Time flies. In two weeks I am in Amsterdam, visiting Mom and family; in three weeks I move to Kuru to start my education as a Wilderness Guide. Mountains of works is what I am hiking through at the moment, and to top things off my MacBook is dying :/



Chris has written another piece of Magic, with stunning photos. The destination this time: Frozen waterfalls in New Zealand. Go read, see, be in awe.

Comet experienced some sweet trail magic on his PCT hike, which has me in awe at it time and again.

Joe's trip report on backpacking with a canoe was a joy to read and look at, he really knows where to point that camera of his.

Also Thomas was on a canoe trip, in a similarly nice area as Joe - go check it out and discover that one can fry meat on the BushBuddy!

Londonbackpacker on the other hand took a walk in his local nature reserve and shows us some of his fine photos from the trip.

Roger shares with us the third part of his Nordkalottleden trip, which takes us from Jerta to Kilipsjärvi. Beautiful!

Project Hyakumeizan shares with us the story of Tatsu and introduces us to mountains that women can climb.

Finally, the Shed Dweller, in cooperation with Phil and Steven, presents their video trip report to the Lakelands. Highly amusing with no need to read, you can just lean back and enjoy their trip!



Want to win a Haglöfs LIM 35 backpack? Then stop by at Petesy and let him know what Haglöfs should make for you, and you're having a good chance on winning it.

Matthias from UL Outdoors gives us a first look at the Arklight Design Walden 250 Quilt, filled with 250 g of down and a total weight of 280 g it looks like a great piece of kit.

Phil takes us behind the scenes at a Scottish outdoor gear company, a superb article which shows what's going into making our gear.

Amy shows us a featherlight knife from Swiss Advance, at 14 g it is UL but I wonder if you're able to do more than spread butter on a bread with it.

Dennis gives us some more information on the Terra Nova Laser Ultra 1, and illuminates that Terra Nova made a bunch of mistakes with their first effort with cuben - lets hope the production models don't go that quickly broken.

Adam reviews the Western Mountaineering HighLite which you should read if you're thinking about getting this sleeping bag.

I took this week a first look at the Arc'teryx Squamish Hoody, a very fine windshirt.



In the MYOG corner LAUFBURSCHE shows us how to make a 13g headlamp, thus if your Petzl eLite is too heavy give this 5 minute project a go!

Sabine's Cuben day- and drypack, which she made for her Greenland trip, is a very easy, useful and multipurpose item which has me looking at ordering cuben and making my own.

Rio shows us how to fit Gossamer Gear Lightrek Grips on a pair of Leki Makalu Carbon Ultralite, useful for all who need bigger handgrips on their trekking poles.

The fourth MYOG article this week came from Tomas, who plans to make the perfect bivy. In this first look he introduces us to all the different materials he bought, and what he plans to do.

For those who travel on the water the Kayakpaddling.net site is worth a look, and despite the focus on kayaks also packrafters and canoe folks likely will learn some interesting infos.

Francis Tapon has a Serbia podcast up, accompanied by an interesting article about the country, a recommended read for all who aim to travel to the Balkans.

Another scorching summer week has passed, another week in which I am looking forward to the cool and darker autumn nights, and sunny winter days. The most talked about topic this week certainly is the OutDoor fair in Friedrichshafen, which showcase a few interesting pieces for the UL & lightweight aficionado. Lets dive in.

The OutDoor Industry Award 2010 showcases a couple of interesting products for the UL backpacker, for example the Inov-8 bare-grip 200 trailrunners and the Terra Nova EquipmentLaser Ultra-1 tent. For more information on the news from Friedrichshafen, check Fjäderlätt and hrXXLight.

Hamilton from Traverse Japan gives us a run-down on how he made his tyvek bivy and if you're looking for an easy and cheap MYOG project, this might just be it.

If a tyvek bivy is too simple for you as a MYOG project, check out Shed Dweller's Catenary Cut Solo Tarp. You should also check his blog during the coming eek to see if this tarp can withstand a decent pounding!

Robin from BackpackBaseCamp makes a comparison between the Trail Designs Caldera Cone and the Evernew DX and if you're in the market for a stove this little comparison is certainly worth a look.

Adam from FSTPKR gives us a lo-down on the gear he's going to be using on his trips this summer, and if you're in the market for MLD goodies make sure to give this article a good read!

Mark gives us a shakedown on the gear he used on his last hike, and illuminates why it is useful to test gear before you go on a longer trip.



One of the best trip reports this week was for me certainly Matthias' Iceland report. Spectacular photos and a good story have put Iceland back on my radar, and should also put it on yours.

If Iceland is too far away, then maybe a trip to the Isle of Mull and a scramble up Ben More like James did it is more up your alley. Lush green hills, waterfalls and spectacular views are certainly to be had.

Robin delivers part one of his Lake District report, showing that lush green hills and waterfalls also can be seen there - besides a bunch of rabbits!

Dondo's Eaglesmere trip report is full of beautiful photos of wildflowers, lakes and some surprises.

If you prefer lush green mountains in Japan, have a look at Hana's accent of The Cock's Comb.

Cedar & Sand lets us take part on his trail run (!) along he Trans-Zion, that beautiful area in Utah. A very impressive achievement, and great photos!

Trotten mit Hut takes us along on the Leo-Jobst trail and shows that hiking in Germany is as beautiful as anywhere else. I love the sight of old ruins & "Fachwerkhäuser", and being able to pick cherries on the trail is splendid in this weather!

Sam combined backpacking and snowboarding (in July!) on his last trip, and it certainly makes me want to take my board up some proper mountains and draw some lines into the snow.

That UL backpacking is not only useful if you want to go snowboarding shows Yeti, who takes his Mountain bike on a trip in southern Finland on a hot weekend - some very beautiful scenery to be seen, so check it out!

And the final trip report is part two of Roger's epic Nordkalottleden Saga: Gaskashytta to Jerta, taking us further along this great route in the magic north!



If you'd like to improve your navigation skills or learn the basics, give the Cardinal Points website a visit, it is a a map and compass simulation to teach navigation skills.

A very special article to close this week is Steven's piece on how the outdoors made him who he is today. A very great aricle, which I urge you to go and read!