Our Giants of the Pamir Trekking Holiday in China takes 19 days and is NEW to our Trip List for 2013. Starting out from the former Silk Road oasis and trading post of Kashgar, this radical trekking adventure forges a route across high passes beneath the twin Pamirs peaks of Kongur (7720m) and Mustagh Ata (7646m).

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Indian Ocean, our Beaches and Baobabs of Northern Madagascar will take you on a 13 day Discovery Holiday. Again NEW for 2013 and with its distinctive indigenous wildlife and welcoming human population, whose language has its origins in distant Polynesia, Madagascar is a land apart. Few visitors make it to the north of this vast island, where spectacular landscapes, endless beaches and much of that incredible wildlife can be found.

To find out more or book onto on either of these holidays click on the links in the text above or below OR give one of our friendly Sales Team a call on 017687 73966.

>> View Giants of the Pamir Trekking Holiday

>> View Beaches and Baobabs of Northern Madagascar Discovery Holiday

Kazakhstan climbers win gold in Mountaineering World Championship's High Altitude class

Three renowned Kazakhstan Mountain climbers became gold winners of the Mountaineering World Championship in High Altitude competitions class. Vassily Pivtsov (leader of the team), Ildar Gabassov and Alexander Sofrygin scored 7 points for their ascent of Khan Tengri peak (6 995 meters) along the center of the North Face, a 6B difficulty route.

They made the ascent on August 12-20. It was the first successful climb of the mountain's North Face since 2005.

A westerner has never climbed a direct line on the wall. The route posed a serious challenge even for the seasoned climbers from mountainous Kazakhstan. Especially since conditions were definitely not favourable this season.

Vassily Pivtsov, the leader of the team, is quoted as saying that "the aim was to make the line of ascent as close as possible to a directissima following the logic of terrain and maximizing the beauty of the route", meaning that the line of ascent was to be as close to be direct line from the bottom of the wall's triangle to its top as possible.

The climbers set seven camps on the wall during the ascent. The first one was located at 5000, the last one, just before the summit, at the height of 6950.

The ascent was greatly complicated by massive amounts of snow on the face of the mountain this year. "The wall remained white the entire season, it never turned black, there was too much snow in the whole region. Two strong teams cancelled their attempts due to excess snow at the south side of Pobeda, in the Khan Tengri region. Only four climbers summited Pobeda this season. Even on the normal route from the north side of Khan Tengri, there were unusually few successful attempts. The weather was cold in general and there was lots of snow."

Ukraine's Dmitry Venslavovsky (leader), Vladimir Klebansky, Dmitry Romanenko, Fyodor Mityukhin (coach) were ranked second. They ascended Khan Tengri from the South-West Face and along the left side of South-East Ridge of the mountain and scored 4.82 points for their 5B difficulty route.

Russia's mountain climbing team that consisted of its leader and coach Andrey Lebedev, Mikhail Babich, Ivan Zhdanov, Vladimir Lavrinenko and Yuriy Maksimovich, became third in the class. The Russian mountain climbers got 4.52 points for their ascent of Lenin Peak (7 134 meters) along the South-West Face of the Western Ridge, 5A difficulty route, first ascent.

Azerbaijan's mountain climbers got the fourth and fifth places. Sirkhan Mamedov (leader and coach), Rufat Godzhayev, Firuz Dadashov scored 2.7 points for the ascent of Ismail Samani peak (7 495 meters) from the north center of Walter Glacier, 5A difficulty route. And Ismail Askerov (leader and coach) and Rufat Godzhayev ascended Lenin Peak (7 134 meters) from the north side via Razdelnaya Peak and scored 2.06 points for their 5A difficulty route.

For more information see: http://en.tengrinews.kz/sport/Alpinism-Kazakhstan-mountain-climbers-won-gold-Mountaineering-World-14821/

>> View Trekking in Kazakhstan to see the land that made the Champions

 What's at stake?

The rolling deserts and rocky red mountains of Namibia are a place of stark beauty. Half a century ago, this vast area of southwest Africa was rich in charismatic wildlife, including rare desert elephants, lions, leopards, cheetahs, giraffes, zebras and black rhino.

But during the 1970s and 80s, a huge rise in poaching caused a dramatic fall in wildlife numbers. Drought and military occupation meant the prospects were also bleak for the country's human inhabitants, who today number 2 million.

The story so far

After gaining independence from South Africa in 1990, Namibia became the first country in Africa to incorporate environmental protection into its constitution. The government passed a law enabling communities to set up "conservancies", giving them the right to manage and benefit from their own natural resources.

WWF has worked with Namibian partners to provide training, grants, technical assistance and practical solutions to help communities protect their land and manage it sustainably. Even those not conservationists by nature understood that their well-being was linked to the environment.

So far, 235,000 people across Namibia have joined together to create some 59 special conservation areas, which protect 132,000 sq km of vital wildlife habitat - one-sixth of Namibia's land area. More than 30 more are in the planning stages. In just over two decades we've helped our Namibian partners to double the amount of protected space - and wildlife is thriving. In Kunene, one of the regions where we work, elephant numbers have tripled compared to the early 1980s, while giraffes have increased fivefold.

In 1982, Kunene was home to as few as 400 oryx, 600 springboks and 450 zebras. Now there are around 29,000 oryx, 175,000 springboks and 18,800 zebras. Their recovery has led to big increases in the number of predators, including lions, leopards and cheetahs.

Local people benefit as a result. The conservation areas bring in more than US$5.5m a year, and the communities that manage the land benefit from jobs ranging from ecotourism to gathering ingredients for upmarket perfumes. And because everyone benefits from preserving the region's amazing animals, poachers are no longer welcome.

Did you know? Rhinos have poor eyesight, but an excellent sense of smell.

Facts and stats

· 47% - increase in wildlife sightings in Namibia since 2004.

· 132,000 sq km - land already protected by communities in the country.

· 59 - conservation areas set up to protect wildlife.

To visit this amazing place go to >>KE Adventure Namibia Highlights Tour

Travel Blogger of the year is Emily Chappell, starting her life as a Cycle courier she now cycles and blogs all over the World..

'Hello - I'm Emily. On September the 1st 2011 I left to cycle around the world. For the last three years I've been working as a cycle courier in London, England, and blogging about it as That Messenger Chick . I've never enjoyed a job so much, or stuck with it so long, but there's very little career development in couriering, so I'm delighted to have found something else that will enable me to cycle and write full-time. (Luckily, I never wanted to be rich.)'

To read more go to thatemilychappell.com

Here at KE Adventure we love a good blog, it helps us to travel vicariously through others when we're sitting at our desks. It inspires our thirst for new journeys and helps us to reminisce over old ones. On our website we have an area dedicated to Blogs for KE clients, leaders, staff and YOU. We also have a prize for the best blog - Cotswold Outdoor are offering £100 worth of gift vouchers to the best blog for 2012. So get blogging and make sure you ‘share' you blogs on all your social media sites to get as much of a buzz going as possible, it all helps to increase your chances of winning the £100.

>> Go to http://blog.keadventure.com/

>> View all cycling and mountain biking holidays

The American archaeologist and historian took to Yale some 46,000 ceramics, bone fragments and metal pieces.The first and second lots of artefacts arrived back in Peru last year.The best pieces will now be on display in a newly built museum in nearby Cusco.

The citadel of Machu Picchu, located 2,500m (8,200ft) above sea level, was built in the 15th Century by the Incas. It is Peru's main tourist attraction, attracting more than 1 million visitors a year.

Vibrant and spirited, Latin America holds a continuing fascination for adventure travellers. From Central America, through the Andes of Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, to the tip of Patagonia, we have a range of holidays to suit everyone. Climb Aconcagua, or Bolivia's Illimani - trek the Inca trail to Machu Picchu or around the Torres del Paine - bike from Lake Titicaca to Cusco or test yourself on Guatemala's incredible single-track. Whatever your adventure, it all comes with a unique Latin American flavour and colour.

 >> View all Latin American Holidays

Obama's visit will be further strong endorsement by the international community of Burma's transformation under the quasi-civilian government of Thein Sein. Thein Sein took office in March 2011 ending half a century of military rule. Obama will be the first serving US president to visit Burma.

Burma grew close to China during decades of isolation, reinforced by western sanctions over its poor human rights record, but is now seeking to expand relations with the west.

For KE Adventure Travel, this leaves us hopeful that we can continue to offer this beautiful part of the World as a place for you to experience.

>> View Hidden Himalaya of Burma Trek
>> View Temples and Trails of Burma

As always, KE is giving you the opportunity to go on an adventure to this exotic region. We have a new cycling holiday in our 2013 Brochure. Over a total of 16 days, cycling for 9 of them and covering 281 miles, this classic Himalayan journey will take you to the remote northern district of Kashmir.

Staying in the ‘legendary' houseboats on Dal Lake for the last 2 days, you will have time to reflect on the cliff-side monasteries, the high passes of Fotu La (4108m) and Zoji La that offer spectacular ascents and descents, old market towns and glaciers that you have had the privilege of experiencing!

A mountain bike with semi-slick tyres, a good level of stamina and fitness and a sense of adventure are required for this cycling holiday. There will be a support vehicle and KE Leader always available.

Not on our website YET but featured in our 2013 Brochure and with dates available in August and September 2013, you can book now.

 >>View all our Cycling Holidays

>>View our 2013 Biking Brochure

We took delivery last week. So our Glossy, 148 page Adventure Brochure, bursting with Adventure Holidays to faraway (and some not so far-away) places, is ready and raring to go. With over 30 new trips and a steady selection of old favourites there should be something to keep your ‘itchy feet happy'.

Our bigger and bolder 2013 Family & Biking brochures have also just been released. If you haven't got one but would like one, click on the link below.

>> To Order & View KE Adventure, Family & Bike Brochures on-line

The Home Page now has new & revised tabs for Trek & Walk, Discovery (new for KE), Bike , Family , Winter , Climb & School . There's also a tab called ‘Holiday Types' so you can select a more specific holiday such as Wildlife & Safari or Multi Activity. They all have new icons so you can spot your favourite type of holiday more easily.

When you are searching for a holiday, you can now also search by Grade. Grades are numbered from 1 to 12 in order or ease, level of activity and technicality. So you can use this as a guide for picking the right type of holiday for you.

There are lots of new pictures to enjoy, we are adding new trips weekly and all the latest adventure news, blogs and top holidays are listed and updated regularly to keep you in touch with what is happening in our World.

New Discovery Holidays this week are our Kasbahs & Camels in Morocco and the Way of the Samurai in Japan.