January 2001 | Outside Online

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Today's Question
What is the best way to get water if I'm lost in the desert? answer

What's the most reliable tool for starting fires? answer

Today's Question
What one equipment change can I make in my home to reduce my water usage most? answer

Why do you drive a grease-powered car, and should I do it too? answer

What kind of dog will make me look manlier? answer
Is there a sport that safely combines my twin passions for guns and kayaks? answer
How come most of the world's cultures enjoy eating goat, but Americans don't? answer

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January 2001
F E A T U R E S

The Fist of God
Once a year, an army of campesinos rumbles into a tiny Bolivian town to take part in an ancient ritual of soul-affirming, phantasmagoric chaos called tinku. First they drink the chicha, then they kill the cows and goats, and then the brawling and stone throwing—and sometimes the killing—begins. By Kate Wheeler

The Teachings of Gerineldo "Moises" Chavez (or The Rainforest Is a Great Place to Save, But I Wouldn't Want to Live There)
Moises say: We eat grubs. (Bob say: Fine—anything but fish.) Moises say: Do not make toilet paper of stinging leaves. (Bob say: Yow!) Moises say: Nothing easy in the jungle. (Bob say: Amen.) By Robert Earle Howells

The Ballad of Lonesome George
Baked by the equatorial sun, the Galápagos Islands are a forbidding place. Still, for a host of blue-footed boobies, undersexed iguanas, and the last living member of a subspecies of giant tortoise, they're home. Now, following in Darwin's footsteps, a two-legged interloper is messing with the survival of the fittest. By Caroline Fraser

Best Trips 2001
OUTSIDE'S GUIDE TO THE 50 COOLEST ADVENTURES AND TOP NEW TRAVEL SPOTS

		First, Let Yourself Go What's the secret to coexisting with your fellow travelers? Do something stupid. By Bucky McMahon.
	Islands: Leave your mainland troubles behind.
	High Altitude: From K2 to Fan-si-pan.
	Africa: Float the Blue Nile or dive Aldabra.
	Most Remote: Turn right at Mongolia—and get lost.
	Open-Air Classroom: Learn to ski, kayak, and climb.
	Multisport: Do it all in Tahiti, Iceland, and Costa Rica.
	Paddling: The Salmon, Zimitan, and other wild waters.
	Arctic and Antarctic: Because what's cold is hot!
	A Better World:Study dolphins in Spain; clean Lake Baikal.
	PLUS: Our Hot/Not List; polar eco-etiquette; five brand-spanking-new adventure travel destinations; travel bugs—they're out there, waiting...; and the Top Ten things you shouldn't leave home without (from antibacterial hand soap to tiny down pillows).

D E P A R T M E N T S
Dispatches
Loaded down with over 200 pounds of gear, technical divers are descending to dramatic—and dangerous—depths. Now scuba's largest training organization plans to get sport divers in on the action, and thecritics are predicting fatal consequences.

		Fact or Fiction? Gnu unveils the first "genetically altered" snowboard.
	Young and Restless: Slalom star Kristina Koznick falls in love and spurns the U.S. Ski Team to train with her beau.
	A hole in the wall sparks extreme controversy in Europe's backcountry-skiing mecca.
	PLUS: Six races that put the surreal back in marathoning;GPS enthusiasts inaugurate a global scavenger hunt; and a bare-naked lady tries to save old-growth trees, one poem at a time.

The Wild File
Is it really brighter and quieter outside after a snowfall? Can you drink seawater to survive? Do other animals spend as many years rearing their children as humans do? Are dams affecting the tilt of the earth's axis?
By Stephanie Gregory

The Hard Way
Putting off Tibet because you're still learning the language? Afraid Bolivia's just too dangerous? Siberia stretching your budget? Enough, already. After two decades of globe-trotting, our manexplores the top ten myths of remote travel.
By Mark Jenkins

Bodywork
Balance of Power: If you haven't yet teetered on a Bongo Board, cruised a virtual powder run aboard a Versafitter, or even just straddled a wobbly Swiss ball, your workouts lack a key new ingredient. Balance exercises—the secret to developing core muscle strength and spatial awareness—can make the crucial difference between holding a radical ski edge and getting a mouthful of tree bark.

		"Five routine-busting exercises to help you paddle, ski, board, or cycle with more stability and control.
	PLUS: Gold-medal track cyclist Marty Nothstein shares his winning blueprint for building explosive power.

Review
Get Down: No longer merely urban fashion statements or tools for arctic survival, down- and synthetic-fill jackets are staging a comeback astechnical backcountry gear. Lighter, loftier, and designed with more reliable waterproofing, these seven pieces—from Cloudveil, Feathered Friends, Marmot, Mountain Hardwear, Patagonia, Sierra Designs, and The North Face—add instant toasting power to any winter adventurer's daypack.

		Three saltwater fly-fishing setups burly enough to land the most stubborn of sea monsters.
	Books: A River Running West: The Life of John Wesley Powell, by Donald Worster; What You See in Clear Water, by Geoffrey O'Gara; The Ice Master, by Jennifer Niven; and Tinkering with Eden, by Kim Todd

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Between the Lines

Active Traveler Directory

Cover photo by Jerry Kobalenko/Stone Frobisher Bay, Baffin Island, Canada

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