Explore - The Autumn Adventures Issue

EXPLORE ellis-brigham.com

THE AUTUMN ADVENTURES ISSUE

GAME CHANGER: SABRINA VERJEE THE WORLD’S TOUGHEST MOUNTAIN RACE BRITAIN’S GREENEST ISLAND

SECRET SKYE: SCOTLAND BY SUP AUTUMN PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS DOLOMITES TOP TRAILS

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WELCOME TO

EXPLORE I love this time of year. As the summer comes to an end and the temperature eases off, some people might think about packing away their outdoor gear, but to my mind, autumn is one of the best times for adventure. Golden hours last longer, because the sun’s lower in the sky (as landscape photographer Sam Oetiker points out - p.4). The leaves are turning, meaning woodlands are at their most beautiful. And the days are still long enough to pack plenty of activities in: from trail running (p.12), to hiking (p.24), to SUP safaris and wild camping (p.31).

As for the autumn weather? Well, as the gear in this issue proves, today’s outdoor kit is perfectly capable of keeping you warm, cosy and dry even when it’s a few degrees cooler outside. As the Swedish saying goes, “there’s no such thing as bad weather” – as long as you have the right clothes.

For more ideas on where to head and in-depth guides on what to pack, head over to ellis-brigham. com/discover. Our blogs and buying guides are chock full of excellent advice. Once you have perfected your autumn adventure setup, we want to see it. Tag us at #livebreatheoutdoors so we can share in celebrating the outdoors together.

Mark Brigham ellis-brigham.com

04. THE ART OF SHOOTING MOUNTAINS IN AUTUMN

22. FOOTWEAR: TRAIL RUNNING SHOES

36. WILD CAMPING: THE ULTIMATE KIT BAG

46. HIKING: THE ULTIMATE KIT BAG

09. THE BEST UK SPOTS TO SEE THE SEASONS CHANGE

24. ADVENTURES ON BRITAIN’S GREENEST ISLAND

38. THE BEST HIGH-ALTITUDE HIKES IN THE DOLOMITES

48. TRAIL RUNNING: THE ULTIMATE KIT BAG

12. GAME CHANGER: THE SABRINA VERJEE INTERVIEW

28. BACKPACKS: DAY HIKING PACKS

44. FOOTWEAR: 3 SEASON HIKING BOOTS

50. LOCAL KNOWLEDGE: THE SECRETS OF THE CAIRNGORMS

16. RUNNING THE WORLD’S TOUGHEST MOUNTAIN RACE

31. EXPLORING THE SECRET SIDE OF SKYE

Landscape photographer Sam Oetiker shares his secrets.

Five stunning places to photograph autumn leaves.

The record-breaking fell-runner on why keeping it fun is key.

What does it take to conquer the legendary Dragon’s Back race?

The best trail shoes for running in autumn.

It’s eco-friendly, but is the Isle of Eigg all it’s cracked up to be?

The best rucksacks for day hiking in autumn.

Everything you need to camp out in the wilderness this autumn.

Where to go in the world’s most beautiful mountain range.

The best walking boots for tackling the trails in autumn.

Everything you need to head out walking this autumn.

Your complete top-to-toe trail running setup for the season.

Our Aviemore store manager Andi shares her insider tips.

A SUP helps uncover the hidden areas of the Hebrides.

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PHOTOGRAPHY

MOOD LIG THE ART

OF

MOUNTAINS Landscape photographer Sam Oetiker explains why autumn is his favourite time of year to shoot in the mountains.

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SHOOTING

IN AUTUMN

Terracotta-coloured cliffs catch the last of the evening sun, mist hangs low over dewy alpine meadows, and snow-flecked peaks tower over moody mountain lakes. Sam Oetiker’s photographs are a love letter to the mountains; a celebration of the power of nature, which call to mind the paintings of the original Romantics.

Like a Caspar David Friedrich for the digital age, the self-taught British snapper has built up a sizeable fanbase, chiefly on Instagram, and now works with a whole array of big brands. We caught up with him from his home in southern Germany to talk about his background, his alltime favourite autumn photographs, and how to make the most of the changing of the seasons.

IGHTING This is the Seiser Alm, a famous spot in the Dolomites. It’s a really high alpine alm, or meadow, and you often get these foggy conditions, but you have to get up early because as the sun rises it burns away the mist. You’re not allowed to camp there, so I camped just outside the area, sleeping in my car. When I arrived, the whole scene was covered in cloud and I didn’t think I was going to see the peaks. Then as the sun started to rise, it burned away the clouds, creating one of the best sunrises ever.

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This was just on the border with Austria and Germany, and it’s actually just by the side of the main road. We came across this by chance. I asked Celina, my girlfriend, to go and stand in the frame, just to add a bit more interest to the shot. It wasn’t planned, but the colour of her jacket matches the autumn leaves nicely.

I got my first camera when I was 13, and started out shooting punk gigs.

This was before smartphones and they never used to let you take cameras in, so I used to suspend it under my jeans, right above my crotch so the bouncers wouldn’t find it. I’d queue for hours to get right to the front of gigs like Bad Religion, or Anti-Flag.

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My eyes only really opened up to photography as a potential career when I moved to Germany in 2013.

I had a job working as online editor and then social media manager for the [now closed] snowboard magazine Onboard.

I’d shoot photos for online reports, but more importantly, I could watch what pros like Sami [Tuoriniemi - Onboard’s senior photographer] were shooting, which helped me figure out all the settings and how to compose shots.

Ironically, it was when I quit Onboard in 2017 that my career really took off.

I got bored of doing social media, but then from one day to the next, I realised I’d lost the creative outlet that I’d had. So I bought a drone, and opened up a dedicated Instagram channel, and then it took off. I kind of got a bit addicted to the numbers game, and it just grew from there.

I love the way photography can convey emotions. Every photo is obviously a real place, but a landscape can be so much more than just a landscape. The emotions they evoke can be controlled and manipulated by

photographers. The angle that you shoot, whether you include a person or not - you have a lot of power to evoke feelings.

Autumn is my favourite time of year to shoot, just because it’s so diverse.

You can get different conditions every day. You have a huge colour palette, with leaves changing colour throughout the season. You’ve also got the possibility of snow and frost, or fog, and the possibility of super hot weather. Also the sun doesn’t travel as high in the sky as it does in the summer, so you get much longer golden hours. Better still, you don’t have to get up so early to catch the sunrise.

SAM’S TOP 5 TIPS FOR SHOOTING IN AUTUMN 1. Embrace the bad weather. You can get some amazing shots when it’s raining or the weather is terrible.

2. Really pay attention to the leaves. They often turn in a short window - usually a week for the peak colours. It depends on what kind of summer you’ve had, so check webcams, and prepare to be flexible.

3. Make the most of the fog. It adds so much atmosphere to your photos. If you have cool nights and warm days, that creates the fog, but it’s hard to predict.

4. Get up for sunrise - it’s more forgiving in autumn. You don’t have to get up at 4AM. 5. Don’t skimp on gear. Take spikes for your shoes, and a pair of good GORE-TEX hiking boots, because it’s going to be damp. You’ll want a decent waterproof jacket too.

This is in Trentino, in northern Italy, at a place called Lake Nambino. I hiked up at sunrise and was actually a bit bummed to find there was snow there. But the sun poked out for about two to three minutes and I managed to get this shot, with a classic composition, using the rule of thirds for the cabin.

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This was shot at Lake Königssee, in the very southern tip of Germany. You have the Eagle’s Nest, Hitler’s mountain retreat, nearby. This was during Covid, and it was one of the last days the tourist boat was running. I think the boat adds some scale here - that’s why I’ve decided to leave it in. Again, I was lucky with the fog.

You often get fog above lakes, and because this is looking down into a valley, the wind has trapped the fog down there.

SAM’S TOP 5 TIPS FOR MOUNTAIN PHOTOGRAPHY 1. If you’re in a valley, it’s going to be in the shade much earlier than the sunset time. Get Google Earth on desktop, and it will tell you which side of a particular valley the light will hit.

2. Pack a range of lenses, not just wide angles. If you use zoom, you can get some really nice compression.

3. Look for lines to lead your eyes into the picture, and layers - you can get these from successive mountain ranges.

4. Look for something to give a sense of scale. The mountains are huge, and you always want to give some perspective. Framing a little person, even a little cabin, can emphasise how big the mountains are. Without it you don’t have the same feeling.

5. Plan carefully, and remember Google Maps’ hiking times aren’t accurate. I use an app called Bergfex.

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PHOTOGRAPHY

COLOUR MAPPING FIVE

GREAT

OUTDOOR

SPOTS

FOR AUTUMN

PHOTOGRAPHY

IN THE

UK

You don’t have to head over to the continent, or even scale massive mountains, to make the most of the changing of the seasons. Here are five great places to photograph autumn colours in the UK. NEW FOREST, HAMPSHIRE, ENGLAND

The New Forest National Park might not be Britain’s wildest, but it’s one of the best places to see, and shoot, the changing of the seasons. Plentiful access roads, and easily signposted walking paths make navigating to any of the natural beauty spots easy. If you’re lucky, you’ll find deer or a herd of New Forest ponies to provide a picturesque foreground for your photos. Bolderwood, where a special deer viewing platform sits over a clearing, is a great place to start.

COED Y BRENIN FOREST PARK, WALES

Situated slap bang in the centre of Snowdonia National Park, the Coed Y Brenin forest is home to the first – and largest – dedicated mountain bike trail centre in the UK. But it’s not all about screaming round berms or hooning it off drops.

This large area of mixed forest is also an ideal place for the more tranquil pastime of photographing autumn leaves, with a huge network of well-signposted walking trails which offer incredible views over the River Mawddach valley, and the surrounding hills.

FASKALLY WOOD, PERTHSHIRE, SCOTLAND

Drive north from the city of Perth and the Scottish landscapes become steadily more wild. This small area of protected woodland, just south of the vast Cairngorms National Park, is relatively accessible, but still feels remote enough that you can find yourself alone - especially if you wake up early enough for the morning golden hour. The stunning lake at the centre of the wood is the setting for the annual month-long sound and light spectacular known as The Enchanted Forest, which is well worth a visit after dark.

STOURHEAD ESTATE, WILTSHIRE, ENGLAND

The view across the lake towards the Temple of Apollo on the Stourhead Estate must be one of the UK’s most Instagrammable shots. In autumn, the trees surrounding the temple – sourced from all over the world by successive generations of the Hoare family, who once owned the estate – explode into a riot of spectacular colour.

Once you’ve bagged your shot, head out and explore the rest of the Cranborne Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which is home to some epic walking trails.

GLENARIFF FOREST PARK, COUNTY ANTRIM, NORTHERN IRELAND

Located north-east of Ballymena, near the coast of the Irish Sea, the Glenariff Forest Park encompasses more than 1,000 hectares of woodlands, lakes and waterfalls, criss-crossed by walking trails. While almost all of the northeastern coast of County Antrim is stunning, Glenariff definitely boasts some of the best variety when it comes to autumn colours. It also featured in Game of Thrones, much of which was shot in Northern Ireland.

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I N T E RV I EW

GAME CHANGER

Interview Tristan Kennedy Photos Steve Ashworth

Fell-runner Sabrina Verjee recently smashed the outright record for the Wainwrights.

The key, she says, was her focus on having fun...

It was shortly after 4.30AM on Tuesday May 4th, with sunrise still an hour away, when Sabrina Verjee realised she couldn’t go on. She’d been running for four days straight, with little or no sleep – snatching a few hours here and there before dragging herself upright and pushing on – as she tried to break the record for running round all 214 Wainwright peaks in the Lake District. She was exhausted. It was dark. But those things were to be expected. The thing she hadn’t planned for was the bitter, biting cold.

“I left on the 30th April and the forecast was good,” she says, when I speak to her over the phone two months later, “but after I started, it just got colder and colder. The cold is not good for my asthma and I ended up having breathing problems. And then on top of that, it dumped a heavy load of snow – completely abnormal conditions for May.” Verjee struggled on, but as she reached the top of Armboth Fell – number 148 of 214 – she knew it was over.

“I couldn’t breathe,” she remembers. “I got acutely severe asthma and had to stop, there wasn’t really a choice. I was going to die trying otherwise.”

Stopping at this late stage was a particularly cruel blow, not just because Verjee had already run some 370km of the planned 525km route, but because this was her third attempt at the record. Her first, in June 2020, was kiboshed within 24 hours by niggling small print in the Covid regulations. After the law changed in July, she set off on her second attempt “in terrible weather, with terrible ground conditions” and although she made it to the finish line, she injured her knee in the process. “I didn’t want to call it a record because I had to lean on people coming down,” she says. And yet when I speak to her, Verjee is all smiles.

Just six weeks after pulling out on Armboth Fell, she went again. This time, there was no stopping her. Verjee ran over all 214 of the peaks listed in Alfred Wainwright’s classic Pictorial Guide to the Lakeland Fells in just five days, 23 hours and 49 minutes and smashed the previous record – six days, six hours and five minutes, set by Paul Tierney in 2019 – in the process.

Her incredible feat made headlines, not just in the specialist press, but in national newspapers too, with many seemingly amazed that a female athlete had bested records set by men. But for those who’d followed Verjee’s progress, it was no great surprise.

This wasn’t just the end of a personal quest – one which, by Verjee’s own admission, had bordered on obsession at times. It also marked the latest high point in a long career in which she’s consistently proved doubters – and especially male doubters – wrong.

FIRST STEPS

Sabrina Verjee wasn’t always destined to be an ultrarunner. It wasn’t until she was at University (Oxford, studying Human Sciences) that she really did what she calls “proper” running. “I competed in modern pentathlon, then I did a triathlon, and then I found adventure racing,” she explains. These events – multidisciplinary endurance races involving kayaking, biking and running in teams – not only stoked her love of the outdoors, they helped her discover a natural affinity for map-reading.

Despite her developing skills – which stood her in good stead when she later took on navigational

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challenges like the Dragon’s Back Race, she says – Verjee was hardly encouraged to get involved. At least not initially. “I really wanted to do [my first adventure] race, and this guy was like ‘yeah but you can’t do it yet, because you haven’t done little races.’” When he finally relented and ‘let’ her join the team, it was made clear that she “couldn’t try to tell him how to navigate.

Because as a woman, you couldn’t possibly know how to read a map for God’s sake”.

She encountered a similar brand of toxic masculinity – and experienced a similar disconnect – when she took a job as an investment banker after Oxford. “I was being paid a lot of money, but I felt very uncomfortable in the city environment,” she says. “The guys I was training with, there were 13 of us, they’d want to go out every night and go to a really expensive bar and pay to sit at a table and then buy a £500 bottle of champagne, just because they could. I was just like ‘this is just really not for me, I’m not enjoying this’,” Verjee says.

So, displaying the same steely resolve that now characterises her running, she quit, moved onto a farm, and began looking after horses. “I went from being paid, I don’t know, something ludicrous, to being paid £100 a week,” she says. “Everyone thought I was bonkers. But I was suddenly more fulfilled and happier.”

Having realised that working with animals was her true calling, she earned herself a place at Cambridge studying veterinary science – hardly an easy course – and hasn’t looked back since.

POWERING THROUGH

By now, you’ll have gathered that Verjee is nothing if not determined. Yet, when she talks about her running, what’s refreshing is how relaxed she sounds about it all.

If being a vet is her “vocation,” she says, then ultrarunning is “playtime”.

“I don’t want to make playtime work time,” she says, “and it’s the same with my training. I don’t really do training, I do what the hell I want.” Incredibly, given the level she’s operating at, Verjee doesn’t employ a coach.

“That’s just not me,” she says. “You can’t really tell me what to do, because I don’t even know what I want to do most of the time. The night before I might plan a certain run and then in the morning I don’t feel like doing that and I’ll do something else.”

Even when she’s taking on a record like the Wainwrights, Verjee’s chief focus is on making sure she’s enjoying herself. She chats to her support runners. She sings to herself (The Platters’ 1955 hit The Great Pretender, with the lyrics changed to ‘I’m the Great Descender’ has got her down many a steep hill, she says). And she has no truck with the kind of macho attitude that talks up how tough, and miserable, ultra14

running can be. “I can’t understand why these boys make it a sufferfest,” she says, genuinely incredulous.

“What if you just spent six days of your life pounding yourself in this miser-fest of suffering, and everyone else is miserable, because you are a miserable bastard, and then you don’t even get the record or you don’t even manage to finish? Like, how rubbish is that? Life is too short.”

It’s an approach she credits with allowing her to bounce back when things go wrong. “People keep asking, ‘how did you manage to complete [the second attempt] when you knew you weren’t going to get a record?’ And I was like, well, that wasn’t why I did it, I did it for fun,” she says. It’s also an approach that’s proven to be a winner time and again. Prior to her Wainwrights record, Verjee’s career highlights included outright victory at the 2019 Montane Spine Fusion Race, a 431km non-stop run along the Pennine Way, where she beat her nearest male competitor by more than seven hours. But perhaps best of all, it’s an approach that she believes is catching on.

The practically prehistoric attitudes Verjee encountered in her early days of adventure racing are changing, she believes. Increasingly, she says, “I have a lot of men come to me and ask for advice – although they have to be a certain type, more open-minded.”

She’s also encouraged that she’s not alone – there’s a whole group of female runners, including standout stars like Jasmin Paris and Beth Pascall, who are now winning races outright, and setting new records.

This new generation, with Verjee at the vanguard, is steadily transforming the traditionally macho field of fell-running – blowing up the idea that it should be framed as a sufferfest, and that endurance races are there to be endured. But if she’s aware of the historic impact of her achievements, Verjee doesn’t dwell on it.

Her main focus remains her next run and – no matter how little sleep she has, or how bad the weather is – just how much fun she’s going to have doing it.

“ Y O U C A N ’ T R E A L LY TELL ME WHAT TO DO, B E CAU S E I D O N ’ T E V E N K N O W W H A T I WA N T T O DO MOST OF THE TIME”

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TRAIL RUNNING

SLAYING THE DRAGON The Dragon’s Back is arguably the toughest mountain race anywhere in the world. Natalya Kennedy explains how – and why – people take it on.

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“Are you just hurting, or are you actually injured?”

The question keeps returning as I hobble through the small Welsh town of Machynlleth, remembering how easy it was to stroll these streets just a few weeks earlier; how relaxing it had been to stop for coffee. It seems almost inconceivable now, when every step forward is accompanied by the jolting, throbbing discomfort that’s gradually been hijacking my legs.

I decide, for the tenth time since breakfast, that it’s just pain. Instead of focusing on the sensation, I allow my mind to wander back to how I got myself into this predicament in the first place.

It all felt strangely inevitable. The seed was initially sown when I read Feet in the Clouds, the engaging homage to fell running by Richard Askwith. I remember thinking, from the comfort of my duvet, “I can see the appeal, but I just don’t think it’s for me”. But I couldn’t deny the gravitational pull exerted by the weight of history, the awe-inspiring toughness of the men and women he wrote about, and the descriptions of the fells themselves; the way the landscape and weather were two extra characters in every story, as capricious or generous as Greek Gods, granting glory to those with the tenacity to overcome the obstacles they threw in their paths.

Of all the feats Askwith covered, the Dragon’s Back race felt like the pinnacle for me. A 315km course over the rugged and trackless mountains of Wales, it requires covering an average distance of 63km - or one and a half marathons - every day, for five days. Add in a total ascent of more than twice the height of Everest, and it’s no wonder it’s widely regarded as one of the toughest mountain races anywhere on the planet. In fact, the Dragon’s Back is so difficult that after its first iteration in 1992, it was deemed too dangerous to ever be run again. It was also the first fell race to be won, outright, by a woman.

If her running partner Martin Stone is to be believed, Helene Diamantides (pictured inset, above) practically dragged him

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ellis-brigham.com/eoft

/eoft

over the course on that first event. It’s worth making allowances for his natural modesty, but it’s certainly true that their victory shattered glass ceilings as effectively as if they were trail shoes puncturing frosted puddles over winter mud. Long-held assumptions about women competing as equals to men in endurance events were hastily revised. Respected voices started arguing that women’s bodies may even be better designed for such extreme undertakings. I took inspiration from the endeavour, and shelved the book.

ENTER THE DRAGON

Several years later, a chance conversation and the loan of a DVD told me that the race had re-started in 2012, where Helene Diamantides (now Whitaker) cemented her legacy by taking 4th place overall, as well as fastest woman. It transpired that since 2015 it was being run every other year. The temptation to test myself grew, especially when two of my friends, Bo and Lisa, signed up. With a boldness buoyed by association, I put my name down too. And then promptly got injured.

While Lisa and Bo diligently recce’d the course, increased their mileage steadily, and endured weekend storms in small vans and leaky tents, I effectively hid under my duvet. I emerged from the chrysalis of recurrent injury with only six months in which to get fit for the event. I believed I was preparing myself as well as I could, spending every Saturday and Sunday lapping the sides of Kinder Scout, as my social circle dwindled to only those friends who could run with me, or eat supper before I fell asleep on the table. But it wasn’t until my first proper recce of the course, just over a month before the race, that the sheer scale of the Welsh mountains, the ferocity of the terrain underfoot, and the levels of concentration I would need to navigate the route in fog and rain really hit home.

The pre-race briefing was both inspiring and scary. Only 475 people have made it to the end since the race was restarted

in 2012. History, we were informed in no uncertain terms, suggested that only half of us would finish this time around.

Of those who dropped out, the majority would be on the first day. Statistically, if we made it to the end of Day Three within the time cut off, we would be likely to make it to the finish. But there were no guarantees.

Which is why I find myself wrestling with that crucial question in Machynlleth. Having summited the majority of the Welsh 3,000s on Day One and pushed painstakingly across the technical, rocky terrain of the Rhinogs on Day Two, it’s crunch time. I’m now desperately trying to manage the inner demons of discomfort, who keep suggesting that maybe, just maybe, that pain in my knee is an actual injury. One that might do irreversible damage if I don’t stop soon.

I don’t know if I could have fought them off, were it not for “Team Tape”. All strapped up with kinesiology tape of varyingly garish hues by the race physios, my friend Bo, her friend Matt and I find ourselves forming a mutual aid group. An alliance of individuals all working through the pain together, we buoy each

“I am almost defeated”

19

other along with stories, jokes, songs and sympathy, using our individual ebbs and flows to keep the crew in motion. Cheering on Lisa as she flies past us on her way to an eventual race victory gives us a lift. Somehow, we make it to the end of that day. And then the next, and the next.

I notice a gradual transformation in my legs in the process.

By day four I have developed ‘cankles’ - my ankles are so large, the calf appears to join directly to the foot - and the swelling in my muscles means I have to stop wearing my compression recovery tights overnight because they’re now several sizes too small. By day five there is no longer a differentiation between my thighs and my calves; where my knees should be my legs just go straight down. The cankles, I can handle. These ‘thknees’ though, are an entirely new problem.

I am almost defeated by the final stile crossing - the exquisite agony of lifting my leg over it convinces me that I have finally injured myself, and I’m close to tears. Bo astutely suggests that being so close to the line may have caused me to relax my psychological struggle a bit. Probably because she’s right, I reject the idea out of hand.

Somehow, we manage to run across the finish line. Greg, who’s completed the race four times now, hands me an ice cream, and I am filled with a confusing sensation - utter elation, and overwhelming relief, added to abject misery, as I realise that the pain doesn’t end with the running, and I still have to walk myself to the first shower I’ve had in six days.

BEATING THE BEAST

If you asked each competitor who’s run the Dragon’s Back why they did it, or what they gained from the experience, I think you’d have as many answers as you do runners. There’s the respect you gain for yourself by taking on something you’re not sure you can do. There’s the respect you gain for others too, and the sense of camaraderie as you each fight individual battles in pursuit of a common goal. Every new bond, however transient, lends strength to the efforts of both parties and unlike regular races, the person who spends longest on the course but still completes it within the allocated time gets as much credit as the winners at the prizegiving. This is testament to the toughness required to push on with minimal sleep or recovery time.

There’s also the unbridled joy of running free-footed through some of the most beautiful and varied mountainscapes on the planet. There are exceptional emotional highs and lows. And there’s the sense that these mountains will outlive us all, and that by joining the select group who’ve scaled them, you’re taking your place in history.

All of this, for me, has endured long after the leg swelling has subsided and the blisters have healed. Which is why – especially now they’ve extended the course to include a sixth day – I can’t rule out trying to take on the Dragon again.

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“There’s the unbridled joy of running free-footed through some of the most beautiful and varied mountain-scapes on the planet” 21

GEAR

FOOTWEAR TRAIL

RUNNING

SHOES LA SPORTIVA MEN’S BUSHIDO II PRICE: £130 WEIGHT: 305G

The super-technical Bushido II takes over where the original Bushido left off, as a pure-bred mountain race shoe. Breathable mesh uppers marry with abrasionresistant thermoplastic film reinforcements, wrapping and cradling the foot, aided by an updated heel cup and an OrthoLite 4mm insole. There’s an EVA midsole with a vital Rock Guard insert to continue the theme, and a proven FriXion Red dual-density sole that delivers grip but also lots of feedback, a critical factor in hitting that next PB.

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SALOMON MEN’S ULTRA GLIDE

PRICE: £130 WEIGHT: 260G

The Ultra Glide is a slight departure from Salomon, in that it headlines plushness and comfort alongside Salomon’s usual ruggedness. There’s a deep layer of Energy Surge cushioning and a high stack height (38.2mm heel, 32.2mm forefoot) that delivers lots of bounce and floats over the rough stuff. A Contagrip MA sole unit handles the traction end of things with aplomb. This is a great multi-surface companion to last the distance.

THE NORTH FACE WOMEN’S VECTIV INFINITE FL PRICE: £160 WEIGHT: 291G

The TNF Vectiv family is a broad church. The Infinite slots right into the middle in outright performance terms, but the FL (standing for FutureLight) makes it a brilliant waterproof option. It sports a 3D dual-density Pebax footplate, as well as substantial foot protection. The attractive weave of the upper is a super-abrasion-resistant Kevlar and Polyamide mix, and the 3.5mm outsole lugs add exceptional grip.

INOV-8 WOMEN’S ROCLITE G 275

PRICE: £130 WEIGHT: 275G

SALOMON MEN’S SPEEDCROSS 5

The Roclite G 275 packs a massive punch for such a lightweight shoe, bringing serious industry expertise and cutting edge tech together into a highly competent package. Cordura mesh uppers and a shock absorbing PowerFlow midsole lock around the foot in a breathable but protective envelope, augmented with a Meta-Plate to fend off sharp underfoot rocks. The outsole is Inov-8’s flagship Graphene-Grip.

PRICE: £120 WEIGHT: 320G

There’s a good reason this shoe is called the Speedcross 5 - the last four iterations have been highly popular and the 5 is no different. A proven trail platform, the Speedcross is built for real-off road mud and grass terrain. The size, spacing and geometry of the lugs have been specifically tweaked to optimise push-off and braking grip, while the sleek fully-welded upper conforms to the foot.

INOV-8 MEN’S TRAILFLY ULTRA G 300 MAX PRICE: £170 WEIGHT: 300G

Inov-8 have opted out of the carbon plate debate with the Trailfly G300, choosing instead to develop their signature Graphene technology further, in the shape of G-FLY foam. This gives a 25 percent improvement in energy return, and the Graphene also boosts durability. It boosts the full stack height to a heady 25mm at the heel and 19mm at the forefoot - the brand’s deepest ever – but these still maintain that distinctive Inov-8 feel thanks to the Adapterflex groove, which helps it handle uneven terrain. Overall, this allows you to run harder and faster, for longer.

23

HIKING

A GOOD EIGG? EXPLORING

SCOTLAND’S

MOST

ECO-FRIENDLY Robin McKelvie heads to Scotland’s West Coast to see if the Isle of Eigg is all it’s cracked up to be.

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ISLAND

Scrambling over the last boulder, I summit the pitchstone lava peak with only Mendelsohn for company. My heart stirs to his Hebrides Overture as the isles unfurl all around - a vast natural amphitheatre, instantly blowing away lingering lockdown blues. There’s been a lot of talk about the restorative power of nature over the past 18 months, and nowhere is this more obvious than Eigg, the tiny, communityowned island off the West Coast of Scotland that’s arguably the most eco-friendly place in the UK. In 1997, after years of issues with absentee landlords, the people of this island clubbed together to buy their home.

Just over a decade later, Eigg became the first island in the UK to generate all its own energy, entirely from wind, hydro and solar power. Visitors cannot miss Eigg’s environmental credentials. Step off the ferry from Mallaig and you’re greeted by a sign which invites you to get on board with the island’s ‘Big Green Footsteps’. You’re also presented with some of the most adventurous landscapes anywhere in the UK - an ideal place to explore with your own two feet.

My first target on arrival in Eigg was An Sgurr. It had to be. The mountain is daunting from the ferry, its sheer 393m high face looking impregnable. Go round the back however, and you’ll find a relatively easy route curling up the hill and you can reach the top in under two hours, with the option of tackling some serious scrambles en route. The summit offers one of the finest views in the Hebrides – ergo, one of the finest views in Europe. Eigg’s fellow Small Isles sparkle around, as Rum’s Cuillin mountains vie with Skye’s more distant namesake for attention. Come down from the peak, and you’ll find that Eigg is a Treasure Island of adventure opportunities. The population is only just over 100, leaving

“In 1997, after years of issues with absentee landlords, the people of Eigg clubbed together to buy their home.”

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lots of wild landscapes, despite the territory measuring just nine kilometres by five. It’s part of the globally recognised Lochaber Geopark too, affording it protected status.

Unlike the rest of the UK, Scotland allows you to pitch your tent wherever you want, and you can wild camp on much of Eigg - although the local community request you stick to Galmisdale Bay or the Singing Sands, where cows and sheep make welcome, if occasionally nosy, neighbours. I prefer to put a few bob back into the community however, and opt to stay at the cosy wooden pods that peer back across to the ferry in Galmisdale.

You’re not allowed to take cars over to Eigg, but a bike is a better way to get around anyway. The few roads are great for cycling, with the big skies, very few vehicles, and only the occasional sheep crossing to watch out for. I picked up my bike from Eigg Adventures, where one of the owners, Owain, explained the island’s charms: “It’s a great place for just getting out into the great outdoors, whether you want to stroll a beach or yomp through the wilds.”

FEELING EIGGSTATIC

Owain was right. I pushed on to the other side of the island, where the Singing Sands awaited. They weren’t so much singing as squelching, when I visited, but the ocean and hill views across to Rum were cinematic - the sort to set Ben Fogle salivating. Eigg Adventures rent out kayaks too - a special experience at Atlantic-level with seabirds splashing everywhere. As I paddled, marauding gannets plunged into the water around me like dive bombers, risking breaking their necks as they hurtled downwards at 90km/ph.

Dolphins and porpoises also patrol these waters, and you can see whales too, if you’re lucky. The paddling is relatively straightforward, although you need to be aware of quicklychanging local conditions - and the seals. I was almost turfed out of my kayak after slipping into a wee cove, and unwittingly interrupting a large grumpy male’s lunch.

Given its size, Eigg isn’t a destination for long distance walks or truly testing trails. But it’s a place where walking for even an hour can take you somewhere deeply special, away 26

from the imprint of man, to spaces you’re more likely to share with a sea eagle than a fellow sightseer.

My favourite corner of the island was Sgòrr an Fharaidh, an off-the-beaten-track hill in Eigg’s north. After a short, sharp ascent I made it to the striking rock formation the locals call the ‘Finger of God’, then lost a couple of hours in the Land of the Gods easing along an escarpment with airy views out to Eigg’s necklace of beaches. Skye rose up to the north, a glowering leviathan. I felt as small and powerless as I did on my first day at primary school.

Afterwards, enjoying fresh mussels hauled up from a pot on the pier at Galmisdale Café & Bar, I found the talk of the day turning to the island’s ‘new’ dinosaurs.

Last summer a 166 million-year-old fossil was unearthed, identified as a Stegosaurus bone. Eigg might be the future when it comes to energy, but it’s still the kind of place where you could easily imagine stumbling across something Jurassic as you explore.

“Dolphins and porpoises also patrol these waters. You can see whales too, if you’re lucky.”

27

GEAR

BACKPACKS DAY

HIKING

OSPREY TALON 26

PRICE: £130 WEIGHT: 0.94KG

This 2021 update of Osprey’s classic Talon rucksack is the brand’s most sustainable yet. Made from 100 percent recycled Robic nylon, the fabric is Bluesign approved and has a PFC-free DWR coating. Other features include an upgraded back panel as well as an injection moulded frame sheet for improved stability. These add to the lengthy list of tried-andtested details that have helped the Talon stand out from the daypack crowd for a decade.

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PAC K S

LOWE ALPINE CHOLATSE ND30

PRICE: £125 WEIGHT: 1.47KG

The Cholatse might look like a normal daypack, but it’s actually a women’s specific, stealth 4-season rucksack hiding in plain sight. A 30L volume will encourage careful packing for a full day, but the HeadLocker ice axe attachment points and side compression straps betray the utility here. An adjustable Air Contour+ back system is designed for serious action, along with load lifter straps, walking pole attachments and a daisy chain system. This is mountain ready for your next adventure.

LOWE ALPINE AIRZONE ACTIVE 22

FJÄLLRÄVEN ULVO ROLLTOP 23

OSPREY ARCHEON 28

PRICE: £70 WEIGHT: 0.78KG

PRICE: £140 WEIGHT: 0.65KG

PRICE: £140 WEIGHT: 1.26KG

A tidy little daysack at 22L, the AirZone Active is an ideal choice for autumn days out, packing in plenty of useful details while remaining relatively lightweight. A back system that includes a stiffening ‘anti-barrel’ plate and suspended mesh to increase breathability marries with comfortable shoulder straps and a lightweight hip belt. There are plenty of attachment points on the 210 denier 6.6 mini ripstop nylon exterior, including a bike light loop and an integrated rain cover.

Style and technical ability combine in the Ulvo, a streamlined 23 litre daypack that’s at home around town and country alike. The Bergshell material is waterproof and durable, and with the rolltop closure and taped seams, as waterproof as a rucksack gets. Internally there’s a 15” laptop sleeve, and a light-coloured liner to help spot smaller items.

Externally padded straps and a sternum strap give a stable carry. There’s also a rear attachment loop for a bike light.

THE NORTH FACE BASIN 36 PRICE: £100 WEIGHT: 1.07KG

Designed to be the consummate daypack and hold everything you might need on the trail, the Basin features a substantial 36L main capacity that will swallow extra layers and a set of waterproofs with ease. There’s a dedicated sleeve for a hydration bladder and an integrated rain cover - covering off both ends of the weather spectrum - as well as quickaccess water bottle pockets and attachment points for walking poles. A full harness system and zipped pockets on the padded hip belt complete the compelling picture.

The Archeon has plenty of design cues that herald from the world of serious alpine packs, giving it a streamlined, minimalist look. The metal buckles, durable Bluesign approved recycled nylon canvas build, and padded back panel all telegraph a much larger pack, but this 28L all-rounder is a perfect size for days out. A padded laptop sleeve keeps weekday work supplies organised, while the Archeon is also hydration bladder compatible for more adventurous weekends.

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WILD CAMPING

SKYE BY SUP

The Isle of Skye is the original adventure getaway.

But as Mike MacEacheran finds out, the only way to escape today’s visitor stampede is by stand-up paddle board.

In a faraway inlet north of the Sleat peninsula, Donald Macpherson swept his blade the length of his paddle board and announced it was time to race the weather. Up until this point, the sea loch had been silk-smooth and sparkling — the definition of holiday blue — and we had been paddling the sun-charged shallows of Coral Island, a sandy skerry to get adventurers dreaming. To one side was a heather-clad slope climbing to meet a pine forest, its stags skulking inside. To the other, across the surface of Loch Eishort, the keel-shaped spine of the Black Cuillin hills, rising as if right from the water. “Britain’s most beautiful mountains,” said our SUP guide, by way of introduction, “and yet, a view so extraordinary it’s beyond the reach of most people.”

The gentle rhythms and hard igneous lines of the Isle of Skye’s coast can be overwhelming, even for those who know the island best. On the face of it, Scotland’s most-touted island is the last place you’d expect to find backcountry adventure — it does, after all, cater to everyone, with options from familyfriendly hikes and distillery tours to an unexpected Jurassic-era dinosaur museum, and a glen imbued with fairy folktales. And, with international travel still not yet fully open, these are all places that will have even more attention this autumn.

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And yet, Skye’s Atlantic face remains a blank space at the top of the British map for adventurers. Only in recent years, thanks to the rise in popularity of SUP and sea kayaking, has exploring its nooks, crannies and caves become possible for most of us. The idea of discovering a familiar place from a new angle — to see parts of the coastline that you can’t otherwise reach — was the clincher for me.

I first came wild camping on Skye three decades ago, and fell for its sense of scale; the imagination-pricking pinnacles on the Trotternish peninsula and the raw otherness of Neist Point Lighthouse, a six-hour drive from Edinburgh, but so much further away. This time, I would be travelling with Explore Highland, Donald’s Inverness- based microadventure company, who had hooked up with Red Paddle Co. to road-test their new range of twin-fin Voyager boards.

It was an opportunity to stretch my mind; to find the unfamiliar in the familiar.

Before the wind had picked up, turning Loch Eishort into a sea of quivering waves, we’d set off from the beach at Ord, a cluster of crofts scattered around the shoreline’s rocky fringe. To get to Coral Island — before a loop around the Elgol peninsula to return to our wild camp at Tokavaig — we’d cut across a strait marked with the polished heads of curious seals. Above them, a white-tailed sea eagle spiralled, looking down on our three man SUP team — me, Norfolk-based photographer Rich and Donald.

Our audience watched as we slowly wobbled, hip-wagging our way across the seascape. Donald, a gregarious Highlander, led from the front, engulfed in protection from the gaspingcold water: a paddling jacket, trousers, neoprene gloves and wetsuit shoes complemented by a buoyancy aid. On the nose of the board was camping gear and beers packed tight under a bungee strap. “Always go with the wind,” he said, coaching us while pushing off across the limpid water. “Use it to your advantage. Remember, brain over brawn.” As if to show us we were in for some hard labour, he turned his inflatable board on a sixpence, then popped down onto his knees and back up again. I’d never seen squat thrusts while on a SUP before. My muscles cowered.

THE SECRET SIDE OF SKYE

The landscape looked empty at first — a watercolour, still and inspiring — but, up close, I found detail everywhere. Cormorants drying their wings in the sun; submarine maerl beds and vermilion sea kelp shifting in slow-motion; squirming fish and oystercatchers trying to debone them. On another day, we might have seen and heard more — a purring fishing boat, perhaps, or a farmer revving his 4x4 to herd wayward sheep — and for a moment I completely lost my sense of geography. Paddling in golden sunlight, the v-shaped hull breaking the surface tension with ease, we could have been in St Kitts. Not Skye. The first day’s climax was claiming our own private island for the

“Skye’s Atlantic coast is a blank space for many adventurers”

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afternoon, then retreating to set up camp in the shadows of Dunscaith Castle, an off-shore ruin with a story lost to the tides. The island was a bonanza of footprint-free sand and translucent waters, its exotic backbone focussing our minds on how lucky we were.

Later, our low-key tents were hastily assembled around a fire after draining our Skye Brewery ales. “I really need to come to Scotland more often,” said Rich. On the shore, I reminded him the wind had chased away the torment of all Scottish adventurers. There were no clouds of midges.

That evening, looking out towards Elgol in the soft-focus of sunset, I saw a fishing boat heading towards the western horizon, creel nets loosely hanging from the stern. Exhausted, I then sleepily listened to Donald tell me about other SUP adventures that would have to wait. The island of Soay, nearly uninhabited and home to a failed basking shark factory.

Slochd Altimen, or Spar Cave, a cathedral- shaped sea inlet once abseiled into by Bear Grylls and — of all people — Ben Stiller. And then, out came the stars and the last thing I saw before zipping up my tent was the dark silhouette of the Cuillin in the half-light. Hard-earned snoring might have drowned out the waves.

In the morning, we saw yet another side of Skye. Rather than attempt entry into a tidal sea cave or crossing to an island Google Maps would have trouble locating, the prevailing wind and tide forecast directed Donald to Loch Alsh, from where we paddled from the ruin of 14th-century Caisteal Maol, deep into Skye’s Inner Sound. To hell with the schedule: paddle boarding in Scotland means spontaneity, particularly liberating when you’re able to deflate and pack away your board to begin again elsewhere. There’d be no coastguard’s rescue choppers needed today.

We set off under the much-photographed Skye Bridge, ferry gliding by using the flow of water to move our boards sideways across the strait. At first, we looped around the tiny outcrop of Eilean Bàn and its chess-piece lighthouse, before turning north for a panorama taking in the foreground of Loch Carron, then Scalpay, Raasay, and Applecross in the distance. It was postcard Skye, right enough, but seen in a whole new light and from a far rawer perspective.

Right on cue, a dolphin appeared, then another, then a whole pod. Sunshine cast across the surface and I finally realised that, while everyone comes to this part of Scotland, few embrace it the right way. The silence, the peace and the solitude of my SUP journey had shown me the light.

“Right on cue, a dolphin appeared, then a whole pod” 34

STAND-UP PADDLE BOARD ESSENTIALS

RED PADDLE CO. 10’6” RIDE INFLATABLE SUP PACKAGE + CARBON 100 PADDLE • £900 The 10’6” Ride is one of Red Paddle’s most versatile models – able to handle head-high surf, but equally at home on millpond-still lakes. This package includes everything else you’ll need to kick start your adventures.

RED PRO CHANGE JACKET • £120

A changing robe allows you to get out of your wetsuit or paddling clothes without freezing.

A water and windproof outer layer covers a cosy fleece lining.

RED PADDLE CO 30L DRYBAG • £35

Keep your kit safe with one of Red Paddle Co’s sturdy and capacious roll-top drybags. This 30L model is the perfect size for day trips. Includes a D-ring attachment.

RED PADDLE CO AIRBELT PFD • £105

Less bulky than a buoyancy aid, this bumbag-sized Personal Floatation Device allows for better movement.

There’s a quick release handle when you need it.

35

GEAR

WILD CAMPING THE

ULTIMATE

KIT

BAG

UCO ORIGINAL CANDLE LANTERN

RAB NEUTRINO PRO 600 SLEEPING BAG

Burning a 12-hour beeswax candle, this lantern offers a cosier alternative to the harsh neons of most camping lanterns. It collapses down to 11cm and comes with multiple hanging options.

With 800 fill hydrophobic down, this will keep you comfortable down to -5°C, even when it is damp. The baffle structure is optimised to eliminate cold spots too – perfect for autumn.

PRICE: £25

RUMPL ORIGINAL PUFFY BLANKET PRICE: £90

A lightweight blanket filled with recycled synthetic insulation, this packs into an 18x41cm stuff sack for easy transportation. A DWR coating on the outside helps keep it stain free.

MSR TRAILSHOT MICROFILTER PRICE: £47

If you’re at all unsure about the source of your supply, a portable water filter is a must. This takes up very little room in your rucksack, but filters out all bacteria and particulate matter.

BLACK DIAMOND SPOT 350 HEAD TORCH PRICE: £40

With its powerful, 350 lumen light, this headtorch is remarkably inexpensive, and good to go straight from the box with 3xAAA batteries included. A perfect camping companion.

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PRICE: £440

MSR ACCESS 2 TENT

HELINOX CHAIR ONE

Compact, lightweight and versatile, this 4-season, 2-person tent will withstand any weather. The 1200-3000mm hydrostatic head and fully-taped floor keep you dry while the Easton Syclone poles can handle strong winds.

There’s no doubt that chairs add comfort to a camping trip, but they’re often left out because of space and weight concerns. This packs down small, and weighs less than a kilo - problem solved!

PRICE: £630

PRICE: £90

PRIMUS CAMPFIRE TABLEWARE

Made of food-grade stainless steel, these Primus eating utensils (plate, bowl and cutlery set) are sold separately. They’re designed not to hold flavours, so your cereal won’t taste of last night’s meal.

HELINOX TABLE ONE HARDTOP LARGE PRICE: £130

As the name suggests, this new camping table from Helinox is a slightly larger version of their popular One model, with a 76x57cm top. It’s tough, light, and wipe-clean.

PRIMUS 4-SEASON MUG 0.3L PRICE: £12

Specially designed for camping in autumn and winter, this high-grade stainless steel mug features a doublewalled design that keeps drinks hotter for longer when it’s cold.

THERM-A-REST PROLITE APEX MAT

PRIMUS ESSENTIAL STOVE SET 1.3L

Self-inflating, lightweight, and low-profile, the Prolite Apex mat combines convenience with coldweather performance, boasting an excellent warmth-to-weight ratio.

Easy-to-use and ideal for the costconscious camper, this boasts Primus’ patented burner with an integrated windshield. The set includes 2 pots and a frying pan which doubles as a lid.

PRICE: £135

PRICE: £105

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M U LT I - D AY T R E K S

LA BELLA VITA THE

BEST

IN THE

HIGH-ALTITUDE

HIKES

DOLOMITES

Six challenging multi-day treks in the world’s most beautiful mountains

The Dolomites are arguably the most beautiful mountains on Earth. In fact, these craggy edifices of red rock are so stunning that when Hollywood was looking for a location to shoot the Sylvester Stallone ‘classic’ Cliffhanger they decided to decamp here – the Rockies, where the story was set, were just not rocky enough, apparently.

The Dolomites aren’t just a cinematographer’s fever dream, however. A long history of mountaineering in the region means there’s a lot of impressive infrastructure here – from the via ferrata, which were invented in the region, to well-maintained trails, and an extensive network of mountain refuges, many of which are over 100-years old. These six multi-day treks are a great way of exploring this hiker’s paradise.

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TRANSLAGORAI TREK

5 Days / 8-9 hours walking per day Among locals, the Lagorai are known as the wildest mountains in the Trentino region – and with good reason. You’re normally never more than a few valleys away from the nearest ski lift in the Dolomites, but these peaks remain almost entirely undeveloped.

Brown bears and wolves thrive in this wilderness.

The Translagorai trail runs along the ridgeline of the range, from the peak of Panarotta to Passo Rolle, and can be walked both ways. It’s at least a five day hike, mostly at elevations of over 2,000m, and involves tricky sections of scrambling. The main difficulty of the Translagorai, however, is the relative lack of infrastructure. While the paths are well signposted and maintained by volunteers from the Società Alpinisti Tridentini (SAT), Trentino’s 150-year-old alpine club, there aren’t many mountain refuges along the route. This means you’ll be carrying your own food for some of the nights and either staying in a bivacco (an unstaffed mountain hut) or in your own tent. The upside is you’re far less likely to find tourists on the trail, meaning you can enjoy this wild mountain arena all to yourself. visitvalsugana.it

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SOUTHERN BRENTA LOOP

4 Days / 7-9 hours walking per day This strenuous four-day hike takes in the southern section of Dolomiti di Brenta, the most westerly of the nine mountain groups which make up the Dolomites UNESCO Heritage site. Starting from the upmarket ski resort town of Madonna di Campiglio, you climb a well-trodden path up to the Rifugio Francis Fox Tuckett, named for the Victorian adventurer who was the first to climb several of the peaks in this snaggle-toothed sub range.

From here, you have the choice of either a via ferrata or a hike to head south to the Maria è Alberto ai Brentei refuge for your first night. Day two takes you over the Bocca d’Ambiez at 2,900m before you descend into the gorgeous Ambiez valley, with views over Lake Garda. Expect exposure and some scary via ferrata sections on the way down. Day three is easier, taking you around the Eastern side of the range to Pedrotti refuge, while the final day offers arguably the best views of all – taking you past the iconic spike of the Campanile Basso (‘lower needle’) before you head back over the Tuckett pass, and down to Campiglio to finish. visittrentino.info

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PALE DI SAN MARTINO 3-DAY TREK

3 Days / 7-10 hours walking per day Straddling the border between the provinces of Trentino and Veneto, the Pale di San Martino is the largest single massif in the Dolomites, but one of the least well-known. This three-day trek follows a section of the Alta Via dei Pionieri, or the ‘high road of the pioneers’, which takes in most of the major sites and passes of the massif. Again, you’ll be staying in mountain refuges, which are never exactly luxurious – think dorm rooms and bunk beds – but are always welcoming. Most will fortify you with a tasty three course meal at night (this is Italy, after all) and many even offer hot showers for a few euros extra.

Day one takes you from the town of Agordo up to the Pradidali refuge at 2,278m. It’s a strenuous effort, involving around 8-10 hours of hiking and some 2,000m of climbing in total. Day two will give you stunning views over Pale di San Martino’s highest points, Cimon della Pala (3,184m) and Vezzana Peak (3,192m), before you bunk down for the night in the Volpi di Misurata refuge. A final day of some 23km takes you back down to Agordo, and a well-earned rest. explore-share.com

VAL DI FASSA DOLOMITI TREK-KING

6 Days / 5-7 hours walking per day As that terrible pun of a name suggests, this 6-day trek has a reasonable claim to be the crown jewel of all the multi-day missions in the Dolomites. Starting and finishing in the Val di Fassa, it offers views over some of the most iconic mountains in the whole range. If the weather plays ball, you’ll get a fantastic panorama of the majestic Marmolada massif, known as ‘the Queen of the Dolomites’, and see the Gruppo del Sassolungo (Langkofelgruppe in German), from almost every angle.

The trekking is not hugely strenuous – if you take the usual six days over this route, you’ll only be walking for around five hours a day, and you can start by catching two lifts from Pozza di Fassa to the Col de Valvacin, which takes the sting out of the initial climb. The mountain refuges along this route are large and wellequipped, so you won’t be roughing it either. If you’re looking for a multi-day trek that’s still challenging, but marginally less extreme than some of those listed on these pages, then this is it. fassa.com 42

ORTLER ALPINE RIDGEWAY

6 Days / 7-10 hours walking per day The Ortler mountain group might not technically be the Dolomites, but this high altitude multi-dayer is worthy of inclusion because it features some of the most epic terrain of the region – including glacier crossings and several sections above 3,000m. The route starts on the Stelvio Pass – a steep mountain pass whose name will be familiar to anyone who’s ever watched the Giro d’Italia – and runs for 120km through the Stelvio National Park.

Day one, which is mostly spent descending, might lull you into a false sense of security, but don’t be fooled – things soon pick up as the trail winds its way towards the Düsseldorfer hut. If you’re taking the normal six days over the route, day five, which takes you from the high altitude Pizzini hut to Sant’Antonio, is probably the hardest. You can expect to be on your feet for over eight hours. Be warned, that this isn’t a circular route, so if you’re self-guided, you’ll want to make sure you’ve checked out the excellent Italian train app (trenitalia.it) and got your transport back to the start booked. suedtirol.info

MERANO HIGH TRAIL

5-8 Days 5-7 hours walking per day Merano, in the German-speaking province of Alto-Adige, aka Südtirol, has a reputation as both a spa town and a centre for mountaineering. Reinhold Messner grew up here, and one of his mountain museums sits on a hillside just outside town. Opened in 1985, the Merano High Trail is a 100km loop with over 5,100m of ascent and descent, which usually takes between five and eight days to complete.

There are numerous starting points for the full loop, and you can tackle it in sections too. But for the full experience, we’d recommend taking six or seven days, and staying in the network of mountain huts en route. The food here is notably more Austrian fare, but it’s always tasty, and the welcomes are just as warm. merano-suedtirol.it

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GEAR

FOOTWEAR 3

SEASON

SALOMON MEN’S QUEST 4 GTX

PRICE: £180 WEIGHT: 655G

The Quest 4 is a great allrounder, offering Salomon’s tried-and-tested fit and build quality with good protection all round the foot and a high ankle. A nubuck leather upper adds durability and longevity, while the ADV-C 4D chassis supports and stabilises the foot, reducing fatigue on long days. The absorptive EnergyCell midsole continues that trend, and a final layer of Contagrip TD as the outsole gives excellent grip.

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HIKING

BOOTS

KEEN WOMEN’S TARGHEE III MID WP PRICE: £120 WEIGHT: 375G

The Keen Targhee has been around in one form or another for a decade-and-a-half or so, and the Targhee III is a worthy successor. Robust, lightweight and comfortable, it ticks plenty of boxes even before digging into the spec. A comfy dual-density EVA midsole, Metatomical footbed and TPU heel capture system elevate the comfort factor, while the ESS shank adds stiffness but not weight. The mix of leather and mesh upper gives breathability and durability.

MEINDL WOMEN’S GRADO GTX

ADIDAS TERREX MEN’S TERREX FREE HIKER GTX

Meindl’s reputation for well-made but comfortable boots remains strong in these mid-cut lightweight mile-crunchers.

Designed for long days on established trails, the low weight and top-grade cushioning will keep your feet comfy. An inbuilt EVA shock absorber takes the brunt of the impact, while the nubuck leather and suede upper will last for years. The GORE-TEX insert should keep damp at bay too.

Adidas broke new ground with the original Free Hiker, a knitted boot that brought trainer-style comfort to hiking-grade boots.

This GORE-TEX version adds better water repellency while still providing immense breathability, combined with the huge energy return of the Boost midsole that literally puts a spring in your step. The sock-style upper retains the foot when in motion, and the snug fit prevents trail debris from getting in.

PRICE: £200 WEIGHT: 370G

PRICE: £180 WEIGHT: 415G

HANWAG MEN’S BANKS GTX

PRICE: £200 WEIGHT: 625G

Hanwag has a range of boots based on the ‘Banks’ last – this is the pick of the bunch. A traditional style, the Leather Working Group (LWG) Gold-rated nubuck leather boot is lined with GORE-TEX and robustly padded to give a solid and effective hiking platform for most non-winter occasions. Cast metal eyelets will withstand whatever you throw at them, as will the robust yet sticky Vibram Endurance Pro sole.

HOKA ONE ONE WOMEN’S ANACAPA MID GTX PRICE: £150 WEIGHT: 384G

Hoka One One has been tapping into its strong trail running heritage to produce some unusual and eye-catching hiking boot designs. Sustainable details abound here, from the Leather Working Group (LWG) Gold-rated nubuck leather to the PFC-Free Water Repellent finish, and the sockliner derived from 50% soybean oil. Even the GORETEX liner incorporates recycled textile. There’s no compromise on performance either, with the extended heel geometry and cushioned midsole delivering a comfortable ride with plenty of grip.

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GEAR

MEN’S HIKING KIT HEAD TO TOE

PATAGONIA NANO PUFF JACKET

£180

TNF DRYZZLE FUTURELIGHT JACKET

£200

TNF DIABLO PANTS

£100

SMARTWOOL MERINO PHD SOCKS

£24

OSPREY TALON PRO 30 PACK

£175

RAB NEXUS PULL-ON LEKI VARIO MICRO CARBON LA SPORTIVA TX5 GORE-TEX BOOTS

£180

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£55

£165

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RAB CIRRUS FLEX 2.0 HOODY

£130

TNF DRYZZLE FUTURELIGHT JACKET

£200

HOKA ONE ONE KAHA BOOTS

PATAGONIA BETTER SWEATER

£180

£110

TNF DIABLO PANTS

£100

LOWE ALPINE AEON ND25 BACKPACK

SMARTWOOL MERINO PHD SOCKS

£90

£24

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HYDRO FLASK WIDE MOUTH 320Z (946ML)

£42

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MEN’S TRAIL KIT HEAD TO TOE INOV-8 PERTEX STORMSHELL

INOV-8 RACE ULTRA PRO 2IN1 VEST

£180

£150

INOV-8 TRAIL PANTS

£120

BLACK DIAMOND

DISTANCE CARBON FLZ

£150

INOV-8 RACE ELITE PEAK 2.0 CAP

£20

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SALOMON SPEEDCROSS 5 GTX

£150

INOV-8 L/S TRAIN ELITE MID ZIP TOP

£60

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INOV-8 WINDSHELL JACKET

£90

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£80

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£115

PETZL SWIFT RL HEADTORCH

£97

INOV-8 WRAG 30

£16

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£60

INOV-8 TERRAULTRA G270 SHOES

£145

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T E A M TA L K

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE

We ask our in-store experts about their favourite spots. Here, Andi Bundai from Aviemore shares a few of the Cairngorms’ hidden secrets.

Name: Andi Bundai Store: Aviemore Main activities: Swim, SUP, hiking, MTB, ski touring, cross-country skiing, bouldering, climbing Part of the EB family for: 11 years

LOCH VAA

A small fishing loch just north of Aviemore, Loch Vaa is a secluded spot, and a lot calmer than some of the bigger lochs on a windy day. It’s one of my favourite places to swim or SUP, as it tends to be quiet. It pays to get here early though, car parking is limited. When it’s sunny and the water’s still, all you can hear is the birds singing, and you can see down to the bottom. The views are breathtaking, especially if you swim across and look back at the boathouse.

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CRAIGELLACHIE

This is a beautiful nature reserve with heaps of wildlife and birds including peregrine falcons, grey herons and so on. I come here every day with my dog, Ropi, usually early in the morning. We always see deer running about, and a grey heron that I’ve named Hector. There are two little lochans at the bottom where Ropi swims, and once you reach the summit you get a view across the Cairngorms. You can hike or run on any of the trails which run through the reserve.

LOCH AN EILEIN

This is a beautiful spot in Rothiemurchus forest with a ridiculously picturesque ruined castle on an island in the middle of the loch. It’s great for walking, riding your bike around, SUPing or swimming. If I’m riding my bike, I’d come here any time, but if I’m going in, I tend to come here in the evening. There’s hardly anyone about then, so the car park is usually empty, and the sunsets are spectacular. If it’s windy, Loch an Eilein stays calm which makes it easier for SUPing too.

LAIRIG GHRU

This is one of the mountain passes through the Cairngorms it’s a great place to head to on a day off, setting off in the morning and staying out for the rest of the day. You can walk it or ride it on a mountain bike, and the further you go the trickier the route gets. The views are stunning and you hardly ever meet oncoming traffic. I normally ride from home and stop by the Rothiemurchus Farm Shop which also has some great treats that you can pick up for the road. Scotch eggs – yum!

GO

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09.08.21 18:34

THE SOFTEST H A RD S H E LL K I N E T I C ALP I NE 2.0 JA C K ET

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