Video: The Pride of Namibia - Conservation and Tourism

One topic that is of particular interest to me is conservation of wildlife, and the ending of illegal poaching, in Africa, a place I happen to love dearly. The video below is a success story in this regard, focusing on how the relatively young nation of of Namibia found a way to use tourism to boost conservation efforts, and instill a sense of pride in its people. As a result, poaching is significantly lower there than in other parts of the continent, and often seen as a blueprint for improving the situation elsewhere.

National Geographic Presents 50 Tours Of A Lifetime For 2014

Earlier this week, National Geographic Traveler has released their annual selection of their Tours of a Lifetime, giving us 50 more amazing trips that we can take in our never-ending quest to explore the world. As in years past, the 2014 edition of this list offers some amazing tours, offered by some of the best adventure travel companies in the world, that anyone of us can book today. Provided we have enough money that is.

As usual, Nat Geo has broken down their selections by geographic categories. That means you'll find options for travel in Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Europe, North America, and the South Pacific and Oceania. This makes it incredibly easy to find new options for travel in a favorite region, or look for options for some place you've never been before. Each of the regions have a plethora of unique trips to choose from, offering up a wide range of choices that any world traveler will appreciate.

The editors of the magazine look for unique offerings that also align nicely with the organization's mission of immersing us in diverse cultures and delivering experiences that can't necessarily be found anywhere else. For instance, for those wanting to visit Africa, one of the suggestions is a trip to Namibia, offered by a company called Adventures in Africa, that sends you off to the Namib Desert to track endangered black rhinos and elephants that have adapted to living in that incredibly dry place. In Asia, there is an excursion from Wild Frontier Travel that takes you along the Trans-Himalaya Highway in India and another from Explore! that take travelers into Iraq (don't ask me why the Middle East falls under the Asia category). Have dreams of South America instead? How about going on a Jaguar safari in Brazil with Wild Planet Adventures?

There truly is something here for everyone, no matter what your style of travel or how you define "adventure." It is certainly fun to read this list and dream about all the possibilities. Of course, not all of them fall into the affordable category, at least not for most of us. Make no mistake, there are certainly some inexpensive trips to be had on this list, but others are quite expensive, putting them well out of there reach of the average traveler. Still, these suggestions are also a good launching point for hatching ideas for our own travels. While Nat Geo's specific suggestions may not always be friendly to our bank accounts, they do allow us to seek other options that are.

Video: GoPro Captures The Life Of An Elephant

Ever wondered what it is like to see the world through the eyes of an elephant? Well, you can wonder no more thanks to this video, which was shot on GoPro cameras in the David Sheldrick elephant orphanage, located in Kenya. The footage not only gives us a glimpse into the life of an elephant, it shows us their more playful side as well. These creatures are amazing, and seeing them up close in the wild has been one of the greatest joys of my many travel experiences.

I, Elephant from Cristian Dimitrius on Vimeo.

North Pole 2014: Blizzards and Polar Bears

It was a difficult weekend in the arctic for the two remaining teams heading to the North Pole this spring. While they continue to battle bad surface conditions, things do seem to be improving a bit on that front. But the weather took a turn for the worse, leaving them tent bound for a day, while an encounter with polar bears also left one of the teams with a very close call.

Americans Eric Larsen and Ryan Waters have been struggling with the patch of rough ice almost since they were dropped off on Cape Discovery ten days ago. That has kept progress at a pace that has been much slower than they would like, mainly thanks to the fact that they have to cover each distance three times as they each haul one of their sleds through a tough section, then ski back to grab their second sleds, before proceeding forward again. As of this writing, the tracking section on Eric's website says that they still have 466  miles to go to reach the North Pole. Considering the pace that they're currently on, and the challenges that yet lie ahead, that is still an awful long way to go. But their latest dispatch indicates that the ice is starting to get better and they have hope that they can start to cover further distances soon.

This past Saturday, the boys got a real taste of what the Arctic can throw at them. High winds, blizzard conditions, and whiteouts kept them tent bound as they waited and watched for an opportunity to start skiing. That opportunity never came, and they ended up staying in the tent all day. This of course didn't help their moods much, as they felt it was another day where progress was lacking. But trying to work through the rough ice, in conditions where you can only see a few feet ahead – at best – just wasn't going to be safe. Hopefully they'll be able to make up the time and distance in the days ahead.



A raging blizzard may have been the least of their worries, as Eric and Ryan also had a very close encounter with some polar bears. Last week while pulling their sleds, through a tough section, they stopped to take a break. When they turned around, they found two bears – a mother and her cub –  following closely behind. They immediately began shouting and waving their arms in an attempt to scare them away. Ryan even fired several flares at them, while Eric scrambled to retrieve their shotgun from the sled. Eventually they were able to convince the animals to leave them alone, with a few shots fired in the air to ensure that they didn't come back.

According to their dispatch, the men then paced off the distance to where the bears finally turned and fled, and were surprised to find that the creatures had come within 15 feet of them. This story only underscores once again how traveling in the Arctic is so different than in the Antarctic. When skiing to the South Pole, there are no large, meat eating, predators that could potentially be stalking you. On a journey to the North Pole, it is a real possibility. Eric and Ryan were lucky that they spotted the bear and her cub when they did, or this story could have had a far different ending. Very scary!

Meanwhile, Japanese solo-skier Yasu Ogita also found himself tentbound over the weekend thanks to the same blizzard that prevented the Americans from making progress. Up until then, he has been feeling strong and focused, although struggling against the rough ice is taking its toll.

Yasu made the decision to carry a folding kayak with him on his journey as he felt that it would help him to more quickly cross some of the larger open leads of water that he'd come across. So far he hasn't faced anything too large in that department, and he has been flirting with the idea of leaving the kayak behind in order to lighten his load and make better time. But, he fears he'll still have some big leads to cross before he is done, and so far he has kept the kayak with him.

All of that said, Yasu has been covering solid distances. On Friday, the day before the blizzard hit, he managed to travel 8.3 km (5.1 miles). Unfortunately, he didn't add any miles to that total on Saturday, and actually lost about 4 km (2.4 miles) due to negative drift. Thats another challenge of the Arctic – even when you're standing still, you're losing ground.

Thats the weekend update from the Arctic. It was a tough one, and the season will likely remain that way. Both squads still have a very long way to go, and while time isn't a pressing factor just yet, it is starting to slip away quickly.

Video: GoPro Captures Grizzly Bear Romp

This video shows the clever use of GoPro cameras. Filmmaker Brad Josephs set up a couple of the cameras along a river in Alaska, where he captured a family of grizzly bears playing in the water. The animals romped in the water, chased birds, caught fish, and even eventually became aware of the camera itself. This is great footage and definitely fun to watch.

Video: Celebrating Life In The Socorro Islands

Located off the west coast of Mexico, the Socorro Islands are a tiny, remote set of volcanic archipelagos with a stunning array of marine life on display. The video below gives us a glimpse of what that is all about, with a glimpse of what visitors to that place can see, including whales, sharks, manta rays, and literally hundreds of others of species of fish. It is quite a beautiful setting with an amazing collection of creatures to share. It looks like truly wondrous place.

Celebrating Life - SOCORRO ISLANDS from Adil Schindler on Vimeo.

Wildlife Photographer Catches First Snow Leopard Kill Ever

Snow leopards are amongst the most elusive and endangered animals on the planet. They are so rare in fact that it is estimated that only about 50-60 of them still exist in the wild. Some of the big cats are known to inhabit the Hemis National Park in India, which is where a wildlife photographer recently made history by capturing what is believed to be the first images of a snow leopard making a kill.

Adam Riley was recently leading a snow leopard tour in the national park, which is located in the heart of the Himalaya, when he got the chance of a lifetime. Riley's series of photos show the cat on the prowl. Eventually, the predator catches sight of a small herd of mountain goats and goes in pursuit. The result is inevitable of course, but since the big cats are so rare in the wild, no one has ever captured images of the hunt before. 

National Geographic has more details on the story, as well as a series of photos that include Riley's explanation of what was happening at the time. In some of the photos it is actually difficult to see the snow leopard, as it blends so well into its background. Those photos explain why the cats are sometimes referred to as the "Gray Ghosts of the Himalaya," with their natural camouflage helping them to blend well with their surroundings. 

The images are definitely dramatic. Here's a sample of what Adam was able to capture. 

Video: How The Wolves Of Yellowstone Impacted The Environment There

Yellowstone National Park is one of my favorite places on the planet. It is a beautiful, breathtaking landscape, with some amazing wildlife on display. Back in 1995, wolves were famously reintroduced to the park, without anyone knowing for sure what they would do to the ecosystem there. Turns out, they have had quite an impact, in ways that no one could have predicted. The video below shares some insights into that vary thing. It is four minutes that are likely to fascinate anyone who has a love for the outdoors.

Video: Adorable Lion Cub Meets GoPro

By now, we all know that the versatile GoPro camera is good in a variety of situations. In the case of this video below, it's for getting very close to lion cubs. This particular GoPro was mounted on a remote controlled vehicle that allowed it to sneak up on a lioness and her young. The result is some great shots of the not-so-big cats, including an adorable close-up of one of the cubs who isn't too happy to see the camera.

Video: Winter LIfe In Super-Slow Motion

Since the official start of winter is now just a few days away, I felt this video was very appropriate. It beautifully captures some stunning images of wildlife during the cold and snowy season. There are some really amazing shots here with only the slightest of movement going on. Amazing stuff.

Winter Life - Super Slow Motion from Subfocus Filming & Production on Vimeo.

Video: Monkeying Around With GoPro

GoPro has a series of adventure videos on YouTube that are quite well done. The video below is an example of just such a video as it introduces us to an Orangutan rehabilitation center that prepares to release these primates back into the wild. Orangutan's are seriously endangered, and yet those working at this facility are hoping to protect them and bring them back from the edge of extinction. In the video, we get to meet some of these amazing creatures as they play in the jungle.

Video: Eagle Steals Video Camera, Carries It 68 Miles Away

An eagle, that appears to be suffering from kleptomania, recently swiped a motion-sensing camera from a crocodile trap in Australia and carried it some 68 miles before deciding it wasn't something the bird could eat. The camera was later found by Aboriginal hunters, who returned it to the proper owners. Naturally, they were a bit surprised to find their camera so far away from its original location but when they looked at the footage, they understood how it got there. The thieving bird is even caught on film at the end of the clip in what could quite possibly be the first avian selfie.

Video: Remote Controlled Buggy Captures Great Photos Of Lions In Africa

We've all seen how arial drones are being put to good use in capturing some amazing photography and video in remote areas of the world, but the video below puts the same concept to work on the ground. Photographer Chris McLennan, working with engineer Carl Hansen, developed a remote control camera housing that could be driven close to the subjects to get some very cool photos. In this case, that means driving up to a pride of lions to snap a few shots. The results are fantastic, although the images may give you a sense of what it is like for the prey just as the lion's pounce. This is really cool technology put to use in the field in an innovative way.

Video: The Polar Bear Whisperer

Churchill, Canada is a small town that has a big reputation for being the place to spot polar bears in the wild. Recently, adventure travel legend Richard Bangs made the journey to that remote village where he met Andy MacPherson, a local guide who has earned himself a reputation as the Polar Bear Whisperer. The video below introduces us to Andy and gives us an idea of how he interacts with the bears that remain the kinds of the Arctic even as we further encroach on their territory.

I haven't had the opportunity to visit Churchill just yet, but it is on my list of places to see. This vide makes me want to go there all the more.

Video: More Playful Seals Of The Farne Islands

Last week I shared a video of some very playful seal pups interacting with scuba dives near the Farne Islands of the coast of England. Today we have another video from the same location courtesy of reader Keith Savill who found this on video. It seems the seal pups there really love to follow the divers around and as is evident in this latest clip. The Farne Islands look like a fun place for a dive.

Perfect Day - Seals of The Farne Islands from UncleAlbert on Vimeo.

Video: The Seal Of Approval For GoPro

Yesterday we saw a curious cheetah interacting with a GoPro camera, today its some playful seals. If this video doesn't put a smile on your face, we should probably check you for a pulse. This was shot near the Farne Islands off the coast of Northumbria in England where the seal pups seem to enjoy chasing people.

Seal of Approval from Jason Neilus on Vimeo.

Australian Scientists Explore Lost World For First Time

A team of Australian researchers have quite literally gone where no man has gone before. Scientists from James Cook University recently crossed into a region called Cape Melville, which is completely cut off from the outside world by millions of large boulders that make passage into the remote mountain range nearly impossible. The team of four used a helicopter to gain access however and what they found inside was quite amazing.

Once inside the cape, the team determined that the entire region, which is encircled by impenetrable mountains, is 9 miles (14 km) long and roughly 3 miles (5 km) across. The region contains remnants of a rainforest left over from Gondwana, a reference to an ancient super-continent that existed millions of years ago. They also discovered a variety of new species as well, including three very unique reptiles. Those species included a new frog that lives under boulders and is capable of hatching its eggs without water and a skink that hunts insects by leaping from rock to rock. A third species was the most impressive however, an odd looking gecko that is unlike anything anyone had seen before.

The initial expedition to explore Cape Melville lasted just four days with the team seeing less than a tenth of the area contained there. The group is already planning a return trip to plumb further into the depths of the region to see what else they can find. The team believes that considering what they discovered in just a preliminary scouting mission, they could find some really unique species of birds, plants and even mammals once they really get the opportunity to check out the forests there. Considering that the Cape has been evolving on its own, almost completely cut off from the rest of the world for millennia, there could be some very unique creatures just waiting to be discovered.

These store always fascinate me. I love that our world is so vast that we still don't have regions to explore, even in the age of satellite mapping, GPS navigation and instant communications. It must have been a humbling experience for these scientists to become the first humans to step into this lost world and lay eyes on the wonders there for the first time. What an amazing world we live in.

Video: Cheetah Licks A GoPro

The title of this post pretty much says it all. Safari guide Matthew Copham set his GoPro camera down while out in the field and he managed to capture a once in a lifetime shot. A curious cheetah wandered up to take a look at the strange device and then gave it a lick. Fortunately, the big cat didn't find the camera tasty enough to eat. Still, pretty cool footage none the less.

Video: The Colors of Autumn

Now that autumn is officially here we can all take a bit of time to breathe in the fresh, crisp air and enjoy the lovely colors of the season. The leaves may not be turning crimson and orange just yet, but we can get a sneak peek at whats to come in the video below. There are some nice shots of wildlife as well, including a great clip of an elk bugling. This is a nice reintroduction to the season ahead and a good way to head into the weekend.

Autumn from Thomas Rasel on Vimeo.

Video: Eagle-Cam Gives Us A Birds-Eye View Of The Alps

Ever wonder what it is like to soar through the Alps like an eagle? Wonder no more as the video below gives you exactly that perspective. Not much is known about the clip other than that a small camera was placed on an eagle who then flew above the Mer De Glace region near Chamonix in France. The footage that this avian cameraman captured is nothing short of spectacular.