In a television culture laced with testosterone, where outdoor adventure programs are chock-a-block with men trying to outdo one another in just how "extreme" they can get, a whole group of female explorers are quietly but passionately embarking on adventures with much higher goals than ratings.
These women are not doing it for fame or money, not even for adulation or pride.
They are not out to prove that "if a man can do it, then so can we" or any other of the battle of the sexes types of things.
What motivates these women is what truly sets the two sexes apart: their caring, nurturing nature.
You see, the planet needs a little nurturing right now.
On TV, you can watch any number of shows where some survival-expert guy is doing something like drinking his own urine somewhere in the middle of Death Valley.
But what does that prove? That guy, no matter how desperate he looks, has a TV crew and probably a nice, cozy RV somewhere just off camera.
Try solo kayaking from Seattle to San Diego, like Margo Pellegrino did to raise awareness about the health (or lack thereof) of the world's oceans.
No TV cameras, no crews, no comforts at all.
It was just her and another woman helping her find suitable beaches to land at night, and the whole time Margo blogged about her experiences.
"We seriously need to get a handle on this - that is, all of our ocean problems," she wrote.
"It is up to us individuals to put pressure on our government-our local, state, and federal elected officials.
The big mega corporations that would run the bank dry don't seem to be paying attention.
And we all need to pay more attention to what we do every day that impacts our ocean.
Unlike all the unbelievable bailouts we have witnessed so far, no one, absolutely no one, will be able to bail out the ocean.
" Now if that's not passion...
And its not just Margo.
A whole cadre of women are out there, braving the elements and shunning the limelight for themselves, shining it directly where it belongs-things like disaster relief, raising money for the poor and, of course, raising awareness about pollution.
Davina McCall and Fearne Cotton went on a 1,000-mile cycle ride to raise money for the Cornish based disaster relief charity ShelterBox.
Helen Skelton kayaked the entire length of the Amazon on her own, achieving two world's records, for Sport Relief 2010.
Roz Savage rowed solo across the Pacific from the US to Australia, TV reporter Christine Bleakley water-skied the English Channel, Cheryl Cole climbed Kilimanjaro and Ellen MacArthur, sailed around the world on her own, all for great causes.
Then there was the story of Laura Dekker, the 14-year-old who recently set off to circumnavigate the globe solo in her sailboat, embarking quietly and anonymously, eschewing the media spotlight and proving that she was in it not for fame, but for something deeper and more personal, like filling her soul with joy by doing what she loves.
This new generation of female adventurer can teach us all a thing or two, least of which has been lost in the mass media sports culture: pure love for the sport.
But beyond that, way beyond that, these women are teaching us other lessons about being tough and resilient but at the same time showing compassion and caring for the planet and its inhabitants.
For many women, completing a tough physical challenge is about more than reaching the end goal.
It's even more than a life-affirming event.
It's about sharing with others, inspiring them to see the limitless potential of the human spirit.
And it's also about saving the planet.
These women are not doing it for fame or money, not even for adulation or pride.
They are not out to prove that "if a man can do it, then so can we" or any other of the battle of the sexes types of things.
What motivates these women is what truly sets the two sexes apart: their caring, nurturing nature.
You see, the planet needs a little nurturing right now.
On TV, you can watch any number of shows where some survival-expert guy is doing something like drinking his own urine somewhere in the middle of Death Valley.
But what does that prove? That guy, no matter how desperate he looks, has a TV crew and probably a nice, cozy RV somewhere just off camera.
Try solo kayaking from Seattle to San Diego, like Margo Pellegrino did to raise awareness about the health (or lack thereof) of the world's oceans.
No TV cameras, no crews, no comforts at all.
It was just her and another woman helping her find suitable beaches to land at night, and the whole time Margo blogged about her experiences.
"We seriously need to get a handle on this - that is, all of our ocean problems," she wrote.
"It is up to us individuals to put pressure on our government-our local, state, and federal elected officials.
The big mega corporations that would run the bank dry don't seem to be paying attention.
And we all need to pay more attention to what we do every day that impacts our ocean.
Unlike all the unbelievable bailouts we have witnessed so far, no one, absolutely no one, will be able to bail out the ocean.
" Now if that's not passion...
And its not just Margo.
A whole cadre of women are out there, braving the elements and shunning the limelight for themselves, shining it directly where it belongs-things like disaster relief, raising money for the poor and, of course, raising awareness about pollution.
Davina McCall and Fearne Cotton went on a 1,000-mile cycle ride to raise money for the Cornish based disaster relief charity ShelterBox.
Helen Skelton kayaked the entire length of the Amazon on her own, achieving two world's records, for Sport Relief 2010.
Roz Savage rowed solo across the Pacific from the US to Australia, TV reporter Christine Bleakley water-skied the English Channel, Cheryl Cole climbed Kilimanjaro and Ellen MacArthur, sailed around the world on her own, all for great causes.
Then there was the story of Laura Dekker, the 14-year-old who recently set off to circumnavigate the globe solo in her sailboat, embarking quietly and anonymously, eschewing the media spotlight and proving that she was in it not for fame, but for something deeper and more personal, like filling her soul with joy by doing what she loves.
This new generation of female adventurer can teach us all a thing or two, least of which has been lost in the mass media sports culture: pure love for the sport.
But beyond that, way beyond that, these women are teaching us other lessons about being tough and resilient but at the same time showing compassion and caring for the planet and its inhabitants.
For many women, completing a tough physical challenge is about more than reaching the end goal.
It's even more than a life-affirming event.
It's about sharing with others, inspiring them to see the limitless potential of the human spirit.
And it's also about saving the planet.