|
|
Pacific Crest Trail
The Pacific Crest Trail is a long-distance mountain hiking
trail that runs from the United States border with Mexico to its border with
Canada. It passes through the Laguna, San Jacinto, San Bernardino, San Gabriel,
Liebre, Tehachapi Mountains, and the Sierra Nevada in California, and the Cascade
Range in Oregon and Washington states. The Pacific Crest Trail is 2,650 miles
(4,240 km) long. It was designated a National Scenic Trail in 1993. The Pacific
Crest Trail, the Appalachian Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail form the
Triple Crown of long distance hiking.
Each year, about 300 people, commonly called thru-hikers, attempt to hike the
entire trail from end-to-end. The trip usually takes between four and six months.
Around 180 complete the hike each year. Most "thru-hikers" start from
the southern Mexican border and reach the north end of the trail before the
first hard snow. Picking up supplies along the way, usually packages sent to
them via mail, most hikers cover about 25 miles (40 km) per day.
The Pacific Crest Trail Association provides information about the PCT and the John Muir Trail. Includes trail conditions, descriptions of the five sections, and photo gallery.
An ocean of possibilities: The South Pacific islands of Tahiti have it allThe Independent Mar 6 2010 2:24AM GMT
Arab Climber Zed Al Refai Leads Kuwaiti Group up Kilimanjaro<p><img src="http://z.about.com/d/climbing/1/0/D/A/-/-/ZedAlRefai_arabian_man_1.jpg"hspace="5"align="right"></p>
<p>Kuwaiti climber <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.foreverest.com/index1.php">Zed Al Refai</a>, nicknamed Zeddy, is currently leading an international team of friends to the summit of <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/KilimanjaroFact.htm">Mount Kilimanjaro</a>, the highest point in Africa, in honor of Kuwait's National and Liberation days on February 25 and 26.</p>
<p>Al Refai, who has already climbed Kilimanjaro four times, told the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.arabtimesonline.com/NewsDetails/tabid/96/smid/414/ArticleID/149946/t/%E2%80%98Climbing-not-just-about-having-fun%E2%80%99/Default.aspx">Arab Times</a>: "I am going with friends because I try to introduce these kinds of trips to them as much as possible....We are going to be 12 people on the trip, seven Kuwaitis including one Kuwaiti woman...Riad Malallah, who is one of my closest childhood friends and has travelled with me many times, will be with us including other members of Kuwait Extreme Team and friends from the UAE, Syria, America and Canada. Not all of us have had experience in climbing mountains before but most of us have had hiking experience so we are going to help each other out. I believe it is going to be a good experience for all of us." One member of the party is <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://musafir.com/Diaries/Kilimanjaro/Default.aspx">Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani</a>, an Arab adventurer and co-founder of Musafir. He's climbing to raise cash for the Malaria Consortium, to help defeat malaria in Tanzania.</p>
<p>Among active Arab mountaineers, 46-year-old Zed Al Refai is the most prolific. He began hiking and climbing as a college student in New Jersey, making trips to New England, Colorado, and the Pacific Northwest. After a trekking trip to Nepal in the 1990s, Al Refai began thinking about climbing <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/EverestFacts.htm">Mount Everest</a>. In 1999 he ascended Denali, the highest peak in North America, and embarked on becoming the first Arab to climb not only Everest but also the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/7Summits.htm">Seven Summits</a>. He climbed <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/EverestFacts.htm">Mount Everest</a> in 2003 on his third attempt and completed his Seven Summits quest in 2004 by climbing Aconcagua, becoming the 119th climber to complete the list and the 79th to complete the list with <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/CarstenszFacts.htm">Carstensz Pyramid</a> as the Oceania high point.</p>
<p>Al Refai organized this <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/KilimanjaroFact.htm">Kilimanjaro</a> trip to raise awareness of ecological issues that he, as a mountaineer, has seen first-hand. He says, "...one of the reasons we are going to Kilimanjaro is to spread awareness about the glaciers that are melting so fast that it is said they will disappear in less than ten years." In Kuwait he lectures at schools "to motivate kids to be adventurous and discover the world. My lectures also spread awarenss about the protection of the environment, climate change and reducing our waste." He also notes that Kuwait has a scarcity of water yet its consumers are one of the largest wasters of water in the world. Al Refai's hope is that the 12 people climbing Kilimanjaro, with its disappearing glaciers and ecosystems, with him will in turn affect more people.</p>
<p>Today the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/od/mountainclimbing/a/KilimanjaroFact.htm">Kilimanjaro</a> party climbed to the top of Lava Tower for acclimatization before descending down to 12,960-foot (3,950-meter) Barranco camp below the Breach Wall. Most of the party felt light-headed atop Lava Tower and two members had headaches and nausea. Tomorrow the group will try for the summit.</p>
<p>Photograph above: <i>Zed Al Refai on the cover of Arabian Man magazine after his successful ascent of Mount Everest.</i></p>
<p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/b/2010/02/27/arab-climber-zed-al-refai-leads-kuwaiti-group-up-kilimanjaro.htm">Arab Climber Zed Al Refai Leads Kuwaiti Group up Kilimanjaro </a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/">About.com Climbing</a> on Saturday, February 27th, 2010 at 16:23:37.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/b/2010/02/27/arab-climber-zed-al-refai-leads-kuwaiti-group-up-kilimanjaro.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://climbing.about.com/b/2010/02/27/arab-climber-zed-al-refai-leads-kuwaiti-group-up-kilimanjaro.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://climbing.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://climbing.about.com/b/2010/02/27/arab-climber-zed-al-refai-leads-kuwaiti-group-up-kilimanjaro.htm&#038;zItl=Arab Climber Zed Al Refai Leads Kuwaiti Group up Kilimanjaro ">Email this</a></p>
New Caledonia Tourism Reaches 15-Year LowPacific Islands Report Feb 26 2010 6:25AM GMT
Sari Pacifica Hotel, Resort & Spa - Lang Tengah Now Offers Faster Online BookingPRLog Feb 15 2010 3:39AM GMT
Online Booking Now Possible with Sari Pacifica Hotel, Resort & Spa ? Sibu IslandPRLog Feb 2 2010 8:53AM GMT
Direct Booking Now Possible at Sari Pacifica Hotel, Resort & Spa ? Redang IslandBreakingTravelNews Jan 25 2010 5:50PM GMT
Direct Booking Now Possible at Sari Pacifica Hotel, Resort & Spa Redang IslandPR inside Jan 25 2010 11:39AM GMT
Sari Pacifica Hotel, Resort & Spa Introduces Promo Packages for 2010Pressbox.co.uk Jan 7 2010 2:38PM GMT
Methodist Disciple interviews Carol Conger-Cross with the Guatemala ProjectCalifornia-Pacific Annual Conference Dec 21 2009 9:49AM GMT
Pacific Outdoor Equipment Shelter TarpAlpine Zone Dec 13 2009 3:55PM GMT
|
