925 the Swiss rider set out on a three year trek that covered 10,000 miles between Buenos Aires and New York City. Along the way he crossed over mountains, jungles and deserts to complete one of the toughest and most grueling equine adventures in history. It is quite a story which can be read in his famous book Tschiffely's Ride.

Dispatch #12 - Drive-thru Cowboy from Outwild TV on Vimeo.

I have been enjoying the sneak previews we've been getting of the new mountain biking film Where The Trail Ends, which is due to be released later this month. The movie will feature some of the top riders that travel to remote places of the planet to find new challenges to ride. So far the videos have been spectacular and this new one today is no exception.

The clips in the video below were shot while the team was riding near Fraser River, Canada. In order to access the trails, if you can call them that, the riders has to use a boat and helicopter to reach their starting points. But once there, it is some gnarly downhill that has probably never been ridden before. All of it caught on helmet cams courtesy of sponsor Contour.

One of the big adventures we've been following this summer is the Arctic Row 2012, during which Paul Ridley, Collin West, Neal Mueller and Scott Mortensen were attempting to travel from Inuvik, Canada to Provideniya, Russia by rowboat. This was to be the first crossing, of sorts, of the Arctic Ocean by a rowing team, but bad weather conditions have conspired agains the crew, forcing them to call off the expedition altogether.

The journey was originally expected to cover some 2100km (1300 miles) and take approximately 30 days to complete. When they set out back in mid-July conditions were actually better than expected and  progress was good. But as the days rolled on things took a turn for the worse and unusually powerful storms began to develop in the Arctic. Those storms proved to be impossible to row in, which slowed progress to a crawl. On more than one occasion, the team had to take shelter in a lagoon, sometimes for days, in order to wait out the heavy seas and high winds that were blowing through their area.

The delays proved costly and a journey that was expected to take about a month began to drag on much further. Today was their 41st day at sea and with their supplies dwindling and more storms on the horizon, they decided to go ashore at Point Hope, Alaska.

In a lengthy blog post last night the team talked about the trials and tribulations of their voyage. It hasn't been an easy one to say the least and for four men who have been stuck inside the tiny cabin of a small ocean rowboat, I'm sure it felt good to come ashore yesterday.

I'm sure we'll hear more about their story in the days ahead, as for now they are likely eating and catching up on their rest. It was a valiant attempt on their part, but the Arctic Ocean proved a bit too strong for these men. At least for now.

Located in Canada's Nunavut territory, Baffin Island is a remote and wild place. It also happens to be the fifth largest island in the world and a fitting place for an adventure. This morning Ray Zahab and Ferg Hawke have set out to run non-stop across the island, covering roughly 100km (60 miles) in the process. Their route will take them through Akshayuk Pass, a breathtaking valley that is the remains of an ancient riverbed and is surrounded by the Baffin Mountains.

You can track their progress on BaffinRun.com and catch updates via Ray's Twitter Feed and Facebook page. Reports are also being posted to the impossible2Possible Facebook page as well.

While this will be a good challenge for these two ultra-runners, it is merely a warm-up for what lies ahead. Next year they intend to run across the Gobi Desert at it's widest point, an expedition that will cover approximately 2000km (1242 miles) through some of the most remote terrain on Earth. Because of that remote nature of the Gobi, they'll have limited opportunities for resupply which will alter the logistics of the run to a degree.

We'll learn a lot more about the expedition in March of 2013 when Ray and Ferg are expected to set out. You know we'll be following it closely.

While I was away last week the details of a major expedition, slated to get underway next year, began to emerge. In July of 2013 a team of rowers will attempt to become the first to complete a crossing of the Northwest Passage in a single season, covering roughly 3000km (1864 miles) between Pond Inlet and Tuktoyaktuk, Canada in the process.

Scheduled to get underway July 1st of next year, The Last First expedition is expected to take approximately 75 days to complete. During that time, the crew will row non-stop through some of the most challenging and treacherous waters on the planet, facing unpredictable weather, massive ice flows and frigidly cold waters along the way.

As many of you know, this type of journey wasn't even possible until recently. Changing climatic conditions have caused much of the polar ice cap to melt, opening the Passage to travel for the first time. Even with those changes however the route is only navigable for a few months each year and is still a very difficult crossing. Climate change has had a dramatic effect on the region and the crew, which consists of adventurers Kevin Vallely, Paul Gleeson, Frank Wolf, and Denis Barnett,  will witness those changes first hand as they visit remote communities along the way.

Find out more about The Last First on the expedition's website and in the video below.

Author Chic Scott has written the definitive book on Canadian mountaineering. That book, entitled Pushing the Limits, examines 200 years of climbing history, introducing readers to the men and women who have been at the forefront of Canada's climbing community. In the short film below, which was made by Andre Querner, he takes a thoughtful, introspective look at mountaineering in general and what makes it such a unique, and at time enigmatic, sport.


The Gift from Andrew Querner on Vimeo.

Another beautiful and well made video to start the week, this time we go from the mountains to the rivers. This beautiful short film was shot by FORGE Motion Pictures and features kayaker Ben Marr pushing the limits of his skills on a wild stretch of water in remote Quebec. Amazing stuff.

Thanks to the National Geographic Adventure Blog for this great video.


OF SOULS + WATER: THE SHAPESHIFTER from NRS Films on Vimeo.

The Red Bull Divide and Conquer adventure race is coming to Canada's West Coast in a few weeks and the event promises plenty of action for adventure athletes. The Divide and Conquer features a unique format in which teams of three compete against one another across a wilderness course, but unlike other AR events, this one is run in relay-style with each team member taking a leg.

The race is scheduled to take place on Vancouver's North Shore and will start with a mountain run up Grouse Mountain. Twice! That's nearly 6000 feet (1828 meters) of elevation gain just to get things started.  From there it is on to the mountain bike section, which will be an all-mountain affair that will test a rider's downhill ability as well his or her technical and speed riding. The event will finish up with a paddling leg on the Capilano River that will send kayakers out onto Class IV waters in a deep canyon run.

This looks like it will be amazingly fun and registration is still open. If you'd like to put together a team for the Red Bull Divide and Conquer, you can enter the race here.

I haven't posted an update on Jesper Olson and his World Run II expedition since January, which was when he was starting the North American leg of the journey. Now he's nearing the end of that leg and has passed a major milestone along the way.

For those who aren't familiar with Jesper's epic undertaking, back in 2005 he completed the first fully documented run around the world, which for most of us would be enough of a challenge for a single lifetime. But in 2008 he decided to hit the road once again, this time running north to south and back again. He dubbed this second challenge the World Run II and starting from the northernmost point in Finland Jesper started running south. The route took him all the way across Europe, through the Middle East and down down Africa, before reaching the tip of that continent. From there he hopped a flight across the Atlantic and resumed running again, this time heading north through South America and eventually North America as well.

Currently Jesper is running through Maine and quickly approaching the U.S.-Canadian border, where he'll soon cross over and start the final leg of his journey, which will eventually end on Prince Edward Island. He still has a few more weeks of running before he reaches that point, but he is most definitely closing in on the finish line at long last.

A few days ago Jesper crossed a major milestone on World Run II. On May 15 he crossed passed the 35,000km (21,748 mile) mark. Thats an impressive distance to have run and eclipses World Run I by a considerable margin. On his original run around the world, Olson managed to cover 26232km (16,300 miles), but he passed that mark a long time ago and has passed into uncharted territory.

Recently Jesper lost part of his support crew so now he's also being forced to run while carrying a backpack. That added weight has changed his approach some, but he continues moving forward at a surprising pace. On the day that he crossed the 35,000km mark he covered 51km (31 miles), which is very impressive considering he's been running long distance nearly every day for four years.

As always, thanks to Darrell for keeping me updated wit Jesper's progress. It is such an amazing accomplishment that he is closing in on, although it sure makes my nightly five mile runs seem pretty insignificant.