Stay Wild // Fall 2016 by Stay Wild Magazine

FREE ADVENTURE MAGAZINE // FALL 2016

ALWAYS WILD â&#x20AC;¦

BOB SOVEN | SANUK.COM

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BEER RUNNER

GUIDE TX

IT's all about Our Contributors Dylan Christopher (the photo above), Amy Morrison, Camper Morrison, Justin “Scrappers” Morrison, Marjorie Skinner, Ayla Gilbert, Charlotte Austin, Bryan Aulick, Liz Ibarra, Alin Dragulin, Lexi Smith, Cody Cheng, Monica Mo, Meghan Sinnott, Jocelyn Gaudi, Tom Bing, Sally McGee, Trevor Mottram, Amy Codiamat, Bernie Freidin, Fredrik Farnstrom, Kelly Thompson, Ally Pintucci, Alisha Cowderoy, Julian DeSchutter, Steve Vanderhoek, Geoff Hewat, Katherine Curran, Adam Walker, Bob Soven, Chelsea Keenan, Ola Krol, Mirae Campbell, Evan Schell, North (ad agency), and the bad ass companies who work with us.

COver Photo Luke Byrne // luke-byrne.com // @coooolhandluke

HELLO // Aloha // Hola

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LOCAL

The rain, the soil, the seeds, the trees, the mill, the paper, the printing machines, and the people who physically made this magazine are all hiking distance from each other in and around Portland, Oregon.

Danny Davis enjoying a little headlong adventure in New Zealand during overcast skies and low temps. Featuring the Grove Full Zip Fleece.

Available at Burton.com, Burton Flagship locations and Premium Retailers around the globe.

T H E H I N KU VA L L E Y, WE S T E R N N E PA L STORY BY CHARL OTTE AUSTINÂ PHOTOS BY BRYAN AUL ICK

Proof Eyewear was built upon the concept of being a socially conscious brand in every area possible. The bird logo represents the idea that, “Everyone has the wings to fly, some just need a little help.” Proof’s latest Do Good Project is set in Uganda, where they have partnered with HELP International in initiatives supporting the communities and people of Uganda. Volunteers, including Proof employees, will assist in executing projects related to educational development, vision health, well digging, and empowerment of vulnerable populations. The Do Good Projects provide solutions that don’t pay off a problem temporarily, but solve economic and environmental challenges for a lifetime. Learn more about #TheUgandaProject at iwantproof.com/Uganda.

IWANTPROOF.COM/DOGOOD

ach breath burned. As we trudged up the glacier, I traced our route of ascent with my eyes: milky blue ice, undulating in every direction. I swung my arms hard to force feeling into fingers stiff with cold. It was somewhere between midnight and pre-dawn. Three hours before, I had tied into the middle of 50-meter rope. Behind me was Bryan, my partner; ahead was Mingma, the climbing Sherpa we’d hired because it is required by law in Nepal. We were on Mera Peak, a rarely traveled 21,247’ massif deep in the Hinku Valley of the western Himalaya. We were alone on the mountain, and I—a professional mountain guide and the most experienced member of our team—was scared. Months before, I had carefully pitched our objective to my sponsors. Despite the exotic-sounding location, nothing about Mera Peak is cutting edge. The ascent requires basic glacier travel but is not technically difficult. When compared to surrounding peaks, the elevation of the summit is not impressive. If you tilt your head 90 degrees to the side, Mera Peak has the silhouette of an unexcited A-cup breast. “This will be an incredible adventure,” I’d written in our proposal. “Bryan has never been on a big mountain. This will be his first big alpine climb. We’ll get off the

beaten path, see the real Himalaya. The Khumbu Valley (which leads to Everest) is overpopulated, and we want to experience and share the stories of authentic Nepal.” We spent hundreds of hours studying maps, collecting gear, and battling our personal demons on Stairmasters at 24 Hour Fitness late at night. My Instagram followers posted meaningful emoticons. Bryan drove for hours and wallowed in thighdeep snow to find a slope appropriate for practicing with his crampons and ice axe. Then, suddenly, the expedition began. Despite the valley’s proximity to Everest, the Hinku is rugged, remote terrain: deep jungle, herds of chocolate-colored mountain goats munching rhododendrons, untamed alpine topography. Twice a day Bryan and I ate rice and boiled lentils. Rivers pulsed with glacial silt. There are no roads, no internet, no electricity; just dirt trails snaking across hillsides for unimaginable miles. Every day we walked. We fought, we kissed, we sang. We walked for hours, then days, always moving toward our mountain. The skin peeled off my toes. We walked, always moving toward the unknown.

As I scanned the glacier with my headlamp in that middle-of-the-night morning, I thought about the hours we’d spent in preparation, Bryan’s hope and commitment, our shared dream of climbing something—anything—together, as a team. But I knew, had known for a thousand painful steps, that we weren’t going to reach the summit. We were both feeling strong, but the glacier was more heavily crevassed than I’d expected from the reports I’d gotten from previous years. With each step, I berated myself: What if I’d brought more rope, different gear, other ways to protect the route? But no. The glacier was cracked and brittle as sunbaked Styrofoam, and I simply didn’t have what we needed to summit and descend safely. I stopped walking and switched off my light. Once our eyes adjusted to the starlight, I showed Bryan the ribbons of sagging snow snaking around us, indicating the crevasse danger. I explained my assessment of the risk, my decision. Bryan closed his eyes for one long moment. I watched him, my breath steaming in clouds around us. Bryan opened his eyes, and together we looked out at the pre-dawn for one silent heartbeat. Then we walked downhill, away from our mountain.

Back in Kathmandu, I dreaded telling the world that we hadn’t completed our goal. What would I tell the sponsors who had sent gear, the guide service I work for, the members of our families who were watching our dog for six weeks? We limped around the city, feeling numb and distant from each other and ourselves. Bryan got sick. A tiny brown monkey—one of the thousands who run wild on the streets of the city—sat on my dusty duffel bag full of climbing gear and masturbated, his tiny fist moving fiendishly. I watched, exhausted and confused. On the flight back to Seattle, I pulled my journal out of my bag, lowered my tray table, and made a list. “Ways we failed,” I wrote, underlining it twice. “No summit. Argued a lot. No summit. Puked.” In another column, I wrote: “Ways we succeeded: Saw new places. Made art. Did not get the

shits. We are now black belts in communication. Quads of steel. Came home safely.” A stewardess walked through the dark cabin, saw me awake, quietly asked if she could get me another drink. I nodded. Sipping bad whiskey, I looked at my list as we flew quietly toward home. Seven months later, I am still thinking about that climb. Did I let people down? Should I have known, brought extra gear, planned for more contingencies? We were broke for months as we paid off our travel bills while I tried to avoid telling the story to my friends. Should I have pushed us further into the unknown? I wanted that summit. What price should I have paid? I find myself thinking about Mera Peak when I’m guiding, whenever there is the one question I’m asked more than any other. When we’re climbing,

my clients don’t want to know about the route or the altitude or the weather. They want to know whether it will be hard. “Yes,” I say. “Undoubtedly. Climbing mountains is always hard.” They look at me warily, zinc oxide smeared across their noses, as though this is groundbreaking news. “You came here to do something hard,” I point out. “That’s the whole point. It wouldn’t be an adventure if it didn’t challenge you.” I said that phrase to my clients a dozen times before I heard myself. Adventure is an overused word: it’s a conceit, a privilege, a contradiction. We’re collectively obsessed with it, because it puts us into situations where there are consequences instead of rules, where we can’t use Google to solve our problems, where we do hard things. Real adventure is painful. It’s terrible. It’s perfect.

CHARLOTTEAUSTIN.COM // @CHARLOTTEAUSTIN BRYANAULICK.COM // @BRYANAULICK

Skate the Rez

WO OD , WHE E L S, AND POT E NT I AL ST O RY AN D PH O T O S BY DYL AN CHRISTOPHER // @ DI E L A N

I wish that I could travel back in time to tell my 14-year-old self that someday I’d be driving across the country in a van full of professional skaters, camping in national parks, and giving skateboards to kids in need along the way. I’m pretty sure my teenage self would shit his pants, which would be funny. The mission of Elemental Awareness is to connect kids to nature and spread positivity through skateboarding. For the past decade we’ve been traveling across the nation visiting Indian reservations, stoking out their skate scenes with events and giving away massive amounts of product to the kids. We’ve spent time with the Apache, Navajo, Hopi, Kootenai, S’klallam, and Pima tribes. The reservations of America are some of the most barren underserved communities you’ll see outside of a Third World country. Poverty, alcoholism, and drug use run wild—yet happiness persists. We’ve been welcomed with open arms into homes, ceremonies, and lifelong friendships. To give skateboarding to someone who seemingly has so little is indescribable, especially knowing what skateboarding has done for me. I can only imagine the potential this piece of wood with wheels has for these children. It’s more than a hobby or passion; it’s an escape, it’s life. Last year on the Pima reservation outside of Phoenix, I handed a kid a skateboard and he looked up at me and said, “This is the best day of my life.” And not in the way people say it ironically. Like, literally that was the best day he had lived in his life up until that moment. I was at a loss. All I know is I hope to do this over and over for as long as I can. Get on a skateboard; you never know where it will take you.

ELEMENTALAWARENESS.ORG // @ELEMENTALAWARENESS

EL EM ENTBR A ND.COM # EL EM ENTK EEPDI SCOVER I NG

P HOTO BY ELEMEN T ADVO CAT E B RIAN GAB ERMAN

The Klamath Adventure Club

STAY WILD MAGAZINE S E NT F I V E C R E AT I V E E X P L O R E R S O N AN ADVEN TU RE TO KLA M AT H , O R E G O N W I T H A L O O S E M A P, SOM E GOODS, AN D T O TA L C R E AT I V E F R E E D O M . H ERE’ S WH AT T HE Y C A M E B A C K W I T H . S T O RY B Y LI Z I B A R R A / / @ LI ZI B AR R A AL I N DRAG U LI N / / @ ALI N D R AG U LI N D O TC O M L E XI SM I T H & C O D Y C H E N G / / @ STATEO FM I N D STU D I O M ONI C A M O / / @ I _ AM _ M O N I C AM O

“Adventure is jumping into water you’ve never jumped into before, upside-down and with your eyes closed. It’s when everything you planned goes absolutely wrong and you find yourself on the side of a mountain overlooking a river, in hot springs during pouring rain, drinking beer with people you just met.” -Liz

“Adventure is probably different to everyone.” -Monica

“At first it was a little scary, and gave us anxiety because we didn’t know what exactly we were doing, and didn’t know these people. It was a wonderful surprise how closely and quickly friendship can form when you’re put in an uncomfortable situation.” -Lexi

“Klamath has tons of great roadside flowers.” -Liz

“I’m kind of a loner so I don’t go out of my way to meet people. Lexi started to chat up a couple guys we met at the hot springs, and it turns out they were on a bro trip, rock climbing and sightseeing around Washington and Oregon. She invited them to camp with us and we had a lovely visit with them around the campfire. They were nice guys and they didn’t kill us!” -Alin

THE G OO DS WE USE D ELEMENT F OR C LOTHI NG A N D SKAT E BOARDS / / E L E ME N TB R AN D . C O M SA NUK F OR FOO TWEAR / / S A N U K .C O M BU RT ON F OR B AC KPACKS A N D CAM P GE AR / / B U RT O N .CO M PROOF F OR S UNGLA SSE S / / IWA N T P R O O F.C O M OR U F OR KAYA KS // O R U K AYA K .C O M BIOL IT E F OR ELEC TR I CI T Y / / B IO L IT E E N E R G Y.C O M CEL EST RON F OR BINOCUL ARS / / C E L E S T R O N .C O M SCOUT BOOKS F OR DO ODL I NG / / S C O U T B O O K S .C O M

“The hot spring we went to was unlike any I’ve been to. Water hot enough to cook ramen in starts at the top of a hillside and collects in six pools downhill, where it gradually gets cooler and collects more dead skin and used bandaids. Naturally everyone wants to make it to the top where the water is warmest and pure. But that pool is always taken, so you have to start at the bottom and work your way up like you’re climbing a hippie corporate ladder.” -Alin

“It felt like we were all 10 years old again, without a care or worry in the world and just having some pure fun.” -Lexi

ARBOR

A R B O R

P R E M I U M

COLLECTIVIST

S K A T E B O A R D S P I L S N E R

@ E V E R C H A N G I N G H O R I Z O N

“We HAVE to skateboard down this road!” -Monica

SEE THE VIDEO VERSION OF THIS STORY AT STAYW IL DMAGAZIN E .COM

Olympic Bikepacking

TH REE D AY S O F BIK EPACKI NG I N A GOOF Y F L ORAL SKI R T ST O RY B Y ME G H A N SINNOTT P HOT OS BY JOCELYN GAUDI I thought about it all night and into the morning: How am I going to ask seven experienced badass ladies the most embarrassing, girly question I can imagine on the very same day we embark on a three-day bikepacking adventure? They’re going to find out just before we push off that I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m a hack, a noob, a liability. I sucked it up and finally let the question out: “Um, hey, so… what are you all wearing today?” To my surprise, nobody laughed at me, and no one thought I was any less prepared or ready to ride than they had previously assumed. As it turned out, they didn’t know what they were going to ride in that day either. Like me, they had never seen the trail, so how could they plan? My confidence swelled…until I got on the mountain bike I had borrowed for the trip. I ride a bicycle every day, and yet here I was biking down Highway 112 towards the trailhead of the

25-mile Olympic Adventure Route, a single-track wonderland through the Olympic National Park, and I couldn’t figure out how to shift gears. I’d mountain biked three times before in my life and hadn’t killed myself yet, and so I had gotten cocky. I’d somehow convinced these women that I could hang, and I was failing before we even hit the trail. And then the mantra of the weekend played out in my head. “Don’t say ‘sorry,’” we had requested of each other. “Instead, say ‘thank you.’” So, I humbled myself and asked, “How do I shift this thing?!” I got the answer and said, “Thanks.” It was as easy as that. Here’s the shocker: I kicked ass, we all did. The ride was epic, and I didn’t need “proper” gear of my own, or even any previous bikepacking experience. My goofy floral skirt and borrowed gear suited me, but it wasn’t about gear or experience. Success on the trail resulted from the support we had for each other and, perhaps more importantly, the trust we had to find in ourselves.

THIS ADVENTURE WAS MADE WITH HELP BY NUTCASE HELMETS AND KOMOREBI BICYCLING KOMOREBICYCLINGTEAM.COM // @KOMOREBICYCLING // NUTCASEHELMETS.COM // @NUTCASEHELMETS

P H O T O B Y MI R AE C A MP B E L L

E N G L I S H B AY

The waterslide is dope. Sure, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be in line with kids to go down, but growing up is overrated. Pro tip: Hit this spot at sunset. The tide is higher, the water is deeper, and the lighting is beautiful.

E X P LO R ING T HE S E C R E T LY S W IMMA B LE S ID E O F FUNC O UV E R Water slides, salt water pools, cliffs to jump, a nude beach, and swimming holes at the end of most streets makes this side of urban Canada all about aquatic adventure. WORDS BY A LLY P I N T U C C I PH O TO G R APH Y B Y M I R A E C A M P B E LL A LLY P I N T U C C I A D A M WA LK E R WAKEBOARD WIZARDRY BY BOB SOVEN VI D EO G R APH Y B Y G E O FF H E WAT

SW I M M I N G B Y O LA K R O L J U LI A N D E S C H U T T E R A LI S H A C O W D E R O Y C H E LS E A K E E N A N S T E V E VA N D E R H O E K M I R A E C A M P B E LL A LLY P I N T U C C I A D A M WA LK E R PR O D U C TI O N B Y K AT H E R I N E “M AM A B EAR ” C U R R A N

THIS ADVENTURE WAS MADE WITH HELP FROM OUR FRINDS AT SANUK @SANUK // SANUK.COM

L I ONS BAY

Along the Sea-to-Sky Highway (the 99), there are a few places to enjoy some awesome cliff jumping, rope-swinging, and tree jumping spots along with some mellow float sessions. Pro tip: Like all other spots around Vancouver, the water is deeper during high tide. Go when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deepest, because the drop is far and you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to hit bottom.

P H O T O S B Y M IR A E C A M P B E L L

K IT S IL A N O This area is bumping in the summer and can get filled up pretty quickly. On hot summer days it’s packed with volleyball players, paddle boarders, swimmers jumping off the dock, or people enjoying Canada’s largest pool. Pro tip: Walk past the pool and down the trail to the secret beach. Less people, more chill time, and a sweet swing.

JERIC HO BE ACH Just down from Kits beach, Jericho has a badass view of the city. Pro tip: Go beyond the crowd to the driftwood log pile, blow up floaties, and soak.

P H O TO B Y A LLY P I N TU C C I

DEEP COVE We piled onto a boat and witnessed wakeboard wizardry from our dude Bob Soven.

Pro tip: Swing by Honey Donuts for some melt-in-your-mouth goodness on the way to the glazed water.

P H O T O S B Y M IR A E C A M P B E L L

LYNN CANYON

Pro tip: Due to rain and snow melt water levels are constantly changing, so please be aware of the factors.

V I DE O S T I L L B Y G EO F F H E WAT

The world is full of crazy inspiration, cool ideas, and things that are way more dangerous than they seem. This spot is one of them. While the natural rock waterslide and cliff jumps attract a ton of people, you have to climb past caution signs beyond a suspension bridge to make it to this spot.

P H O T O B Y M I RA E C A MP BE L L

N O W TH AT YOU KNOW W HERE TO GO S WIMMING IN VA NCOUV E R, BE S MA RT, BE S A F E , AND KEEP THESE PLACE S CLE A NE R THA N Y OU FOUND THE M.

WRECK BEACH

Two things you see at Wreck: the most incredible sunsets and a whole lot of nakedness. Pro tip: Clothing is optional, but good times are mandatory.

SEE THE VIDEO VERSION OF THIS STORY AT STAYWILDMAGAZINE.COM

THE REVIVAL SERIES The R e v i v a l S e r i e s is about finding lost and f org otte n

The Sunshine Coast region of British Columbia, Canada,

ti mbers

was a logging mecca during the Late 1800s. Demand for

and

r e p u rposing

them

int o

high

q ua lity

s k ateb o a r d s . I t i s a bout using old and weat hered ma te ria l

Coastal wood drove an industry that fuelled Britain’s

to c rea t e S k a t e b o a r d s t hat are both beaut if ul and fu lly

industrial revolution. For this series, we’ve salvaged logs

s k ate-a b l e .

B y s o u rcing unique m aterials and p re ssing

that were harvested from the Sunshine Coast region in the

them in t o b o a r d s a t o ur lit tle factory in t he Kootenay r e gio n

late 1800’s and placed in Ruby Lake for preservation while

of BC, w e a r e a b l e to create boards t hat are pi e ce s of

the Howard Logging Company built a rail line to their mill

hi s tory. I n s t e a d o f b eing f orgott en, Revival Series wo od is

in Earls Cove, B.C. The company ultimately failed and the

rej uv e n a t e d , r e c l a i med and repurposed to live again un de r

rail line was never completed. The logs eventually sank and

the fee t o f s k a t e r s .

remained under the surface of Ruby Lake for over a century.

This limited edition board is available now at your local retailer landyachtz.coM

@LANDYACHTZLONGBOARDS

Surf Portland

TH REE NEW SURF S HO PS OPE N 80 M I L E S F ROM T HE COA S T P H O T O & WO R D S B Y J U S T I N “S C R A P P E R S ” M O R R I S O N

I’m in Portland, Oregon, the coast is 80 miles away. It’s a two-hour drive beyond the city, the suburbs, the farms, and the forest. Portland is not at the beach, but it has a surf culture all its own. Something is growing organically here, beyond the reach of the mainstream scene. It’s in our art (the paint is still wet), our fashion (think wool and waxed canvas), our food & drink (smoke salmon stout), and even in our music (listen to Guantanamo Baywatch). Our DIY/ maker/design culture has a surfy side, too! We have great surfboard shapers living and working here, like Mike Hall of Blackfern, the guys at FRESTcoast, and Dan Murdey, who learned to glass in Bend, Oregon with Hawaiian legend Gerry Lopez. The most “Portland” thing of all might be Pushfins making surfboard fins out of old, busted skateboard decks. We have a surf scene here, so it’s no surprise three surf shops are opening at the same time. Leeward, Cosube, and Up North Surf Club are all about our Northwest culture. All three shops are a vital voice in the conversation defining this pioneer surf scene. Why are you opening in Portland now? The beach didn’t get any closer. Has a cultural tide changed? “Folks are coming here all the time. Portland is growing. A lot of these folks are moving here from coastal cities, and they surf. It only takes a few trips out to the Oregon coast to realize there is some fun surf to be had if you can get past the 5mm suits, booties, and ice cream headaches.

Outdoor culture at large is really having a peak moment as well it seems, especially in Portland and the Northwest. I believe the Portland community has a deep desire to connect with the outdoors, which is one of the things that makes this place so great.” - LY N D SEY LEE FAU LKN ER O F LE E WA R D “When I started surfing in the ‘90s the surfing community was so small that the coastal shops and a couple sporting goods stores were enough to satisfy the demand. Over the last five years, with the growth of Portland and advancement in technology, specifically in wetsuits, surfing as a sport and hobby has expanded tremendously.” - ALEX M O R R I S O F C O S U B E “It came down to creating a job for myself that I enjoy. Karen, my fiancé, had always wanted to open a store, and I thought, ‘Let’s give this a shot while we can.’ Hopefully it evolves into a place that has a good vibe.” - M ARTI N SC H O EN EB O R N O F U P N O R T H S U R F C LU B What is your shop’s vibe? “The space itself will be influenced by Northwest coastal architecture and mid-century design principles. Well-designed and thoughtful, with a dose of homegrown Northwest character. We’ll probably have too many plants and tapestries.” - LY N D SEY LEE FAU LKN ER O F LE E WA R D “The shop will have early morning hours, offering equipment rentals and locally roasted Coava coffee to surfers heading to

the coast before work and other early risers. In the afternoons and evenings, Cosube’s tap list will feature local craft beers while two beer cases will feature ice-cold bottles from the world’s top surfing destinations. We will offer an assortment of apparel, accessories, and lifestyle goods that define a cold-water surf culture.” - KELSI E M O R R O W O F C O S UB E “We want to keep the formula pretty simple. Surfing is pretty simple at the core. If you can get your hands on a board and a wetsuit, you can go surf as much as you want…. We’d like it to be inviting to surfers and non-surfers alike, a neighborhood place where people can come hang out. A bunch of friends are helping with the design and buildout, so I think their contributions will dictate the vibe just as much as any ideas Karen and I have.” - M ARTI N SC H O E NEBORN OF U P N O R T H S UR F C LUB Portland is growing. I’ve seen community gardens and forested parks cleared away to make room for more condos. It’s getting crowded, but by California or Hawai’i standards the water is not crowded. Yet. You’ll see more wool and hiking boots on the beach than aloha shirts and bikinis. It’s not very sexy. Yet. We are a hairy bunch of outsiders living in the pioneer culture of a new surf scene. No business, brand, or company has claimed ownership. Yet. The waves are not getting any closer to Portland. Yet!

LEEWARDSURF.COM // COSUBE.COM // UPNORTHSURFCLUB.COM

D R A I N P H O T O S B Y B E R NI E F R E I D I N

PHOTO BY TREVOR MOTTRAM

UrbanCaving

EXPLORING UND ER GR OUND DRAI NS AND ABANDONE D M I N E S S T O RY BY TREVOR MOTTRAM

When I moved to San Diego in 2012, I founded Southern California Exploration & Adventure (SoCalX) as a means of meeting people who wanted to explore places that were a little more interesting than the walking and bike paths at the local park. I was getting into exploring with my neighbor at the time, using websites to find places around San Diego to visit. After my first walk-in mine tunnel, I was hooked on the underground. It was a relatively small mine, about 200 feet deep, and contained old timbering and fallen air ducts, as well as the first mining relic I ever came across: a 1950s Montgomery Ward tool box, sitting on a wooden shelf. Three years later, we’re rappelling into vertical mine shafts, going deeper underground than ever! While SoCalX hosts a variety of events, from snorkeling to peak bagging, our main interests lie underground. Some of our members are extremely into storm drains. One member has mapped hundreds of miles of tunnels all over San Diego and Los Angeles, and has done everything from crawling on hand and knee through 24-inch diameter pipes to

passing through 15 foot-high underground flood channels! He uses proper surveying gear and overlays his maps onto Google Earth—mainly for his own personal gratification, but he loves to share his photography and stories. Draining is a relatively safe hobby, but there are things to watch out for, namely animals, bums, punk kids, and all manner of random shit that’s found its way underground. Of course there’s the very remote possibility of a flash flood. There is also an infinite amount of graffiti, some of which is absolutely stunning while some looks like a chimp did it. Art is in the eye of the beholder, but crap art is crap art. While I don’t condone vandalism and tagging shit above ground, storm drains and tunnels are a perfect canvas, below the prying eye of society. Take note, kids: Go under the street, where people who actually want to see it can. Don’t doodle on buildings, especially if you’re one of these guys who wants to paint a wizard riding a unicorn, but only manages a stick figure holding what is supposed to be a gun, with “fuck you” scrawled above it.

P H O T O B Y T RE VOR M O T T R A M

P HOTO BY AMY CODIAMAT

While draining is pretty safe and has its own virtues, on the other end of the spectrum are abandoned mines. The very real fact is that old mines can be deadly. We often rappel down vertical shafts in the desert, where the ground at the bottom is littered with the skeletons and remains of rabbits, lizards, and rats. Haven’t found a dead guy yet, but it’s only a matter of time. Even worse than the possibility of falling to your death is blowing yourself up by stepping on a stick of dynamite or blasting cap. We explored a mine recently where we found a pile of 60 sticks! The older nitroglycerin gets, the more unstable it can become, even reacting to mere touch. Climbing over piles of rubble is

P H O T O B Y F RE DRIK FA R NS T R O M

a sketchy undertaking if you think you could be stepping on explosives. Scary stuff. Finding items left behind by miners decades ago is really fun, and the only time trash is remotely interesting. Now your interest is piqued and you’re thinking about getting underground, right? Start small with easy stuff and grow from there. Go find a storm drain and explore it. But don’t go straight to rappelling into mines if you know nothing about what you’re getting into. I suggest learning about mining history and techniques, and how the workings were dug.

MEETUP.COM/SOCALX // FACEBOOK.COM/SOCALEXPLORATION // @_SOCALX_

Feral Panama

MO TO RC YC LE S URF CAM PI NG ON T HE CHE AP ST O RY AN D PH O T OS BY TOM BING & SAL LY MCGEE We are skirting the edges of Panamanian culture. We have no idea what the food is like, we have barely spoken to any locals, and we don’t have a clear picture of what life is like for people in this country. We can’t afford to be here. Everything is way out of our price range, so we’ve been sticking to surf spots where we know we can camp. We buy food from the big supermarkets, trying to live as cheaply as possible. We’re struggling to find decent fruit or vegetables, but the pineapples are the best we’ve had in the world. We camped one night in hammocks under a shelter on a beach in the middle of nowhere. There was potential for good waves, but the swell was small when we got there so we left early in the morning. We might have stuck around, but the place charged $10 each for the privilege of a hammock with no lights, no mosquito nets, and no kitchen to cook in. The next day we moved a few hours west to an eco project hostel with jungle space for tents right in front of a beach break. They wanted $6 each per night but offered WiFi, a kitchen, free drinkable water, showers, and shelter from the sun and rain. It was awesome: surfing in the mornings, then cooking good food, lounging around on hammocks and checking out the wildlife. There were howler monkeys everywhere in the trees above, waking us up with their threatening roar. We saw hummingbirds, geckos, and iguanas, and shared the tent with about 100 crabs. The beach break was

busy but the swell was growing every day, so we hung around. The water was warm and the wind patterns predictable: no wind in the morning until the on-shores, starting at about lunchtime. We spent very little money besides the camping fees, which we were happy to pay in support of the project. Everywhere nearby seemed to have fallen victim to deforestation for cattle farming or tourism. The eco project was planting trees, working with permaculture, trying to improve the landscape for the wildlife that had been pushed off the peninsula. We felt proud to stay there rather than the big concrete development meters away from high tide, void of trees. Every day the plan was to move on, but we felt so content we’d end up staying just a bit longer. The surf wasn’t perfect but it was pretty fun, and it had a good vibe in the water. We were looking for somewhere a bit THEWESTROAD.NET // @DRIFTERVISUAL

more remote, to surf without the crowds on the new swell approaching, a swell we hoped marked the start of the season. Brryn and Ehli, an English couple we met at the eco project, were keen to check out the place we had in mind, so we set off early one morning and made our way to a pretty remote part of Panama. After riding just a few hundred meters down a sand track, we found an empty lot (purchased and probably awaiting infrastructure before development) that had an old shelter facing the sea, surrounded by coconut trees. We pitched the tent under the shelter and set up camp. It was perfect. We were already feeling feral after a week of camping and were in our element there for four days, surfing the heavy beach break, cooking great food on the stove, and hunting for coconuts to provide us water in the afternoons. On the last night the sky lit up with lightning and we were surrounded by deafening thunder. It was incredible. We didn’t see people all afternoon or evening, completely disconnected from everything. Just us, good food, coconuts, and a carton of cheap red wine. You haven’t lived until you’ve done the washing in the sea, naked at night and surrounded by bioluminescent plankton and fireflies.

Creative Outsiders of Hawai’i

WH ILE TRO P IC A L WAVES ROL L ONTO THE BEACH, C O N CH -S H ELL H O R NS BL OW, AND GRASS SKIRTS F L OW AT TOU RIS TY LU A US, A CREATIVE CULTURE UNIQUE TO H AWAI’ I FLOU RISHES IN ITS URBAN CENTERS. MEET S O ME O F THE PEOPL E W HO ARE SHAPING TH IS N EW WAVE OF HAWAIIAN CREATIVITY.

ST O RY AN D PH O T O S BY JUSTIN “ SCRAPPERS” MORRISON

LANA L ANE ST UDI OS This creative services clubhouse is an old building in the Kaka’ako district of Honolulu. Lana Lane Studios is home to over 25 creatives. They’re constantly making photos, video, music, paintings, letterpress prints, and every other sort of creative endeavor you can imagine. Sign painter and studio manager Jeff Gress describes it as the world renowned Pow Wow mural festival’s living room.

L A N AL A N ES T UDI OS . COM // JGRE S S . COM // P OWWOWHAWA I I . COM

Creative of Ha ARA & AJ F E DUCI A Ara Feducia is the creative director for Honolulu’s Nella Media group. She’s making the finest magazines we’ve ever held in our hands, like Flux, Lei, Chinatown Now, and many more publications distributed throughout the Hawaiian islands and beyond. She is guiding the design aesthetic of a new Hawaiian voice.

NE L L A ME DI A GROUP. COM //@ A RA _F E DUCI A AJ Feducia does art installations, printmaking, photography, and mixed media all about the strange and beautiful cultural collisions happening in Hawai’i right now. In a recent piece titled “Your Vacation is My Life” he made Aloha shirt-patterned straightjackets.

A JF E DUCI A . COM // @ A J_F E DUCI A

ROBE RTA OAKS Roberta Oaks started out making women’s clothing in Honolulu’s Chinatown. Roberta got sick of watching guys walk by wearing ugly, baggy Aloha shirts, so she made some modern updates as an experiment, hung them in her workshop window. The space has since transformed into a colorful lifestyle boutique, and everyone comes to her for wearable aloha. Roberta’s shirts are named after places on the island of Oahu, where they are made.

ROBE RTA OA K S . COM // @ ROBE RTA OA K S HAWA I I

SURF J ACK & T HE M ODE RN HO T E LS You may not see it this way, but hotels help preserve affordable housing. When visitors choose to stay at hotels instead of renting local housing for a night or two, that housing becomes available for locals. What the Modern and Surfjack hotels are offering is a way for visitors to relax and enjoy local culture while supporting it. Honolulu creatives have all had their fingers in the making of these two Waikiki hotels. You’ll see murals by local painters, taste flavors by local mixologists and chefs, and hear music by local musicians. Beyond all the local creative smarts, they’re also super fun places to stay. The Suarfjack’s pool tiles spell out “Wish You Were Here,” and when we stayed at the Modern we had an underwater dance party with music they pipe right into the pool water.

S URF JA CK . COM // @ T HE S URF JA CK T HE MODE RNHONOL UL U. COM // @ MODE RNHONOL UL U

Outsiders awai’i

P H OTO B Y E VA N S C HE L L

KAHANA KAL AM A A simple equation sums this guy up: Surfing + Design + Family. As a surfer he silently shreds, never making a big deal about his bold line work or aerial flips. As a designer he speaks loudly, with actions like founding the Aloha Beach Club apparel brand and shop with his friend Billy Wickens. As a family man you’ll find him rolling around in the sand with the Keiki.

A L OHA BE A CHCL UB. COM

M ORI BY ART & F L E A Curator of locally made goodness Aly Ishikuni named her shop Mori, which is Japanese for “forest of trees.” If the shop is the forest, the trees are each of the locally made brands she reps. Before Aly began spotlighting other people she, at the age of 15, was signed as a J-pop star and was wrung through the robotic motions of Japanese fame. When her contract expired in 2010, she flew back home to Hawai’i and started a small business reconstructing vintage muumuu dresses into modern fashion. Although Urban Outfitters carried her line, she also set up local mini fleamarket-style pop-up shops. When friends started setting up to sell with her, the Art & Flea was born, and is now Honolulu’s favorite urban market. Aly formed Mori as a brick and mortar best-of version of Art & Flea, and also hosts workshops to bring the creative community together. She’s now looking to expand the model into other urban settings, starting with Japan.

A RTA NDF L E A . COM // MORI HAWA I I . COM

PH O T O B Y E VA N SC HE L L

J OHN HOOK Inventor of the term “Funtography” John Hook knows how to have fun professionally. John shoots fashion, editorial, action, road trip, surf, lifestyle, and even weddings with the spirit of aloha that keeps everyone smiling. He hops from island to island to capture whatever fun is happening. When the hot lava is flowing on the big island of Hawai’i or the full moon is shining on the night surfers of Waikiki, he’ll be there shooting photos that make you wish you were there too.

JOHNHOOK P HOT O. COM

Creative of Ha

THIS STORY WAS MADE WITH HELP FROM THE HAWAIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;I VISITORS AND CONVENTION BUREAU @GOHAWAII // GOHAWAII.COM

Outsiders awai’i

KALAPANA KO LLAR S & A NUHE A YAGI Standing in a parking lot with asphalt laid right up to its roots, a 300-year-old breadfruit tree drops giant leaves onto parked cars. This tree has been growing in this place since long before the first European stepped foot on the island of Maui. It’s the last of an ancient grove of ‘Ulu trees planted as a seed bank in the royal orchard of Lele. Yet, this living monument to Hawaiian culture is overlooked by both visitors and locals in Lahiana. I’ve climbed old town Lahaina’s banyan tree, I’ve surfed the harbor wall break, I’ve bought new slippers and used records here, but I had no idea I was walking above the capital of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i (1830-1845). Long before visitors like me came to chill in Old Lahaina, Hawaiian royalty used to chill in Malu ‘Ulu o Lele (the breadfruit grove of Lele). Kalapana Kollars explains: “When you learn Hawaiian, you get x-ray vision to the land.” With Maui Nei Native Expeditions, a nonprofit cultural educational program of Friends of Moku‘ula, Kalpana and Anuhea Yagi took me on a walking tour through their historic home. As we walked and talked, the conversation ranged from how Hawai’i was illegally annexed by the US government to how we all grew up listening to the same gangsta rap. Kalpana and Anu bridge the cultural gap between with Dr. Dre and King Kame-

M A U IN E I.C O M / / U L A L E N A. C O M

hameha. I used to work with Anu at the local alt-weekly, Mauitime. She’s interviewed movie stars, musicians, and pop-culture icons from around the world who came to do their thing and party on the island she grew up on. Anu introduced me to Kalapana at the ‘Ulalena show he has performed in as a musician and dancer for over 16 years. They are two of the most creative people I know on the island. We met up one morning in the sandy beach park of Wahikuli outside Lahaina to pick up trash, and they brought snorkeling gear. Picking up trash for them means going into the ocean and removing fishing line, old rusty hooks, and plastic toys from the reef, along with picking up chip bags from the parking lot. They care deeply about the place they belong to. In talking to Kalpana about being Hawaiian, he says, “It’s not about ethnicity, it’s about nationality. It’s about home.” In other words,

you don’t have to be Hawaiian to be Hawaiian, you just have to help care for and preserve this place. In their living room, Anu shows us some of the trash treasures (trashures?) she’s found in the reef, while Kalpana plays music on one of the ʻohe hano ihu’s (Hawaiian nose flutes) he’s carved. Kalapana learned to carve and play them from a friend who recently passed away. By playing for us, he is keeping the cultural tradition and memories of his friend alive. I saw Hawaiian words taped to the ceiling fan, the fridge, and the computer. These tiny taped words translate the modern devices into Hawaiian in an effort to “relearn histories that where forgotten.” Kalapana goes on to say that, “To heal ourselves is to heal our ancestors.” Much of their cultural heritage was paved over when waves of missionaries came to civilize the natives by imposing imported culture. In fact, the wave of imported culture never really stopped. It comes with gangsta rap, it comes in chip bags, and it’s still coming. The only thing keeping the asphalt from killing the last ‘Ulu tree of the royal Lele grove are people like Anu and Kalapana.

Photo: Water Avenue Coffee

GOOD PRODUCTS MADE BY GOOD PEOPLE WORDS BY JUSTIN “SCRAPPERS” MORRISON LINEWORK BY KELLY THOMPSON // KTOM.US

BI OL I T E / / B IO L IT E E N E R G Y.C O M

POLER // POLERSTUFF.COM

Ditch the propane tank! This wood-fire-powered stove is super charged by a quiet little rechargeable fan. $79.99

Who needs A, AA, AAA, or AAAA batteries? This rechargeable pocket-phone-sized flashlight is all you need for screwing around in the tent at night. $44.95

See this little solar panel? It’ll recharge the stove, the flashlight, and your phone! It completes the circle of camp life. $79.95

The Flutter Jacket is woven with french fries from IN-N-OUT burger, California poppy flower petals, cheap weed joints, two quail head feathers, a roadkill beach towel, Jarritos from the supermercado, and a can of paint kicked over on purpose by some teenage girl who’s fed up with being a target-marketed Millennial. $94.98

DANNE R / / D A N N E R .C O M These lightweight sneaker boots called the Jag originally came out in the ‘80s. I will hike around the city in them with my corduroy short shorts and high wool socks. You’ll be so focused on my cool boots that you won’t even notice my hairy legs. You won’t even look at all the weird places hair grows on my legs. You won’t even see how the hair gets all tangled together with hot sweat on my inner thigh about eight inches down from where my legs connect to the hairiest part of my body. $160

S C H WOOD // S C HW OODSHOP.COM

BURT ON / / B U RT O N .C O M

There are actual seashells in these wooden sunglasses! It’s pretty kewl how these guys are always experimenting with natural things. $295

This mushroom-patterned tent sleeps six people, has built-in cup holders, and wants to party like a young Neil Young tripping balls at a festival for dreamers and beardos! FREE (We’re giving one away on Instagram.)

CATCH SURF // CATCHSURF.COM

SNOW PE A K / / S N O WP E A K . C O M ESCAPE COLLECTIVE // ESCCOLLECTIVE.COM Hobo Pie Makers are out and Micro Dutch Ovens are in. Deal with it! $85

This is the fanciest hammock I have ever fallen asleep in and drooled all over. 100% Shibori-dyed polyester, brass slide toggle, 6mm low stretch retro reflective rope, attached stuff sack, and a leather handle. Made in Portland, Oregon. $99

Boogie board forgiveness combined with surfboard happiness. It’s like a new religion in a foamtopped eight-foot log! $325

JUNIPER RIDGE // JUNIPERRIDGE.COM

URAL MOTORCYCLES // IMZ-URAL.COM Growing up in Yucca Valley outside Joshua Tree, I used to wander into the desert alone. I would dig tunnels in the sand, sniff wild flowers, make weapons out of pokey cactuses, mess with bugs, and find old tortoises to play with. Now that I’m an old man with white in my beard, I wear the Mojave Backpacker Cologne to remind me of that place. $60

The Geared Up Sahara has on-demand 2WD and a phone charger in the sidecar. It also has my bull by the horns. $17,999

JAMES // THEJAMESBRAND.COM I was a half hour off the human trail, bending deep brush over to try to find the animal trail I lost, when I found a bunch of bear poop. The James knife blade in my pocket was all sticky from cutting cardboard box tape, but I imagined it would be sharp enough to keep me alive if a crazy bear fight went down. I imagined it would be like the knife fight in West Side Story. Like, we would sing aggressively and jump around jabbing our sharp stuff into the air for looks. $150

T.C.S.S. // THECRITICALSLIDESOCIETY.COM

ORU KAYAK // ORUKAYAK.COM

I don’t know how to do origami or kayak, but I’ve had a ton of fun playing with these origami kayaks. They fold up to the size of a fat art portfolio folder, and can be carried pretty far since they’re super light. How much is it worth to paddle into a glassy lake under the stars and peaceful silence of the universe? $1,175

POSTMARK // POSTMARKBREWING.COM This newer small-batch session brewery in Vancouver is slowly changing the name of the city to “Funcouver.” They host music fests, support the local creative scene, and make beer using spruce tips, raspberries, and other things that will deliciously fuck you up! These guys are friendly leaders of the new Canadian beer movement (sorry Molson, but you’re old and yucky).

Cold is a sour piece of candy. Cold is a dysfunctional kind of love that feels like pain and pleasure. The Wanderer jacket with a removable and wearable liner has a codependent relationship with the cold. $190

ALITE DESIGNS // ALITEDESIGNS.COM

FJALLRAVEN // FJALLRAVEN.US

UNION WINE CO. // UNIONWINECOMPANY.COM It’s really easy to remember that wine is not pretentious when it comes in a can. Keep your pinky finger down when you sip this honest wine made from honest grapes in honest Oregon.

NEW BELGIUM // NEWBELGIUM.COM If you’re alive right now and over the age of 21, chances are you’ve tasted this beer. It’s everywhere from little airport food courts to big festival beer gardens, but they have a side that not many folks have tasted. Beyond accessible brews like the Fat Tire amber and Blue Paddle pilsner, they release small-batch seasonal experiments like the Pumpkick: pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, with a punch of cranberry and lemongrass. Plus they’re like the Patagonia of beer-making, so you gotta respect how they do their eco/socio-friendly business.

Bring back the external framed backpack! I want to weld a roof rack on this bugga and bring a surfboard on that long hike to the coast through the forest. $175

Camping pants need to be strong, flexible, and s’mores-proof. They also need legs that zip off to become shorts like a tough caterpillar turning into a sexy butterfly. $225

STANLEY // STANLEY-PMI.COM I’m done with small portions! Give me two gallons of water and a growler of kombucha. You hear me? Broh, you hear me?! $50

The Chapter thejamesbrand.com

We are the ones weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA, 44TH PRESEDENT OF THE USA