Searching for "Weird and Funny"

Fact Or Fiction: Killer Coyotes, Downed Power Lines, and Stoned Skiers

This week's weird outdoor news—plus one faker.

Last week was Halloween, after all, so it's no surprise that the outdoor world was full of strange happenings. Bizarre incidents spilled into this week, and the ghosts of  BACKPACKER.com helped me compile the weirdest below.

But what's a treat without a little trick? See if you can divine which item is a damn dirty lie (Once more, no using Ghoul-gle! That's cheating!) Read Full Story...

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Monday, November 02, 2009 in: News and Events, Weird and Funny, Fact Or Fiction
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Lunchbox's Disaster Roundup

The beloved star of our in-book feature "The Predicament," Lunchbox the Cadaver Sniffing Dog, brings you a round-up of this week's outdoor predicaments, disasters, and near-misses

[Ed. note: This is the first post from Lunchbox—impressive for an animal without opposable thumbs, so be kind.]

Lunchbox here—you may remember me from "The Predicament" in BACKPACKER's magazine. I'm pretty cute, in an ugly-dog sort of way, but you don't want to meet me out on the trail. They call me out when things go wrong and everyone suspects the worse. But there's a lot you can do to avoid that: Let's take a look at this week's predicaments to sniff out what we can learn. Read Full Story...

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Friday, October 23, 2009 in: Skills, Weird and Funny, Survival, Lunchbox Disaster Roundup
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Cross-country Snowboarding

Watch out, extreme sports enthusiasts—this winter, all the kids will be "skootching"

True-blue hikers don't cross paths with snowboarders too often; we're more apt to spend winters snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, or simply sitting by the fire with a hot chocolate waiting until spring arrives and we can lace our boots back on. But those of us who cross-country ski should prepare to see a new, odd-duck sport taking the groomed trails by storm this winter: cross-country snowboarding.

But don't take my word for it—watch these Nordic snowboarding ambassadors in action (video after the jump): Read Full Story...

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Thursday, October 15, 2009 in: Weird and Funny
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Even Bears Love An iPhone

Vermont woman fends off approaching bear with her iPhone

The list of tasks you can accomplish with your iPhone (taxes, blogging, babysitting) keeps getting bigger with each passing day. Still, we didn't see this one coming: A woman hiking in Vermont stopped a curious bear by tossing her iPhone at it.

I'm going to say that again, because I barely believe it myself: She stopped a bear with her iPhone.

Rowley went through her mental list of how to prevent bear attacks. Play dead? A good last resort. Pepper spray? Didn't have it. Drop a backpack to distract the bear? She wasn't wearing one. All Rowley had was her iPhone.

The bear closed within 30 feet. "In a semi-panic, I threw the phone at the bear," Rowley says.

Sure enough, the approaching bruin stopped to sniff, paw, and gnaw on the must-have Apple product. While the bear explored the limits of Apple's touch-screen technology, she escaped. But, like most Apple fans... Read Full Story...

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Monday, October 12, 2009 in: News and Events, Nature and Wildlife, Weird and Funny
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Too Soon? Mallory-Inspired Jacket

British fashion designer uses famous mountaineers as inspiration

What is the deal with designers? The fashion world can't seem to get enough inspiration from outdoor/adventure peeps like us these days. Are we outdoorsy folks unexpectedly hot or something? (My early answer is an unqualified yes.)

The latest entrant into all this fashion/outdoor love comes from "more-English-than-the-English" designer Nigel Cabourn, who takes his meticulous design and styling cues from British mountaineering heroes of yesteryear. The Cameraman, above left, is supposedly a stitch-for-stitch recreation of a jacket worn by the photographer who accompanied Sir Edmund Hillary's successful first ascent of Everest (nevermind that Hillary was a Kiwi). Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, October 06, 2009 in: Gear, Weird and Funny
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Next-Level Adventure Film: Foamboating

"Wet Dream Result" pokes fun at kayaking, adventure films in general

Is there anything more pretentious than dropping off of ever-bigger waterfalls in a kayak and filming it? Probably, but I'm likely just sore from my clumsy and ill-advised misadventures in a boat, so consider me biased.

A group of amateur filmmakers simultaneously pops the balloon of extreme kayaking and adventure documentaries in one fell swoop with "Wet Dream Result," a hilarious parody of kayaking films like "Dream Result." In it, foamboaters (wait till you see 'em) bloviate about the importance of their envelope-pushing sport: 

Read Full Story...

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Thursday, October 01, 2009 in: Weird and Funny
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Lost In The Woods

BACKPACKER correspondent and 'expert woodsman' Jim Thornton details necessary equipment for survival in the Idaho wilderness

BACKPACKER rarely likes to spill secrets about the glamorous, globe-trotting adventures and death-defying survival techniques of our correspondents, but for once we're offering a rare peek behind the veil of outdoor adventure reporting.

This week, we blindfolded survival 'expert' and 'professional' adventurer Jim Thornton ("Climb Higher," May 2008), put him on a bush plane, and dropped him into the deep, dark wilderness of Idaho, where he will spend an indeterminate amount of time with grizzlies, wolves, and the terror of being utterly alone and lost in the wild. He'll stay lost until he can find his own way out, and his harrowing chronicle will appear in our upcoming May Maps issue.

But if you worry for Thornton's safety, don't: This is an outdoorsman and backpacker par excellence, with the skills, gear, tools, and mental toughness to survive the worst conditions the wild can throw at him. Witness as he details his gear list and strategies in this riveting video: Read Full Story...

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Monday, September 28, 2009 in: News and Events, Weird and Funny
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How Not To Build A Fire

Teva's Naturist returns with an explosive lesson in firestarting

We recently posted a vid from Teva's Naturist, the Les Strod/Bear Grylls-spoofing survival expert played by Gavin McInnes. Now the Naturist has returned with his final filmed segment on wilderness perseverance—a spectacularly wrongheaded attempt at firebuilding. Check it out (and make sure to wait until the end for the best part):



Ouch (good stunt, though). Of course, if you really want to learn how to build a fire, consult BACKPACKER's very own Naturist Shannon Davis in our Survival 101 firestarting video tutorial.

—Ted Alvarez
Read Full Story...

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Thursday, September 24, 2009 in: Weird and Funny
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Wedding Proposal Hike Ends in Fall, Rescue

Search-and-rescue helicopters rescue bride-to-be after she topples over a cliff on Maryland's Billy Goat Trail

Talk about a rocky start to a marriage: A D.C.-area man proposed to his beloved on Maryland's Billy Goat Trail, and she accepted—after which she fell down a 10-foot rock face and became trapped above a deeper 100-foot cliff that dropped into the Potomac River.

Search-and-rescue teams had to rescue the woman by helicopter, as climbing up to her from the river proved too dangerous. She briefly lost consciousness and suffered bruises and injuries to her head and chest that weren't life threatening. I guess that makes it OK for the SAR guys to get all jokey:

"That must have been a heck of a proposal," joked Assistant Chief Scott Graham of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service. "I believe she did [say yes]. . . . If she didn't, I think we ought to investigate this one."

Read Full Story...

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Tuesday, September 08, 2009 in: Survival, Weird and Funny
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Women Have Real-Life Spidey Sense. Men, Not So Much

Female fear of spiders and other icky creatures might just be genetic, according to a new study

Ladies, have you ever gotten that creepy feeling something's crawling on you in your tent, and you immediately have to do the freak-out dance? Don't feel bad: your fear might just be genetic. A new study by Carnegie Mellon University psychologist Dr. David Rakison suggests that women are four times more likely than men to fear spiders and other creepy-crawlies.

According to the study, published in New Science, Rakison showed 10 baby girls and 10 baby boys a series of photos depicting a fearful human face with a spider, a fearful human face with a flower,  and a happy human face with a spider.

The results? Read Full Story...

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Friday, September 04, 2009 in: Nature and Wildlife, Weird and Funny
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