Showing posts with label Climbing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Climbing. Show all posts

DESTINATION: ADVENTURE - Recap

Photo: HSA

HSA Expedition Recap


Our adventure to the Oklahoma outback was exciting, fun, beautiful, and at times, quite grueling.
We started off leaving our home in Corpus Christi at about 2:00PM on Friday June 14 and drove straight on through to our destination in the Arbuckle Mountains.

We arrived at approximately 1:00AM and slept for a few hours in the jeep waiting for first light to set up our camp. As the first signs of light began to glow, just before the yellow ball peeked it's head above the horizon, we sat up our base camp and prepared for a long hike to the waterfall.

After several hours of hiking we reached our destination. There we found a beautiful 77' waterfall with an inviting natural swimming hole. As it was extremely hot out, I took a dip in the hole while 2 of my companions waded in the shallow stream created by the overflow.

After the swim, we ate lunch and began the trek back to base camp... all the while capturing footage for the HSA documentary. The hike back to camp was equally grueling. Once we were back, we sparked the fire and began cooking our dinner before laying our weary heads to rest.

The following morning, I sat out on an extreme hike to find the source of the creek that eventually lead to the waterfall. It was an arduous journey, full of rugged and steep cliffs, rocky ledges, and thick overgrowth that I had to climb and bushwhack my way through. The end result was worth the 3 day round trip as I was left with a sense of accomplishment, blessed with beautiful scenery, and the euphoria that can only come with being at one with nature.

On the 5th day, it was time to restock supplies and recharge the electronics. Shooting footage for a documentary deep in the middle of nowhere poses certain challenges, like hiking certain areas 2 or 3 times in order to place cameras, get the proper footage and angles. Afterward a break was much needed With my Dad living in Oklahoma, it was a natural choice to rest at his house before embarking upon the second part of the adventure.

READ MORE (and see photos) AFTER THE JUMP...

Phase 2 had us planning for boating, fishing, snorkeling, and various other water sports at Lake Eufaula. Lady Luck would only be with us up to a point however, as the recent heavy storm activity and rain run off filled the lake with Oklahoma's famous red clay.

There was no visibility for snorkeling and the runoff affected the fishing as well. We were still able to catch a couple of good blue cats and enjoy leisurely boat rides along the lake.

After 2 days at the lake, we returned to my dads house to rest up for the long drive back to Corpus.

It was a great adventure. One that left me craving more. As I drove down the highway Monday morning on my way to work in my coffin of glass and steel, I realized how much I miss being in the wild and at one with nature... it hasn't even been a week since my return... gotta get back out there... soon!


Base Camp - Photo: HSA


















My son and daughter at base camp - Photo: HSA



















Me at the falls - Photo: HSA























My Companions at the Falls - Photo: HSA






Base Camp at Nightfall - Photo HSA





























Chilling on the Boat - Photo: HSA

























Catch of the Week - Photo: HSA
























Another good fish - Photo: HSA

DESTINATION: ADVENTURE - Update

Photo: Human Spirit of Adventure
After 4 long days in the rugged backcountry, we are back to civilization for a day. We need to restock supplies and recharge all of the electronics... shooting footage for a documentary deep in the middle of nowhere poses certain challenges. It has been a great experience so far and looking forward to the rest of the journey.

Thus far we have hiked miles and miles of rugged terrain, done 4 river crossings, and been bitten by every bug known to mankind. Tomorrow we should reach our final destination and enjoy the serenity and watersport action of Lake Eufaula.
We will have a full journey update upon our return, so stay tuned...

DESTINATION: ADVENTURE... 5 DAYS AWAY

5 Days and Counting...

In five days, we here at HSA will set of on a week long adventure. An adventure that will encompass multiple adventure sports.

On the agenda is miles and miles of rugged backpacking,  hiking, climbing, cave exploration, and freshwater snorkeling... topped off with rivers, waterfalls and spectacular views.

This adventure will be filmed on GoPro cameras as part of HSA's upcoming documentary tentatively titled "Life: Reclaimed"

We are gearing up and beginning the final week of preparation for this adventure. We will try to post some photo's along the way on our Facebook page and have a full blown recap right here on the blog upon our return.

See you then!


President Picks Adventurer Sally Jewell for Interior Secretary...

Photo Courtesy of University of Denver

We here at Human Spirit of Adventure prefer not to delve into the political arena. We believe that Adventure Sports should be for testing a persons intestinal fortitude instead of political gain. However, we cannot help but notice that President Obama has picked Sally Jewell to replace Ken Salazar as Interior Secretary.

Jewell, an avid adventurer who counts kayaking and climbing among her favorite adventure sports, is president and CEO of Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), one of the nation’s largest outdoor and recreational retailers. She’s on a handful of corporate and nonprofit boards, including the National Parks Conservation Association.

The Interior position is usually held by a politician from a Western state. Jewell is not a politician, but she is a Westerner and grew up in an outdoorsy family in Washington State.

As top-dog of an outdoor supply company that counts millions of hunters and fishermen as customers, Jewell represents a conservation agenda that could unite political parties. When it comes to protecting the environment, environmentalists and sportsmen groups often join efforts to protect America’s wilderness areas, which is something most, if not all adventurers can agree needs protecting.

So congratulations to Sally Jewell, we hope that political office will not uproot your love for the wilderness, environment, and the trail.




Summit On The Summit... Climbing Kilimanjaro

There is a major crisis going on in the world today... we're not talking about wars, politics, or conspiracy theories. We are talking about an issue that is life-threatening and robs people of a basic human right... We are talking about a global clean water crisis.

In so many areas around the world, water is not clean enough to drink. This threatens the lives of many people across the globe.

Enter the Summit On the Summit.

"What is Summit on the Summit", you ask?

According to their website, the Summit On The Summit is "An initiative designed to drive awareness and change to the global clean water crisis while engaging a community through raising awareness, supporting education, inspiring advocacy and activating fundraising. By taking cultural influencers, educators and high profile individuals to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro, SUMMIT is able to support organizations in bringing clean water to the 1 billion people living without this basic human right."

The Project: 

(From the SUMMIT Website) Our project will consist of a 7 day climb up Mount Kilimanjaro with internationally recognized influencers as well as men and women who have either made an exceptional global impression around the water crisis or proven to be a leader in youth activism. These two groups represent Influencers and Educators. They will climb Kili as a team; communicating about the issues around access to water, learning of solutions to the problem, discussing how to improve social awareness and embracing the idea that they are now the example for showing ways to take action and give back to those with little or nothing. Through our efforts, we will directly support nonprofit organizations providing safe, clean drinking water to struggling communities...giving future generations the chance to thrive.

Who is involved:

There is a long list of celebrities, athletes, entrepreneurs  and activists who are participating in this climb to raise awareness. 
You can find a list of them on the SUMMIT website at http://www.summitonthesummit.com/climbers

Human Spirit of Adventure is closely following the climb. We are sharing updates and video from the climbers daily on our Facebook page. So follow along and show your support for bringing clean drinking water to the world!



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