Outdoor Skills and Advice: The Ultralight, Eco-Friendly Backcountry Boiler

Text and photo by Ryan Hutchins-Cabibi, Senior Field Instructor and Lightweight Backpacking Pro at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS)

As a tinkerer of gear, I get really excited when someone decides to build something they want that doesn’t exist. In the case of engineer Devin Montgomery, that something was a wood-fired boiler small and light enough to take backpacking in an ultralight style. For people cooking one-pot meals, “just add water” meals, or “boil in a bag” food, the ability to travel without fuel is an unquestionable advantage in the field. The Backcountry Boiler is an efficient, eco-friendly (it burns renewable fuels!) stove system that evolves the lightweight kit to the next level.

The Backcountry Boiler is elegant in design and function. It allows a backpacker to travel without lugging petrochemical-based fuels by burning natural renewable fuels they find along the way. Weighing in at 8.8 ounces, the boiler is heavier than some alcohol stoves but is comparable to many other wood burners. But unlike other wood burners, the boiler can also be used as a water bottle with the included stopper! 

The boiler functions on the simple chimney effect. A small fire is built in the burner base using tinder. It’s easier to light the fire and then place the boiler on the base. Be sure that the stopper is not plugging the water fill hole, or the vessel could explode.

The Backcountry Boiler proves to be surprisingly fast. Boiling two cups (16oz./500ml) of water multiple times per day over six days on a NOLS Lightweight Backpacking Course, I consistently had boil times of five minutes or less at altitudes between 8,000-10,000 feet, often using frigid water. This volume of water is ideal for “boil in a bag” type meals.

It’s important to note that the boiler doesn’t actually boil your food in the boiler its self, but boils the water to be added to your dehydrated meal in either a bag designed for this, or another container, perhaps your titanium mug.

Trail Running Video: Founders of the Upchuck 50K on Making a New Cult Classic

Upchuck 50K Trail Race from Rock/Creek on Vimeo.

By Andrew Kornylak, The Blind Monkey

The Upchuck 50K is one of the toughest trail races in the country, and in just a few years has become a cult classic, and a sought-after hardman notch in the belt. It tackles some of the most wild and technical terrain in the Cumberlands. Race entires are limited, with an admission process. And race day is bare bones—no sponsors, minimal aid stations, just “you, alone in the woods.”

As with most things, it's best to spend some time with a subject, which in this case was both the trail runners and the woods itself. Rather than shoot any race footage at all, I gathered some stories and shot some interviews with some of the racers and founders of the Upchuck, then spent a few days along the trail with friend and photography student Jake Wheeler shooting black and white photography and some video of the course. It’s a different kind of race that attracts a wild and quirky crowd. Let me know what you think.

See more photos of the Upchuck 50K here.

Restoring Vision in South Sudan: Dispatches From the Duk Lost Boys Clinic

Dr. Geoff Tabin at the Duk Lost Boys Clinic, South Sudan

Jordan Campbell (pictured below) is on a medical mission to the remote and underserved region of Duk Payuel in South Sudan, the world’s newest country. He is assisting two ophthalmic surgeons—Dr. Geoff Tabin and Dr. Alan Crandall, both game-changers in the way eye care is being delivered in the developing world. Their work begins in the Duk Lost Boys Clinic, which was stared by John Dau, one of the original Lost Boys of Sudan and a National Geographic Emerging Explorer. Campbell is a Marmot Ambassador Athlete based in Colorado.

DAY 1

Flying over South Sudan’s vast and desolate landscape, brush fires blaze thousands of feet below us, wafting smoke over the wings of our eight-person aircraft. The fires are lit intentionally by the numerous indigenous tribes to fertilize the parched, unforgiving soil. But the sight of plumes coming from the ground also makes me nervous. Despite South Sudan’s recent independence in July 2011, the world’s newest country has been plagued by 40 years of civil war with their northern neighbors in Sudan, and the situation between the now two countries remains tenuous.

Seated next to me are two ophthalmic surgeons—Dr. Geoff Tabin and Dr. Alan Crandall, both game-changers in how eye care is being delivered in the developing world. If Africa is a gaping hole for the blind and underserved, South Sudan is ground-zero.

Ultimate Adventure Bucket List 2012 #1: Explorer Enric Sala's Dream Diving Trips

For our second annual Ultimate Adventure Bucket List, 20 of the world's top athletes and explorers share their wildest dream trips—a dazzling list of never attempted feats daunting to even these world-class competitors. For the rest of us, consider their must-do adventures—and start planning.

As a countdown to the new year, we will be sharing two adventurers' dream trip pairings every day to hopefully inspire you to plan some great adventures for 2012.


Photograph by Norbert Wu, Minden Pictures II/Getty Images

Dream Trip: Dive the Poles

Enric Sala, Marine Ecologist and Diver

Most divers gravitate to tropical waters teeming with corals, colorful reef fish, and sharks. Not Enric Sala. The marine ecologist and seasoned diver daydreams of something a little more remote. “I dream of diving in two places where I have not been yet,” he says. “One is Antarctica, because of its crystal clear waters and amazing fauna, in addition to the ice cathedrals. The other is the Arctic, where I'd like to see the northernmost kelp forests.”

Diving in polar regions comes with its dangers, like utterly frigid waters and the possibility of getting trapped under the ice, but Sala is lured by the promise of Antarctica’s wild creatures, like giant crustaceans, and astounding underwater visibility. “It’s like flying,” he says. As for the Arctic, he doesn’t know what to expect, which is a large part of the draw. “It’s a poorly known ecosystem, so it’s pure exploration.”


Photograph by Flip Nicklin, Minden Pictures/Getty Images

Must-Do Trip: Dive Cocos Island, Costa Rica

Enric Sala, Marine Ecologist and Diver

Three hundred miles—and a 36-hour boat ride—southwest of mainland Costa Rica, a lush volcanic island rears up improbably out of the Pacific Ocean. Cocos is at once a geological anomaly, a stopover for big pelagics like sharks, rays, and whales, and a divine gift for recreational divers willing to make the schlep. “It's the last place where one can always see big schools of large fish, including hammerhead sharks, whitetip sharks, and trevally,” says Enric Sala.

At the dive site Dos Amigos Grande, divers swim through an enormous underwater arch and see schools of hammerheads and mating eagle rays, or at Manuelita, a night dive might reveal hundreds of darting whitetip sharks. “It’s hard to find another place in the ocean with the same tons of large animals per hectare,” says Sala. “If it's not a school of 200 hammerhead sharks, it is a bait ball attacked by Galápagos sharks, dolphins, and seabirds.”

Undersea Hunter Group offers ten-day liveaboard dive trips to Cocos Island from San Jose, Costa Rica starting at $4,895.

 

How to Become a National Geographic Explorer

If you’ve ever wondered how you might become an explorer for National Geographic, believe it or not, it can start with attending a seminar.

During the Banff Mountain Film Festival in a conference room at the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada, aspiring young explorers learned the ropes of turning their dreams of adventure into an assignment for National Geographic. Their works may land on television, on the web, or in the famous magazine with the bright yellow border.

Text and photo by James Edward Mills,
The Joy Trip Project

Best Adventure Destinations for 2012

Our list is out: Each of these ten best adventure destinations for 2012 has new access, be it new parks, trails, hotels, crazy weather patterns, or cosmic events. Combined, it's enough to make a well-traveled world feel full of new frontiers again.

And the best adventure destinations are...

Skiing + Snowboarding Mammoth Mountain, California
Rafting the Bruneau and Jarbidge Rivers, Idaho
Mountain Biking Bosnia and Herzegovina
Snorkeling the Ningaloo Coast, Australia
Surfing Todos Santos, Baja, Mexico
Exploring Maya Culture, Belize
Climbing Mustagata, China
Hiking Newfoundland, Canada
Canoeing the Susquehanna River Water Trail, Allegheny Mountains, Pennsylvania
Kayak Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island

Get Trip Details >>

Photograph courtesy Jay Graham, Rancho Pescadero


 

100th Anniversary of Roald Amundsen Reaching South Pole—How the Grueling Race Was Won

By David Roberts; Photograph by London News/Getty Images

It was the strangest of all races. Two teams of five men each—one British, the other Norwegian—set out at the beginning of the 1911 Antarctic summer, both bent on becoming the first explorers to reach the South Pole. The British team was led by 43-year-old Robert Falcon Scott, the Norwegian by 39-year-old Roald Amundsen. Each man had already made bold expeditions to the Antarctic region.

Yet because the two expeditions had chosen to build their coastal base camps 600 miles apart, at either edge of the vast Ross Ice Shelf, their paths would never overlap, and the two teams would never catch sight of each other. There was no way to know who was leading the race.

After wintering over in Framheim, Amundsen’s team set out on October 18. Scott’s party did not depart from Cape Evans until November 1. The two parties had about the same distance—roughly 800 miles in a straight line—to cover to get to 90 degrees south. Yet their traveling styles were utterly different, and those differences would spell victory and defeat. Amundsen used dogs to haul his sledges, while the men skied; to supplement the rations they carried, they would kill and eat the dogs when they succumbed to exhaustion. Scott experimented in vain with ponies and motorized tractors, but ended up heading for the Pole with his men in harnesses, pulling their heavy sledges themselves. At the last minute, unwilling to exclude the plucky “Birdie” Bowers from the party as it neared its goal, Scott ended up launching his final push with four pairs of skis for five men. Bowers had to plod along in his boots, plunging deep into the snow at every step.

Outdoor Skills and Advice: What’s in Your Winter Day Pack?

By Contributing Writer Aparna Rajagopal-Durbin, Faculty member and Diversity & Inclusion Manager at the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS), with help from Lindsay Yost, NOLS winter instructor. Photo courtesy of Brad Christensen/NOLS

Oh adventurer, be not tempted this winter by the thought of lounging languidly on your La-Z -Boy in front of the hearth with a warm mug of liquid in your paws! Instead, strap on your skis and skins the head outside to shred the nar nar. Besides what we’ve already told you to stash in your summer and fall daypack, senior NOLS field instructor Lindsay Yost urges you to take these few extra items to beat the winter chill.

1. Chocolate
Sugar and calories are essential when you’re burning those extra calories to stay warm. So besides that hot cocoa you’re carrying in your thermos, take some extra chocolate. Lindsay prefers Chocolove Dark Chocolate with Peppermint. I’m a huge fan of the Lindt Touch of Sea Salt Bar. And then there is always the good ol’ Snickers Bar.

2. A multi-tool
Whether you’re on skis and skins or on snow shoes, a multi-tool (like the Black Diamond Binding Buddy) is always great to have on hand to fix any gear problems.

3. Avalanche essentials
If you’re getting vertical, you must take an avalanche shovel, probe, and saw, and keep an avalanche beacon on your body. Read here for more tips on how to be more avy savvy.

4. A puffy jacket
Light but toasty warm, a down or synthetic puffy jacket is a must pack for the winter.

5. Sunscreen, visor, and sunglasses with UV protection
What’s more dangerous for your skin than a sunny day? A sunny day on snow! (And don’t pack those sunglasses—wear them!)

6. A balaclava
“Just ‘cuz it’s fun to say,” says Lindsay. I suggest fleece.

7. A straw
To suck it up when things get cold and miserable!

Packing for more than a day trip in the snow? Check out what NOLS students take on a two-week backcountry ski expedition.

Snowboarder Jeremy Jones on Protect Our Winters

"Jeremy Jones is an alien. He's just inhumanly good at snowboarding." So lives the legend of this pioneering big-mountain rider. We heard this comment this week from an Alaska-based ski/snowboarding operator, but the sentiment is one that rings throughout the snowboarding world.

Once a pro rider hitting a different big-mountain location every week, Jones's ethos have evolved over the years. Instead of heli-assisted first descents, he now prefers to go the old-fashioned way—on foot or splitboard. "The reality with going on foot is that it can take days to go do one run. It’s definitely a quality over quantity deal," he says. His film trilogy Deeper is aimed to show that you can do world-class freeriding without a helicopter. Further, part two due out September 2012, shows some of the best riders exploring the backcountry the slow way, which makes for a more a richer, more personal snowboarding film.

This falls right in line with Protect Our Winters (POW), a foundation Jones started in 2007 to unite the snow-sports industry and fans to fight climate change. With 30,000 members and some of our favorite athletes as ambassadors, Protect Our Winters is taking their message to the classroom and to Congress.

To kick off skiing and snowboarding season, we caught up with Jones to find out the latest on POW, what it's like to talk to Congress about climate change, and his favorite places to ride. —Mary Anne Potts

Become a Protect Our Winters Member:
This year, Alamos Wines is spreading the love by gifting 1,000 people with yearlong POW memberships. The winery is getting involved because it relies heavily on the snowmelt from the Andes to irrigate its vineyards. Simply register on protectourwinters.org. Your fee will be waived by entering the codeword ALAMOS.

Adventure: What’s going on with Protect Our Winters right now?
Jeremy Jones: The foundation continues to strengthen and grow. We're becoming more educated in doing our job better and making sure that each dollar raised goes as far as possible.

This fall we have been busy with a Hot Planet, Cool Athlete tour, where we take professional athletes into high schools with a scientist. We have this really hip, upbeat presentation on the state of the planet and climate change. We break it down for them and explain ways that they can help. The in-school stuff is the most rewarding, uplifting thing we do at Protect Our Winters because it gives us a level of hope to see the next generation really rise to the challenge of climate change. They really want to make a difference—and they are not accepting defeat like some of the older generations.

A: What's it like to talk to Congress about climate change? Are there any skiers or snowboarders among our elected officials?
Jeremy: Well, there aren’t any snowboarders in Congress. But I have met some die-hard skiers...and general mountain climbers and outdoor enthusiasts. When we go to Congress, sometimes we meet with full champions on climate change who are really excited that we are there. They realize that they need our help, really. Although I would say the discussion on climate has gone the wrong way on Capitol Hill over the last couple years. But there’s hope on Capitol Hill that the ship will be righted and we can start feeling positively.

Running: What the Fell? An Introduction to Hill Running

Ready for a lung buster? The southern Idaho foothills make perfect fell running terrain for our author. Text and photos by Steve Graepel

I had just moved to Boise and was training to climb Mount Fairweather in Alaska’s notorious Fairweather Range. Hardened legs and deep lungs are de rigueur for alpine climbing; the rolling Idaho foothills were the perfect crucible to prepare for the 15,000-foot giant. So each weekend I would shoulder a weighted pack and hump loads up and down our steep foothills. I’d climb for three to four hours, accumulating thousands of feet of elevation.

Fairweather was a bust—there’s not much you can do to train for chest-deep confectionery snow—but I knew I had tapped a new power supply with my off-piste training cirque. My legs and ankles were stronger, I had less knee pain, and my aerobic capacity was boosted. The following year I swapped the boots and pack for my running shoes and began to run my off-trail route.

What I didn’t know was that running hills was a tried and true sport. It's called fell running. The British have been doing this sort of thing for centuries (no surprise there, hey have a knack of wringing good sport out of hard efforts: Everest, the South Pole (Shackleton!), a 20-year Scotch...). What started nearly 1,000 years ago in an effort to find a royal messenger kicked off the Highland Games and eventually matriculated into a sanctioned culture of mountain runners, weaving a bit of trail running, orienteering, cross country and sometimes, grueling overnighters. The goal? To run the steepest hills as fast as you can!

Running is a simple sport and its best appreciated that way. But taking it to the highlands requires some slight modifications to your strategy. Here are some tips to help ease into it.