Strap in and let’s kick off 2026 with another week of humans testing nature’s limits—sometimes beautifully, sometimes tragically—in all the places we love!
As our StokedAF newsletter grows, we are stoked to announce our goal to bring you the STOKE twice a week!
But first, meet and greet our new crag pup, Luna!
Calculating risk, all year long! 🪂
📍 Global
You know him on social media as Adrenaline Addiction, Chase Reinfeld’s 2025 highlight reel Full Send will make you rethink everything you know about a life on the edge!
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Length: 3 minutes
🧗 The ever so graceful, Lynn Hill!
📍 Boulder, Colorado, USA
Just body and mind. In this short clip, Lynn flows smoothly across a stout climb (5.13) out on the Flatirons.
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Length: 2 minutes
Riding waves and shaping art 🏄🏼♂️ + 🎨
📍 Northwest Australia
A loner in the outback. Flowing Wood is a thoughtful look at life on the surfboard and the meaning of art.
In the words of Dean Gregory: “Paint country, on country, with country”
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Length: 9 minutes
⚡ Bonus News
🥾 Continental Divide Trail thru-hiker survey. The results are in: who they are, what they spent, what wrecked them, and what kept them moving north (or south).
🧗♀️ Jenya Kazbekova sends Necessary Evil. Four months after giving birth, Ukrainian climber shows the world what powerful is.
🎿 Gender testing in skiing & snowboarding. USOPC controversy raises serious questions about fairness, science, and who gets to decide.
⚠️ Slackline helicopter tragedy in Arizona. A kilometer-long highline slung between two mountains in a narrow valley caused the accident.
❄️ Keep an eye on Alaska’s newest ski resort. Skeetawk’s new snowmaking system shows how community resorts are gaining skiable acreage.
🐍 Remembering De la Torre Loranca. The recent disappearance of a Mexican biologist and herpetologist marks a profound loss for conservation and science.
📚 Sit Back & Go Deep — Long Reads
🧗 Venezuela’s Tepuis – Gran Sabana Adventure
While Venezuela plasters the news cycle, let’s travel to the towering tepuis of Venezuela’s Gran Sabana. This piece follows an expedition from the jungle approach and remote Indigenous lands to some of the most isolated big walls in the Amazon basin. The adventure comes with layers of history, politics, and consequence.🛶 Kayak Polo Is Real (And Intense)
Yes, it’s a thing. Part water polo, part rugby, part chaos—kayak polo is one of paddling’s most intense and least understood disciplines. Explore the sport’s origins, its tight-knit global community, and why it demands as much tactical thinking as physical toughness. Once you see it played well, it’s hard to look away.🎿 Abandoned Japan Ski Resort
When the Japow stopped delivering, these guys decided to explore a long-abandoned Japanese ski resort. It starts as exploration and turns into problem solving skiing—equal parts sketchy and unforgettable. Watch it here!
🌍 Suffering from FOMO?
This is where YOU should be RIGHT NOW
🇪🇨 Climbing in Ecuador 🧗♀️
📍 Cojitambo, Cuenca, Ecuador
As tropical South America comes into the dry season, think Ecuador and Colombia for your escape from northern hemisphere’s winter.
If you’re chasing vertical terrain with variety, Cojitambo delivers. Under an hour from Cuenca, this volcanic cliff system rises ~500 ft and hosts over 130 sport and multi-pitch routes on volcanic rock, mixing slab, face, and more sustained climbing with stunning panoramic views and Inca archaeological ruins nearby.
Or make it a Ecuador trip and visit more of the country’s many crags.
🇰🇪 High in Africa: Mt. Kenya 🏔️
📍 Central Highliands, Kenya
January is prime season on Africa’s second-highest peak, where backpackers trek through bamboo forest and high moorlands while climbers tackle exposed alpine rock on Batian and Nelion. One mountain delivers two adventures—serious wilderness hiking and technical climbing—without the crowds of Kilimanjaro.
🔗 Planning the climb or trek:
https://www.mountainiq.com/guides/climbing-mount-kenya/
🎥 See it in motion:
We leave you with the bootpackers working hard in Aspen’s Highlands Bowl, breaking down the layers of snow to reduce avalanche danger.
Video by Sam Axness!
💥 Stay Stoked. Stay Wild.
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See you on the next send!
❤️🔥 The StokedAF fam 🤘