Video: Amazing Afghani Landscapes and People

Afghanistan has the potential to be an amazing destination for adventure travel. The country has some of the most spectacular and remote mountains on the planet, and there are numerous spectacular opportunities to trek and climb there. Unfortunately, the country has also been plagued with war for decades, making certain areas less than safe to visit.

The video below gives us a glimpse of just how beautiful Afghanistan is, showing off scenes of the breathtaking landscapes there. It also shows us the resilient and wonderful people that live there as well. Watching this only makes me want to visit the country for myself.



Afghanistan – touch down in flight from Augustin Pictures on Vimeo.

Afghanistan Reopens Mt. Noshaq

Great news for mountaineers today, as National Geographic is reporting that Mt. Noshaq, the tallest peak in Afghanistan, has reopened to climbers. The mountain has been off limits for decades due to its location inside an unstable region of the country, but over the past few years, the area has once again became safe for travelers.

Noshaq is located in the Hindu Kush mountains along the border with Pakistan. It towers 7492 meters (24,580 ft) above the Wakhan Corridor, a strip of land that has been a historical trading route between Afghanistan and China. It was first climbed back in 1960 by a Japanese expedition, and an all Afghani team reached the summit in 2009, but due to the political upheaval in the area, it has remained mostly off-limits for outsiders in recent years.

According to Nat Geo, a Wildlife Conservation Society team launched an expedition on Noshaq in the last week of July, and topped out on August 4th. They were the first foreign team to summit since before the 1979 Soviet invasion. Access to the area was further hindered in the 1990's thanks to massive numbers of landmines being set across the region during the Afghan civil war. That has all changed now however, as American forces have secured and cleared the area, making it safe for travel once again.

The hope is for this area to become a spot for adventure tourism to flourish, and in the past it was a popular destination. Afghanistan is hoping to overcome perceptions that the region is not safe however, but when they do, they believe that Noshaq and other mountains in the area will become a favorite of climbers looking for new challenges.

Endangered Big Cats Making A Comeback?

Some of the world's most endangered big cats may be making a comeback, as two of the more elusive species, living in remote areas, have been spotted recently, leading some to believe that their numbers may be better than previously suspected.

First we have this story courtesy of the Adventure Journal, which brings news that researchers have discovered a population of snow leopards that is alive and well in a very mountainous region of Afghanistan. The cats were captured by camera traps that were set throughout the area and wired to automatically snap a picture of anything that wanders by. This particular population was an unexpected find, and bodes well for the species, which is thought to number somewhere between 4500 and 7500 cats across all of Central Asia.

A similar story comes our way from TreeHugger as well, but in this instance the cats in question are the even more rare Armor Leopards, found in rugged forests in Russia's far eastern wildernesses. These cats are on the "critically endangered" list and it was believed that fewer than 50 of them still existed in the wild. A new survey, that once again uses camera traps, caught 12 unique individual leopards on camera however, which lends hope for that species making a comeback as well. Check out video footage of these extremely rare and beautiful creatures below. (Big thanks to Outside Online for this story!)

Both stories are good news for animal conservationists. While far from out of danger, it is good to know that both cat species are doing better than expected. Perhaps they can each be brought back to healthy, thriving numbers once again.

Mountain Hardwear Summer Expeditions

Earlier in the week, Mountain Hardwear announced a host of expeditions for the summer, with a number of climbers heading off to the Karakoram to take on some of the big peaks there. The gear company has some excellent sponsored athletes under its banner, and has always been ready to help them go after some big goals. Here's a few of the things they have planned in the weeks ahead:

Saser Kangri II: Freddie Wilkinson, along with Mark Richey and Steve Swenson, will make an attempt on the second tallest unclimbed peak in the world – Saser Kangri II. The peak, which is located in northern India, is 7513 meters (24,648 feet) in height and remains one of the last major challenges in the Himalaya. Richey and Swenson attempted to climb the mountain back in 2009, and return for another go. The team is hoping to make history.

K7 West: Climbers Pat Goodman, Will Meinen, and Matt McCormick have set out for Pakistan where they'll be attempting to make the first ascent of the 6200 meter (20,341 foot) southwest pillar of K7 West. The team will go light and fast, alpine style, up the new route, and hopefully reach the summit in just four days.

First Ascent In India: Mountaineers Janet Bergman, Emilie Drinkwater and Kirsten Kremer will attempt a first ascent of an unnamed peak along the borders of India and Pakistan. The ladies also hope to make the climb in an alpine style, making a single push to the summit.

Exploring The Russian Arctic and Climbing in Afghanistan: Moving away from the Karakoram,  Mike Libecki will begin his summer with a journey to the remote island of Franz Josef Land, where he plans to climb several big walls. He'll travel to his destination by sailboat, then explore by ski and kayak to find some major climbing challenges.

When he's done in the Arctic, Mike will then travel to Afghanistan where he'll attempt to climb the Ibex Horn, a 3000-foot tall tower that he discovered while scouting the Koh-e-Baba Mountain Range in the Bamyan province last year. If successful, this will be the first ascent of that rock pillar as well.

Good luck to all of these expeditions. It seems like its going to be a very busy and adventurous summer.

Greg Mortenson, CAI Slapped With Class Action Lawsuit, Offer Up A Defense

As the Greg Mortenson/Tree Cups of Tea controversy continues to play out, there were two new developments late last week, that come to us courtesy of Outside Online, who have been doing an outstanding job of keeping the news coming from both sides of the discussion.

First up, on Friday, a class action lawsuit was filed against Mortenson and his non-profit organization the Central Asia Institute, in Missoula, Montana. The suit, which was brought up by state legislators Jean Price and Michele Reinhart, contends that Mortenson and CAI defrauded donors, as well as people who have purchased his books, by fabricating stories about his experiences, with the intention of making money. The lawsuit also cites that this has been an ongoing, and continually perpetrated, act that has resulted in millions of dollars being donated to the cause by people who believed Mortenson's stories, which have been called into question on a number of fronts in recent weeks.

As Outside points out, the class action lawsuit spells even more trouble for the author and CAI, who are already under a criminal investigation for potential racketeering. In this latest suit, which you can read here, Price and Reinhart call for CAI to be suspended as an organization, and have its funds administered by a third party organization that would continue its charitable work in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

But Mortenson and CAI have no intention of taking these allegations sitting down. In a separate story, Outside also noted that they have prepared a defense, which will be released in an annual report called "Journey of Hope." Typically, the report is released in November, and serves as a way of updating major sponsors and supports of CAI as to what is happening with the organization. But the 2011 edition of Journey of Hope is coming much sooner than that.

The newsletter gives few direct responses to the recent allegations against Mortentson and his charitable arm. Instead, it offers some broad defenses, and highlights the good things that CAI has planned for the  months ahead, including building as many as 60 new schools in Afghanistan this year alone, and launching a special education program designed for women and girls.

In the way of defense, the organization points to its 1996 charter in which it says that it not only will build schools but also do outreach programs to the public. One of the major charges against CAI is the millions it spends on promoting Mortenson and his books. It seems they are filing all of that under the very broad umbrella of public outreach. They also note that they've been the victim of embezzlement, which cost them a lot of money and failed to produce a number of schools, due in large part to a trusted, but highly corrupt employee.

All of this comes after 60 Minutes ran an expose on Mortenson a few weeks back, which questioned the truthfulness behind some of the stories in his books, and leveled allegations against the way that CAI is being managed and appropriating its funds. Since that time, there have been a number of people who have stepped forward to both defend and refute the author, who has admitted to taking some poetic license, at the very least, with some of his tales.

It'll be interesting to see how this all plays out in the long run. I've said it before when covering this topic, and I'll say it again. CAI has done a lot of great work in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and it is sad to all of that overshadowed by these stories and allegations. Hopefully, at some point down the line, the non-profit can get back to doing what it was intended to do, without dark clouds looming over head.

The Three Cups of Tea Controversy Continues

Over the past couple of weeks, the controversy surrounding Three Cups of Tea author Greg Mortenson has continued to roll through the mountaineering community and beyond. It all started when 60 Minutes ran an expose on Mortenson, alleging that he fabricated sections of his bestselling book and that there were major questions about how he ran his charitable organization, the Central Asia Institute. In that piece, author Jon Krakauer spoke out about Mortenson, and published his own story entitled Three Cups of Deceit.

A few days later, Mortenson gave an exclusive interview with Outside Magazine in which he admitted that he had exaggerated certain areas of his book for dramatic purposes, but he stuck by the main themes and elements of the story, in which he says that on a 1993 expedition to climb K2, he became lost in the Himalaya and wandered into the town of Korphe. He originally claimed that he was injured and needed assistance, and spent several days there before being helped on his way. The villagers supposedly helped him to get well and then find his way home. The story goes that Mortenson was so moved by their generosity that he vowed to return and repay their kindness by building a school for the children there. That would be the origin of CAI, an organization that would go on to build dozens of schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

But in the interview with Outside, Mortenson says that he actually only spent 2 or 3 hours in the village, and caught up with the rest of his team later. That was later confirmed by another member of the team. But now, Outside has further evidence to suggest that Mortenson wasn't even near Korphe as he says he was, further calling into doubt his recollection of events. These new allegations were published yesterday in another blog post on Outside Online.

Worse yet, Outside has failed to find any evidence that Mortenson had any kind of mountaineering background before heading to K2, a peak that is so difficult and deadly to climb that it has the nickname of "The Savage Mountain." Mortenson claims that he has climbed a half-dozen Himalayan peaks, but there is little evidence, beyond a trek to Island Peak, that he has ever done so. Even the esteemed Miss Elizabeth Hawley, the keeper of all the records dealing with the Himalaya, has no account of Mortenson reaching the summit of any of the mountains there. And as we all know, if Miss Hawley doesn't say you've climbed in the Himalaya, then you haven't climbed in the Himalaya!

All of this may seem like small potatoes when it comes to some of the other big stories taking place around the world, but Mortenson is a guy who has built his reputation, not to mention his fortune, around  the stories about his experiences in the mountains of Pakistan. Many people have donated money to his organization based on those stories, and the belief in this man. With more allegations against Mortenson coming to light, one has to wonder how far the deceit actually goes.

The BBC Investigates Three Cups of Tea Controversy

A few days back I posted a story about a damning report from 60 Minutes on Three Cups of Tea author Greg Mortenson. The CBS investigative reporting program alleged that Mortenson took, shall we say generous liberties with his own story, which has sold millions of copies and inspired people across the globe. They also contend that Mortenson's charity organization, the Central Asia Institute, which builds schools and other facilities in Pakistan and Afghanistan, is woefully mismanaged and taking claim for things that it hasn't done. (Watch the entire 60 Minutes clip here)

Now, the BBC has looked into the affair and is trying to get to the bottom of the story themselves. They posted this story yesterday which takes a look at the work of Mortenson and the CAI from the perspective of the people living in the regions that he is trying to help. Unsurprisingly, what they found was a bit of a mixed bag as well.

First of all, the BBC story side-steps any controversy surrounding Mortenson's personal tales and doesn't even touch on the allegations that he has fabricated significant portions about his past. Instead, it goes straight to Pakistan and Afghanistan to discover what the people there think about him and the CAI. The message that they received is that Mortenson has done a lot of great work in the Himalaya, and that CAI may have helped fund and build even more schools than it takes credit for on its website. The people living in the villages where the organization has helped fun projects, seem extremely grateful for the help that they have received, with many crediting Mortenson himself.

But once again, there are also charges of mismanagement and deceit, with some officials, particularly in Afghanistan, saying that CAI hasn't done much of the things they say they have. Some of those comments come off a bit like sour grapes however, as it seems that the organization has sometimes operated without direct supervision from local leaders, which has put them at odds at times. Still, it is clear that Mortenson and his non-profit are not universally lauded even in the countries that he is trying to help.

The BBC story doesn't really shed much new light on the topic, although it was good to be able to read the perspective of Pakistanis and Afghanis whose lives CAI's work has had a direct impact on. 60 Minutes couldn't have done a better job of having those elements in their piece as well.

As I said in the original piece I wrote a few days back, clearly Mortenson and CAI have done some great things in the Himalaya. Even if he had only built one school, that is more than what most people have done to help the people there. CAI has in fact built dozens of schools and helped fund and manage even more. That doesn't mean that there hasn't been mismanagement of the program or that they shouldn't be more transparent with their operations out of respect for the donors however. And why Mortenson would feel the need to embellish his stories remains a mystery as well. He should be proud of the great things that he has accomplished and that ought to be enough.

Thanks to reader Dennis Large for sending me a link to this story. It is much appreciated and I'm happy to see another side of what CAI and Mortenson have done in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

60 Minutes Serves Up Three Cups of Controversy

Considering the subject matter of this blog, I'm sure that most of you are familiar with Greg Mortenson and his wildly popular book Three Cups of Tea. For those of you who don't know his story, Mortenson was climbing in the Karakoram a number of years back, and after getting lost there, he wandered into a remote village, where the people treated him kindly, offered aid, and got him back on his feet. He was so touched by their generosity, that he vowed to return the favor by building them a school. He would later launch the Central Asia Institute to help fund that project, and dozens of similar ones throughout Pakistan, Afghanistan, and beyond.

Mortenson rose to international fame thanks to his book, which has been a source of inspiration to many who have read it. In that book he shares a number of miraculous and amazing stories about his experiences in the Himalaya and the people he met there. Three Cups of Tea would go on to be a bestseller and generate plenty of attention and funds for Mortenson's charitable works.

It turns out however, that he may not be exactly telling us the whole truth. Over the weekend, the long-running CBS television series 60 Minutes ran an expose on Mortenson with fellow author Jon Krakauer, who wrote Into Thin Air, offering up some thoughts. You can watch the whole segment on YouTube by clicking here, embedding has been disabled unfortunately. In a nutshell, Krakauer, and others, say that Mortenson has embellished some of the details of his story to make them sound more dramatic and impressive. That some of the things he claims happened to him in his books are, at best, stretches of the truth, and at worst, outright fabrications. There are even some indications that the funds that are raised by CAI are not being spent properly and that the organization lacks transparency in how it operates. There are even some questions as to the number of schools that have been built. We do know that Mortenson and his team have indeed built schools in Central Asia, but it seems the number could be exaggerated.

These revelations have caused some disillusionment throughout the adventure community, with many people wondering what the real story is. In the interview, even Krakauer acknowledges that Mortenson has done great things in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but wonders if he puts it all in jeopardy with his exaggerations of the truth and potentially shady handling of funding. It also doesn't help that Mortenson refused to be interviewed for the segment, and at one point is caught on camera looking like a deer in the headlights.

Yesterday, ExWeb weighed in on the topic, posting this story that comes out in defense of Mortenson and takes a few shots at Krakauer in the process. UpaDowna also posted some thoughts on the story, which you can read by clicking here.

So? What are your thoughts on this brewing controversy? Do you buy Mortenson's tale? Krakauer says "It's a beautiful story. And it's a lie." Others in the interview seem to take the same stance, seeming to indicate that Mortenson has, at the very least, taken some liberties with the truth. Does that change the way you feel about him in any way? After all, he has still done a lot of good in those poor Central Asian nations.

For me personally, I still respect Mortenson for the great work that he continues to do in Pakistan and beyond. But I have to question is motivations for stretching the truth the way he has, not to mention the way he seems to be earning quite a bit of money off of the Central Asian Institute. A non-profit, charitable organization should be more up front and forth-coming with how they use the funds that we donate to them, and at the moment, that doesn't seem to be the case. Still, in the end, the organization doe a lot of good, and I hope that doesn't get lost amidst the tall tales.

Update: Mortenson has granted an interview to Outside Online in which he addresses the issues presented by 60 Minutes. Read that interview here.