A mother grizzly and her cubs have been hanging out along a roadside in Grand Teton National Park causing the heaviest traffic the park has seen in decades. A few days ago the group was seen over a fresh kill, prompting motorists to pull off to the side to snap photos. Rangers were on hand to ensure that people stayed in their cars, since though the cubs are cute, they’re less friendly and cuddly than they look. In 2007 a man was bitten by the same bear when he stumbled upon her and three cubs over a just-killed elk. That chance-meeting must have turned a normal hike into an exciting afternoon very quickly.

I love a good crash reel as much as the next guy. But there’s something much more brutal and honest about this GoPro crash footage. You know it’s coming while you’re watching the video, but it still creeps up on you. Brutal. But also filmed for our enjoyment. And we can all pat ourselves on the back knowing that both men walked away with a couple scrapes, twisted joints and a lot of hurt, but no permanent damage.

Thanks David

A Hawaiian man completed what is believed to be the first ever crossing from the Big Island to Kauai on a stand-up paddleboard. It took five days alone at sea on his surfboard to cross the 300 miles of open ocean. He survived on dried foods and freshwater strapped to his board and slept on an inflatable mat that he’d tie to the top of it, occasionally getting awoken when a wave flipped his board and mat. He was treated for infected blisters on his feet, but was otherwise in remarkable condition. He wasn’t even sore - the hardest part, he said, was the mental anguish of spending five nights floating in the middle of the ocean on a surfboard.

A group of four Russian climbers acclimatized on a nearby peak before climbing the 22,799-foot Latok III in Pakistan from June 10 to the 25^th. They became the first to climb the West Face taking a monstrous mixed route that required eight different portaledge camps. One of the climbers that made it to the summit had attempted it twice before, both times ending in disasters including one death when a rock fall severed a rope. Alright Russians, you were the first in space and the first up Latok III, but now that’s it.

This grainy video apparently shot with a 6-year-old cell phone shows what looks like a small spinner shark jumping over a surfer paddling into a wave. Showoff. While I suspect that this would be quite a scare, I think people are making too big of a deal out of it. Or maybe people aren’t making a big enough deal out of the guys who wear ninja gear to take out jumping Asian carp while waterskiing.

Who knew cutting funding to parks and relying on retiree volunteers for crucial long term jobs would ever have a negative effect on our treasured national landmarks and parks? Apparently a group called the National Parks Conservation Association. They’ve compiled a report for the Obama administration detailing the needs for the parks: money, people, and checked-in development. That shouldn’t be a problem with the nation on the verge of bankruptcy. Too bad parks can’t vote.

Photo by Daniel Schwen

A study conducted in Germany found that city dwellers were more likely to be susceptible to stress. It’s not fantastic shocking new news, but taking in context with the news last year that getting out into nature is good for your brain and the farther west you live the healthier you are, it’s getting to the point that there’s a consensus among scientists. The author Rich Louv, who wrote Last Child in the Woods and coined the phrase ‘nature deficit disorder’ puts forth a fantastic idea in his new book. He says that we need to integrate nature into our lives the same way we’ve let technology seep into them. How that actually works, I’m not sure; I just like the sound of it. Maybe we all carry compost in our pockets next to our cell phones and all the conference rooms in the office get covered in sod. I could go for that.

Rolling through singletrack at top speed or paddling an intense rapids takes a Zen-like focus that leaves little time to consider the wildness around us while we get outside. Sure, you remember it soon enough when you get a flat tire and get swarmed by mosquitoes while trying to pump up your tube or you get smashed in the face with a jumping Asian carp, but that doesn’t always happen. This brief and, frankly, somewhat creepy video focuses on the wildlife around us. (If we live in the Amazon.)

via Wend

Infamous peeping suspect Luke Irvin who was pulled out of the bottom of a Porta-potty at a yoga festival in Boulder, Colorado would have faded into disgusting obscurity if he’d kept quiet. Instead the 30 year old decided to defend himself and his bold lifestyle choices to reporters thereby guaranteeing we’ll hear about him for days to come. It seems the young man sought to start a “new goddess religion.” I wonder how they caught him, did he sneeze?