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My February birthday fund-raising campaign for this website, Behind the Black, is now over. Despite a relatively weak initial three weeks, the last week was spectacular, making this campaign the second best ever.

 

Thanks to every person who donated or subscribed. It continues to astonish me that people who can read my work for free like it enough to donate money voluntarily. Words cannot express my appreciation for that support, especially in these uncertain times.

 

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Lower Waterholes Canyon, Arizona

An evening pause: Waterholes Canyon is a side canyon leading down into the Colorado River, north of the Grand Canyon. The people canyoneering here are caving friends of mine. The video was created by Kimberly Franke, whom you pretty much only see in the opening still shot, since she was wearing the camera most of the time. Her husband Kevin Franke is also a fellow caver who is the person with the white helmet and thick whitish beard. The woman in the red helmet doing the very long drop near the end is Belinda Norby, also a fellow caver. The music is “Point of No Return” by Roger Subirana Mata.

The world is filled with amazing things to see. This video does a nice job of highlighting just one of them.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

6 comments

  • Wow.

    Noticed the rope grooves in the rock. How is the order of people for first traverse of a pitch determined?

  • Blair: I’m not sure I understand your question. I can tell you that on trips like this, generally everyone is pretty experienced and capable, and so the order is not that important. Usually the first person ready, with their gear, is the first to start down (or up, which doesn’t happen in canyoneering but does when caving). Sometimes it is merely who wants to go next. And the order will change from drop to drop. Kim’s video only shows some of the trip. From what they told me, there were a number of other rappels not shown.

  • danae

    Our beautiful Earth, as most of us never see it. The colors and shapes are wonderful, and your friends’ athleticism and spirit of adventure inspiring. Thanks for sharing!

  • wayne

    Yes, this is very cool!
    We don’t have any Mountains or Canyon’s in Michigan, we do however have magnificent sand-dunes.
    http://www.thinkdunes.com/

  • Robert,

    Question answered. Thanks.

  • Wayne

    Absolutely not to detract from Waterholes Canyon, for those of us who can’t travel out West–I will shill for Michigan sand dunes.

    “The Legend of the Sleeping Bear”
    (Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore)
    4 minutes
    https://youtu.be/TFz_qvakGWY

    And especially for Cotour–
    – Chef Mario from GMA, refers to the area as “The Mayberry of Michigan.” (!) (I’m not in Mayberry, but it’s apparently closer, than I thought!)
    :)

    “Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore: Most Beautiful Place in America 2011”
    https://youtu.be/Ulkt6ac7bD4

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