http://blog.firstascent.com THE FIRST ASCENT BLOG Wed, 09 May 2012 19:50:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://blog.firstascent.com/2011/04/20/jesse-coombs-nets-first-successful-descent-of-abiqua-falls-in-oregon/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2011/04/20/jesse-coombs-nets-first-successful-descent-of-abiqua-falls-in-oregon/#comments Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:57:18 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=7144 http://blog.firstascent.com/2011/04/20/jesse-coombs-nets-first-successful-descent-of-abiqua-falls-in-oregon/feed/ 7 By Jesse Coombs; video by Lucas Gilman Lucas and I were looking for first descent waterfalls, and Heather Herbeck suggested Abiqua. We showed up on March 11 after looking at a couple other waterfalls that did not have enough water. As soon as I saw the waterfall from the bottom I knew it was in [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/15/first-ascent-kayak-team-successfully-completes-first-descent-of-mubuko-river-uganda/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/15/first-ascent-kayak-team-successfully-completes-first-descent-of-mubuko-river-uganda/#comments Mon, 15 Nov 2010 19:27:48 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3646 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/15/first-ascent-kayak-team-successfully-completes-first-descent-of-mubuko-river-uganda/feed/ 0 Ben Stookesberry: “We actually made it down out of the Mountains of the Moon in a couple days… We made it out with heavy rain the last day of the trail, hiking about 6,000 feet out down out of the mountains. We were literally swimming down the trail in spots… The river was at a [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayaker-jesse-coombs-recaps-climb-in-rwenzori-mountains-uganda/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayaker-jesse-coombs-recaps-climb-in-rwenzori-mountains-uganda/#comments Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:23:39 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3615 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayaker-jesse-coombs-recaps-climb-in-rwenzori-mountains-uganda/feed/ 3 By Jesse Coombs The kayak team spent five days in the Rwenzori Mountains of Uganda. They are called the Mountains of the Moon and are a World Heritage Site. It is also was believed (and possibly still argued by some) to be the source of the Nile. Regardless, this was an amazing place, and the [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayak-team-summits-third-highest-peak-in-africa/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayak-team-summits-third-highest-peak-in-africa/#comments Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:18:14 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3625 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/first-ascent-kayak-team-summits-third-highest-peak-in-africa/feed/ 0 Ben Stookesberry: “We’re at the top of Margherita Peak, the highest point in the Ruwenzori Mountains – the fabled Mountains of the Moon and the third highest peak in Africa at 16,700 some-odd-feet. The weather was absolutely not kind to us, although it certainly could have been worse… A lot of glacier work, some mixed terrain [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-calls-in-from-the-alexandria-glacier-at-15000-feet/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-calls-in-from-the-alexandria-glacier-at-15000-feet/#comments Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:14:29 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3620 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/10/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-calls-in-from-the-alexandria-glacier-at-15000-feet/feed/ 0 Ben Stookesberry: “…Calling in from the base of the Alexandra Glacier… We’re up here on the glaciers feeding the Nile. We’re literally about 15 minutes off the equator and we’re going to head down right now. Chris stayed down below. He got a little bit of a headache last night. Hopefully he’ll join us at [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/09/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-hikes-the-mountains-of-the-moon%e2%80%99-in-uganda/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/09/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-hikes-the-mountains-of-the-moon%e2%80%99-in-uganda/#comments Tue, 09 Nov 2010 23:57:55 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3610 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/09/the-first-ascent-kayak-team-hikes-the-mountains-of-the-moon%e2%80%99-in-uganda/feed/ 0 The First Ascent kayak team calls in from Camp 2 at the Mountains of the Moon at 11,000 feet. Chris Korbulic: “These mountains are called “the fountains of the Nile”… For awhile [hundreds of years ago] they were the only feature on maps in Central Africa… Yesterday we hiked up for about five or six [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-scouts-largest-section-of-whitewater-on-victoria-nile-uganda/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-scouts-largest-section-of-whitewater-on-victoria-nile-uganda/#comments Tue, 02 Nov 2010 21:59:51 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3570 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-scouts-largest-section-of-whitewater-on-victoria-nile-uganda/feed/ 0 The First Ascent kayak team checks-in to talk about the largest section of whitewater it has seen yet during its Africa expedition. “This is where the biggest section of whitewater exists… and we have a really high level here. Right now what I’m looking it is a really swollen Victoria Nile River, somewhere in the [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-encounters-dam-projects-on-the-victoria-nile-in-uganda/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-encounters-dam-projects-on-the-victoria-nile-in-uganda/#comments Tue, 02 Nov 2010 14:25:45 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3562 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/02/fa-kayak-team-encounters-dam-projects-on-the-victoria-nile-in-uganda/feed/ 0 Ben Stookesberry called-in from the banks of the Victoria Nile River in Uganda to talk about dam projects, their impact on the local communities and what’s ahead for the team. “This dam project three miles down that we came to is something that the kayakers are pretty sad about. It’s covering a world-class section of [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/01/fa-kayakers-complete-stage-one-of-white-nile-expedition-in-africa/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/01/fa-kayakers-complete-stage-one-of-white-nile-expedition-in-africa/#comments Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:30:55 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3558 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/11/01/fa-kayakers-complete-stage-one-of-white-nile-expedition-in-africa/feed/ 0 By Ben Stookesberry Stage one of several has been completed here in Uganda, Africa. Chris Korbulic, Darin McQuoid, Jesse Coombs, and I landed on the Northern edge of Lake Victoria in Kampala, exactly 30 hours after leaving Reno, Nevada. Incredibly, $400 was all that it took to transport our kayaks along with a few hundred [...] http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/10/30/first-ascent-kayak-team-prepares-for-africa-expedition/ http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/10/30/first-ascent-kayak-team-prepares-for-africa-expedition/#comments Sat, 30 Oct 2010 18:01:47 +0000 First Ascent Brand Team http://blog.firstascent.com/?p=3540 http://blog.firstascent.com/2010/10/30/first-ascent-kayak-team-prepares-for-africa-expedition/feed/ 0 The First Ascent kayak team – Ben Stookesberry, Jesse Coombs, Darin McQuoid and Chris Korbulic – has embarked upon a new expedition in Africa, inspired by 19th century searches for the source of the Nile and ensuing expeditions into the Upper Congo. Using whitewater kayaks as its modern tools for exploration, the team will venture [...]