Author: diverseskills

Nik Wallenda crossing gorge on tightrope; Update: Makes it

http://twitter.com/#!/NikWallenda/status/348933425178238976

That will be Nik Wallenda’s final tweet before hopefully arriving safely on the other side of the Little Colorado River Gorge.

Update: Wallenda tweets from the other side:

http://twitter.com/#!/NikWallenda/status/348985106796531712

Previously:

More on the story from CBS News:

Daredevil Nik Wallenda is using the Navajo Nation as a backdrop to one of his most ambitious feats yet — crossing a tightrope 1,500 feet above the Little Colorado River Gorge near the Grand Canyon.

The 34-year-old Sarasota, Fla., resident will set out Sunday on a quarter-mile cable stretched over the gorge that was eyed by another high-wire performer decades ago. The stunt comes a year after he traversed Niagara Falls earning a seventh Guinness world record. He’ll be using the same 2-inch-thick cable he used to cross the falls, only this time he won’t be wearing a safety harness.

The crossing is airing live on the Discovery Channel with a delay. Wallenda isn’t wearing a safety harness like he was when he crossed Niagra Falls, and there is no safety net:

http://twitter.com/#!/brianstelter/status/348960942974963713 http://twitter.com/#!/abcactionnews/status/348934764369154049

Twitter is buzzing with comments about Wallenda’s attempt. Laura Ingraham kicks it off with a reminder that a lot of people can relate to this:

http://twitter.com/#!/IngrahamAngle/status/348958430784020480

Indeed!

More reaction (most recent to oldest):

http://twitter.com/#!/cucciMANIA/status/348984535599439873 http://twitter.com/#!/acsayre/status/348983515012009984 http://twitter.com/#!/anjanettenic/status/348981845351882753 http://twitter.com/#!/SimonWells_17/status/348968916061667328 http://twitter.com/#!/RubyLoveK/status/348968904233730048 http://twitter.com/#!/Discovery_Bruce/status/348966065642029056 http://twitter.com/#!/barbaquesauce/status/348966045253521408 http://twitter.com/#!/LadyGlitzDiane/status/348964554182627329 http://twitter.com/#!/smowaswas/status/348964218462146560 http://twitter.com/#!/JoeCoots/status/348964212464304130 http://twitter.com/#!/devsav96/status/348963742601588736 http://twitter.com/#!/ladymcclendon/status/348963033869066241 http://twitter.com/#!/MurphyKeith/status/348957939110932480 http://twitter.com/#!/WVLTBob/status/348955728314249216

Twitchy will post updates as Wallenda’s crossing proceeds.

Editor’s note: This post has been updated with additional tweets.

Read more: http://twitchy.com/2013/06/23/see-you-on-the-other-side-nik-wallenda-crossing-gorge-near-grand-canyon-on-tightrope/

What One Hiker Found In The Mountains of Tennessee Is Beyond Incredible.

While hiking in Tennessee’s Great Smoky Mountains National Park, hiker Jordan Liles discovered something you probably wouldn’t expect to find in the middle of a nature preserve: an entire town, completely abandoned, and being reclaimed by nature. 

The Wonderland Hotel Annex

Jordan Liles

A cottage, heavily damaged.

Jordan Liles

The town is, or was, named Elkmont, and is now referred to as being part of the Elkmont Historic District. It’s located on the still-active Elkmont Campground, in the park. Since it was built in the early 20th century, the site has been home to a hotel and resort community, and, before that, to a pioneer community and logging town. 

The hotel in the early 1900s.

Jordan Liles, via Great Smoky Mountains National Park
The fountain’s foundation can still be found on the property.

The dining room of the hotel in about 1990, two years before closing.

Jordan Liles, via Great Smoky Mountains National Park
At this time, there were only six property holders left at Wonderland.

To get there, Liles went about a mile up an old gravel road inside the park and entered the abandoned community. It consists of houses and a large hotel, called the Wonderland Hotel and built in 1912. The hotel, and the surrounding houses, became known as the “Wonderland Club,” and were used as exclusive vacation properties in the 1920s and 30s. When the land became a federal park in the 30s, the owners of the cottages were given lifetime leases, so they could keep enjoying their vacation homes. However, the park officials eventually got tired of dealing with the properties, and the lifetime leases became 20-year leases in 1952. By 1992, the park refused to renew the leases, and the hotel and cottages were slated for removal. However, some people considered the buildings historical, and a debate over their fate would go on for the next fifteen years. 

For now, it looks like the Wonderland Club has been spared, though the buildings are falling quickly into disrepair. Restoration efforts would more than likely go into the neighboring Appalachian Club, whose buildings are older as well as more historically significant to the area. 

The Wonderland Annex, which is the only part of the hotel that remains standing.

Jordan Liles
Jordan Liles
Jordan Liles
Jordan Liles
Jordan Liles

This sign provides hikers with information about the Wonderland Club.

Jordan Liles

Luckily for us, though, Liles had his camera with him when he rediscovered the Wonderland Club, so even if the buildings deteriorate or are removed, we’ll always have a record of them. Liles compiled his footage into a 22-minute documentary called ‘Tennessee Wonderland,” in which he explores the buildings, including some of the cottages and the Wonderland Annex, which is the standing structure of the hotel. The main hotel collapsed in 2005 after being damaged by a fire a decade earlier, and its remains have been dismantled. 

Be sure to watch it until the end, where you can see images of the Wonderland Club throughout the years, including then-and-now comparison photos. 

Read more: http://viralnova.com/tennessee-wonderland/