It seems in the age increasing awareness and acceptance of more and more outdoor activities, sports, and environmentalism, stories and tales of all different shapes and sizes, good and bad, seem to float to the surface.

Like the true media junkies we all are, hearing and reading about glory and defeat in our field of outdoor interest captivate us and hold us hostage.

From scandals to glorious tales of survival, we eat it all up and are always looking for more.

The Good, the bad, and the Ugly. What have been some of the top stories of defeat and glory in the past year? Let's take a look back.

The Ugly:
1. The Revelation of Greg Mortenson's fibs in his best selling book, 3 Cups of Tea .

What else is there to say besides "ouch." This one must sting for a lot of people and for Greg. The world was captivated by this tale of heroism and kindness of one man's quest to help the poor peoples of Afghanistan.

The charity started from the success based on the best selling book, the donations and out pouring of help was enormous. And the backlash against the alleged wrong doings and so called fabrications in the book and against Greg were furious and swift.

Outside recently reported on the ongoing civil suit against Greg and his charity. This ugly tale of the raise and fall of one man has yet to have the ending written, but things are not looking so well.

The Bad:
1. Lance Armstrong doping investigation dropped.

Hmm...can anyone say damage already done? Lance took the alternative outdoor and adventure sport of bike racing and threw it into everyone's living room in the world. He became a symbol of real and true athleticism and some would argue made biking into a huge and mainstream outdoor activity and business.

Then came the allegations of doping and other revelations of shaky integrity. Another ouch. Lance seems to have polarized people to one side of the issue or the other. With a truly great and meaningful charity like Live Strong, this only led to more heartache and confusion. Bur, more recently it has been reported that the investigation has been dropped, with no charges.

Alas, it seems the damage is already done. Like it or not Lance's name has become synonymous with certain practices, even after the recent report of dropped investigations.

The Good:
1. First Woman to climb all 8,000 Meter Peaks

Mountaineering has long been a elite and not so well known corner of the outdoor adventure world. But, with shows on Discovery like Everest, and the popularity of outdoor adventure in general, mountaineering seems finally claimed it's rightful place on the world stage.

The Geographic 2011 Adventurer of the Year was a woman by the name of Edurne Pasaban, from Italy, who amazingly become only the 21st person to ever climb all 14 of the 8,000 meter peaks that dot the globe. And the first woman of the elite group.

In a outdoor and adventure world starving for new frontiers to conquer, this good story shows that it is still possible to be the first.

These 3 stories of the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly are tales that will probably take their place in permanent history, for good or bad, and be there forever.

These are tales of caution to those who wander off that invisible line of integrity, and tales of glory for those still wondering if new and exciting adventures still take place today.

Do you have any stories, good, bad, or ugly to share?