Alpine12 min read
Three days on the Lyngen traverse with one stove and too much coffee
A winter line that stays clear of the worst avalanche terrain, planned hut to hut, with the navigation notes we wish we had carried.
Six years of dispatches from high places.
Routes, gear notes and photo essays from the Northwall team. Search by place, season or skill.
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Gear4 min read
Why we stopped carrying a second headlamp
One good light, one spare battery and a dim red mode is lighter and simpler than two torches. Here is the maths.
Rock9 min read
Your first multi-pitch: the checklist we give every new partner
Anchors, rope management and the conversation to have at the base, before anyone ties in.
Photo essays7 min read
Shooting the Milky Way at 3,000 metres with a twelve-year-old camera
Cold batteries, frozen tripod legs and the one setting that saved the night.
Trail running11 min read
Pacing the Tor des Geants when your legs stop listening
What 330 kilometres teaches you about eating early, sleeping short and walking the climbs.
Alpine8 min read
Reading a glacier before you rope up
Crevasse zones, snow bridges and the morning timing that keeps a crossing boring.
Gear10 min read
Four shelters, one storm: what held up on the Cairngorm plateau
We pitched four tents side by side in a forecast gale and checked them every two hours.
Photo essays5 min read
Fog is the best light you are not using
Flat light hides texture and shows shape. Five frames and how each was exposed.
Rock6 min read
Bouldering in Fontainebleau on a rest day
Soft sandstone, pine needles and circuits colour-coded for every level of tired.
Trail running3 min read
The 90-second rule for downhill running
Relax the shoulders, shorten the stride and count to ninety before you judge the descent.
Alpine13 min read
Lofoten in March: ski touring between the fjords
Sea-level starts, summit views of open water and the weather window that decides everything.
Trail running14 min read
Running the Haute Route in five days
Chamonix to Zermatt light and fast, with the hut bookings and bail-out points we used.
Photo essays6 min read
A roll of film for every hut
Thirty-six frames, eight huts and a rule of one photo per hour of walking.
Gear9 min read
The sleeping pad test: eight nights below freezing
R-values on paper against a thermometer in the tent. Two pads surprised us.
Rock10 min read
Trad climbing in the Dolomites without the crowds
Quiet valleys, long approaches and five routes that are still empty on a Saturday.
Alpine11 min read
Solo on the Liskamm: turning back at 4,300 metres
The forecast was fine and the snow was not. Why the best call of the summer was the walk down.
Photo essays5 min read
Night walks with a headtorch and a light meter
Long exposures on foot, with a camera that fits in a chest pocket.
Trail running7 min read
Training for vertical when you live by the sea
Stairwells, treadmill incline and one long hill repeated until it stops being funny.
Rock4 min read
Stop apologising for your belay
A good belay is quiet, attentive and a little boring. Three habits worth copying from the best partners we know.
Alpine5 min read
Hut etiquette nobody writes down
Boots, bunks, breakfast at four. What wardens wish every first-timer knew.
Gear4 min read
Repairing a down jacket on the trail
Tenacious tape, a needle and ten quiet minutes. Keep the feathers where they belong.
Trail running8 min read
Solo long runs in Norway: a safety plan that fits in a pocket
Check-in times, a paper map and the one text message template we always send.
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