Oh Poop! Hikers Have to Pack it Out on Whitney

Three other hikers in a separate group were rescued

(NEWSER) - Three hikers were rescued from California’s Mt. Whitney yesterday, but two more remain missing. Heavy snow and extreme weather battered the area, reducing visibility and dropping temperatures near the peak to 20 degrees, CNN reports. The two who are still missing, a father and son originally from Iran, were hiking the 36-mile trail with a friend, who became ill and returned early. Sinh Baghsohi, 27, and his father were due back Tuesday. More»

But Tehran has made promises in the past

(NEWSER) - Iran will allow the mothers of the three American hikers who have been in custody for nearly a year to visit their children. Tehran has ordered its UN mission to issue visas for the three moms, the AP reports, but no date has been has been set. Iran has told the families before that they would receive visas and then failed to deliver. More»

(NEWSER) - Backpacker combed through info on outdoor programs and proximity to national forests and parks to find the best cities in the US to raise active, crunchy kids. The results:

• Boulder, Colo.: "Yes, we live here, but Boulder wins on its merits." Close to woods, glaciers, and mountains, the population of 94,673 has been named "Smartest" and "Most Livable" by Forbes.

(NEWSER) - The summer solstice is upon us, but for certain enthusiasts, today bears a different name: Naked Hiking Day. “No way to explain it until you experience it,” one fan told the AP. “Traditional” hikers might feel the same upon encountering backpackers in the buff. “It’s just rude,” one Appalachian Trail official said. “People are out there hiking with their kids and families.” More»

Deep in the Alps, a village encounters influx of naked visitors

(NEWSER) - Appenzell is a remote, conservative town in the Swiss Alps; it has just 5,600 residents, makes famed cheese, and finally awarded women the right to vote in 1990. Yet in recent years, a growing number of Swiss and foreign visitors have taken to hiking through the mountains wearing nothing more than boots and a backpack. The town is struggling to understand why nude hiking has taken off—and as the New York Times reports, seems powerless to stop it. More»