Google Street View Visits 4 Of The 7 Summits

Google Maps continues to push the boundaries of where they'll go with their awesome Street View technology adding two new galleries earlier today. One of those galleries is likely to be of interest to readers of this blog as it takes us to four of the Seven Summits without requiring long flights, expensive gear or lots of training.

The new "World's Highest Peaks" gallery allows us to use the interactive Street View technology to explore Everest Base Camp and visit the summits of Kilimanjaro, Elbrus and Aconcagua. Images captured at lower altitudes on those last three mountains provide a sense of what it is like to climb each of them, with stops in various camps along the way and visits to specific landmarks, such as the famous Lava Tower on Kili. The gallery also contains a virtual climb of Everest's neighbor Kala Patthar and a visit to the interior of Tengboche Monastery. Google has even given us the opportunity to stroll the streets of Namche Bazaar, the largest town in the Khumbu region of Nepal.

If you're looking for a bit of a virtual escape from your day, head on over to the Google Street View Collections. Not only will you be able to take a virtual walk up these mountains, but you'll also be able to visit Italy, the Grand Canyon, famous UNESCO World Heritage sites and much more. Be warned however, these little field trips can suck up a lot of time and you may just wonder where your day went. Totally worth it though.