“And this is where Rob thought he’d broken his leg”, said Andy, pointing to a mass of tightly packed contour lines on the map as he talked about the last time he had been to Knoydart. “Good job he hadn’t too, because if something happens out there, well… It’s not going to go well. Are you sure about going on your own?” I looked again … Continue reading Bikerafting the Rough Bounds
Summer had arrived in Fort William, and the town was baking beneath the scrutiny of an unblinking sun. Call me a sceptic, but given the weather that we typically see in this part of the world in July I was neither expecting nor coping with it. I finished the meticulous packing of my frame bag, looking for the perfect piece of kit to fill the … Continue reading A Journey Through the West Highlands
We went to bed for the second night at Nyidalur hut expecting the next day to be a windy one – come morning, I can’t say we were disappointed. One of the main poles of the tent had been bent, and we had a struggle collapsing it without it going airborne. The wind was gusting above 60 miles per hour, and continued to rise as we … Continue reading Crossing Iceland: Nyidalur to Hella
Apologies. This post is a long one, but it’s one that I’ve been piecing together for a while, and it seems that there is rather a lot to say (too much to subject a reader to in a single post). At a glance, it’s an account of a crossing, by bicycle, of the Icelandic interior, which is neither a superhuman feat in itself, nor especially … Continue reading Crossing Iceland: Godafoss to Nyidalur
There are mountains, and then there are mountains. Ever since I first picked up a crayon, drew a triangle and gave it a wavy snowline halfway down (very funny, but no it wasn’t last week), I’ve been repeatedly amazed by the innumerable shapes, characters and idiosyncrasies of the many groups of mountains that are crammed into our little island. They change almost as quickly as … Continue reading Cairngorm Cloud Giants
It’s nearly the shortest day of the year, so here’s a short film from back in the longest days of summer. It’s about hopping across the water to Scotland’s Western Isles, following the waves, searching for trails and camping on empty beaches. Roll on summer! Follow the Waves from Topofests on Vimeo. Continue reading Video: Follow the Waves
Slowly, slowly, I’m starting to get the time and bandwidth to actually do something with all the video and photos we brought back from Iceland. This is a short film that I put together last week with footage from the Laugavegur trail, a hiking trail that links the steam-wreathed volcanic hills Landmannalaugar with the southern ice glaciers of Myrdalsjökull and Eyjafjallajökull. We rode it as … Continue reading Video: Laugavegur
Iceland: The South Coast and Eastern Fjords As we descended through thick cloud, sleepy and dry-throated from the flight, I found myself suddenly very much awake, staring childlike through the tiny EasyJet regulation cabin window, certain that any moment now the plane would break through a misty ceiling and a panoramic view of Iceland would be spread before me to replace the present soggy greyness. … Continue reading Iceland: South Coast and Eastern Fjords
There’s something exciting about Scotland’s islands. A place that stands alone, separated by the sea from the rest of Britain, and jutting even further out into the sea fog and wind on the north-western frontier of Europe, must by definition contain adventure; it just makes sense. The Outer Hebrides must be the most adventurous of the lot then, standing aloof from Scotland and usually shrouded … Continue reading Bikepacking at the edge of the ocean
Look at a map, make some sammiches, set off on your bike and who knows where you’ll end up? Maybe there’ll be some company! Or maybe you’ll just fall in a bog, although such details are irrelevant… Thanks to Andy at Backcountrybiking for providiing the Revelate Designs kit, and Annie for standing in the middle of a river to get those ‘authentic’ shots. Continue reading Video: Red Travellin’ Socks
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