A Video On The Hilleberg Akto

 

Earlier in the year I wrote a post about the Hilleberg Akto as this little tent is thirty this year. That piece had stories and pictures from my many years of using it. Now I've made a little video showing how I pitch it and what I like about it.

Sun & Midge Protection: some products and a little video

Sunday Afternoon Ultra Adventure Hat & Vallon Daytripper sunglasses

Summer's not over. August may have started cool and windy here in the Highlands but hot weather is forecast. There's a heat warning for much of England with temperatures forecast to climb above 30C. Here in the Cairngorms it's meant to be the lower 20s Celsius, which is quite hot enough for me.

Ombraz Refugio sunglasses & Columbia Skien Valley Hooded Jacket

This year I've been trying out various items designed for sun and insect protection and comparing them with my favourites. Today I gathered them together and made a little YouTube video.

The photos with this piece show some of the items I discuss in the video. They were all taken this year except for the Midge Specs one which is from last year.

Tentree Juniper Altitude Hat & Vallon Daytripper sunglasses

Midge Specs

Paramo Katmai Shirt & Vallon Daytripper sunglasses

Storm Loris & aftermath

Storm Loris blasted through yesterday with record-high wind speeds for the time of year. Storms in August are not unusual but they're normally not like this severe. 

While the storm raged I went outside very briefly and shot a few seconds of video with my phone. Rain was lashing down and the trees were thrashing wildly. I certainly wasn't go into the woods or even very near them. Watching the storm from inside seemed wise and I was soon back indoors.

Unlike many people, some not too far away, we didn't lose power and we weren't affected by road and rail closures as we'd no plans to go anywhere, having been following the build-up to the storm for several days. So a combination of luck and planning meant Loris didn't affect us. 

In fact the biggest shock was this morning when I woke up. It was unnervingly quiet. No wind in the chimney, no rain rattling the window. Just silence. 

In fact it was quite windy. Just normally windy though. It felt safe to venture into the woods so I went out for a walk to see what damage Loris had wrought. It was less than I'd expected. Plenty of twigs and dead branches everywhere of course but not that many fallen trees. Most of the latter were at two corners of the woods vulnerable to winds and where trees had come down in previous storms. 

At one of these spots the wind was still fierce and I recorded another little video, again having difficulty holding the phone still.

The weather looks unsettled the next few days but not abnormally stormy. The second half of August looks like it might be fine. I hope so. I have a walk planned.

A Video On the Lenses I Use

 

A Walk In The Sunshine To Huntly's Cave (the less well-known one)

Uaigh Mhor

On a perfect summer's day with sunshine, clear views, and beautiful colours - the landscape glowed - I went to visit the less -well known of the two Huntly's Cave in the area, which lies in a short but rugged ravine. Although not far from home I'd only been there once before, three years ago as described here. 

A glorious day

The shallow ravine, the Uaigh Mhor, containing the cave was as awkward to walk up as I remembered - a tangle of juniper bushes, boulders, and heather. The cave is a slot in the boulders facing up the ravine and I went past it without seeing it until I looked back. One of the lords of Huntly may have hidden here in the 1640s though the other, bigger, Huntly's Cave is the more likely location. This cave is small and uncomfortable. You'd have to be desperate to stay here for long though on this hot day it was nice and cool. 

Looking out

By the time I was returning home the sky was clouding over. Rain is forecast. It's needed. The ground is still very dry. Then the day after tomorrow Storm Floris arrives and there's a warning of very strong winds. 

I made a short video of the visit to the cave.

My cameras video

 

A Look At The September Issue Of The Great Outdoors

The September issue of The Great Outdoors is out now. The cover is a superb photo of Sgurr a'Mhaim taken from Sgurr an Lubhair in the Mamores by James Roddie. The opening spread is equally wonderful and encapsulates the the theme of this issue. It shows nine teams of skiers spread over 7km of the Jostedalsbreen glacier in Norway at night using their headlamps to shine a giant morse code SOS signaL In this case it's because the glacier is threatened both by climate change and a gondola. And that's the theme - action to save mountains and nature and to give ourselves hope.

To this end deputy editor Hanna Lindon meets people working for the mountains from the Himalayas to the Lake District and the Cairngorms. In Scotland photographer Richard Cross uses drone photography to show land issues in a way hard to see on the ground. In the Skills section Detective Constable Paul Flint of Derbyshire's Rural Crime Team gives advice on how walkers can help tackle wildlife crime. 

The mountains can revive ourselves too, as Andy Wasley found on a walk in the Dolomites in Italy. Also overseas James Roddie spends two weeks in the spectacular High Sierra mountains in California. 

In shorter pieces Nadia Shaikh writes about the common but often overlooked Meadow Pipit; Francesca Donovan reviews Paul Besley's The Search - the life of a mountain rescue search dog team; artist, poet and 'Day of Access' founder Alec Finlay asks who belongs in the mountains and how should they enjoy them; Jim Perrin takes a lesser-known scramble on Yr Wyddfa; and Juls Stodel gives advice on taking dogs hiking and camping.

In the Gear pages Steph Wetherall reviews the Therm-A-Rest Questor 0F/-18C sleeping bag; Fiona Russell reviews the Alpkit Ultra 1 tent; Lucy Wallace compares four solo tents; Gemma Palmer tries six backpacking meals; and Kirsty Pallas and James Roddie each review a pair of three-season sleeping bags.

Wild Walks covers seven walks all reachable by public transport. In the NW Highlands Ian Battersby goes by bus to the Five Sisters of Kintail. In the Central Highlands Alex Roddie crosses Geal-Charn, Aonach Beag and Beinn Eidbhinn on a walk between the railway stations at Dalwhinnie and Corrour. It's back to buses again for Stefan Durkacz's Glen Sax Round in the Southern Uplands. In the Lake District buses give access to St Sunday Crag for Vivienne Crow and Wansfell for James Forrest. In Mid Wales Roger Butler takes the train to explore Wernygeufron Hill and Beacon Hill. Finally, Fiona Barltrop takes a ferry to the Isle of Wight to walk on Limerstone Down and Hanover Point.