--There have been a number of conversations over the last year or so about whether or not the Mount Saint Helens National Volcanic Monument should be changed into a National Park. To read some of the arguments for and against this concept, please click here. Be sure to read all of the comments below the main article as well.
--Neighbors of Seattle's Discovery Park were startled Sunday to see a black bear wandering the area. Seattle police received the first report of the bear after midnight Sunday, when a resident reported a bear wandering around their yard in the 5600 block of 39th Ave. West. A second call came in around 6:45 a.m. from the 4200 block of 34th Avenue West. That caller said the animal was headed toward a ravine east of the park. And the bear was still at-large as of Sunday night. To read more, click here.
--Access Pan America is the first-ever campaign to keep climbing areas open and protect the climbing environment across the Western Hemisphere. Access Pan America is a fledgling grassroots effort of individual climbers, climbing organizations (including the Access Fund), federations, outdoor clubs, and corporate supporters. The network will meet for the first time during the Squamish Mountain Festival, presented by ARC'TERYX, August 12-16, 2009. To read more, click here.
Sierra:
Yosemite National Park is seeking assistance in locating a missing woman who was last seen below the Vernal Fall footbridge at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, May 18, 2009. Katrin Lehmann, 31, 6' 0", 150 lbs. She has light brown hair and brown eyes. Lehmann was last seen wearing a maroon rain jacket, dark blue pants, light green button shirt, lightweight hiking boots, a light blue backpack, and a dragonfly necklace. To read more, click here.
--National Park Officials reported that they opened Tioga Pass to vehicles Tuesday afternoon. With this important and scenic road to the west side of the Sierra open in time for the holiday, Yosemite staff expects a busy weekend. To read more, click here.
Alaska:
--Global warming conjures images of rising seas that threaten coastal areas. But in Juneau, as almost nowhere else in the world, climate change is having the opposite effect: As the glaciers here melt, the land is rising, causing the sea to retreat. To read more, click here.
View of the active lava dome in the summit crater of Redoubt volcano. Photo taken May 19th.Photo Courtesy of the Alaska Volcano Observatory/USGS
--The status of Mount Redoubt has not changed very much over the last week. Following is a status report from the Alaska Volcano Observatory:
The 2009 eruption of Redoubt continues. The lava dome at the summit continues to grow. Webcam views show low level steam and gas emissions from the summit. Rockfalls of fresh blocky lava continue to occur, often creating minor diffuse ash clouds within the summit region. Seismicity remains relatively low, but above background levels.
Himalaya:
--Italian K2 pioneer Achille Compagnoni died on Wednesday in a northern Italy hospital at the ripe old age of 94. Compagnoni was on the hotly debated first ascent of the mountain in 1954. While the fact that the Italian reached the summit is not in dispute, a number of problems that took place on the expedition still are. To read more, click here.
--It appears that a recent Sherpa death on Mount Everest has been attributed to what the Sherpa thought was a bottle of alcohol. The product, which was labeled, Nepali Royal Stag Delux Whiskey, was actually methanol. It appears that others at the Mount Everest Basecamp are also experiencing symptoms of poisoning from the same product. To read more, click here.
--Denis Urubko of Kazakhstan recently summited Cho Oyu (26,906') by completing an alpine-style ascent of a new route on the steep southeast face. This was the final mountain in the climber's quest to climb all 14 8,000-meter peaks. To read more, click here.
Notes from All Over:
--On Saturday, May 9th, rescuers responded to a climbing accident near the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel. A 27-year-old man was on "Feast of Snakes," which is located on the Pine Creek Canyon wall directly below the Zion-Mount Carmel Tunnel, when the fall occurred. He built an anchor at the top of the route and was being lowered by his parnter who was using a Gri-Gri belay device at the bottom of the climb. The rope being used by the climbers was too short for the slingshot belay technique and the end of the rope went through the Gri-Gri, dropping the climber 20 feet onto his neck and back on a ledge below the route. To read more, click here.
--Two seasonal Yellowstone National Park concession workers have been fired after a live webcam caught them urinating into the Old Faithful geyser. Park spokesman Al Nash says a 23-year-old man on Tuesday was fined $750 and placed on three years of unsupervised probation for urinating, being off trail in a restricted area and taking items from the area. The man also was banned from Yellowstone for two years. The second employee's case is pending. To read more, click here.
Yvon Chouinard--Mikhail Mikhailov and Alexander Ruchkin completed the first ascent of a 20,124 foot mountain the in Sichuan province of China, by sending a steep Yosemite style rock rock pillar. To read more, click here.
