Join us on a life-list Himalayan trek, and do good for others while enjoying one of the world’s dream trips
Few mountain-bike destinations seem as ambitious as North Korea, but the country is home to myriad steep mountains and hiking trails that are perfect for exploring
The Kurdish region of Iraq is home to spectacular peaks, wild rivers, and fiercely hospitable people, and it could be the Middle East’s next big adventure tourism destination. But there’s one small catch: it’s still dangerous as hell.
Located in southeast China, the region of Yangshuo is esteemed for its mountainous landscape and ample recreational possibilities.
Travelers from around the world can now explore the reclusive nation's undiscovered breaks, but their adventure could come at a cost to human rights
Indonesia is a travel video from filmmaker Josh Cowan on a 5 week trip through the film’s namesake country.
Arz e Pakistan, from Family Films, is a stunning glimpse into the country’s scenery.
Surfer Josie Prendergast has been surfing the waves around Siargao for her entire life.
Travel companies are creating a generation of digital nomads, flying gig workers and tech nerds to exotic locales where they can pursue dream jobs. These brands make it their business to solve the significant logistical problems that come up when trying to get work done while abroad—but can they solve the problem of other people?
The town of Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO World Heritage site an hour from Chennai, in Tamil Nadu, has blossomed into the epicenter of India's burgeoning surf scene
A South Korean photographer’s project on climate change and the nomads living with it everyday.
Imagine a river with steep, big water rapids like the Stikine in British Columbia running through deep-walled canyons like the Grand Canyon in Arizona. It’s understandably hard to visualize, but these pictures of Kyrgyzstan’s Sary-Jaz River should help.
After 5 years of work, 38 flights, and 10 separate visas to Burma, photographer David Heath released his first book late last year. Undeniably one of the most raw and photogenic places on earth, Heath brought an eye to the region that can only be explained by his hours logged behind the lens and devotion to this project. We caught up with Heath to hear his thoughts on some of his favorite images and get a preview into his 248-page book Burma: An Enchanted Spirit.
If you've never been to India, go with a company that knows the ropes, even in a well-traveled state like Kerala. Here's how to do it right.
That's what they call the southern Indian state of Kerala, a laid-back tropical paradise where you can paddle hidden backwaters, trek the rugged Western Ghats, look for tigers, indulge in Ayurvedic treatments, and chill out on unspoiled beaches. Just leave your manic Western self behind.
Is there such a thing as the greatest vista on earth? The Japanese think so, and they've got the breathtaking Three Scenic Views, a trio of iconic landscapes that stand above the rest. One writer takes them all in on a breakneck tour.
We'd known about the storm for days, so how come hundreds of trekkers were caught off guard?
The border between Afghanistan and Pakistan is a lawless no-man's-land where violence and suffering rage, and no one has it harder than the region's 21 million Pashtun women. Their mode of rebellion? Short-verse poems called landays.
The climbing season may not be closed for business just yet this season, but it may be tough to convince the mountain's most important climbers to carry on.
For the first time, armed police will patrol Everest Base Camp. just don’t expect them to curb the growing conflicts.
In a typical January, the fabled Japanese resort Niseko gets more snow—nearly 15 feet—than any other ski area in the world. But is there such a thing as too much?
While the rest of the Middle East boils, Jordan’s epic canyonlands are quiet—and empty
From Everest Base Camp, professional climbing guide Garrett Madison has been following developments on the fight between Ueli Steck, Simone Moro, Jonathan Griffith, and a group of Sherpas. He gives us the insider perspective and what the media got wrong.
The ponies that carried Genghis Khan’s warriors are small, tough, and skittish as hell, making the prospect of riding them for 1,000 kilometers seem downright insane. American cowboy Will Grant couldn’t resist, so he entered the Mongol Derby—the longest, hardest horse race in the world—determined not just to finish but to win.
Once a layover for hippies on the overland trail to India, Afghanistan is now so dangerous even its Lonely Planet author won’t go back. Can a tourism industry rise from the rubble?
Christopher Michel tries out his new Nikon D800E in Myanmar
Eric Hansen gets a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of a project to surf in each of India's states, nevermind that 21 (of 28) are landlocked and that the coastline is known for little more than ankle-slappers
The leader of the Free Burma Rangers keeps his identity secret. But he’s real, and he’s definitely hardcore. A former U.S. Special Forces operative—and an ordained minister, climber, and triathlete—he trains rebels and refugees in the fine art of outwitting one of the world’s most oppressive regimes to deliver humanitarian aid. Adam Skolnick hits the trail with a soldier on a mission from God.
With the 2012 climbing season underway, we look back at some of the most incredible moments to take place on the world's tallest mountain over the last 150 years
The top of the world is getting more crowded—last spring, 94 teams visited base camp, and 535 climbers reached the summit. Rescue operations are getting more sophisticated, too, with high-altitude helicopters and, starting this year, a team of Sherpa rangers. Here's a look at where things go wrong and the support systems in place when they do.
Our favorite frontier for 2012? The surreal, gradually opening Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan.
Emerging from a 27-year civil war, Sri Lanka’s jungle terrain and white-sand beaches remain largely undiscovered. But the conflict ended in 2009, meaning there are empty (and safe) waves to be found. Head to the island nation’s southernmost tip, near the village of Gandara, where 24-year-old British surfer Jack Phillips recently opened his Talalla Surf Camp.
Michael Brown and the crew at Serac ϳԹ Films geek out on all the new gadgets they're bringing to Everest.
Ride along as an international group of up-for-anything clients gets schooled on tourism's wildest frontier: Afghanistan.
In which you mount a horse and follow a charismatic Iranian-American visionary into a Mongolian no-man's-land known as the Dark Heavens. Watch out for the bandits, don't give the shaman too much vodka, and hold on for dear life.
This season, among other dubious firsts, Mount Everest will see a summit bid by the youngest climber, 13-year-old Jordan Romero, and the first attempt by a climber with an artificial hip, 65-year-old Don Healy. One bright spot: Draper, Utah–based Apa Sherpa, who first summited the peak in 1990 with Rob…
What's the best defense for when you are running alone and get chased by a couple of wild dogs? All I had was a twig and a snowball to defend myself! Dogs in Mongolia often have rabies and these two were very nasty (and hungry) looking.—DaveMongolia
Retracing Mao Zedong's epic 1934 Long March through China's Great Snowy Mountains, DEAN KING gains a new respect for the few who survived—and discovers a rugged wilderness ripe for modern adventure.
I a hospital corpsman stationed in Okinawa. I wanted to know what I could try out around here in the surrounding islands. Hiking, kayaking, camping? Brett Okinawa, Japan
Book clubs, rejoice: The rollicking sequel to Three Cups of Tea is here.
In the rugged eastern provinces of Afghanistan, where peaks rise thousands of feet on all sides and the next valley is a world away, American troops are engaged in a kind of alpine warfare not seen for decades. Months can go by without combat, but when you're patrolling terrain as dangerous and unpredictable as the enemy, the calm is often shattered when you least expect it.
As a team of rookies at the World Elephant Polo Championships, we were set up for embarrassment. Instead we tasted glory.
The embattled director of the Central Asia Institute responds to allegations of financial mismanagement and that he fabricated stories in his bestselling book Three Cups of Tea.
Greg Mortenson's school-building program in Central Asia dates back to 1993, when the banged-up K2 survivor made a pledge to the Himalayan villagers who took him in. Fifteen years and Three Cups of Tea later, it's both a powerful example of a great idea and a chaotic, ongoing adventure. KEVIN FEDARKO hits the rough road with Mortenson in Afghanis
In early August, after 11 climbers died on the world’s second-highest peak, people wanted to know: Has the Everest circus migrated to K2? MICHAEL KODAS pieced together the events from eight of the survivors and has a straight answer: Sort of.
A nation of 1,190 island specks spread over 116 square miles of the Indian Ocean, the Maldives looks like something out of a myth. And parts of the country could well become just that if sea levels rise: The highest elevation is a mere eight feet above. Only about 200…
Was a famous American scholar and self–styled curator up to no good in Nepal, or is he just a scapegoat for all wealthy expats?
Want to get beyond your misconceptions of long-vilified, suddenly mourned, ever-important China? Then go.
“Agonizingly vivid” is a fair description of Storm Over Everest, yet another rehashing of the 1996 disaster, by climber/documentarian David Breashears. Premiering May 13 on PBS’s Frontline, the two-hour film combines interviews with survivors, including guide Neal Beidleman and climber Beck Weathers (but noticeably no Jon Krakauer) with footage gathered…
As you may have heard, they ski in Iran. As you may not have heard, the terrain is pretty sweet, there are dudes bouncing on the chairlifts, and The hills are alive with happy women in flowing robes. Can we make peace with this place Immediately?
For the August 2007 feature story, “Powder Keg” we sent Josh Dean and Alex Tehrani to lay some tracks at the highest ski area in Iran. Here, flip through some of Tehrani’s outtakes from their epic, see more images from his previous assignment for ϳԹ, and read an interview with the…
A Playboy bunny, massage tents, martinis, bootleg movies, high altitude golf. As correspondent Kevin Fedarko reports in the July 2007 feature story, "High Times" the scene at Everest Base Camp ain't what you'd expect. Here, listen to an audio version of the story and hear an interview with Fedarko.
Helicopter rescues on the summit of Everest may soon be reality. And the pilot won't be anywhere in sight.
Welcome to the tropical Philippine island of Jolo, where life is like a Corona ad—coconut trees, white-sand beaches, bathtub-warm seas. Except those guys in the water are U.S. Green Berets, and those kids on dirt bikes are jihadists known for kidnapping Western tourists. Even stranger? On this front, at least, America seems to be winning.
Listen to an interview with John Falk, author of February’s “This is the War on Terror. Wish You Were Here!” and see Antonin Kratochvil's photo outtakes from the story here.
When freeskier Kit DesLauriers dropped in at 29,035 feet on Mount Everest in October, she became the first person to ski off the Seven Summits. Kit, her husband, Rob, and photographer Jimmy Chin also became the first Americans to ski from the top of the world's tallest mountain.
