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Explorer Mike Libecki
Photograph by Keith Ladzinski
Explorer Mike Libecki is the consummate adventurer who shows no signs of slowing down—2012 was his busiest year yet. In east Greenland, Libecki climbed icebergs, and just getting to the site from the boat was a challenge. Once there, the danger was that the floating ice he climbed would flip, causing him to drown or be crushed.
"The excitement of this kind of climbing—I have done it a lot—is incredible. Icebergs are challenging because of the ice condition/quality," says Libecki. "These moments never leave me; they are such an incredible, joyous feeling."
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Explorer Mike Libecki
Photograph by Elliott Woods
Libecki was the first to go kite skiing across the lakes of Band-e-Amir, Afghanistan's first and only national park. Only a few local nomads were around to witness the event. "They probably thought it was strange and interesting," says Libecki. "It was so fun!" He also made a series of first descents by snowboard in the avalanche-prone Koh-e Baba mountains.
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Explorer Mike Libecki
Photograph by Mike Libecki
Libecki, wearing a dragon mask, is seen on the summit of Greenland's 4,610-foot Ataatap Tower (Daddy's Tower) after making the first ascent—on sight, free solo—in three hours.
Libecki's tradition of bringing an animal mask on his expeditions started nearly 15 years ago, when he and a Japanese friend climbed Denali wearing head-to-toe tiger costumes. The animal masks he dons on his adventures correspond to the Chinese lunar calendar, and 2012 is the year of the dragon.
"It is not just a goal to summit and succeed on the expeditions but [also] to bring the masks to the top! These masks bring an element of laughter and fun to the sometimes incredibly difficult, dangerous, and—let's face it—very scary situations," says Libecki, who is based in Salt Lake City, Utah. "The masks add an element of emotion and tradition to the journey. What's more, my nine-year-old daughter is always waiting to see the summit mask photos when I get home and [then] laugh at me."
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Explorer Mike Libecki
Photograph by Mike Libecki
Libecki’s astonishing 2012 year is set to be capped off, this November, with a National Geographic-funded trip to the eastern stretches of Antarctica’s Queen Maud Land. He will seek unclimbed horns of rock jut thousands of feet upward from ancient ice.
This photo of Libecki’s teammate Josh Helling was taken in 2004, near where the upcoming expedition—Libecki's fourth to Antarctica—will take place. Libecki will be joined by previous Adventurer of the Year and photographer Cory Richards, writer Freddie Wilkinson, and photographer Keith Ladzinski.
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Surfer Ramon Navarro
Photograph by Todd Glaser, A-Frame
Chilean Ramon Navarro took paddle-in, big-wave surfing to a higher level off Tavarua Island, Fiji, on June 8, 2012. The world's best big-wave surfers came out to play when the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) decided to halt competition at the Volcom Fiji Pro due to "dangerous" conditions. Navarro had never surfed the famed wave at Cloudbreak prior to this day. He got the best wave of his life on a day that will go down in history as one of the paddle-in sessions that raised the bar on which waves could be stroked into by hand.
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Surfer Ramon Navarro
Photograph by Alfredo Escobar
Navarro is seen surfing at his home break at Punta de Lobos, Chile. With international megadams threatening Chile’s Patagonia region, the population has embraced conservation as a way to bring in tourism. It’s a trend Navarro has built upon to protect his own corner of Chile.
“The Chilean people have been really involved in the environmental movement,” says Navarro. “If we protect our land, take care of our country, we will have a better standard of living.”
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Surfer Ramon Navarro
Photograph by Alfredo Escobar
Navarro is in the midst of working with the Chilean government and conservation groups to turn this rugged stretch of coast, Punta de Lobos, into a national park, which would stop encroaching development.
“I don’t like politics,” says Navarro. “I don’t want to do it, but there aren’t many places like this in the world.”
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Ultrarunner Lizzy Hawker
Photograph by Tim Kemple
Champion trail ultrarunner Lizzy Hawker is seen running through the mountains surrounding Chamonix, France, days before running—and winning—the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc for the fifth time, a feat no man or woman has accomplished before.
"If the truth of our running is that in our moving we find ourselves, then running is the gift that allows us to know ourselves deeper," says Hawker. "Moving fast in the mountains that I love gives me an opportunity to push toward my 'edge,' to learn more about myself, to feel rawness and vulnerability, and yet to feel strength in body, mind, and spirit."
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Ultrarunner Lizzy Hawker
Photograph by David Clifford
Just as the run rose above the mountains of Chamonix, Hawker charged to the finish line to win her fifth Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc. The competitors ran through the night in rain and snow on a course altered just hours before the race.
"In the end it isn't just about the race. For me, the motivation is very much within myself—to try to do the best I can in each moment," says Hawker. "It is about the journey—physical, mental, spiritual—it is about the preparation and the in between. Just as in life."
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Ultrarunner Lizzy Hawker
Photograph by Fabien Brusson
Hawker is shown in 2011 during the Everest Sky Race, a 200-kilometer journey (with 11,000 meters of ascent and 7,000 meters of descent) covered during a nine-day stage race from Dolakha through the Rolwaling Valley, crossing the Tashi Lapsa, Renjo La, Gokyo La/Ri, and Cho La passes, and ascending Kala Pattar before finally arriving at the base camp of Ama Dablam.
"The wildness of such awe-inspiring landscapes as the Himalaya mountains gives us perspective, somehow reminding us of the fragility of life, allowing us to feel our rawness and vulnerability and yet giving us an intense experience of feeling the magic and joy of life."
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Skier Josh Dueck
Photograph by Paul Morrison
On February 3, 2012, Josh Dueck performed the world's first sit-ski backflip on a massive jump at Powder Mountain Catskiing outside of Whistler, British Columbia.
“When I see this photo I think of all the amazing people in my life that give me the courage to dream the impossible. I've heard that the magic in life sits just outside your comfort zone—it's true.”
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Skier Josh Dueck
Photograph by Paul Morrison
After landing the world's first sit-ski backflip at Powder Mountain Catskiing in British Columbia, Dueck made this turn.
"The snow on the outrun was sunbaked and heavy, kind of like creamy mashed potatoes," he recalls. "It was not the best snow I've ever skied, but after landing the backflip, it just may be one of the most memorable turns I've ever made."
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Skier Josh Dueck
Photograph by Chad Spector
Dueck is seen making a preflight safety check during the 2012 X Games. "I definitely love sending it off these massive jumps, but the anticipation of the hunt is almost better than the harvest itself."
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Skier Josh Dueck
Photograph by Chad Spector
In 2011, then rookie Dueck took home gold in the X Games mono ski cross. "We were literally racing the shadows and jumping into the abyss," he recalls. He took home the bronze in 2012.
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BASE Jumper Felix Baumgartner
Photograph by Red Bull Content Pool
Austrian pilot Felix Baumgartner jumps from the capsule of the Red Bull Stratos during the final manned flight in Roswell, New Mexico, on October 14, 2012.
“I wish the whole world could see what I see,” said Baumgartner as he stood poised 128,100 feet above the Earth. “Sometimes you have to go up really high to understand how small you really are.”
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BASE Jumper Felix Baumgartner
Photograph by Balazs Gardi, Red Bull Content Pool
A crane launches the capsule during the final manned flight of the Red Bull Stratos in Roswell, New Mexico, on October 14, 2012. The thin plastic balloon carried Baumgartner 23.5 miles above the Earth.
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BASE Jumper Felix Baumgartner
Photograph by Red Bull Content Pool
In the thin air at the edge of space, Baumgartner accelerated to 833.9 miles an hour, becoming the first human to break the speed of sound without mechanical help. He fell from a height of 128,100 feet. The Cold War-era record of 102,800 feet was held by Baumgartner’s mentor, retired Air Force Col. Joe Kittinger, 84, who made three leaps in 1959 and 1960.
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BASE Jumper Felix Baumgartner
Photograph by Balazs Gardi, Red Bull Content Pool
The jump lasted just over nine minutes with four minutes and 22 seconds spent in free fall. Baumgartner landed safely, falling to his knees as news crews and support staff ran toward him. He had overcome panic attacks, ignored critics who had labeled the project a publicity stunt, maintained focus through five years of ups and downs, and then simply survived.
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Climber David Lama
Photograph by Lincoln Else, Red Bull Content Pool
Skyscraper and piece of art: More than three times the height of the Empire State Building, Cerro Torre rises vertically out of the Patagonian ice field.
For three years, Austrian climber David Lama had been trying to make history with the first free climb of the iconic Cerro Torre, a mountain steeped in controversy in Argentine Patagonia. Here, Lama is seen on January 21, 2012, after completing the first free-climbing ascent of the infamous Compressor Route—and redeeming himself on the mountain.
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Climber David Lama
Photograph by Corey Rich, Red Bull Content Pool
Cerro Torre, located in Argentina’s Los Glaciares National Park, is seen here in an aerial veiw. "Every climber knows the photo of Cerro Torre," says Lama. "Cerro Torre's walls are like a mirror of human behavior. In order to realize my vision of free climbing this stunning needle, I myself had to take a close look at my reflection."
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Climber David Lama
Photograph by Lincoln Else, Red Bull Content Pool
After his successful first free-climbing ascent of the Compressor Route, Lama rappels off Cerro Torre just below the ice towers in Los Glaciares National Park on January 21, 2012.
"Two years the Patagonian storms whipped us out of the Torre Vally, but patience and commitment paid off in the end," he says.
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Climber David Lama
Photograph by Corey Rich, Red Bull Content Pool
After completing their objective on Cerro Torre, Lama and climbing partner Peter Ortner continued to climb in the region. Here they approach Nipo Nino in bad weather, knowing that the forecast is going to clear for their climb later.
"Formations of rime ice looking like giant wings of angels led our way down," says David Lama. "As beautiful as they might look, these instable sculptures can quickly transform into greedy vultures that cut your ropes or break your helmet."
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Kayaker Steve Fisher
Photograph by Greg von Doersten, Red Bull Content Pool
Congo Whitewater Kayaking Expedition leader Steve Fisher and kayaker Rush Sturges get caught in a 20-foot-wide whirlpool on the Congo River in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa. It was Fisher's dream to claim the first descent of the river's infamous Inga Rapids, the largest rapids in the world.
"If people forget everything else about me as a kayaker, in 50 years they will remember that Steve Fisher did the Inga,” says Fisher, a pioneer of freestyle kayaking who has been at the forefront of the sport since the 1990s.
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Kayaker Steve Fisher
Photograph by Greg von Doersten, Red Bull Content Pool
The Congo Whitewater Kayaking Expedition team—Fisher, Tyler Bradt, Ben Marr, and Rush Sturges—walks to the helicopter with armed security looking on, at the Inga Airstrip in Congo.
Referenced in explorer Henry Morton Stanley’s journal in 1877, the Congo River’s Inga Rapids were first run by Steve Fisher’s team at the end of October 2011. A documentary about the experience, Congo: The Grand Inga Project, came out last August.
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Kayaker Steve Fisher
Photograph by Greg von Doersten, Red Bull Content Pool
The team—Fisher, Bradt, Marr, and Sturges—kayak on the Itanda rapid (Class V) on the White Nile River in Uganda. The all-star kayakers practiced and prepared for the Congo's Inga Rapids on the White Nile.
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Humanitarian Shannon Galpin
Photograph by Travis Beard
In 2006, Shannon Galpin founded Mountain2Mountain, a nonprofit dedicated to creating education and possibilities for women in conflict regions. She picked Afghanistan because of its high infant mortality, years of extreme religious rule, and history of war.
Galpin mountain biked 140 miles across the Panjshir Valley in 2010. In Afghanistan, women cannot ride bikes because of laws and social customs, a fact that Galpin believes has hindered women’s education by preventing them from traveling independently to school. As a foreign woman, Galpin was able to cross this boundary and turn it into a conversation starter. Here she rides past decaying Soviet-era tanks just inside the gates of the Panjshir Valley.
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Humanitarian Shannon Galpin
Photograph by Travis Beard
On her 140-mile ride across the Panjshir Valley in October 2010, Galpin crossed this river twice after being forced to turn around before attempting to ride up 14,000-foot Anjuman Pass, which marks the border of Panjshir Province. A sheepherder had warned her that there were gunrunners from a neighboring province in the mountains ahead. The decision to turn around was easily made.
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Humanitarian Shannon Galpin
Photograph by Tony Di Zinno
In late October 2012, five locations in and around Kabul came alive with life-size photos in a street art exhibition called "Streets of Afghanistan." Security was a serious concern. The day Galpin brought the show to Istalif, a remote village north of Kabul, a suicide bomber killed 41 people in the northern province of Fayrab.“This is an example of using art as activism and photography as voice,” says Galpin. “Just because there is daily violence doesn’t mean there isn’t daily life.”
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Artist Renan Ozturk
Photograph by Jimmy Chin
Renan Ozturk looks up the route from his team's highest portaledge camp at 20,000 feet on the Shark's Fin in the Garhwal Himalaya, India. Ozturk's team would go on to complete the first ascent of this peak. Ozturk was still recovering from cranial and spinal fractures sustained in a near lethal skiing accident in Wyoming’s Tetons almost six months earlier.
This particular ledge was a custom-built design so the team members could sleep comfortably side-by-side. It broke early on, but they were able to rig it back together with a piton from a previous attempt. Then they taped a few ice screws as splints and hoped for the best.
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Artist Renan Ozturk
Photograph by Jimmy Chin
Exhausted, Ozturk contemplates the long descent of the Shark's Fin of Meru in the Indian Garhwal Himalaya after making the summit. Reaching the top is only half of the climb.
Climbers consider the descent dangerous because they are usually depleted and dehydrated. That's when mistakes happen and lives are lost. "It felt vulnerable, like being in outer space," says Ozturk. With a spectacular striped color sunset over the twin summits of Shivling in the background, the team continued to rappel into the darkness below.
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Artist Renan Ozturk
Photograph by Jimmy Chin
Ozturk works on a large canvas painting in base camp on his first Meru Expedition in 2008. "The expedition landscape has always inspired me to create art during adventures," he says. "Although these days it usually takes shape as film and video, it is all rooted in traditional canvas compositions created in the field."
Ozturk's materials are completely mixed media, everything from watercolors to acrylic to materials found during his travel. The canvas is raw and unstretched so he can roll it up in an expedition duffel for travel.
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Artist Renan Ozturk
Photograph courtesy Camp 4 Collective
During his first ascent of Alaska's Tooth Traverse with Freddie Wilkinson, Ozturk used a gyro-mounted camera system called a cineflex, which was mounted to a helicopter. Part of their goal was to capture the beauty of the Ruth Gorge from the air.
Climber, photographer, and cartographer Brad Washburn conducted the first aerial photographic survey of the Great Ruth Gorge in Alaska. The images he captured of this little known, awe-inspiring wilderness have proven as enduring as Ansel Adams’s iconographic shots of Yosemite Valley. By shooting the cineflex and capturing their first ascent with this technology, Ozturk and Wilkinson were paying homage to the Washburn ethos of photography and adventure for a short film to be released on the Internet later this winter.
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Snowboarder Jeremy Jones
Photograph by Dan Milner
Snowboarder Jeremy Jones descends between the rime-coated rocks of a couloir on the Norwegian archipelago Svalbard just 600 miles from the North Pole. The expedition, one of several featured in his new film Further, took the sport of snowboarding to new limits.
“There is no longer anywhere in the world that I consider too hard to get to,” says the big-mountain snowboarder.
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Snowboarder Jeremy Jones
Photograph by Jeff Hawe
In 2012, for his latest film project, Further, Jones navigated winds capable of knocking a rider from his feet, lived for days on end in subzero temperatures, and negotiated some of the most challenging avalanche terrain on the planet.
In this shot, Jones is touring on a back ridge in Alaska's Wrangell Mountains. He and his team had climbed onto the ridge on foot, then switched their snowboards back to split mode to cross the glacier on top of the ridge. By this point they were off the ice, so Jones is unroped.
Their objective was a line on the southeast aspect of this ridge. At this point they were approaching the main climb. Ultimately they were turned back by a vertical wall of broken ice and had to opt for another route down.
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Snowboarder Jeremy Jones
Photograph by Jeff Hawe
While shooting Further, Jones rode the "Bunny Hill Spines," so called because they were the mellowest on the face. They give perspective to just how steep the terrain was in this part of Alaska's Wrangell Mountains. At this point Jones is feeling out the snow conditions on safer zones, yet still riding fast and hard.
Photos, Interviews, More!
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Photo Gallery: They Did It!
Surfing the best wave, kayaking the largest rapids, free climbing the hardest mountain, landing the first sit-ski backflip, free-falling faster than sound. These are just some of the feats of this year's honorees. View the photos.
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Meet the Adventurers
From a snowboarder advocating against climate change to an artist bringing back stories from the vertical world, these ten people are adventure innovators, each in his or her own way. Read the interviews.
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Fall/Winter Gear of the Year
Lighter, tougher, and smarter—that's what characterizes this season's best gear. See our 24 selections.
