Snow falls from a stark white sky as we wordlessly pick our way through gullies, scrambling over boulders and crags towards the saddle between two peaks. After an hour of hard climbing, we stand for a moment at the top before picking the pace back up and heading north over grassy fells and bog. We settle into a rhythm, and enjoy a perfect trail run alone in our thoughts as we zip across the ancient terrain. The memories and stress of the year fall behind us with every step as we soak up the

The light is blinding. It seems to get brighter still as I climb up towards the welcoming softness of the clouds. I have surely been climbing for hours. Though I am edging closer, I start to show signs of strain. My breath is rapid and shallow, every now and then pausing for a deeper exhalation as I glance up again towards my target. My right leg shakes as I reach for a stable hold and then relaxes a little as I shift my weight to my steady left side. Almost there. I can see my goal now and

An enormous orca leaps clean into the air and plunges back down, splashing into the ocean. It’s a welcome that Jim and I won’t forget as we step out onto the viewing deck for some fresh air while our ferry steams through the Minch. Utilising the royal flush of transport to get here (car, train, bus, and ferry), this journey may have taken an entire 24 hours, but we have certainly reached one of the extremities of the United Kingdom. The whale gives us another flyby before presumably returni

From a vehicle, there’s not a lot to look at along the West Coast of South Africa. But we’re here on foot, stopped and hunkered down out of the midday heat, a few guys and girls wearing the vulnerable expression of love. You know the one: when you’re in on a secret far greater than you could ever imagine. One that locks a smile on your face while Armageddon thrashes out around you. Drivers call us crazy as they pass, but we’ll let them be for now. As with most blank spaces on the map, it tur

I stepped out of the old four-by-four that carried me up the final stretch of mountain road, snaking up the valley in an elegant dance with the stream that ran against us. The fresh mountain air enveloped me, and the wind carried my thoughts away, leaving me alone with a view of the vast plateau surrounded on all sides by mighty, snow-capped peaks. It felt like being at the bottom of a giant’s cereal bowl. I looked around for a sign of human movement, but all I saw was stillness. The mountai

It’s the jungle’s sounds I most enjoy when I walk: an eclectic mix of autumnal dead-leaf crunch underfoot with the hum of life above. I feel like the jungle takes on different personalities according to the weather. When it rains, a coolness spreads and the mood becomes muted. On days like today, with the beating sun somewhere hidden above the treetops, the brilliant greens of the jungle come alive as the sun’s light dashes through gaps in the canopy. Look closely and you’ll see the myriad

Starting a trip by ferry always makes it feel more exciting. That was my thought as we boarded MV Hebrides from Uig to Lochmaddy with 10 days of riding, paddling, and wild camping ahead of us. With our hometown of Aviemore was heaving with tourists – numbers that feel unsustainable at times – we were keen to escape the bustle and find somewhere to camp without feeling like we were part of a wider problem. ‘Dirty camping’, which has more in common with fly-tipping than wild camping, has been

I stand below the huge pylon that marks the approximate centre, and high point, of Dawson Wood. My eye line is drawn along the cables, through a window of clearfell to the Aire Valley below and Baildon Moor beyond. Early morning light catches the neon purple of blooming heather in the distance. On my left is a small patch of pine plantation and to my right lies native woodland criss-crossed with paths and tracks. A gentle breeze chills my sweat-dampened back and whistles through the metalwo

Up to 23 times more plastic escapes into terrestrial ecosystems than our oceans, yet the State of Our Trails report written by Trash Free Trails is the first of its kind. We want to help to reduce single-use pollution on our trails and encourage people to reconnect with nature. Together with the route planning app, komoot, grassroots community organisation, Trash Free Trails, and like-minded friends, we define what it means to have a purposeful adventure, from wild camping to running, cycli

A day of firsts From the beach it had all looked so calm and flat. The sun was shining and kids were building sandcastles, but as we left the sheltered bay the wind picked up and transformed our serene haven into a choppy, pushy mess. Even the sun made a quick escape, adding to the sense of exposure and vulnerability. It’s OK, I told myself; you’ve done this a million times before. You’ve even got a safety paddler. Turning my head for a breath, I stole a sneaky glimpse at Dave, my long-time

When I boarded the electric Ember bus at St Andrew Square the city wasn’t as busy as it usually gets every August, with thousands visiting for the festivals. I left the office earlier than usual for a quick escape. After weeks of working almost non-stop I felt that a break was long overdue. From similar adventures in the past, I knew how a night in the hills on my bike, reconnecting with nature, would help me to recharge my batteries and revive myself. The focus and clarity afterwards would

Born out of a lockdown daydream, my ‘Great Escape’ would involve cycling the length of the UK with the specific goal of exploring the most interesting parts of the outdoors. I wanted to immerse myself in these landscapes and keep the trip as varied as possible, so after some careful thought I came up with ten challenges to busy myself with along the way. The goal was not to race, nor merely complete an A-to-B route, but instead to experience the ultimate British Adventure. And the best bit?

It would be hard to design a location more suited to big-wave surfing than Nazaré, Portugal. The big waves here are beautiful and mind boggling. With the whole Atlantic unimpeded at its doorstep, Nazaré has the geography nailed – and geology is in its favour too. Extending out to sea for 160 miles from the shore is a deep underwater canyon that was etched out by an ancient river when sea levels were much lower than today. At times the canyon is up to three miles deep and gives the waves an

Our minds play strange tricks when reflecting on feats of endurance. We forget large chunks – often the monotony of trudging. Hours and hours of our lives are perhaps marked by the fleeting recollection of a strange rock or shared joke. We know the rest happened, but, like a CCTV security recording, the memories are quickly overwritten. Equally, we store flashes of crystal-clear evocations, so detailed that we can almost pick them up like a physical souvenir and examine them from every angle

It’s December in north-western Myanmar and I’m travelling upriver in a soupy pre-dawn fog. A Stygian realm of uncertain edges and amplified sounds; lights blur in the formless gloom, water plashes against the bow. As night smudges to day, the sharp serrations of the Naga Hills take form to the north, white towers of cloud toppling off their peaks. After a month of motorcycling solo across the Indian state of Nagaland I’m heading for Myanmar’s Naga Self-Administered Zone, a jagged seam of mou

Women have been climbing mountains – hard, sustained mountaineering routes – for quite some time. Back in 1871, Punch magazine, a satirical publication, marked the much-lauded achievements of a certain British alpinist, Miss Lucy Walker, who was the first woman to climb the Matterhorn. A witty little piece culminated in the immortal line ‘No peak rise above her’. It’s now taken a more permanent form in an artwork, created by Art Valais, lifting Miss Walker’s accentuated jawline into a conte

I looked back and saw my footprints in the wet black sand of the mountain, tailing down the slope we had just laboriously climbed. I looked forward, shielding my eyes with a hand against the blowing rain, and tried to visualise our destination for the day. Warm sweat mixed with the cold raindrops blatting against my jacket. For two days we had been hiking the vast landscapes of the Icelandic Highlands and a huge storm was about to arrive. I could just make out the next hut on the distant ho

Ewa sank in the wet afternoon snow, through an ice trapdoor hiding a crevasse below, and stabbed her calf with a freshly sharpened crampon as I kept tension on the rope. Tears fell from her face as she struggled to get out of the hole. These few weeks had been long, with many firsts: first expedition, first time above 5,000m, and the first time we had both summited an unclimbed mountain. She clawed her way back to the surface and I saw the tears glisten on her cheek. I took a second to unde

Magic is back in Southern California! After a year-long shutdown, Disneyland® Park and Disney California Adventure® Park began a phased reopening in late April to California residents. It’s now open to out-of-state and out-of-country visitors as of June 15. The anticipation is high and there are new guidelines, requirements and operational changes to be aware of, so we rounded up a few key pieces of information.Some Restrictions Have Been LiftedCalifornia removed its coronavirus tier system June

This is a guest post from Where Are Those Morgans. Mark and Kristen Morgan are two scientists who put their careers on hold in 2018 and followed their dreams to explore the world together. They recently visited NYC and created this ultimate guide for visiting with New York CityPASS and New York C3.Visiting New York City is one of the most unforgettable experiences you will ever have, but planning your trip to this legendary bucket list city does come with challenges and seemingly endless expense