Will Gadd

The next time some would-be adventurer tells me he’s doing an expedition to raise money for a cause, I’m finally going to say what I’ve been choking back for years: “You’re not going on your trip for charity, you’re...

When I was in high school I saw a black-velvet painting of mysterious ghostly ships sailing off what appeared to be the edge of the world. I’m pretty sure there were some buxom sirens and a couple of horses swirling in the...

I used to think the cult of climbing had a solid lock on weird dress, weird eating and weird training habits, but I’ve found a new cult that takes all of these phenotypes up a level. This cult’s members are easy to spot,...

One day this past winter while skiing at my local hill, I counted at least 30 headcams in the lift line, most of which were recording. What could possibly be interesting about standing in a lift line? According to the 11,500...

I hate fitness writers, and I hate the magazines that publish their work. Every time I pick up an outdoor sports magazine, there’s usually at least one article on the cover telling me how I can “Climb Harder! Paddle Stronger!...

Skydivers are fond of saying that the ground, not the sky, is the limit. They’re wrong about that; the ground is now just the beginning of it all. Never in human history have there been more ways to launch yourself into the air....

I recently attended a rare event: a memorial for someone who didn’t die in the mountains. This particular high-achieving friend died of alcoholism, but was his addiction really so different than my own devotion to mountain...

In a measure of how popular the trip has become, it isn't even easy these days to keep track of how many people have stood on the garbage-strewn summit of Mount Everest. But those who follow such things think the number of...

I had literally dreamed of this moment many times, often while standing on the edge of a cliff or building and looking down while lying on my stomach. I hate the edges of cliffs and buildings-they terrify me, but not because of...