Iran’s Rekabi latest female athlete at risk in home country
October 22, 2022 GMTMORIOKA, Japan (AP) — Days after Iranian climber Elnaz Rekabi caused an international incident by not wearing her country's mandatory headscarf while competing abroad, her fate is top of mind for the world's best climbers.
At least 15 dead as 2 migrant boats sink in Greek waters
October 6, 2022 GMTATHENS, Greece (AP) — At least 15 people have died after two boats carrying migrants sank in Greek waters, and rescuers were looking for dozens still missing, authorities said early Thursday. The coast guard said 15 bodies had been recovered near the eastern island of Lesbos after a dinghy carrying about 40 people sank.
Record-setting Sherpa guide contemplates retirement
September 2, 2022 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A farmer-turned-mountain guide who recently became the first person to climb all of the world's 14 highest peaks two times is deciding whether he should retire.
“I think I want to quit climbing high mountains and travel to foreign countries as a tourist for a while," Sanu Sherpa said Friday in Nepal's capital, Kathmandu.
Sports complex planned for closed WVa mall department store
August 24, 2022 GMTCHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A former mall department store building and an adjacent parking garage will become an $80 million sports complex under a plan unveiled Wednesday by leaders in West Virginia’s largest city.
Hundreds of Everest climbers begin to return from summit
May 18, 2022 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Hundreds of climbers who scaled Mount Everest over the last few days taking advantage of favorable weather conditions have begun to return safely down the mountain.
Among them are climbers who set records on the world's highest peak, including the first Ukrainian woman to scale Mount Everest.
Sherpa guide breaks own record scaling Everest for 26th time
May 8, 2022 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — An experienced Nepalese Sherpa guide scaled Mount Everest for the 26th time breaking his own record for the most climbs of the world's highest peak, expedition organizers said Sunday.
Bandelier officials assessing area of fatal rock fall
March 25, 2022 GMTLOS ALAMOS, N.M. (AP) — Officials are assessing the area of Bandelier National Monument in northern New Mexico where an Illinois woman was killed when struck by a falling rock while climbing a ladder to reach a canyon alcove.
Rock strike, fall from ladder kills visitor at Bandelier
March 24, 2022 GMTLOS ALAMOS, N.M. (AP) — A visitor was fatally injured at Bandelier National Monument when struck by a falling rock while climbing ladders to reach a canyon alcove, monument officials.
The visitor fell about 30 feet (9 meters) after being struck Wednesday while climbing the second of the four ladders used to the reach the Alcove House, officials said in a statement.
House kills resolution on recreation area’s 50th anniversary
March 16, 2022 GMTBOISE, Idaho (AP) — Lawmakers in the House on Wednesday rejected a resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Sawtooth National Recreation Area in central Idaho.
The House voted 45-22 to kill the resolution that opponents decried as a recognition of federal land management in Idaho.
Ice climber collapses, dies, while hiking up mountain
February 5, 2022 GMTHART'S LOCATION, N.H. (AP) — An ice climber collapsed while hiking up a mountain and did not respond to efforts from his group to revive him, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department said.
The climber was identified as a 67-year-old man from Florida.
San Diego man found dead in Joshua Tree National Park
January 19, 2022 GMTJOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — A San Diego man was found dead in Joshua Tree National Park, authorities said Wednesday.
The body was found Monday morning at the base of Sentinel Wall, a short distance from the Hidden Valley Nature Trail, the National Park Service said.
Inmates who rappelled out of Arkansas jail back in custody
December 28, 2021 GMTFORT SMITH, Ark. (AP) — Authorities said they're investigating the Christmas Eve escape of two inmates who used a water hose to rappel down the side of a western Arkansas jail.
Jeremiah Slavens, 39, of Fort Smith, and Dustin Smith, 36, of Muldrow, Okla., escaped Friday from the Sebastian County jail in Fort Smith, a city near the Oklahoma border about 130 miles (210 kilometers) northwest of Little Rock.
Sherpa brothers set out for grand slam of mountaineering
December 13, 2021 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Two brothers who are among Nepal's most famous Sherpa guides set out on Monday to scale the highest peaks on each of the world's seven continents, in a sweeping global trek that will take them across both the North and South Poles.
Sport climbing gets a boost with Olympic debut
December 3, 2021 GMTSport climbing's popularity has risen in recent years as more climbers have turned out to scale walls indoors and out.
The sport, like nearly everything else, lost its footing a bit during the pandemic but most indicators show it's well on its way to returning to peak numbers from 2019.
$650M plan would give Los Angeles Zoo flashy transformation
October 20, 2021 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — A $650 million plan would give the Los Angeles Zoo a theme park-style transformation over the next 20 years.
US park: Rocks tossed down cliffs can kill hikers, climbers
October 17, 2021 GMTGLEN JEAN, W.Va. (AP) — A national park in West Virginia is telling visitors they need to stop throwing rocks down cliffs, saying it could kill climbers and hikers below.
A Facebook post by the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve says a rock climber recently reported to park rangers that multiple people were throwing big rocks from the cliffs at Diamond Point on the Endless Wall trail to climbing areas more than 100 feet below.
2 American men die while rock climbing on Spanish island
September 15, 2021 GMTMADRID (AP) — Two Americans have died while climbing rocks along the shoreline on the Spanish island of Majorca, local media reported.
Spanish emergency services recovered the bodies of the men aged 25 and 35 on Tuesday afternoon, Spanish private news agency Europa Press said.
Connecticut firefighter dies from rock climbing fall in NY
September 8, 2021 GMTBRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut firefighter fell to his death while rock climbing in New York on Monday, New York State police said.
British man rescued after being lost 3 days in Thai jungle
September 3, 2021 GMTBANGKOK (AP) — A 72-year-old British man was found safe three days after disappearing in a thick jungle in northeastern Thailand while going to visit friends on a motorbike.
A local hunter came across Barry Leonard Weller on Friday in a remote forest in Khon Kaen province, said Nattapat Tadee, a member of a local volunteer team that helped rescue him.
Climber missing near Wyoming’s highest mountain found dead
August 17, 2021 GMTPINEDALE, Wyo. (AP) — A climber missing in the area of Wyoming's highest mountain has been found dead.
Thor Hallingbye, 41, of Cheyenne, was reported missing Sunday after apparently getting separated from his group near Gannett Peak on Saturday, according Sublette County sheriff's officials.
Park Service adds public land to City of Rocks reserve
July 31, 2021 GMTBOISE, Idaho (AP) — The National Park Service has added some additional public land to a national reserve site in Idaho known for its rock climbing opportunities.
The agency added 22 acres of public land to the City of Rocks National Reserve south of Burley, thanks to an acquisition of private land that was already included in the reserve.
Child hit, critically hurt by rock at climbing spot
July 12, 2021 GMTINDEX, Wash. (AP) — A 6-year-old boy was hit by a rock at a popular climbing spot northeast of Seattle and is in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center, authorities said.
The Daily Herald reports just after 5 p.m.
Risky, impatient climbers bring danger to US highest peak
May 30, 2021 GMTRangers who keep an eye on North America's highest mountain peak say impatient and inexperienced climbers are taking more risks and endangering themselves and other climbers after a year off because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oldest American, fastest woman on Everest return safely
May 30, 2021 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A retired attorney from Chicago who became the oldest American to scale Mount Everest, and a Hong Kong teacher who is now the fastest female climber of the world's highest peak, on Sunday returned safely from the mountain where climbing teams have struggled with bad weather and a coronavirus outbreak.
Biden marks vaccine progress, thanks troops ahead of holiday
May 28, 2021 GMTALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — President Joe Biden started the Memorial Day weekend by visiting a rock climbing gym in northern Virginia as the state lifted all COVID-19 distancing and capacity restrictions at private businesses and much of the nation pushes toward a greater sense of normalcy.
Bad dream stopped Everest guide from climbing peak 26th time
May 25, 2021 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A record-holding Sherpa climber halted his attempt to scale Mount Everest for a 26th time because of a bad dream but plans to try again next year.
Kami Rita already reached the summit of the world's highest mountain for a record 25th time earlier this month but stopped his most recent climb more than halfway to the top.
Yosemite climbers face new obstacle: overnight permits
May 18, 2021 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Climbing El Capitan and the famous big walls of Yosemite National Park got a bit harder Friday.
The park added red tape to cut through before climbers can begin the physically grueling and mentally demanding feat of inching up vertical granite walls that take days to conquer and require spending the night suspended on tiny platforms hundreds or thousands of feet above Yosemite Valley.
China to draw ‘separation line’ on peak of Mount Everest
May 10, 2021 GMTBEIJING (AP) — China will draw a “separation line” atop Mount Everest to prevent the coronavirus from being spread by climbers ascending Nepal's side of the mountain, Chinese state media reported Monday...
Norwegian climber 1st to test positive on Mount Everest
April 23, 2021 GMTKATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — The coronavirus has conquered the world's highest mountain.
A Norwegian climber became the first to be tested for COVID-19 in Mount Everest base camp and was flown by helicopter to Kathmandu, where he was hospitalized...
Offers of cash, free passes to WVa gets big response
April 14, 2021 GMTCHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia received 2,000 applications in the first two days after announcing it is recruiting remote workers, Gov...
Devils Tower climb routes closed to protect nesting falcons
April 5, 2021 GMTGILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) — Some rock climbing routes on Devils Tower in northeastern Wyoming have been closed to protect nesting falcons...
US says ranger tried to defuse run-in before using Taser
March 12, 2021 GMTALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A National Park Service ranger used a stun gun on a man who identifies as Native American after trying repeatedly to defuse a confrontation on federal land in New Mexico, according to an internal investigation released Friday...
George Whitmore, legendary climber of El Capitan, dies at 89
January 5, 2021 GMTSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — George Whitmore, a member of the first team of climbers to scale El Capitan in Yosemite National Park and a conservationist who devoted his life to protecting the Sierra Nevada, has died...
1st woman free-climbs El Capitan’s Golden Gate route in day
November 7, 2020 GMTYOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — Rock climber Emily Harrington has become the first woman, and fourth person, to free-climb the Golden Gate route on Yosemite National Park’s 3,000-foot (914-meter) granite wall in a single day...
Hiker dies after falling from waterfall in White Mountains
September 27, 2020 GMTLIVERMORE, N.H. (AP) — A hiker was killed Saturday after falling from a waterfall in the White Mountains, according to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department...
Chinese survey team plans to summit deserted Everest
May 17, 2020 GMTBEIJING (AP) — A Chinese government-backed team plans to summit Mount Everest this week at a time when the world's tallest peak has been closed to commercial climbers...
11-year-old dies in fall while ice climbing in Catskills
March 1, 2020 GMTHUNTER, N.Y. (AP) — An 11-year-old boy fell about 300 feet (91 meters) to his death Saturday afternoon while ice climbing with a group of people in an area of tall cliffs and numerous frozen waterfalls in the Catskill Mountains, according to Greene County Sheriff Peter Kusminsky...
Australia’s iconic rock Uluru scaled by final climbers
October 25, 2019 GMTULURU, Australia (AP) — Nature seemed to be siding with indigenous Australians' demand for Uluru to be respected as a sacred site on Friday when high winds threatened to prematurely end the generations-old tradition of climbing the sandstone monolith...
APNewsBreak: Skeleton unearthed beneath California peak
October 17, 2019 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — The climbers were closing in on the top of California's second-highest peak when they came upon the grisly discovery of what looked like a bone buried in a boulder field...
Hawaii closes nature reserve cliff popular with climbers
October 16, 2019 GMTWAILUKU, Hawaii (AP) — Hawaii has closed access to a cliff face in a nature reserve over concerns that rock-climbing activities are threatening native plant species and modifying the rock face, officials said...
Spokane’s Jess Roskelley, Scott Coldiron make long list for one of the world’s most prestigious climbing awards
July 12, 2019 GMTSpokane climbers Scott Coldiron and the late Jess Roskelley have made the long list for one of the world’s most prestigious climbing awards.
The Piolets d’Or (or Golden Ice Ax) released a list of 58 significant ascents from 2018.
Rock star: After ‘Free Solo,’ climber unsure of next journey
June 25, 2019 GMTDENVER (AP) — Rock climber Alex Honnold meticulously chalked ABOVE: Lakeland High School senior James Lewis, left, is all smiles as he climbs a rock wall with Jake Hodorovich on Wednesday at Lakeland’s annual end-of-the-school-year powwow at the school in Scott Twp.Climbing High At The End Of The School Year
May 23, 2019 GMT
Sport Wayne to lease space in Electric Works
January 15, 2019 GMTSport Wayne Inc. has signed a letter of intent to lease space in Electric Works, where it will open a state-of-the-art climbing gym and adventure park, officials announced today.
The local organization will also place its headquarters and administrative offices in the former Building 36 on the western edge of Electric Works' West Campus.
More than 220 workshops, field trips part of 2019 Winter Adventure Weekend at Carter Caves
December 6, 2018 GMTOLIVE HILL, Ky. – Cave tours, winter survival, rappelling, ice climbing, and guided hikes are among more than 200 activities and experiences offered at the 10th annual Winter Adventure Weekend, set for Jan.
Climbing stars cope with falls on way to El Capitan record
June 7, 2018 GMTLOS ANGELES (AP) — Two of the world's best rock climbers coped with frightening falls and the deaths of two fellow climbers on the same rock in a monthlong quest to shatter a mythical record in Yosemite National Park...
Inslees to don mountaineer garb for Halloween
October 31, 2017 GMTOLYMPIA – Gov. Jay Inslee and his wife Trudi will dress up as mountain climbers to greet trick-or-treaters at the Governor’s Mansion Tuesday evening.
Governors and their spouses traditionally pick a theme and don costumes for Halloween, and Inslee’s office recently announced this year the mansion will have a mountaineer theme.
Rock climbing festival features clinics, competitions at Devil’s Lake State Park
October 11, 2017 GMTAlpinists will descend on Baraboo this weekend for one of the Midwest’s largest rock climbing festivals.
The American Alpine Club’s third annual Devil’s Lake Craggin’ Classic will take place Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Devil’s Lake State Park.
APNewsBreak: No increased danger after Yosemite rocks fall
September 29, 2017 GMTYOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. (AP) — A geological analysis Friday found there was no more danger than usual of another giant rock fall after two huge slides, including one involving a slab of granite the size of a 36-story building, occurred this week on the famed El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite National Park...
All about the climb: City offers fun and fitness with rock climbing wall
September 25, 2017 GMTRock climbing instructor Brandon Heitkamp joined a group of volunteers and climbers at the City of Aiken's climbing wall Wednesday evening.
The climbing wall, located near Carolina Bay on Price Avenue, is a 1,200 square foot facility and offers routes for all skill levels – from beginner to experienced.
Pocatello Pump Climbing Competition/Festival celebrating 36th year at Pocatello’s Ross Park Sept. 16-17
September 7, 2017 GMTPOCATELLO – In its 36th year, the Idaho State University Pocatello Pump set Sept. 16 and 17 is the oldest rock climbing competition in the United States.
It takes place on the basalt crags of Ross Park’s sunny side and shady side and starts at 7 a.m.
Pot shop clashes with tourism stores in eclectic Alaska town
August 30, 2017 GMTTALKEETNA, Alaska (AP) — The presence of a marijuana retail store has caused a deep divide in this quirky tourist town, where hundreds of visitors roam the streets daily browsing in art galleries and souvenir shops housed in historic cabins...
Woman falls rock climbing in Big Cottonwood Canyon
July 2, 2017 GMTJared Leto nearly died rock climbing
June 8, 2017 GMTJared Leto "almost died" while rock climbing in California.
The 45-year-old heartthrob has revealed he nearly tumbled over the edge of Taft Point at Yosemite National Park - and the near-death experience made Jared think deeply about the importance of survival.
Solo climber is 1st up mighty California rock without ropes
June 5, 2017 GMTSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Alex Honnold had dreamed about climbing the mighty El Capitan in Yosemite National Park without any safety gear for eight years...
Courageous Kids Climbing helps children reach new heights
April 20, 2017 GMTAfter retiring, Jeff Riechmann was looking for a new hobby, one that allowed him to continue working on the rappelling and rope training skills he had acquired over 28 years as a firefighter.
Combining the two elements, Riechmann took up rock climbing.
‘Momentum Katy’ rock-climbing facility is hiring
April 18, 2017 GMTOfficials at Momentum Katy, the 36,000-square-foot rock-climbing facility opening in July, have begun hiring for staff positions.
The climbing center is expected to be a significant addition to Katy Mills, an area that has become the city's entertainment hub.