Owen Clarke

Owen Clarke is a veteran outdoor sports journalist who has written for Outside since 2019. As Outside’s news reporter, he frequently covers public land management, search-and-rescue operations, and human-wildlife interactions, and he also has a decade of experience reporting on technical rock and ice climbing, high-altitude mountaineering, and adventure motorcycling. Clarke is also a frequent contributor to Climbing, a contributing editor for Summit Journal, and the Africa and Brazil editor for the American Alpine Journal. He was formerly a contributing editor and columnist for Rock and Ice, and a regular contributor to the motorcycle magazine Iron & Air. His work has also appeared in Mountain Gazette, Imagine5, Travel + Leisure, Backpacker, SKI, and Trail Runner, among dozens of other outdoor, environmental, and adventure travel publications.

Latest Stories

Exploration & Survival

They Kept a Perfectly Clean Camp. A Black Bear Attacked Their Tent Anyway.

Two Wyoming campers did everything right—keeping food out of their tents and using deterrents—but a black bear refused to back down.

July 9, 20261

Environment

Arizona Officials Just Voted to Allow More Arsenic in the Grand Canyon Water

Over intense opposition from the Havasupai Tribal Council, state officials quietly reclassified a request from the Pinyon Plain uranium mine to adjust acceptable levels of toxic chemicals in a critical shared aquifer.

July 8, 20266

Everest

There’s a Plan to Remove Mount Everest’s Most Famous Dead Body

The Indian government has definitively identified the mountain's most famous dead body. Now comes the dangerous, expensive reality of hacking him out of the ice.

July 3, 20266

Environment

A Tourist Destroyed a Sacred Hopi Artifact at the Grand Canyon. NPS Issued an Urgent Manhunt to Find Him.

Law enforcement is asking the public for assistance in identifying an older male visitor who climbed on historic furniture for a photo, destroying a sacred piece of Hopi artwork inside the Desert View Watchtower. An expert explains why the destroyed artwork is an irreplaceable piece of Grand Canyon history.

July 2, 2026

Water Sports

America’s Deadliest National Park Site Just Quietly Suspended Its Dive Team

Facing severe staffing shortages and equipment issues, the National Park Service has quietly dismantled its underwater recovery team at America's highest-fatality recreation area.

June 24, 20261

Hiking

Colorado Just Suffered Its First Bear Attack of 2026 After a Hiker Was Stalked for 30 Minutes

A black bear trailed a hiker in Golden, Colorado, for half an hour. She did everything right and was still attacked, marking the state's first attack of 2026.

June 23, 2026

Water Sports

100 People Have Been Rescued Along the California Coast in the Last Week. Here’s How to Stay Safe.

A massive summer surf anomaly shattered records from L.A. to San Francisco. A veteran water rescue chief wants you to know this before setting foot on the sand.

June 18, 2026

Water Sports

Low Water, No Problem. We Took a Packraft Down One of the Most Remote (and Stunning) Rivers in the West.

The Lower Owyhee River in eastern Oregon is remote, tough to access, and impossibly beautiful. Writer Owen Clarke recently tagged along on an packrafting trip down the river during its dry season.

June 17, 20262

Climbing

Legendary Extreme Athlete "Sketchy Andy" Lewis Has Died at Age 39

Pioneering slackliner and world record holder Andrew "Sketchy Andy" Lewis has died in a BASE-jumping accident in Moab, Utah.

June 15, 2026

Water Sports

A Fisherman Wrestling a Great White Shark Was Caught on Video. Experts Say He Did the Right Thing.

Elliot Sudal landed a juvenile great white shark while fishing from the beach. Sudal quickly wrestled the shark to the shallows, removed the hook, and dragged it back out to sea.

June 12, 2026

Climbing

After a Fatal Climbing Accident in Wisconsin, a Spotlight on This Piece of Safety Gear

The midwest climbing community is mourning the tragic loss of Audrie Pelosi, who died while guiding at Devil’s Lake State Park in Wisconsin

June 10, 2026

Exploration & Survival

Everything We Know About the Young Hiker Who Just Died in the Grand Canyon

After a young man collapsed on the Bright Angel Trail, rangers are reiterating a stark warning: Never underestimate the psychological and physiological trap of hiking into the Grand Canyon.

June 8, 2026

Environment

Hikers Keep Pooping Along a Pristine Colorado Trail. Now There's a Plan to Clean It Up.

Trail workers are removing years of accumulated human waste from one of the state's most beloved alpine destinations as new regulations require hikers to pack out what they leave behind.

June 5, 20265

Environment

The Trump Administration Asked for Tips on Park Signage. It Got Thousands of Roasts Instead.

When a new executive order put QR codes in parks asking visitors to flag "disparaging" history, 35,000 people wrote back. A Sierra Club lawsuit shows they brought receipts—and plenty of sarcasm.

June 3, 2026

Exploration & Survival

Fewer People Are Dying in National Parks. The Ones Who Do Tend to Share This Trait.

National Park Service data shows a significant drop in fatalities from the pandemic peak, but one group of people makes up an overwhelming majority of those deaths. Plus, five parks make up one-quarter of all deaths.

June 2, 20263

Environment

A New Map Grades How Your Lawmakers Voted on National Parks and Public Lands Issues

A new accountability tool shows exactly how every member of Congress voted on national parks, forests, and wilderness areas—stripping away the political noise. Here’s how to see whether your representatives are in support of public lands.

May 20, 2026

Environment

After Recent National Park Bear Attacks, Zinke Wants to Delist Grizzlies. Experts Say It Won't Help.

After recent grizzly encounters in Glacier and Yellowstone left one dead and two injured, Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke says it's time for states to manage the predators. Top wildlife biologists call the political push misleading.

May 18, 2026

Climbing

This Daredevil Was Set to Make Wingsuit History. Then a Snake Bit Him.

Tim Howell spent years preparing to jump from a 27,230-foot-high point in the Himalayas. A routine walk in the French Alps brought his historic expedition to a sudden halt.

May 15, 20261

Exploration & Survival

This Canyoneer Fell 30 Feet Off a Cliff. He Had a Poodle Strapped to His Chest.

A routine descent in Utah's San Rafael Swell turned into a nightmare when a specialized anchor gave way. Miraculously, both the 33-year-old canyoneer and his canine companion walked away from the 30-foot drop.

May 14, 20262

Everest

"She Came Alive in the Mountains." Friends and Family Remember American Mountaineer Shelley Johannesen.

American mountaineer Shelley Johannesen, 53, had just stood on the summit of the world's fifth-highest peak. On the descent, a highly unusual wind slab avalanche swept her and her team down the mountain, marking a tragic and rare event for the 27,838-foot giant.

May 13, 20261

Your Privacy Choices

Owen Clarke

Latest Stories

They Kept a Perfectly Clean Camp. A Black Bear Attacked Their Tent Anyway.

Arizona Officials Just Voted to Allow More Arsenic in the Grand Canyon Water

There’s a Plan to Remove Mount Everest’s Most Famous Dead Body

A Tourist Destroyed a Sacred Hopi Artifact at the Grand Canyon. NPS Issued an Urgent Manhunt to Find Him.

America’s Deadliest National Park Site Just Quietly Suspended Its Dive Team

Colorado Just Suffered Its First Bear Attack of 2026 After a Hiker Was Stalked for 30 Minutes

100 People Have Been Rescued Along the California Coast in the Last Week. Here’s How to Stay Safe.

Low Water, No Problem. We Took a Packraft Down One of the Most Remote (and Stunning) Rivers in the West.

Legendary Extreme Athlete "Sketchy Andy" Lewis Has Died at Age 39

A Fisherman Wrestling a Great White Shark Was Caught on Video. Experts Say He Did the Right Thing.

After a Fatal Climbing Accident in Wisconsin, a Spotlight on This Piece of Safety Gear

Everything We Know About the Young Hiker Who Just Died in the Grand Canyon

Hikers Keep Pooping Along a Pristine Colorado Trail. Now There's a Plan to Clean It Up.

The Trump Administration Asked for Tips on Park Signage. It Got Thousands of Roasts Instead.

Fewer People Are Dying in National Parks. The Ones Who Do Tend to Share This Trait.

A New Map Grades How Your Lawmakers Voted on National Parks and Public Lands Issues

After Recent National Park Bear Attacks, Zinke Wants to Delist Grizzlies. Experts Say It Won't Help.

This Daredevil Was Set to Make Wingsuit History. Then a Snake Bit Him.

This Canyoneer Fell 30 Feet Off a Cliff. He Had a Poodle Strapped to His Chest.

"She Came Alive in the Mountains." Friends and Family Remember American Mountaineer Shelley Johannesen.

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