Apex to Zenith
Highpointers Club Newsletter
Issue #56 - First Quarter 2002

highpointers.org column
News Events on the Highpointers Forum Since September 11
By Roger Rowlett

I am a news junkie and as such I spent at least an hour a day posting outdoor news items on the highpointers Forum. The Forum is an amazing community. I don't think there is anything major in the backcountry that doesn't get reported.

Further it's a place where some people first come to share their thoughts on various turning moments in their lifes.

I try to summarize the events each week and send out a newsletter. I also compile them in a database.

Here's a list of the outdoor oriented headlines and news summaries compiled since Sept. 11. What is on the Forum is much more extensive.

09/11/2001 New York City Highpoint Destroyed
This was the first item that appeared on the Forum. There would be many more on that eventful day.

09/11/2001 - Air Crash Near Mount Davis
The plane destined for either the White House and the Capitol was apparently brought down by passengers in a reclaimed coal strip mine about 25 miles northeast of Mount Davis, Pennsylvania.

09/24/2001 - Police Whisk Away Man Carrying Flag Near Puerto Rico Highpoint
Police in Lares, Puerto Rico, whisked away a man who carried an American flag to a celebration commemorating the Puerto Rico Independence Movement.

09/25/2001 - Afghanistan's Highest Point
What can be learned from climbing the Nowshaq the highest point in Afghanistan.

09/25/2001 - WTC Collapse Registered as 2.4 Earthquake
Recordings across the Hudson in the Palisades registered the WTC collapse as a 2.4 earthquake.

09/25/2001 - Air Ban Stranded Climbers
The air ban following the WTC collapse stranded hikers all over the U.S. particularly in Alaska.

09/26/2001 - Glissading the WTC and Other Legends
"It was the ultimate glissade story. A security guard rode the collapse of the World Trade Center from the 81st floor and survived with a couple broken legs. Except that it wasn't true. We examine some of the more sensational rumors about the WTC collapse -- ranging from the "last photo from the top" to the "Devil's Face in the Fire"" to Nostradamus predicting it all."

10/02/2001 - NYC TV Stations Looking to Geographic Heights
New York may have rewritten geographic rules for locating its t.v. transmitters. But following the World Trade Center attack, some stations are at least temporarily locating their transmitters on the geographic heights -- the Palisades bluffs above the Hudson at Alpine, New Jersey.

10/03/2001 -Give Us Bin Laden Or We'll Send Your Women To College
Thank heavens, topical jokes are returning to the Internet!

10/03/2001 - Flag Removed From Between Eyes of Old Man of the Mountain
New Hampshire authorities have gazed in awe at an American flag placed this week between the eyes of the Old Man of the Mountain. But they say it's a traffic hazard and have taken it down.

10/09/2001 - 11-Year-Old Boy Climbs El Capitan to Raise WTC Funds
Scott Carey who climbed Yosemite's El Capitan at age 8 climbed it in one day to raise funds for the WTC.

10/09/2001 - Walking from Indiana to the WTC
Scott Julock walked from Clymer, Indiana, to the WTC.

10/09/2001 -North Carolina Backcountry Anthrax Scare
Before the focus shifted to Florida there was a scare that the victim acquired anthrax in the North Carolina back country after drinking untreated water.

10/09/2001 - Adriondack Mountain Troops Deployed to Uzbekistan
The Army's main mountain troops -- stationed at Fort Drum in the Adirondacks -- has been deployed to Uzbekistan.

10/09/2001- Hiking Prohibited in Camp David Perimeter
Hiking Prohibited in Camp David Perimeter

10/23/2001 -Flag Flying Initiative: Guadalupe
The Initiative to collect photos of flags on the highest point of each state continues. This time Alan Ritter has photos from atop Guadalupe Mountain, Texas.

11/05/2001- Virginia Student Charged With Burning Flag & Starting Forest Fire
A university student was charged with burning the U.S. flag in a fire that charred more than two acres of woodland in northern Virginia.

11/19/2001 -Flags Over America
The 50 Flags Over America project continues with more pictures from state summits. We have a series from the Upper Midwest and California. If you have one let us know.

11/27/2001 -Flags Over All Colorado 14'ers
Flags flew over all Colorado 14'ers on Sept. 22.

11/27/2001 -Flag Over the Summits
Our latest photo of an American flag over a state summit comes from Boundary Peak, Nevada.

12/03/2001- Wilderness Response to the World Trade Center
It wasn't a tragedy just handled by urban departments. Many forest firefighters and caving experts were also called in.

12/10/2001- Peace Climb of G2 in Pakistan
David Keaton, a 50-state completer, will be participating in the Peace Climb of G2.

12/10/2001- December 7th Myth About Japanese Hiding Behind Oahu Highpoint
It may be cool shots for movies of low flying Japanese planes during the Pearl Harbor attack. But the truth is that the planes didn't hide behind Oahu's highest point and swarm through Kolekole Pass.

12/10/2001- Climbing Gear for Iranian Women
If you're a woman headed for climbing in Iran make you have the proper gear and veils.

12/19/2001 -AT Inspires Man to Send Hoax Anthrax Letters
An abortion activist had a ""vision"" on the AT in Pennsylvania. He was hiking there on Sept. 11 and decided that sending hoax anthrax letters would be better than shooting doctors. He was caught when he checked his email at a Kinko's which also happened to have his wanted poster on the wall.

01/03/2002 - Can India and Pakistan Find Peace at Mount Everest?
The first formal meeting between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan since the latest escalation will be at a resort at the foot of Mount Everest in Nepal.

01/11/2002 - NPS Rangers to Patrol Olympics
Handpicked NPS Rangers will be patrolling the mountains during the Olympics.

01/29/2002 - 93% Decrease in Pakistan Mountaineering Permits
The war has prompted a 93% reduction in climbing applications for Pakistan mountains. The country is now selling them at 50% off.

01/29/2002 - Hiking Permits for NYC Watershed in Catskills
NYC is about to reopen its vast watershed in the Catskills to hiking -- but there will be restrictions.

02/21/2002 - Proposed First Hot Air Balloon Over Rainier
Tom Bernard has gotten permission to become the first person fly a hot air balloon over Mount Rainier. Plans were thwarted last year when the airspace was closed following Sept. 11

02/21/2002 - Lake Hollywood Reopens to Hikers
After being closed since Sept. 11, Lake Hollywood has reopened to hikers.

02/27/02 -Danny Pearl's Days on Greylock
Murder Wall Street Journal reporter got his journalistic start in the shadow of Greylock at the Pittsfield Eagle.