Travel Tech: 5 Best Cases to Keep Your iPhone Dry When You Are Not

We love gadgets. Even more, we love gadgets we can take with us outdoors—which today means quite a few, what with the mobile technology revolution well underway. Leading the pack for the go-to device when you venture outdoors is, of course, the iPhone. Aside from its handy communication capabilities, the GPS chip and compass of the newer 3G and 3GS models make them ideal companions out on the trail and in the backcountry. The trouble with technology is that it is not typically made for the great outdoors, where events such as downpours, sandstorms, mud puddles, and the like can quickly turn your hundreds-of-dollars device into a paperweight. But never fear, where there is a gadget, an accessory is not far behind. Here are a handful of cases to consider that are built just to keep your iPhone high and dry in even the worst conditions.—Keene Haywood

Gulf Oil Spill Update: Surfrider's Environmental Director: "No Real End in Sight"

An aerial photograph taken last week of a rip current 62 miles from the wellhead. Image courtesy of Blake Gordon

We asked Surfer Foundation's environmental director Chad Nelsen, head of their Not the Answer anti-offshore drilling initiative, to lend some perspective on the escalating situation in the Gulf of Mexico as continued efforts to stop the surging oil fail. Plus find out what you can do to help out (but get your HazMat training first).—Mary Anne Potts

What aspect of this disaster gets to you the most?
The element of this disaster that gets to me the most is that three weeks ago the oil industry was telling us that new technology has made offshore drilling 100 percent safe. Now we know that not only is it not 100 percent safe, the industry doesn't actually know what to do when there is a spill like this. It should noted that there was a similar deep water oil blowout in the East Timor Sea last summer that took 70 days to stop. Further, this disaster is revealing that the safety regulations for this type of drilling have been lax and not always in compliance.

The myths that have been perpetuated about offshore oil drilling are being exposed and we hope that the public will realize that new offshore oil drilling is not the answer to our energy needs.

You are a longtime advocate of no new drilling through Surfrider's Not the Answer initiative. How would you characterize the efforts to stop the oil well from leaking?
I would characterize the current attempts as desperate. We are 27 days into this spill and its likely that millions of gallons are pouring into the Gulf of Mexico every day, with no real end in sight.

Best Trip Sweepstakes Ever: Win 8 World-Class Trips and Gear to Blog Around the World

Just remember when you're off on the best adventures of your life that you heard it here first.

Seven members of the Adventure Collection will announce today their participation in a groundbreaking new online travel contest called Blog Your Way Around the World. Enter to win eight world-class expeditions spanning Africa, Canada, Central America, Europe, South America, Indonesia, and the United States—provided by some of the most respected adventure travel companies on the planet. In return, you will be asked to blog about your experience for your friends back home. What a sweet deal.

Contest prizes include whitewater rafting, bicycle touring, heli-hiking, polar bear viewing, bird watching, zip-lining, snorkeling, sea kayaking, as well as two five-star expedition cruises and an African safari. The winner and one guest will also receive a total airfare credit of $8,000 and a gear package provided by top suppliers, including Ex Officio, Teva, Smith Optics, Eagle Creek Travel Gear, Outdoor Photographer, AFAR Magazine and Gaiam. The total prize package, with gear, has a value of nearly $80,000.

Gear: "Hydrate" Like Tony Stark and You Can Be Iron Man

We were pleased to see that charming-flakey Tony Stark, the mere mortal behind Iron Man, "hydrates" Adventure style in the new sequel. He slurps down a creepy chemical cocktail (we won't spoil things by revealing why) in the super stylish Kor One water bottle we recommended in our Best of Adventure gear review—um, two years ago. It's not easy being such a trendsetter. Get prepped for the next Hollywood gear sensation with this year's Must-Have Gear for 2010.—Mary Anne "Pepper" Potts

Steve Casimiro wrote:
In this post-bisphenol-A world, traditional polycarbonate water bottles are taboo. Enter the alternative: The new Kor One is a 750-milliliter design piece cast entirely from BPA-free (read: nontoxic) Tritan plastic. The slick flip top conceals an opening perfect for adding ice cubes or drinking on the fly, and the rubberized base cuts down on spills ($30).



 

Alaska-Yukon Expedition: It's On, Mother Nature. Bring It.

Posted from Delta Junction, Alaska

In an earlier post, "Becoming a Lean, Mean Adventuring Machine," I identified a "go big or go home" moment as part of the hardening process. I finally had that moment, a few weeks ago in the western Alaska Range (as predicted), and I'll share it now.

The western Alaska Range between Roan Roadhouse and Cantwell was my first significant off-trail portion and my first long stretch without town stops. It's rugged country even by Alaskan standards. It features big mountains, big glaciers, serious weather, and no local help if something goes wrong. Look at a map—there's NOTHING between Nikolai and the seasonal Wonder Lake Campground. "Just go downhill" is not sage bailout advice. My planned route was 280 roadless miles, which I made logistically possible by having two caches brought in beforehand (one by plane, another by dog team). The terrain included enormous braided river bars (which in early April are still covered with ice), tundra-covered 4,000-foot benches just to the north of Mount McKinley, textbook Interior taiga forests and tussocks, and the debris-covered terminal moraines of Straightaway, Foraker, and Peters glaciers.

Adventure in 60 Seconds: This Week in Exploration

See more Everest photos by Jake Norton here.

MOUNTAINS
There is no doubt that mountaineering is one of the great adventure sports. It puts people in concert with the forces of nature in a way that few other pursuits can. However, what the triumphant summit pictures and unforgettable stories often fail to depict is the crushing tedium of it all.

No More "Youngest" World Records in Sailing -- Is There Such a Thing "Too Young" in Adventure?

It is expected that Australian Jessica Watson, 16, will complete her successful solo, non-stop, unsupported  circumnavigation of the globe on Saturday. Over the past year, we have seen a dizzying number of teens attempt to bump each other out of the record for youngest solo, non-stop, unsupported circumnavigation. And though Watson will technically be the youngest person to pull off this feat, some suggest that her route was not long enough to make if officially qualify. Regardless, the title of "youngest" in sailing has become moot: The World Sailing Speed Record Council and other record-keeping organizations stopped recognizing "youngest" pursuits recently because they've become so controversial.

Gear Review: New Olympus E-P2 - Not Just Another Pretty Camera...Anymore

By National Geographic Adventure Contributing Editor Steve Casimiro, editor of The Adventure Life 

The runaway camera of 2009 was the Olympus E-P1. Its drop-dead gorgeous retro styling took the photo world by storm, and we at National Geographic Adventure named it one of the best products of the year in our awards issue. But however slick the E-P1 was, it came with limitations, namely a slow autofocus, no flash, and a screen that was tough to see in bright sunlight. Then Olympus released the E-P2, with just one significant change—the addition of an accessory port—and just this month brings out a silver version to accompany the black. Seems small, but this one addition is enough to move the E-P2 decision from one of the heart to one of the head.

Alaska-Yukon Expedition: Andrew Answers Your Questions on Avalanches, GPS, Socks, Motivation

 
Thanks for submitting your questions last week. We sent them off to Andrew when he was in Delta Junction, Alaska. As to be expected, he came through with great answers. He also told us that he's happy to answer more, so feel free to submit new questions at the end of this post.

What's been the most intense moment of the trip?—Matt Shaw

I had a few tense moments last week after a spring snowstorm dumped almost three feet of snow up high just before I was about to ski over two steep passes. Both passes had unavoidable avalanche slopes (i.e. I had to cross slopes that are steep enough to slide) and there were avy-prone slopes above, below, and adjacent to my route. I think the conditions were safe at the time, but I learned a valuable lesson: Don't plan a high-stakes route through avalanche terrain, because when you get there the conditions might not be safe. I would have been better off planning a "safe route" with a "avy route option."

Voluntourism - Why "Helping" Is Not Always Helpful

One of andBeyond's lodges is India.

Top notch luxury safari outfitter andBeyond (see the company review in our Adventure Ratings) is known for its commitment to conservation and local community building. With burgeoning efforts in India coming to fruition in 2010, these guides are on the cutting edge of socially conscious adventure travel. But voluntourism? Think again. While staff take Indian middle schoolers on Conservation Lessons in Kanha National Park or orchestrate the building of a new local school, guests decidedly do not.

“There’s a bit of a controversy in allowing tourists to do work,” says andBeyond’s Paula Franklin. “Say there’s a local carpenter who needs a job and he sees a family from Nebraska building a house. He’ll think: Why are they taking the job that I could get paid for? The community would rather we pay someone who needs the money than let a tourist do it.”