Innehållsförteckning för Fall 2020 från The Explorers Journal

It has been said that “necessity is the mother of innovation,” and while I would not want us to endure another pandemic, this has been a particularly productive time for The Explorers Club. Over the past few months, we have embarked on a trio of programs that are allowing us to grow and see things in a new light: the awarding of the first class of Discovery Expedition Grants; the launching of “The Explorers 50” program; and the forming of a Diversity and Inclusion initiative, the latter spearheaded by Board Member J.R. Harris. In September, we announced the first waves of Discovery Expedition Grants—totaling $250,000 of $1,000,000 dispersed annually—to six exceptional explorers, researchers, and scientists. It is notable in that this is the largest amount of grant funding we have…

THE EXPLORERS CLUB 46 EAST 70TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10021 WWW.EXPLORERS.ORG | 212-628-8383 AFRICAGladys Kalema-Zikusokagladys@ctph.org ALASKAMead Treadwellmeadwell@alaska.net ATLANTASteve Pigottjagter@msn.com AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALANDTodd Taitodd@mivision.com.au BHUTANMatthew DeSantismatt@mybhutan.com CANADAGeorge Kourounischapterchair@explorersclub.ca CENTRAL & SOUTH AMERICAOPEN CHICAGO/GREAT LAKESRobert A. Shuchman, PhDshuchman@mtu.edu EAST & SOUTH ASIASteven R. Schwankertsteven@sinoscuba.com FLORIDAJoseph Dituri, PhDjoe@gallantaquatic.com GEORGE ROGERS CLARKLeonard A. Weakley, Jr.lweakley@rendigs.com GREAT BRITAIN & IRELANDMark Wood, Chairmark@markwoodexplorer.comRory Golden, Vice Chairrgolden@eircom.netwww.britishexplorersclub.org GREATER PIEDMONTPhil Bartlettmfbartlett@gmail.com HAWAIIMark Blackburnmblackburn@aol.com HONG KONGAngelica Anglesaangles@explorershk.org NEW ENGLANDGregory Deyermenjianpaititi@alumni.clarku.edu NORTH PACIFIC ALASKAJoshua C. Lewis & Victoria M. Becwar-Lewisnpac1@me.com NORTHERN CALIFORNIALesley Ewinglesleycoastal@gmail.com NORWAYSynnøve Marie Kvam Strømsvågexplorers.norge@gmail.com PACIFIC NORTHWESTJohn All, PhDjohn.all@wwu.edu PHILADELPHIAA.J. “Buddy” Obara, Jr.ajo_@msn.com POLANDMariusz Ziółkowskimziolkowski@uw.edu.plwww.explorersclubpoland.pl ROCKY MOUNTAINJeff Blumenfeldjeff@blumenfeldpr.comwww.explorers-rm.org SAN DIEGODr. Timothy A. Radketimothy.a.radke@gmail.com SOUTHERN CALIFORNIACharles Carmonaexplorersclubsocal@gmail.comDavid DolanDavidDolan@aol.com SOUTHERN FLORIDABruce C. Mathesonbcm09@bellsouth.net SOUTHWESTRobert Louis DeMayordemayo07@aol.com ST. LOUISCynthia Peterscynthiaspeters@gmail.com SWEDENLars E. Larssonllarsson@explorersclub.se SWITZERLANDLaurent Develleldevelle37@gmail.comswitzerland@explorers.org TEXASNancy McGeenancy@islandtimescuba.com WASHINGTON, DCBruce…

ON JANUARY 23, 1960, DON WALSH AND JACQUES PICARD, ABOARD THE BATHYSCAPHE TRIESTE, BECAME THE FIRST HUMANS TO REACH CHALLENGER DEEP AT THE BOTTOM OF THE MARIANA TRENCH. ELEVEN KILOMETERS BELOW THE SURFACE OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN, IT IS THE DEEPEST PLACE ON EARTH. EARLIER THIS YEAR, DON’S SON, KELLY DRENNAN WALSH, REPEATED THE DIVE WITH VICTOR VESCOVO IN THE SUBMERSIBLE LIMITING FACTOR. WE CAUGHT UP WITH KELLY, 52, IN THE WAKE OF HIS DIVE. JC: You went a little deeper than your father. KDW: He was never protective of records, nor is he interested in measuring success by feet or time-at-depth. His hope is that this type of exploration can be commonplace, and he’s quite pleased that we are finally in a place, technologically, where regular, repeatable dives of…

As the global pandemic has continued to extend its temporary hold on our expeditionary plans, many of us have sought out novel new “workarounds” to sate our Fernweh and intellectual curiosity. For this edition of THE EXPLORERS JOURNAL, veteran caver Bill Steele, who was slated to spend this spring and summer probing the subterranean labyrinth of Sistema Huautla in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, was forced to scrap his field season due to ongoing travel restrictions. Not one to sit still, he decided to shine his headlamp on speleological marvels closer to his Texas home—a show cave known as Natural Bridge Caverns, which attracts nearly a half-million visitors a year. For all its fame, however, much of the cave’s splendor has remained hidden; that was until last year, when Steele…

PREHISTORIC: Earliest human activity has been dated to 5000 BCE. EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY: First rooms explored by local ranchers. JANUARY 20, 1960: “Raccoon Rooms” off the cave entrance just to the west of the Natural Bridge discovered by Orion Knox. MARCH 27, 1960: North Cavern show cave chambers discovered by Orion Knox, Preston Knodell, Al Brandt, and Joe Cantu. DECEMBER 6, 1967: Shaft into the so-called Jaremy Room at the east end of the South Cavern (not shown on map) completed and explored by Jack Burch, Reggie Wuest, and Myles Kuykendall. JANUARY 8-9, 1968: Shaft into South Cavern completed and explored by Jack Burch, Reggie Wuest, and Myles Kuykendall. MAY 8, 2019: Passage at the top of the Dome Pit discovered and explored by Brad and Travis Wuest, Lee White,…

JOIN THE “EXPLORERS IMMORTALS” AND ENGRAVE YOUR NAME OR DEDICATION IN STONE ON NEW PAVERS FOR THE LEFRAK TERRACE AT EXPLORERS CLUB HEADQUARTERS. ADORN OUR LANDMARK OUTDOOR SPACE AND HELP PAY FOR URGENT WORK FOR PHASE II RENOVATIONS BY MAKING A TAX-DEDUCTIBLE DONATION OF $2,500 PER DEDICATED PAVER TO OUR LOWELL THOMAS BUILDING FUND. THE EXPLORERS CLUB WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING WHO HAVE PURCHASED A PAVER: Robert Ashton, James H. Alexander, John G. Alexander, Darlene T. Anderson, Jeanne D. Andlinger, Barbara Annan, Robert J. Aresty, Atlanta Chapter, Robert J. Atwater, Norman L. Baker, Andreas Bender, Josh Bernstein, John Bierley, Bruce Blanchard, John R. Bockstoce, Brian M. Boom, John R. Boreske Jr., Gary W. Bowersox, Lawson W. Brigham, Diane Britz-Lotti, Julianne M. Chase, James M. Clash, Allen S. Counter,…

When we endeavored to produce an episode of Wild Harvest in Temagami, Ontario, we immediately encountered a snag: Option anxiety! There was just so much to choose from in the wild that we found it hard to stop at two or three ingredients when it came to showcasing an abundance of wild blueberries, which are, pound-for-pound, far more flavorful than any domesticated variety. Here we offer a simple layered dish with complex and complimentary flavors that packs a punch. To prepare it, you will need a bowl, a whisk, and a heavy cast-iron skillet. The dish is best made over an open fire with a sturdy grill grate, but you will need to manage the heat effectively and be ready to move quickly. The delicious browned butter we include is…

LAND OF WONDROUS COLD BY GILLEN D’ARCY WOOD 312 PP • PRINCETON: PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS, 2020 • ISBN-13: 978-0691172200 • $27.95 • REVIEWED BY NICK SMITH If ever there was a place that unites humanity’s twin obsessions with exploration and scientific discovery, it is Antarctica. And if ever there was a book that simultaneously looked into these two subjects with expertise and enthusiasm, it is Gillen D’Arcy Wood’s Land of Wondrous Cold that describes the unfolding drama of the White Continent’s role in plate tectonics, climate change, and evolution. Of course, we came to know of these phenomena largely due to the early exertions of human exploration, most notably in the nineteenth century, when the likes of James Clark Ross, Jules Dumont d’Urville, and Charles Wilkes were pushing back the…

THERE ARE FEW THINGS MORE IMPORTANT IN THE WORLD TODAY THAN THE EXPLORERS CLUB MISSION TO DISCOVER AND EDUCATE. OUR MEMBERS STRIVE, THROUGH SCIENCE, TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THIS WORLD AND SOMETIMES FIND NEW ONES. THE ENDOWMENT CREATED BY THE LEGACY SOCIETY WILL HELP ENSURE THAT THIS MISSION CONTINUES. EXPLORATION IS NOT ALWAYS EASY, HOWEVER, PLANNING TO GIVE TO THE LEGACY SOCIETY IS. I HOPE YOU WILL JOIN ME!—MARC BRYAN-BROWN, MR’95 Mark R. Allio • John G. Alexander • Alan B. Albright • Robert J. Atwater • Capt. Norman L. Baker* • Barbara Ballard • Robert D. Ballard, PhD • Samuel B. Ballen* • Mark Gregory Bayuk • Daniel A. Bennett • Josh Bernstein • Bruce Blanchard • John R. Bockstoce, DPhil • Jack Aaron Boggs • Bjorn G. Bolstad* •…