Latest news with #Whitewater
Axios
6 days ago
- Axios
These wilderness retreats are a basecamp for your next adventure
Studies show back-to-back video calls and windowless weeks in offices are exhausting our minds, tiring our bodies and isolating us from the natural environments where we truly thrive. For Whitewater, the outdoors is the foundation for play and connection. The story: Whitewater, the nonprofit behind the U.S. National Whitewater Center in Charlotte, is expanding how you can access natural playgrounds across the Southeast with Adventure Lodging. Each lodge is an access point to nearby trails, rivers and outdoor recreation — the ideal basecamp for any adventure. Take note: Whitewater's Adventure Lodging network covers three Southeast locations, and here's what you'll find at each: 🌲 Big Creek Lodge in Mills River, NC Stay inside the Pisgah National Forest with direct access to some of the best hiking, trail running, mountain biking, fly fishing and gravel cycling on the East Coast. Fish Mills River, a freestone stream that flows through the six-acre property. Hike Pisgah National Forest with direct access to the Trace Ridge and North Mills River trail heads. Climb Looking Glass Rock with routes for all skill levels. Paddle miles of the French Broad River on flatwater kayaks or stand-up paddleboards. 🚵 Windfall in Lansing, NC This mountain retreat sits on a 215-acre farm overlooking Mt. Rodgers and the seven tallest peaks of Virginia. Explore Trail Town USA in Damascus, VA, where the Appalachian and Virginia Creeper trails intersect. Hike or bike sections of the Virginia Creeper Trail, perfect for families and experienced riders alike. Watch a live theater performance at the Barter Theater in Abingdon, VA – and while you're there, check out Abingdon Vineyards and Winery featuring live music on the banks of the Holsten River. 🎣 Middleburg in Huger, SC This centuries-old National Historic Landmark overlooks the banks of the Cooper River and includes the oldest surviving home across the Southern U.S. Fish or kayak along the channels of the Cooper River, accessible directly from Middleburg. Run or hike the Palmetto Trail through the Francis Marion National Forest. Plus, stay around the corner from the dining, arts, music and shopping that Charleston and Mount Pleasant have to offer. Worth a mention: Nightly stays range from $150 to $500 with accommodations for families, groups, weddings, events and more. The takeaway: Adventure farther — stay closer.
Zawya
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Zawya
Studio City Extends Toy Story Campaign with Splashing Summer Fun at Studio City Water Park
MACAU SAR - Media OutReach Newswire – 18 July 2025 - Studio City is excited to announce the extension of its popular Toy Story campaign, now making a big splash at Studio City Water Park. This summer, guests can enjoy a larger-than-life experience with their favorite Toy Story characters in a whole new setting. From now until October 31, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and their friends are diving into summer fun at Studio City Water Park. Guests of all ages can immerse themselves in an aquatic adventure featuring eight exclusive Toy Story -themed photo spots scattered through the indoor and outdoor areas. Highlights include a 6-meter-tall Woody and Buzz Lightyear installation, and a colorful display of 5,000 limited-edition floating themed balls in the active river - perfect for playful photo ops and summer memories. As Macau's premier entertainment destination, Studio City Water Park delivers unforgettable aquatic thrills with its space-themed indoor area and vibrant outdoor area. Designed by Whitewater—the global leader in water park innovation—the indoor area maintains a comfortable year-round 30°C temperature, ensuring perfect play conditions no matter the weather. And the excitement heats up in summer when families can enjoy exhilarating all-ages activities in the outdoor area. When it's time to take a break, the park's fantastic dining options make it easy and delicious to refuel and keep the energy up before the next thrilling ride. In addition to the all-new experience, Studio City Water Park now offers an exclusive premium package available during the campaign. This exclusive package* includes admission to the Studio City Water Park and specially designed limited-edition Toy Story merchandise such as Beach Bag, Waterproof Phone Pouch and Waterproof Phone Pouch, allowing guests to take home a lasting memento from their adventure. Whether you're a Toy Story superfan, a water lover or simply seeking a fun and refreshing way to cool off this summer, don't miss this chance to join Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and friends and make a splash at Studio City Water Park from now until October 31, 2025. For more information, please visit * Terms & Conditions apply Hashtag: #MelcoResortsandEntertainment The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement. Studio City
Malay Mail
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
Studio City Extends Toy Story Campaign with Splashing Summer Fun at Studio City Water Park
MACAU SAR - Media OutReach Newswire – 18 July 2025 -Studio City is excited to announce the extension of its popularcampaign, now making a big splash at Studio City Water Park. This summer, guests can enjoy a larger-than-life experience with their favoritecharacters in a whole new now until October 31, Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and their friends are diving into summer fun at Studio City Water Park. Guests of all ages can immerse themselves in an aquatic adventure featuring eight exclusive-themed photo spots scattered through the indoor and outdoor areas. Highlights include a 6-meter-tall Woody and Buzz Lightyear installation, and a colorful display of 5,000 limited-edition floating themed balls in the active river - perfect for playful photo ops and summer Macau's premier entertainment destination, Studio City Water Park delivers unforgettable aquatic thrills with its space-themed indoor area and vibrant outdoor area. Designed by Whitewater—the global leader in water park innovation—the indoor area maintains a comfortable year-round 30°C temperature, ensuring perfect play conditions no matter the weather. And the excitement heats up in summer when families can enjoy exhilarating all-ages activities in the outdoor area. When it's time to take a break, the park's fantastic dining options make it easy and delicious to refuel and keep the energy up before the next thrilling addition to the all-new experience, Studio City Water Park now offers an exclusive premium package available during the campaign. This exclusive package* includes admission to the Studio City Water Park and specially designed limited-editionmerchandise such as Beach Bag, Waterproof Phone Pouch and Waterproof Phone Pouch, allowing guests to take home a lasting memento from their you're asuperfan, a water lover or simply seeking a fun and refreshing way to cool off this summer, don't miss this chance to join Woody, Buzz Lightyear, and friends and make a splash at Studio City Water Park from now until October 31, more information, please visit Hashtag: #MelcoResortsandEntertainment The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
John Garcia uplifts local bands, weighs in on Kyuss reunion talk ahead of Pioneertown show
John Garcia doesn't carry himself like a rock star, even though he's one of the most defining voices to ever come out of the California desert. During a recent phone interview, the former Kyuss vocalist and Palm Springs resident expressed support for the local music scene and wanted to promote two local bands — Empty Seat and Whitewater — who are opening his homecoming show on Saturday, July 19 at Pappy and Harriet's. Garcia reiterated during our discussion that the Coachella Valley has a rich music scene beyond the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach country music festival. He said he chose Empty Seat and Whitewater to represent said music scene after watching them perform in a local battle of the bands contest that he judged last year. "I've been where they are, trying to get people to hear what you're doing, and if I can give them a platform, even for one night, I will. This show is more than me getting back on stage, it's about putting the spotlight on some of the best talent in the desert right now and showing people this scene is alive and well," Garcia said. Empty Seat lead vocalist Erin Marie said she appreciates Garcia for "seeing something special" in the band, which includes Anthony Ferrer (guitar), Matt King (bass) and Rickey Villalobos (drums). "This is a very competitive world, and it's hard to find people who want to bring other people up with them," she said. "We are very excited to open up for John, and I admire him for having so much passion for the desert music scene. He's the star here, but he is giving us the opportunity to shine. It's inspiring, and I too want to do this for others as we progress on our musical journey." Whitewater is led by former Pescaterritory guitarist Jason Zembo. According to the band's website, Whitewater was founded in 2023 and has already performed at notable venues, including the Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood and the House of Blues in Anaheim. Kyuss, which created the genre of desert rock, formed in 1987 in Palm Desert featuring Garcia, guitarist Josh Homme, bassist Chris Cockrell, rhythm guitarist/bassist Nick Oliveri and drummer Brant Bjork. Later members included bassist Scott Reeder and drummer Alfredo Hernández. The band blended punk, metal and classic rock into a signature sound and released four albums, and toured with bands such as Metallica and White Zombie before breaking up in 1995. Homme went on to form Queens of the Stone Age and cofounded Eagles of Death Metal with former Palm Desert resident Jesse Hughes. During a June 20 video interview featuring Garcia's former Kyuss bandmate and Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme by Kyuss World founder Nathan Lawver, Homme was asked about the likelihood of a Kyuss reunion and said, "It's possible." Garcia said that despite the stormy relationship between he and Homme following Kyuss' 1995 breakup and the 2012 lawsuit filed by Homme and former bassist Scott Reeder against him, drummer Brant Bjork and bassist Nick Oliveri for having toured under the name Kyuss Lives, he'd "welcome the call" from Homme. "If that call ever comes, unequivocally and undeniably, it's a big yes for me to share the stage with Josh, Scott Reeder, Nick Oliveri, Brant Bjork, and Alfredo Hernández. It would be a dream come true again. Will it happen? Who knows? Am I holding my breath? No. Life goes on with or without. Whatever has happened in the past is in the past, and I wish all of those gentlemen that I just mentioned nothing but the best," Garcia said. Looking back on the Kyuss breakup, Garcia said, "I've grown up and I'm a different person than I was back then." "The best thing that could have happened to me was Kyuss breaking up, that gave me the biggest slice of humble pie that I'd ever had jammed down my throat, and it was very good for me," Garcia said. After leaving Kyuss, Garcia continued to front new projects such as Slo Burn, Unida and Hermano and then as a solo artist. But his love for animals led to a full-time career as a veterinary technician at the Palm Springs Animal Hospital, where his wife Wendy also works. His backing band, which includes an all-star cast of local musicians such as former Dwarves drummer Greg Saenz, Yawning Man bassist Billy Cordell and guitarist John Bennet — also have day jobs. Saenz is a bartender at Tamarisk Country Club, Cordell is a certified yoga instructor and owns Bliss Chakra Spa in Palm Desert, and Bennet is an English teacher. Garcia noted that "the moons have to align just right" to secure approval from both bosses and spouses for this month-long North American tour. The tour began on June 26 in San Diego and includes stops in Sacramento, Seattle, Calgary and Denver, and concludes on July 19 at Pappy and Harriet's. "This tour is for everybody. I got off stage last night, went to the merchandise booth, took some pictures, signed some records and I was floored with the appreciation and was just so appreciative to have people still buying tickets," Garcia said. "Will I be packing my fishing pole? Yes, because I have to get some fishing in somewhere along the lines, this is also my vacation." Garcia said he hopes to have a new solo album ready in 2027 and the writing sessions have already begun. As for whether a Kyuss reunion happens or not, he seems more focused on the present and playing music on his terms. "If this is the last tour I ever do, I'd be content. But as long as there are people out there who want to hear the music, and as long as I'm healthy and having fun, I'll keep doing it," Garcia said. Returning to the desert and performing at Pappy and Harriet's feels personal. This will be his third time performing at the Pioneertown roadhouse. "It's home turf, and there's nothing like playing in front of friends, family and the community that shaped who I am. I still get nervous and excited. That doesn't go away, no matter how long you've been doing this," Garcia said. "Right now, I'm just thankful and can't wait to get back on that Pappy's stage. It's going to be a hell of a night." What: John Garcia and The Bastards Rata with Whitewater and Empty Seat When: 9:30 p.m. Saturday, July 19 Where: Pappy and Harriet's, 53-688 Pioneertown Road, Pioneertown Cost: 42.74 More info: Brian Blueskye covers arts and entertainment for the Desert Sun. He can be reached at This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: John Garcia: Kyuss reunion possibility, uplifting local bands
Boston Globe
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
David Gergen, Washington veteran who advised four presidents, dies at 83
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up For many Americans, the answer was no. Advertisement 'Rhetorical questions have great power,' Mr. Gergen said years later. 'It's one of those things that you sometimes strike gold,' he said. 'When you're out there panhandling in the river, occasionally you get a gold nugget.' Mr. Gergen mined as many of those nuggets as he could writing speeches, briefing news reporters, creating communications strategies, and helping to set the agenda for four presidents: Republicans Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, and Reagan, and then a Democrat, Bill Clinton. With Reagan, for instance, he was widely credited with softening the in-your-face conservative rhetoric that some of the president's far-right aides wanted in speeches. Clinton hired him in 1993 to help righten a White House weakened after a series of political missteps. Mr. Gergen helped, but he lasted barely a year — a poor fit in an administration where some regarded him as an interloper and in a divided capital where Republicans deemed him a turncoat. Advertisement Still, when Mr. Gergen bade government farewell in the mid-1990s, he was generally praised by the presidents he had served. Significantly, he was untainted by the troubles that undermined each of them — from the multitentacled Watergate scandal that forced Nixon's resignation to the cloud over Ford for pardoning Nixon, from the arms-for-cash operation known as Iran-Contra that damaged Reagan to the dubious Whitewater real estate investment that hurt Clinton. With Nixon, Mr. Gergen acknowledged that he had been slow to grasp the president's guilt. 'I was young, and I was too naive,' he told The Washington Post in 1981. 'It hardened me up a lot.' Years later, he expressed contempt for President-elect Donald Trump ('a bully — mean, nasty and disrespectful of anyone in his way,' he wrote in a 2021 column for CNN). 'Centrism doesn't mean splitting the difference,' he told The Boston Globe in 2020. 'It's about seeking solutions, and you bring people along. I'm happily in that role.' Mr. Gergen wore his 6-foot-5 frame comfortably and was graced with an easygoing manner, verbal quickness, and a ready laugh that made him popular with many White House reporters. He also leaked information often enough to be labeled 'the Sieve' by some of them. That reputation fed speculation that he was Deep Throat, the shadowy figure who provided the Post with insights into the Watergate scandal in the early 1970s. That source, however, was confirmed in 2005 to have been W. Mark Felt, the No. 2 official at the FBI. Advertisement Not every journalist was beguiled. Michael Kelly, who was killed in 2003 in the Iraq War, wrote a singularly harsh piece for The New York Times Magazine in 1993. 'To be Gergenized,' he said, 'is to be spun by the velveteen hum of this soothing man's soothing voice into a state of such vertigo that the sense of what is real disappears into a blur.' Mr. Gergen acknowledged to Kelly that he had often resorted to 'selling for the sake of selling.' The spin 'had nothing to do with ideas,' Mr. Gergen said. 'It had nothing to do with anything that was real. Eventually, it became selling the sizzle without the steak. There was nothing connected to it. It was all cellophane. It was all packaging.' His White House tenures intertwined with forays into journalism. In 1978, he became the managing editor of Public Opinion, a magazine published by the conservative American Enterprise Institute. In the mid-1980s, he was the editor of U.S. News & World Report, where he was also a columnist. Over the decades he was a frequent commentator on television, including 'The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour' on PBS and public affairs programs on CNN. And he taught about politics and public service at Duke University and at Harvard's Kennedy School, where he was the founding director of the Center for Public Leadership. Mr. Gergen was the author of a bestselling book, 'Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton' (2000). The book offered lessons for would-be leaders that tended to be little more than bromides, advising them to develop 'a capacity to persuade' and 'an ability to work within the system.' He revisited the topic in a 2022 book, 'Hearts Touched With Fire: How Great Leaders Are Made.' Advertisement David Richmond Gergen was born May 9, 1942, in Durham, N.C., the youngest of four sons of Aubigne (Lermond) Gergen and John Jay Gergen, a longtime chair of the mathematics department at Duke University. After schooling in Durham, Mr. Gergen went to Yale, where he was managing editor of the student newspaper The Yale Daily News and graduated in 1963 with a bachelor's degree in American studies. For three summers he was an intern working on civil rights issues for North Carolina's Democratic governor, Terry Sanford. He received a law degree from Harvard in 1967 and later that year joined the Navy. He served most of the next 3 1/2 years as an officer on a ship based in Japan. By then he had married Anne Wilson, a Briton whom he had met on a blind date earlier in 1967 while she was touring the United States on a 99-day bus ticket. In addition to his son, Christopher, his wife survives him along with their daughter, Dr. Katherine Gergen Barnett; two brothers, John and Kenneth; and five grandchildren. After Mr. Gergen left the Navy, his contacts helped him land a writing job in the Nixon White House, where he eventually became the chief speechwriter. From Nixon, he said, he learned that points had to be made over and over: 'He used to tell me, 'About the time you are writing a line that you have written it so often that you want to throw up, that is the first time the American people will hear it.'' Advertisement What he did not do for the four presidents he served, Mr. Gergen said, was lie. 'I feel the moment you walk out there and lie to the press, that you're finished,' he told The Christian Science Monitor in 1981. While not ruling out the possibility of being untruthful in the name of national security, he said, 'I think the next day you'd quit.' 'You're of no value to the president at that point,' he added, 'and you're of no value to anyone else.' This article originally appeared in
