Hiking in Finland

Climbing, bikepacking, skiing & packrafting in the north

The Week in Review

It was a busy week yet again. Besides all the "Back from Vålådalen" posts there is a flood of TGO reports. Lets go.



There was only one TGOC article I read thus far, and that was Andy Howell's excellent "A Younger Challenge: Not Only a More Vibrant Event But One With a Bright Future". Its a great piece and makes me want to send in an application for next years challenge.

Hana is fit again and was taken out on a trip up Ogawayama and Kokushidake. Makes me want a four legged companion for my trips.

Comet passed the 300 mile marker on his PCT hike, and asks himself what he was thinking.

Snakeball on the other hand is already a bit further ahead and is walking through the Mojave Desert and wonders if he needs to change his perception of a desert.

Fraser went on a bicycle trip in Glen Derry and if you follow Fraser already you know he shots cracking photos. He pushes the envelope in this report once more.

While Don Meredith did not get to go on a bike trip because of the weather, his packing list looked pretty awesome - Fraser could still learn a thing or two there ;)

Jonas went bouldering in the forests of Northern Germany. Nice green forests and blue skies - when it doesn't rain!

Richard went on a day trip on the North Antrim Causeway Coast and brought back stunning photos.

Roman Dial reports briefly of his week with Andrew Skurka and Mike Brown.

Sam went on a short trip to the East Fork Sage Creek - Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness, exploring caves, making fires and enjoying whisky with conversation. Seems trail happiness is universal.

Die Beuteltiere went on a weekend trip from the Waldeifel to the Ahrtal (Ahr valley), and besides a Dyneema huckePACK there where plenty of encounters with the animals of the region and historical sights.

Colin Ibbotson is back from the Arizona trail and while he takes some time to get back into "real life" you can listen to his thoughts on the trail and check out the photos.


A groovy biotic muffin, made by Joe.

In the gear review section I really enjoyed Robin's "lessons learnt" post where he goes briefly through the various gear he took out on his latest trip.

If you, like me, carry a DSLR into the outdoors, and if you're not as lucky with the weather, you might need something to protect your expensive camera and lenses. Here I found an interesting solution which I am planning to try out in the future.

Phil has a look at the Brasher Neon shoes, which look like a steal for 25£.

Looking for a lightweight raft for white water action? Here's a first look at the Alpacka WitchCraft.

PCT has a look at some sweet merino garments from Chocolate Fish, namely the Taranaki T-Shirt, Fly-Front Boxers and Bunnet. Nice colours and made in the UK, I like that.



Four Dog Stove made some ace looking videos, check them all out here or click play on the video above.

I reckon you have heard about this tiny problem BP has, and therefore I do think you should boycott BP if you drive a car.

Finally, there is the Outdoor fair coming up in Germany soon-ish. I was asked by a few people if I'd come and would join them, but I decided that I rather not go. I hate huge amounts of people, and as I reckon that Roman and Benjamin will do a good job of covering the happening from an UL perspective and I am not up for a race of "Who posts what first" I'll rather relax in Finland.