Outdoor Magazine

is the past important?

Basking in the glow of the Grampians Peaks Trail with trek buddy, Bowlzy Everything, everything disappears into the past. Words and photos are some sort of verification that events actually happened, I suppose, and so too, of course, memory and other forms of storytelling; but still, the past is undeniably the past.If you talk to one those irritatingly vigorous life-chewing people, they’re always in the present planning for the future. Yes, they’re happy to talk about what they’ve done in the past, but more so as it being a collection of background facts forming a motivational collection of emotions and experiences used to drive things yet to do in the future.Social media platforms drive me nuts with their ridiculous and ultimately irrelevant glorification of the past. Yes,…

this issue’s jittery jotters

DAN SLATER Dan has been writing for Australian adventure and travel magazines since he washed up here from Blighty nine years ago and decided to blag his way into the most glamorous job he could think of. Since then he's had to dream up ever more interesting trips to keep his fingers occupied, from ice climbing and cycle touring to epic hikes and trail running around a remote Pacific island. Australia remains the epicentre of his exploits, with SA's Flinders Ranges currently top of the bucket list. Bring it on! JAMES STUART James is a self-described weekend warrior whose passions include climbing, bushwalking, canyoning and bird watching. He’s also a photographer, poet, gear reviewer and feature writer who blogs on all things outdoors…

citizen science is so hot right now

A few riders studying the slipstream technique PICTURE CREDIT: Jarno Schurgers/Red Bull Content Pool Ask scientists what keeps them going and the same answer pops up time and again: the thrill of discovery.It might be peering through a microscope and spying something no one else has seen. Perhaps it’s hearing the distant call of an animal once thought extinct or finding meaning and insights in reams of data.But this joy is in no way limited to those with a string of letters after their name.This is because citizen science is flourishing. There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of projects around Australia in which anyone can take part.Some of the first citizen scientists on our continent collected plants for botanist Ferdinand Mueller, who emigrated to Australia from…

high country hopes

Alpine streams – perfect for long exposure photos, cooling off, and blood letting by means of leeches It’s time to take your hiking boots down from the snow gum. You probably chucked them up there in late spring and let them see the summer out, thereby ensuring you dodged all the sunstroke and dehydration that comes when the sun is hanging like a vulture.Fortunately temps are dropping, meaning we’ve entered an ideal window for alpine hiking. It’s brief; Mt Baw Baw has already experienced its first snowfall, in February (not that that means lasting snow cover, of course). So personally I’ve been taking advantage of what time we have by honing in on the Victorian alps.One hike that’s still unrivalled for me is Mt Feathertop via the…

lost paradise: the lake argyle adventure race

Tiny in the vastness The fluid nature of any two adventure races makes the concept difficult to define. Their combination of athleticism and skill present an unusual package, which is always unique – not only in terms of what you do during the race, but also in terms of where you do the things you do during one.There are no world records or aspects of consistent symmetry to measure achievement in adventure racing. Of course, ultra trail runs are typically staged over the same course year after year; so too endurance MTB races; but one of the core disciplines of the big adventure races, like New Zealand’s GodZone event or the Patagonia Expedition Race, is negotiating and navigating over untried and unanticipated environmental obstacles. The course is…

2019 lake argyle adventure race

Friday 6th September Solo Adventure Race: Swim 2km, Paddle 13km, Run 6km, Mountain Bike 21km Saturday 7th September (morning) Team Adventure Race: Swim 2km, Run 9km, Mountain Bike 17 km, Paddle 7km Saturday 7th September (afternoon) Enticer Adventure: Run 3.5km, Mountain Bike 8km Saturday 7th September (afternoon) Juniors 6-8 years: Pool Swim, Cycle 1.5km, Obstacle Run 0.7km Saturday 7th September (evening) Adventure Race Dinner Sunday 8th September 10km Mountain Bike Shoot-Out …