--Sean McCabe passed away on Saturday after a courageous battle with thyroid cancer. His wife Laura and his 2 beautiful little girls Novie and Dashe were at his side. Sean was an accomplished alpine and rock climber, loving husband and father, high school art teacher, and artist whose work has been featured in Alpinist magazine and BD and Patagonia catalogs. A memorial is planned for Sunday November 15 at 1:30 pm at the Liberty Bell High School in Winthrop, WA. To read more, click here to see Sean's award-winning outdoor artwork, please click here.
--An Idaho woman who wandered off trail hiking in Northern Idaho has been found safe after a cold night in the wilderness. Twenty-seven year old Alisa Franck said the spend Saturday night huddling to keep warm in the snow. To read more, click here.
--The public can buy permits to cut Christmas trees on the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest from November 12th through December 24th. Cutting areas are located within national forest lands in the eastern portions of Pierce, King, Snohomish, Skagit and Whatcom counties. Maps and information about cutting areas are provided where permits are sold at ranger stations and the Verlot and Glacier Public Service Centers. To read more, click here.
Sierra:
--A woman died shortly after a fall in the Eastern Sierra over the weekend. The as-yet unnamed vicitim was climbing Obelisk Mountain in the John Muir Wilderness with two friends when she fell Sunday. One friend stayed with her, while the other went for help. Authorities say a 36-year-old woman died before rescuers could get to her. To read more, click here and here and for a series of forum posts about the accident and the individual involved, click here.
The barren tarmac at the Bishop-Mammoth AirportA new rental car company could make this a very nice place to fly to.
--Hikers, birders and other visitors to the Eastern Sierra are encouraged to be on the lookout for Karma, an adult male red-tailed hawk that for the past two-plus years had resided at the Eastern Sierra Wildlife Care facility in Bishop. The well-known bird, who has been in captivity for most of his life, regularly flies and regularly returns to his handlers. On a recent flight, he did not return. There is concern that the bird will not be able to fend for himself in the wild. To read more, click here.
Desert Southwest:
--A 63-year-old man who was hiking on a popular Grand Canyon trail has died after he was found collapsed and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful. To read more, click here.
--The Spring Mountains -- home to the Mount Charleston Climbing area -- are going to develop podcasts for visitors to enjoy and want the public's help. They would like to find out what visitors would like to hear about. To participate in a survey for this area, please click here.
--On November 10th, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a previous court decision overturning a land exchange necessary for the development of what would have been the world's largest garbage dump right on the boundary of Joshua Tree National Park. To read more, click here.
Himalaya:
--Mid-day yesterday, it was reported that Slovenian Tomaz Humar is reportedly injured on Langtan Lirung's north face, friends in Slovenia just confirmed. Details are still sketchy though. "Tomaz is stuck on Langtang Lirung's north face, somewhere near 6,300m," Slovenian climber Branko Ivanek told Barrabes.com from the Slovenian Climbing Federation HQs'. "He's apparently sustaining leg injuries," Branko added. "We've contacted Nepal and asked for details on the situation and rescue operations being performed." To read more, click here.
--New Zealander, Patricia Deavoll, recently completed a first ascent solo on Karim Sar (22,309') in the Karakoram of Pakistan. She made the initial ascent to high camp with her partner Paul Hersey, before completing the climb alone. To read more, click here.
--In May, Denis Urubko and Boris Dedshko climbed the southeast face of Cho Oyu alpine style. The style and ethics employed in the ascent earned the duo a Piolet d'Or award. To read more, click here.
--Vitaly Gorelik and Gleb Sokolov completed a difficult new line on Peak Pobeda in the Tien Shan Mountains of China in August. The duo climbed a 7,875 foot buttress in a alpine style nine day round trip. To read more, click here.
Notes from All Over:
--During the Squamish Mountain Festival a small group of dedicated climbing advocates met to have the first meeting of the Access PanAmerica group. This group will be the first international organization dedicated bto protecting climbing access throughout the Western hemisphere. To read more, click here and here.
The Craggy Flanks of Mount Kenya--Mt. Kenya's ice cap was so stunning that some began revering it as God's home. But most of the shining glacier has now disappeared, robbing communities of water and leading to a crisis of faith. For those Kenyans who still practice tribal religions and revere Mt. Kenya as the home of God, the environmental alterations mean more than a threat to their livelihood. For them, the melting ice and other changes on their mountain have triggered a crisis of faith. To read more, click here.
