Swedish company Primus has recently launched a new lightweight multi-fuel stove called the OmniLite Ti. I tested one of the stoves in Patagonia last month. [Disclosure: I was given the stove by Rosker in exchange for feedback and a review.] The Stove The Omnilite is a multi-fuel stove which means it can burn a number of different fuel types including the petrol you put in your car, clean white or 'Coleman' ...

Back after a brief hiatus whilst in Patagonia, here are half a dozen articles that I’ve read in the last month or so and thought that you might enjoy. I do a similar post each month and have created a new archive page for the Six of the Best series. I was pleased to notice that only one of the websites below has featured on a previous list which suggests that I am still being exposed to some new stuff. Six ...

I didn't write the entire contents of my book all on my own. I had help. Here are the great people who assisted me with the chapter on How To Cross A Desert: Charles Foster Charles Foster is a traveller, author, barrister, and a Fellow of Green Templeton College, University of Oxford. Much of his life is spent in deserts. His desert experience includes expeditions in the Sahara, the Sinai and the Danakil De ...

It's London Explorers again next Thursday and I'm pretty excited to hear what Andy Torbet has to say about his adventures with a snorkel and mask in the UK: Last summer Andy Torbet left the mountain of trimix, rebreather, cave and stunt diving kit at home and decided to get back to basics right here in the UK, to prove that adventure and exploration can be found on your doorstep. He decided to explore the v ...

I suspect that many of you will already be aware of the website CouchSurfing.org or can at least guess at the principle. It's a network of people all over the world who are willing to offer cups of tea, showers and/or couches on which to crash. It operates entirely without the use of money - which suits me well. You can sign up to either offer a couch/coffee or just to find willing hosts for wherever you ar ...

Just because someone has achieved great expedition feats it does not automatically make them a great person. It is quite common to describe someone who has completed a great expedition as "an amazing person" or similar. I would dispute that assumption. Such achievements should be rightly recognised and hailed for what they are: feats of physical or mental prowess and such like. In most instances, it would b ...

'My friend does that', shouted down the lady from the side of her boat as my now wife and I swam past in the river below. 'It's that "Wild Swimming" thing, isn't it?'. I smiled and said Yes but something about what she said irked me. She was friendly enough and she was right about the name - "wild swimming" is indeed the most common term for it - but there was something in the way she said it and what was i ...

My wife, Laura, recently visited the Kingdom of Bhutan. Here is why she thinks you should too... 1) The yeti lives there.  It is the only country in the world with a dedicated yeti nature reserve and sightings are almost guaranteed.* 2) Television, the internet and mobile phones were only allowed in the country in 2000.  It remains a very traditional place, where planning and even dress codes are strictly e ...

Last month I attended a course on natural navigation - learning to find your orientation without map, compass GPS or any other instructions, relying instead on cues from nature. Tristan Gooley wrote a book called The Natural Navigator - which I'd highly recommend - and he also runs courses. Here, in brief, are some simplified things I learned (and I hope Tristan's not reading because I've probably bastardis ...

Here are a few articles that I've read in the last month and thought that you might like. I do a similar post each month. The links tend to come in part from adventure and expedition blogs but also the odd bit of philosophical stuff and a couple that make me laugh.Six of the Best - November 2011 In the wake of Leander: swimming the Hellespont - Charles Foster ‘Youngest’ expedition to South Pole abandoned af ...

  Japan's northernmost island, Hokkaido, seems like a fantastic venue for adventurous activities with plenty of cold mountains, vast woodland and smooth tarmac roads for those on wheels. I was there briefly, driving around in support of Sarah Outen as she kayaked to and from the island, and cycled across it. During my time, I met and worked with some good people that I would recommend if you are considering ...

Today is National Freelancers Day. As someone who probably falls under this category, here are a few articles I've written around the subject of working for yourself...10 things I've started doing since going freelanceThe dishwasher dash (and 9 other ways I squeeze exercise into my working day)7 things that I like about working home alone and 7 that I don’tWhy I wish I had more money (but am glad that I don ...