Archives
Contents
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Fan Mail: Ban the Van
A reader sends a critique of #vanlife. Dear Site Zed, My friend once told me, “Vans are for posers.” I didn’t know what he meant until recently. I was at a river festival a few weeks ago. Takeout parking was limited, not because of crowds-because of vans. Hipsters adorned in mullets, mustaches and flat brimmed…
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Exploring Tajikistan’s Untamed Rivers Part Two: The Muksu
The team, burdened by leaking drytops and broken kayaks, explores the frigid, high elevation Muksu River.
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Go Fast Season Is Here
CKE The new year clicks over. Rain-dependent rivers start to flow. Group texts light up. And across the Southeast, a familiar mental math kicks in for a small crew of paddlers: Can I leave work early? Will the level hold? Is this actually happening? Every winter and spring, those questions signal the arrival of Go…
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A Story for the Ages: Exploring Tajikistan’s Untamed Rivers
By Middy Tilghman, Simon Beardmore and Andrew McEwan Note from the editor (SZ): In 2007 Middy Tilghman, Andrew McEwan and Simon Beardmore wrote the following grant proposal to fund an ambitious kayaking expedition to Tajikistan: In the decade following its independence, Tajikistan was embroiled in a civil war that took a devastating toll on its…
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A Father-Son Picnic on the Middle Kings
He believed me when I told him that the Middle Kings was the pinnacle, the ultimate river. I planted the seed.
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LETTER FROM THE eDITOR
I grew up deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Rugged, worn, peaks tucked Sylva, North Carolina, into a high valley. Early morning fog blanketed the valley floor on my way to aptly named Smoky Mountain High. Ridges poked out of thick clouds and announced the day. Easy river access, reliable flows, and a temperate climate…
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Packraft Descent of the Middle Kings
Trudging down the steep trail to the bottom of the valley, I couldn’t shake the feeling that we might be finally pushing too far.
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Alone in the sierra: Sam Sharp
I was 100% confident in my capabilities, and I knew the line I was gonna have. I’ve had no greater feeling at the bottom of a rapid.