In a world where influencers are constantly pushing boundaries, from shocking OnlyFans content to livestreamed cosmetic surgeries, the quest for attention has never been more intense. Kamryn Renae Kirkham, a 22-year-old influencer, recently set out on a solo adventure to hike the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), drawing skepticism from critics who viewed the six-month trek as an elaborate ploy to boost her adult content subscriptions.

Kirkham, who charges $9.99 per month for access to her OnlyFans, has been sharing revealing photos of herself during her journey. These images, taken on the trail and within her tent, have fed the narrative that her hiking expedition is intertwined with her online persona.

However, this bold endeavor took a dangerous turn when Kirkham needed a helicopter rescue after a failed attempt to summit Mount Whitney. The mountain, towering over 14,500 feet in California’s Sierra Nevada range, proved perilous when Kirkham fell ill due to a contaminated water source.

Struggling with nausea and vomiting, her distress was alleviated only when fellow hikers discovered her condition and came to her aid on the mountainside.

Sickened and ‘throwing up’ from what she later learned was a toxic ‘water source,’ her only solace came when a group of hikers found her on the mountainside. 

A Search and Rescue (SAR) team were then able to rush her to medical help, a public service that is generally free thanks to taxpayer dollars. And, since a helicopter was required to transport the influencer to a local hospital, hiking professionals estimate the cost to the public could have been up to $20,000.

Kamryn Renae, 22, is a content creator who shared photos documenting her solo hike on the Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,650-mile journey that she said will take her six months to hike

Kamryn went viral on Instagram when she shared a video of herself being airlifted to a local hospital after falling sick during a summit of Mount Whitney, which has an elevation of over 14,500 feet

So it is perhaps little surprise that, with her pink sports bras and matching nail polish, Kamryn has been dubbed by fans as ‘trail diva’ and the ‘Barbie’ of the PCT – but they’re not all complimentary. 

‘I love this account for so many reasons, but helicopter rescues are no joke. SAR employees and volunteers lives should not be placed on the line. As hikers, we need to know when to turn around,’ one fan commented. 

‘Love that our taxpayer dollars are going to this,’ another sarcastically quipped.

According to Devin Lane, an outdoor educator, the cost of such a medical emergency can be compounding: ‘The cost can easily run anywhere from $20,000 to $50,000 for a medical flight.’

As well as the adult content, Kamryn is sharing hiking vlogs and snapping selfies for YouTube (where she has 40,000 subscribers) and Instagram (187,000 followers), documenting her 25-mile daily treks. 

She also narrates each video in her trademark high-pitched, coquettish voice.

‘Is this satire?’ one critic asked, noting how dangerous such a lengthy solo hike is for a young woman.

‘I can’t tell if this is real or a joke,’ said another.

Speaking to Outside magazine recently, Kamryn reproached those questioning her ability to solo hike the trail as sexist.

‘It just shows how men don’t take women and femininity seriously. They don’t think women can just, like, go and do something,’ she said.

Which is all well and good, but according to Lindsay Feldman, the founder of BrandBomb PR and Social Media, elaborate stunts for social media attention are all too common.

‘Content creators are constantly looking for unique ways to stand out in an incredibly saturated space. While the hiking content may be what’s grabbing attention, Kamryn’s business is ultimately monetizing her audience,’ Feldman told the Daily Mail.

‘Every piece of content serves a purpose within a larger marketing funnel designed to attract viewers, build engagement and drive traffic back to OnlyFans, her revenue-generating platform.’

Kamryn originally tried to make it as a YouTuber, supplementing her income with a number of odd jobs – a Wendy’s waitress, health coach, YMCA counselor and tea shop worker. But in June 2024, she started an account on OnlyFans – and delved into the world of sex work.

‘I honestly feel like I would be good at it. I enjoy making that type of content,’ she said in a video at the time. ‘Just because I make that type of content doesn’t mean I can’t be good at other things as well.’ 

Some users have claimed Kamryn is ‘faking’ her solo hike to ‘rage bait’ and generate attention to her OnlyFans and YouTube accounts, which she reproached as sexism

Kamryn also told Outside that the inspiration for her solo hike along the PCT came from watching the hit 2014 Reese Witherspoon film Wild, which followed the real-life story of a recovering drug addict solo hiking the same trail and risking encounters with dangerous men along the way.

On Instagram, fans have been quick to point out the many precautions women must take when embarking on a solo hike and posting their whereabouts online.

‘I just hope your not giving away your [sic] exact location somehow. A lot of creeps out there looking to do the worst of things to you!’ one user wrote.

As one experienced hiker who has summited Mount Whitney twice told the Daily Mail, the realities of mountain climbing aren’t as simple as a Hollywood movie might suggest.

‘For someone with little experience, the honest advice is to build the skills first on shorter multi-day trips,’ Eric Kufrin, the owner and lead guide of Yosemite Life, said.

‘Learn your gear, learn to treat water every single time, learn navigation, and test how your body handles altitude before you’re committed in the high Sierra.’   

This is not the first time Kamryn has embarked on a solo trip, with her Instagram account documenting her travels across Washington, Florida, Wyoming and Montana.

She’s also posted photos and videos of herself visiting far-flung countries like Brazil, Portugal and Thailand, and shared on YouTube that she was at one point living out of her Subaru Forester car.

But it is Kamryn’s recent vlogs solo hiking the PCT that have particularly angered critics and outdoor enthusiasts.

One video that sparked fury was shared on April 5, in which Kirkham explained how she starts every day by doing her makeup and hair because she ‘likes to feel cute’ during each hike.

In her hiking vlogs, Kamryn films herself doing her hair and makeup routine before embarking on a 25-mile hike for the day 

Kamryn notably wears pink hiking gear and paints her nails with pink polish on the trail as she shares in her posts

Another video showed her wearing a hot pink sports bra and applying some Clinique Pink Honey lipstick before setting off on the trail for the day.

‘She is faking it to get followers,’ wrote one user.

Then came the viral video in which Kamryn revealed she had to be airlifted by a helicopter to hospital after the hike up Mount Whitney went so terribly wrong.

She said it started out as any normal day on the trail, with Kamryn putting on her lipstick and blush before attempting to hike up the mountain range. 

Kamryn admitted she didn’t ‘really have very much experience’ summiting mountains but said it was ‘going really well’ at first.

At one point in the video, which was posted on May 23, Kamryn seemingly told fans she was planning to ‘submit’ the mountain, rather than ‘summit.’

‘Engagement farming by using the word “submit” instead of summit is the epitome of this account. That said, I’m hooked,’ wrote one commenter. 

‘Ultimate rage bait, well done,’ another user applauded.

According to Feldman, it’s all part of cynical ‘brand building.’

‘Because her brand is built around beauty and sex appeal, it makes sense that she would show herself doing her makeup and getting ready before a hike. That’s not necessarily separate from the content, it’s part of the content,’ Feldman told the Daily Mail.

‘The hike is the storyline, but she’s still packaging it through the lens of the persona her audience already follows and engages with. In that sense, it does differentiate her from other creators because she is creating a very specific contrast between rugged outdoor culture and a highly polished, hyper-feminine brand.’ 

Later in the rescue video, Kamryn is seen collecting water from a nearby stream and running it through her portable filter, as well as funneling some snow from the ground into her water bottle.

She says she began ‘feeling ill’ and decided to set up camp two miles from the summit, but she only began to feel worse.

‘I started throwing up and I couldn’t make it down the mountain,’ she said. ‘Then I had to call SOS.’

A group of hikers later discovered her and helped her down, and she showed fans footage of herself getting airlifted by a helicopter.

Kamryn told followers she ‘ended up getting sick from a water source’

Hiker Eric Kufrin told the Daily Mail: ‘What concerned me in the footage was fundamentals: misusing an ice axe… mishandling water. Those are real gaps that put her at real risk, and they’d matter the same if she showed up looking like a “dirtbag hiker trash” with zero followers.

‘The takeaway isn’t about who she is. It’s that anyone heading into that terrain needs the skills the terrain demands. Testing skills in more forgiving environments, not the Whitney Trail, would be advisable for anyone, no matter who they are.’

When asked by Outside about the mounting concerns being raised over her long solo journey, she brushed them off.

‘I’m just letting different parts of myself exist. Both are real,’ she said.

Kamryn did not respond to the Daily Mail’s request for comment.

Amid swirling rumors about a possible trade and his absence from voluntary offseason activities, wide receiver Kayshon Boutte has confirmed he will be present at the New England Patriots’ mandatory minicamp this week.

The 24-year-old made this announcement to WBZ on Saturday while at King Street Memorial Park in Franklin, Massachusetts. Boutte, who is preparing for his fourth NFL season, had invited fans via social media to join him for some pickup touch football and basketball games as part of his training regimen.

“I try not to buy into it,” Boutte shared with the station regarding the trade speculations. “At the end of the day, I can control what I can control. As long as I’m doing what I’m supposed to do off the field, everything else will play out.”

Speculation has been rife that Boutte might be involved in a trade deal soon.

His decision to skip voluntary sessions for the first time in his career has fueled these rumors, especially as the Patriots’ wide receiver lineup has become crowded with the high-profile acquisition of A.J. Brown and the signing of Romeo Doubs.

The 2026 season will be an important one for Boutte, who is set to become a free agent next year. 

Drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round in 2023, Boutte had an underwhelming rookie season before hitting his stride. He has since topped 500 receiving yards in each of the last two years. 

In 29 games over the last two seasons, the LSU product posted 76 receptions for 1,140 yards with nine touchdowns. The likelihood of Boutte having to take a backseat role in the passing game amid the latest additions has certainly helped fuel the trade rumors. 

The Patriots could always dub him as a secondary target for quarterback Drake Maye as well. 

After years of near-misses and challenges, Alexander Zverev has finally claimed his place as a Grand Slam champion. Once a teenage sensation, Zverev has traversed a path filled with ups and downs to reach this pinnacle of his career.

For a long time, it seemed an elusive dream, especially as Jannik Sinner dominated the tennis scene. However, a wrist injury sidelined Carlos Alcaraz, and Sinner’s unexpected early exit cracked open the door to opportunity. With Novak Djokovic also out of contention, Zverev seized the moment, taking advantage of a field suddenly devoid of its usual titans.

Despite the apparent ease of his path, the final match was far from simple. Zverev had to face not only his opponent but also the mental scars from past disappointments. Yet, in a grueling battle that stretched over four hours and five sets, Zverev triumphed over first-time finalist Flavio Cobolli with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1.

For some in the tennis community, Zverev’s victory is bittersweet. The phrase “anyone but Zverev” echoed across social media following Sinner’s departure, reflecting ongoing controversy surrounding Zverev. He has faced serious allegations of domestic violence, first brought forward by his former partner Olya Sharypova in 2020. Despite these accusations, an ATP investigation did not find enough evidence to substantiate the claims.

Regardless of the divided opinions, Zverev’s victory marks a significant moment in his career, showcasing resilience and determination in the face of both personal and professional hurdles.

Then in 2024, during this very tournament, there was a hearing in Germany over claims from Brenda Patea, the mother of Zverev’s daughter Mayla, of physical violence. A settlement was agreed between the parties, with the court stressing this was ‘not a verdict and it is not a decision about guilt or innocence’. Zverev has always maintained his innocence and claimed this as total vindication.

Alexander Zverev won the French Open after beating Flavio Cobolli in five sets in the final

It was an emotional moment for Zverev as he finally became a Grand Slam champion

So where does that leave him? The presumption of innocence must be upheld but it is easy to understand why many tennis fans, especially those who have suffered domestic violence, were disturbed by the sight of Zverev receiving his laurels on Court Philippe Chatrier.

To return to the tennis, this title is the crowning glory of a fine body of work. Circa 2016 Zverev was the next big thing, a 6ft 6in demon server who was freakishly fleet of foot for a man his size, and with an effortless double-handed backhand which Andre Agassi – who had a good one himself – has described as the best of all time. There have been 23 titles plus an Olympic gold and few would have predicted it would take so long for a first major title to materialise.

He choked spectacularly in the 2020 US Open final against Dominic Thiem – who was in the crowd here – and has been banging his head against the Sinner Alcaraz duopoly ever since. He lost narrowly to Alcaraz in the 2024 final here and was demolished by Sinner in last year’s Australian Open final, part of a nine-match losing streak against the Italian.

Many – including this reporter – believe he needs to move away from his essentially conservative gameplan to have a hope of dethroning those two. But this fortnight he has not had to do so.

The old failings were there against Cobolli. His second serve – so much improved since it did for him in that final against Thiem – coughed up seven double faults and when the match was there for Zverev to grasp he retreated into his shell like an escargot. The brutal truth is he was simply not facing an opponent with the requisite class to expose those failings; to reopen that scar tissue.

Indeed, early doors the nerves were all on the other side of the court. Cobolli, the No 10 seed, sprayed errors in a dreadful opening set. This is when an apex predator like Sinner would have brought down the hammer but that is not Zverev’s way, and in his passivity he allowed the 24-year-old Italian time to settle.

Zverev served two double faults to be broken for 4-3 in the second set and at last Cobolli’s vibrant shotmaking emerged. By coming to the net and employing his flamboyant drop shot he exposed Zverev’s deep court positioning.

Having worked his way back into the match, at 30-15, 4-5, Cobolli struck three awful forehands in a row to concede the break and the third set.

As the fourth-set tiebreak approached Zverev, for the first time this tournament, looked to be struggling physically, receiving medical treatment to his knee. Cobolli was the one grasping the nettle and he pulverised a forehand down the line to take the breaker and roared, wild-eyed, towards the crowd.

After his semi-final win, Zverev joked that tennis players’ heads are thought-free vacuums but surely the demons were screaming as he left the court before the fifth set. 

But for Cobolli, it was as if that manic celebration had sapped his energy and he utterly subsided. One more wretched Cobolli smash – he struggled overhead all match – and Zverev was home at last.

Now the major milestone has been reached, perhaps he can start to play the kind of assertive tennis his towering frame demands.

If he does then more Grand Slam titles could follow – whether the tennis world likes it or not.

NEW YORK — Once upon a time, Donald Trump was a familiar face courtside at New York Knicks games, enjoying the spotlight of celebrity without the security detail that now accompanies him. Back then, he was well-known, but not yet a figure polarizing enough to divide opinion in his native city through politics.

Fast forward to the present, and Trump is set to make a rare return to New York City as sitting president, marking his first visit to Madison Square Garden in over a decade. Invited by Knicks owner James Dolan, Trump will witness Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night, making history as the first president to attend an NBA Finals game.

The Knicks are striving for their first NBA championship since 1973, a year that saw a young Trump, then just 26, beginning to carve a path in the family real estate empire. Shortly after that victory, the team’s owners enlisted Trump’s expertise as a consultant during their efforts to sell the arena.

Trump’s attendance at major sporting events surpasses that of any previous president. His presence has been noted at the Super Bowl, the Daytona 500, and the Ryder Cup in the nearby New York City suburbs, where he was met with cheers. However, his appearance at last year’s U.S. Open men’s tennis championship in Queens drew boos and complaints about lengthy security delays.

As Trump approaches his 80th birthday on June 14, amidst challenges such as the conflict with Iran, economic concerns, and judicial decisions curtailing his policies, he plans to host a UFC fight at the White House. Additionally, he has shown interest in attending the upcoming soccer World Cup, which will be held across the United States, Mexico, and Canada starting this week.

New Yorkers love the Knicks more than they love Trump

Trump is an avid sports fan, but the affinity he professes for the Knicks is different.

It speaks to the Republican president’s identity as a New Yorker and harkens to a bygone era where a front-row seat at a Knicks game was a chance for him and other boldface names to see and be seen.

In a city whose wealthy gatekeepers largely turned their noses at Trump’s brash personality and playboy image in the 1990s and 2000s, the Garden’s Celebrity Row was one club where he felt at home.

“I’ve been a Knick fan for a long time,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office last week, a day after New York rallied to win Game 1. “I watched that end of the game and they were dominant – really amazing.”

After another win Friday in San Antonio, the Knicks head home with a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. They have won a remarkable 13 straight playoff games and last lost on April 23, uniting the city in a way unseen since the Knicks went to the NBA Finals twice in the 1990s.

Enter Trump. He returns to the Knicks zeitgeist not as the tabloid curiosity who once sat shoulder to shoulder with the late John F. Kennedy Jr. at a game in 1999, but as a president who is disliked by a majority of the city’s Democratic voters.

Trump, who gave up his lifelong New York residency for Florida in 2019, is making his first trip to New York City since he spoke at the United Nations in September. In 2024, he went on trial in the city and was convicted of 34 felony counts related to hush money paid on his behalf during his 2016 campaign.

Knicks fans, though, do not seem to be concerned so much with his politics, but that his attendance – and the hoopla accompanying it – could mess up the team’s momentum. The Knicks said people going to the game should arrive at least two hours before tipoff for airport-style security screening.

“Why does Donald Trump always have to ruin a good thing?” U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, an avid Knicks fan and the House Democratic leader, told CNN. “Like, literally, the Knicks haven’t been in the NBA finals for 27 years. The city is trying to celebrate this. We’ve embraced this team, and this guy has to inject himself.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democrat who struck up a cordial relationship with Trump after the two met in November, was more inviting.

“We’re excited to welcome anyone and everyone who’s rooting for the Knicks in this moment,” said Mamdani, who will also be at the game – albeit, not with Trump.

Last week, as Trump began floating the idea of attending a game, New York magazine published an article, “Is Trump Really a Knicks Fan? An Investigation.” The story, filled with pictures of Trump at Knicks games from 1991 to 2014, described him as a “textbook example of a celebrity bandwagon fan.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver disagrees.

“Before he ever ran for office, he was a big Knicks fan,” Silver told reporters last week. “I’ve been with the league for a long time. I was there at many Knicks games with him in the old days.”

A courtside regular in the 1990s

Trump and the Knicks came into existence the same year, 1946.

His affiliation with the team – at least in the public record – dates to 1975 when he acted as a real estate adviser to the then-owners of the Knicks and Madison Square Garden, who were looking to sell the building known in a bit of Trump-style branding as “The World’s Most Famous Arena.”

Trump claimed to reporters at the time that two groups of “Arab oil interests” were interested in paying $50 million to $75 million. But the arena’s leadership passed on the idea, saying it was “not conceivable” to make such a deal during the Middle East oil crisis raging at the time.

Trump was not much of a known entity when the Knicks won their only championships in 1970 and 1973.

By the time they rebounded in the 1990s, Trump was front and center, taking his then-wife Marla Maples to Game 3 of the NBA Finals in 1994 and his current wife, first lady Melania Trump, to Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals in 1999. In between, he added to his Knicks fan bona fides with a cameo in the Knicks-themed Whoopi Goldberg film “Eddie” in 1996.

Back then, Trump was a more of a mythic figure than a consequential one, known as much for the women he dated and married as the buildings he built.

But just as those Knicks came up short in the NBA Finals against Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets and David Robinson and the Spurs, Trump was running into problems of his own. His business empire was in disarray after his casinos fell into financial trouble and his airline, Trump Shuttle, went out of business.

Like the Knicks, Trump went into rebuilding mode and charted a new course: reality TV with NBC’s “The Apprentice” and “Celebrity Apprentice,” and then, politics. On a Knicks TV broadcast in 2010, he hinted at a possible presidential run.

That same year, as the Knicks struggled to recapture the magic of the 1990s, Trump recorded a video trying to persuade LeBron James to join the team.

“The real winners of the world want to be here,” Trump told him.

In a tragic incident early Sunday morning, an 18-year-old man lost his life after being shot by a group of individuals on scooters outside a public housing complex in Queens, as reported by police.

The victim, identified as Jafre Waugh, was standing near his residence at the Woodside Houses of NYCHA when four assailants approached and fired multiple shots, striking him in the chest and back. The attack occurred around 12:15 a.m. on 49th Street, close to 31st Avenue in Woodside, authorities stated.

Emergency medical technicians quickly transported Waugh to NYC Health and Hospitals/Elmhurst, where he was pronounced dead.

The suspects fled the scene on their scooters and remained at large by Sunday afternoon, according to police reports.

The New York Police Department reported finding five shell casings at the crime scene.