Summit Murder Mystery Series

A Hot-Air Balloon Ride Over Mt. Everest Will Cost You $2.6 Million Greg Keraghosian Associate Travel Editor The Everest balloon ride would cost two people $5.215 million. (Courtesy: IfOnly) Is the garden-variety hot-air balloon ride not an exciting enough date for you? Got a few million dollars stashed under your mattress? If so, one man is offering the adventure of a lifetime – possibly a short lifetime. Chris Dewhirst, the man who in 1991 completed the first hot-air balloon ride over Mount Everest is looking for two passengers for his second attempt: it costs over $2.6 million per person . And lest you get cold feet, the trip is non-refundable, with no guarantee of a successful crossing. Pilot Chris Dewhirst, who was aboard the first successful balloon ride over Everest. (Courtesy: IfOnly) Looking down on the frosty peaks of the world’s highest mountain from over 30,000 feet is bound to be worth the price for someone – people ar...

You don’t need extensive climbing experience to tackle these peaks. Good health, fitness and the right background knowledge will take you all the way to the top.  Why do people climb mountains? Does it represent humanity’s spiritual quest to reconnect with nature, to brush against our limits by trying to touch the sky? Or has Climb Every Mountain from The Sound of Music influenced us more than we’d care to admit? Some peaks need nerves of steel: technique, training and a familiarity with crampons. Others, as I have discovered, need only basic fitness and a dose of common sense. So, lace up, grab a water bottle and get ready. It only takes three hours to reach some of the world’s most famous peaks. Let’s start easy and work our way up. Table Mountain, South Africa Table Mountain forms a silhouette that symbolizes Cape Town. Its three-kilometer plateau stands guard over the harbor, the prison that housed Nelson Mandela and the ragged townships that represent the wors...

Climbing a mountain is no small task, but these 10 mountain climbing training tips will have you on your way to a successful climb in the near future. Take an orienteering class.  Contact your local mountaineering club to find out when they have a mountaineering class scheduled.  Learn to use a compass and gain some survival skills before you think about making a large climb. Start resistance training workouts. While endurance is important for mountain climbing, don't discount the importance of strength.  Basic resistance training is adequate for mountain climbing.  You don't need to purchase any fancy equipment because dumbbells and your own body weight provide all the necessary resistance.  Eat right for mountain climbing.  A good climbing diet should get 50% of its calories from carbohydrates, 25% from protein, and 25% from fat.  This is the time to stop eating fast food, and start concentrating on high quality food that you ...