INTO THE OUTSIDE - MOST CHOOSE TO EXIST THE REST DECIDE TO LIVE

WHITE LINES (Ski and Boarding Film)

2012-01-25T21:05:00.000Z

So here it is folks, the new film from intotheOUTSIDE. WHITE LINES. Shot over the new year in Val d'Isere, France. Full of hits, misses, high tides and low rides!! On and off piste, amazing scenery, a few time lapses and great GoPro shots. There's a youtube and vimeo version, both HD. Every thing you'd expect from intotheOUTSIDE! Can't wait to make the next one!!

Enjoy.

Peace,

Dan

Climbing Symonds Yat

2012-01-21T19:42:00.001Z

Today we took a trip out to Symonds Yat to stick a few scratch on the climbing rack I've put together over the last couple of weeks. Thanks big discount outdoor retail shop by the way. We stopped in at Cotswold to get our grubby little hands on a guidebook and then it was off up the A417 to the Forest of Dean. The weather looked gloomy but the rain held off. You could almost have called it warm today.

I haven't done a lot of lead climbing for a while so it was getting back into the old routine. We climbed down to the Intro crag and got cracking. With only 4 hours of daylight we moved quick, kitted up and sorted out the rope. We started on 'Stumper', a 12m VD. It was a pretty straight forward climb but the rock was pretty polished.

The limestone was really nice to get hold of and the surroundings in the forest were idyllic. With little wind and nobody around we had the place to ourselves to chill out. Rigging up at the top I was surrounded by busy little squirrels running and jumping around my rope. The River Wye looked beautiful, lying below in the valley through the trees. What a great was to spend a sleepy Saturday.

Once I remembered how to rig up we got cracking and climbed Cave Wall (14m VD), Jackal's Gully (15m D), Victor Crack (15m S 4a), and Hi Ena! Arete (15m HVS). Flexed the muscles a bit, 60m of climbing, not bad! Might get back out tomorrow and move on to the Hollow Rock area. Unless it rains and we have to go kayaking!

Peace,

Dan

Gear Review: GoPro HD Helmet Hero

2012-01-18T20:16:00.001Z

What can I say about this piece of technology that hasn't been said already. If you've watched any sport recently form car racing, moto gp, sailing, motocross, kayaking, skiing, snow boarding, sky diving, scuba diving, surfing, climbing, I guarantee that this little camera has been used. It is a must have bit of kit if you're going on any trip and want great results from your film or pictures. I have had mine for almost a year now and have used it kayaking, skiing and tombstoning, I've got some great shots with it and produced a few films along the way. The colours are brilliant, the image is so crisp and the options and freedom it gives you are amazing.

Let get down to the brass tax! The GoPro HD Helmet Hero is the highest performance wearable camera for still and video images. It shoots high resolution quality professional pictures at 1080p / 960p / 720p. It can record up to 2.5 hours on a battery charge, and you can record up to 9 hours of film on a 32mb memory card or 4+ hours on a 16mb (these are not included with the camera). *Make sure you get a HD memory card, 16mb more than enough!

Film is captured in HD at the 3 different resolution mentioned above and in options of 30 or 60 frames per second. This allows you to get great slow motion shots like jumps, waves and surfing! Still pictures are captured at 5 megapixels and you can set the GoPro to shoot in 2,5,10,30 and 60 second intervals.

The camera come with it's own highly engineered polycarbonate exoskeletal housing. Waterproof to 197’ / 60m and it able to take huge bashes and hits. Mine has only a few scratches and I've smashed it pretty bloody good so far!! The audio is excellent but if you're using it on the water then forget it, the waterproof casing distorts all voices, you do get the beautiful sound of the water though. The Hero comes with another back plate with audio gaps in to. So if you're on dry land the audio is amazing!

The GoPro HD Hero comes with:

    1 HD HERO Camera (5 megapixel)
    1 Rechargeable 1100 mAh Lithium-Ion Battery
    1 Waterproof Quick-Release Housing (197’/60 m)
    1 Headlamp-Style Head Strap
    1 Vented Helmet Strap
    2 Curved, 3M™ Adhesive Mounts
    2 Flat, 3M Adhesive Mounts
    1 Three-Way Pivoting Side Arm Assembly
    2 Quick-Release Buckles
    1 USB Cable
    1 Component Video (HDTV) Cable
    1 Composite Video + Audio Out Cable
    Warranty: One Year

This pack is the most expensive but you get everything from adhesive pads to straps, cables and housing. The GoPro HD Helmet Hero 2 is out now and I am thinking of getting one before next springs kayaking trip. When filming there are a few things to think about that can frustrate. Drops of water on the lens, condensation within the housing, continuously charging the battery and clearing the memory. Also a word of advice - Shoot film in small clips if so it's easier to import when you get back to the studio, there's nothing more annoying that scrolling through an hour clip for 3 seconds of action!!

A brilliant camera retailing at around £280.00. The only camera for high octane sports, the only wearable camera worth owning!

Peace,

Dan

New Gear Review for 2012: The North Face Grentz Jacket

2012-01-18T17:28:00.000Z

First of all let's start with a jacket. For my recent ski trip to the alps I splashed out on The North Face Grentz Jacket. A sick looking jacket that you can get it in a few different colours. Flare Orange, Insane Blue or Lantern Green. I got the Flare Orange as you have probably seen from the Val d'isere pictures. I love the contrasting shoulder colour design and the one colour reverse side, you definitely stand out in the white powder in these no matter what colour.

Let's get to it. The Grentz has a Heatseeker™ Eco 100g insulated body and 80g sleeves combined with a bombproof, waterproof and breathable HyVent© shell. Whatever wipe you take on or off the piste it's going to be hard to tear this thing. The zip is off cut, which not only looks great when the hood is up, and your Von Zippers are reflecting (we'll come to those later), but it helps calm the irritation of your manly beard getting snagged all the time!!

You've got all the practical features of a snow sports jacket; 2 stash pockets inside for goggles, vodka and baguette, internal glove pocket, ipod slot and peep hole for your head phone jack, powder skirt, adjustable hem and pant-a-locks, velcro wrists! There are two huge hand pockets and a thoroughly big chest pocket for a camera, map etc. There's a nice Buddy lift clip in one of the hand pockets, and a nice goggle cloth in a wrist pocket. The hood is fixed and adjustable, with a nice high face guard on the neck when zipped. In the Tigues whiteout days this proved a real life saver! The jacket is still on the current The North Face snow sports line and retails at around £200.00. It comes in S-XL.

Final words. Great design, lots of features, warm, breathable and bright. Go Ski!!

Peace,

Dan

Return to Lulworth Cove

2012-01-14T19:01:00.000Z

The seagulls fly over head and the waves roll in. As a stand on the shore of Lulworth cove the clouds move in and cover the frosty sky. The water is a beautiful turquoise even when the sun has gone in. This amphitheatre that I am stood in is more than 65 million years old. The Jurassic coastline. I have been here many times. We used to come when my father was alive. Walk down to the cove and then play at Stair Hole before walking over to Durdle Door. I miss those summer days. There are a lot of memories here. Today I have come down with Pan. It's a bit of a drive but a soon as you see the sea through the Portland hills, 6 miles before you arrive, you know the drive has been worth every minute, every round-a-bout, every lorry!

I love this place. The cove, the white cliffs, the bay, the smell of the sea. I can close my eyes and just the smell of the salty air and seaweed transports me to so many places in my mind. Places I remember, places I have forgotten. Pan has been here before. But it is the first time I have taken him over to the East side of the cove. The view from the top is amazing. The bowl of the cove and the colour of the water is simply beautiful. I could stay up here for hours but Pan is restless and wants to walk. In the distance I can see a huge boat, probably a cargo ship, miles away on the horizon. The wind is strong but it's not too cold.

After our summit we head back into the cove and then walk along the ridge to Stair Hole. There's been a lot of earth movement here in the last couple of years, a lot of erosion, new fences have been erected and the clay is very sticky. But keeping people away is good. It will preserve it, hopefully until I have kids and I can bring them here.

The beach at Durdle door is exceptional. The pebbles are soft and full of colour. Grey and white and browns fill the beach floor. The beautiful arch is one of the most awe inspiring natural monuments I have ever seen. I hope it stands for hundreds of years to come. In the cliffs there are caves to play in. Just let yourself be a kid. Let everything go and climb and root around. Discover the child within you. I want to sleep in one of these one night and make a fire. I want to watch the sunset and see the night sky full of stars from within this cave before I die.

And that was our day. Some things can be so simple. Never forget.

Peace,

Dan

Do Dead People Quit the Facebook?

2012-01-12T23:45:00.001Z

What do you think of my new shirt? I'm going surfing in wales this weekend, or maybe just swimming with a rubber suit on, who knows? Anyway, I haven't done a gear review in a while so next week I'll put pen to paper and write a few lines about all the killer gear I've been buying lately. Perhaps a book review would be appropriate too hey? Anyway - Party on Garth and enjoy the weekend!

Peace,

Dan

Back to Reality!

2012-01-11T18:14:00.000Z

What a trip! Skiing this year was mental, and now that we're back, we're busy trying to find a deal for March!! Thinking Austria, considering they've had 18ft of snow in the last day or two, maybe Switzerland or back to France. If anything is to go by the kayaking well be incredible in Austria come spring. If we can stuff enough people into a four bed apartment it would bring the cost down....

Chilling out today, back down south. Doing our favourite round, Hackpen to Barbury on the ridgeway. Crappy weather - no blue skies here, but good to be outside and unwind the legs! Nice and muddy!

Peace,

Dan

GoPro Picture of The Day - Come on!!?

2012-01-08T17:31:00.001Z

Glacier fight, COME ON - vote vote!!

Peace,

Dan

TIGUES WHITEOUT - DAY 4

2012-01-08T16:32:00.001Z

Snow blew down the mountain and across the valley. My balcony was beginning to cover in snow. The chair I sat on in the mornings was, for the first time, covered in a thin layer of ice. Small icicles had started to grown on the underside of it's white plastic frame. I cold feel the chill and the looming force of the low white sky. It was heavy with wind and wild weather. But it was not the time to get back into my bed and reach for the thick blanket. It was time to muster up, mount and head out onto the hills.

Day 4 began with 60mph winds, and visibility no better than the next ski chair, horrible dangling in the alpine gust. So outrageous is the weather here than even the most experienced ski mountaineer becomes slave to mother nature, whippering and cowering in anger. The spin drift grew at the top, and the tornado force spirit of the almighty wind kicked up the wave like powder snow 4o feet into the air.

We clipped up our bindings and gripped our ski poles. This is no weather for softies. Get the goggles down and ratchet up your buffs and for god sake keep an eye on those beautiful guiding poles. We must get down this first run alive. 10 metres from the top of the Tigues lift, at La Daile, we were somewhat lost, losing all orientation, skiing into a large dome. 'Where the hell are you going?' I shouted to Spark, 'the mountain goes the other way.' 'Follow the lift man, the lift!' He crashed into the deep off piste power and fought hard to climb himself out of the deepening snow.

We skied and boarded but I could not tell the difference between sky and snow. I was going fast but I felt like I was standing still. A second later I was up in the air, spun around, and the back of my head went - SMACK! I got up, with a bite of my tongue and shook my head. I pulled a finger from my glove and followed it back and fourth across my line of sight, good I thought, no concussion. We can ski, the blood clot can wait another day!

This was our first run of the Day, down into the Tigues valley. Casualties everywhere. Snowboarders on splints, mountain rescue pulling sledges with what looked like dead people inside body bags. Boots pointing to the sky - protruding from the ends. I would not want to be alive going down hill in that thing, I though. It was at this point I decided to concentrate on getting to the bottom. 'Down there, down there!'. 'I see it, I see it.' We found the way to the bottom. What fun.

More lifts were taken to the top of a red, then a black, a red, a blue, too slow, a black, whoops, too much too much. We were glad when a lift had a blast shield, shelter from the storm. Get the gloves off, more fruit pastels, give me the damn coffee!!! Re-energised we skied on. Stopping for hot chocolates and beers now and then. But alas this would be our only day on Tigues, the mountain took her from us. With her avalanches and blanket snow. 'Who's the boss now?' She says, and we must wait like good little boys, with bumps and bruises, to ski another day.

Peace,

Dan

Val d'Isere, Avalanche Night and The Day After!

2012-01-06T19:33:00.000Z

Tonight we risked the 'danger do not go out' weather warnings and headed into Val d'Isere. We had heard on the Val FM that La Fornet had been hit by an avalanche but we were unaware of how much damaged it had caused. Apparently it had completely covered the road and the exit from the valley was impossible. Even though the not on our hotel door warned of danger, we just had to get into town and see what was going on.

I was told by a friend that everywhere was closing at 9pm but we ventured out anyway. The buses weren't running and the few Land Rovers and Fiat Panda that we did encounter were spinning and struggling in the spin drift. There was no other option than to walk the 1km into town. The wind was biting and hard and the snow was falling at horrible horizontal speed. We were masked up and outfitted with goggles for the most extreme happy hour ever! The wind strengthen as we walked, after 200 metres it got worst, harder and heavy the further we got. The roads were deserted. It took us 15 minutes to get into town and our legs were soaked, the no salopettes option was a bad idea.

Once we got into Val we walked around looking for some life but everywhere was closed, my friend appeared to be right! But then we stumbled across Victors and there was life and beer flowing. It did appear that it was only the hardcore few trying to get merry, and once they appeared to be leaving around 11pm we decided to get the hell out. After another beer for the road we got our gear on and headed back into the hurricane. The wind was more intense and the snow had at least dropped another 12 inches since we'd entered the bar.

We walked past buried 4x4's, piste bashers, patrol stations under six feet of snow, and the large heads that had been sculptured on the road-a-boats, we're going to need a makeover in the morning.

Half way out of Val we were stopped by what looked like a small tow truck but it was the police. They asked me 'where we were going' and I told them 'La Daile'. The police man replied 'Impossible, it is forbidden to go to La Daile! The road is closed there is an avalanche coming. You can stay in the station, we have blankets and food.' But I said 'we have a friend in the hotel, we must go back and see if he is ok'. 'No... you will go to the station, 100 metres on the right, we will meet you there.' I was not happy, we huddled together and decided to give the cop the slip. Once he drove down the road we got onto the path and kept low as we trenched our way along the deep lying snow. We passed his flashing yellow lights and while he was ordering someone else the same instructions - we made a dash.

Over the snow plough mound effectively acting as a road blow and ran as fast as we could along the avalanche pathway. We met Frank, a French guy, also making a run for the village. The slow was blinding but we continued running towards the soft lights of La Daile. There was a great sense of elation, sticking it to the stubborn cop, even though he was doing the right thing and holding our security in the up most importance. Not only that, he didn't want to be up in the morning looking for 4 buried bodies. But screw it, we wanted our beds!! We got back to our room, ecstatic at beating the storm, and prayed for better weather come morning.

The next day was a complete right off. 5/5 Risk of avalanche, high alps warning, in affect - no skiing!!!! There were no lifts running at La Daile or Val d'Isere. The funicular's track were so covered in snow you couldn't even see the entrance to the tunnel. Controlled explosions on the mountains didn't even start until late morning, the risk was so bad. I had never experienced snow like it. Every thing was covers, except the road that had been plough all morning. Even then, the main roads out of the valley was closed until lunch. I heard word of a coach taking 5 hours to travel from Tigues to Val (12km) the night before as an avalanche on the mountain pass had directly hit a car.

With every thing closed we walked into town and looked at all the snow mounds, the ploughs were literally dumping the snow into the river. We headed into the Quiksilver cafe and order hot chocolate and Spag Bol. We sat there for an age and just chilled watching the staff working like mad dogs, flipping burgers and frying eggs! The French must hate making American surf and turf!

We killed about 3 hours in Val and then got the bus back to La Daile. By 3pm we had given up on skiing and walked out of our hotel to the supermarket only to find the lift was running - hell yeah!! We ran as fast as we could to the lockers and got on the slopes. 2 runs down from La Folie Douce and I felt like a junkie getting his fix!

Cross your skis, anything can happen if you've got dynamite!

Peace,

Dan

UP ON THE GLACIER - DAY 4

2012-01-05T19:38:00.000Z

Dan

WHITE LINES Trailer

2012-01-04T21:23:00.000Z

Ok folks here a sneak peek at our new film 'WHITE LINES'. I hope you enjoy and the full film will be coming soon here on intotheoutside.

Peace,

Dan

SKIING IN VAL D'ISERE DAY 3 - WHITE LINES

2012-01-03T21:03:00.000Z

Day 3 here in the wonderful French Alps. Can it get better than this? Great powder, skiing on a glacier, superb off piste!! Today we went up to Glacier de Pissaillas and there was nothing but blues skis and a few snow cap clouds. We skied for hours and ate our rolls and sipped our vodka up high. The conditions are just brilliant and more snow is forecast. Last night we partied a bit too hard in La Folie Daile and in the Cafe Face. Mr singer man, you are the coolest mother f**ker I've ever met!!

So we had sore head today but we had so much fun. Spark, Mike and I got to hook up with my mates Becky, Sam and Simon and it was just great to have all those people charging down the slopes. Some great runs, wipeouts and snow beards!!

Tonight it's just pasta and sausage and an early night, we need to recover for wipeout wednesday on Tignes!! We have cut a little trailer for the the first film so I'll get that uploaded in the next day or two!

Peace,

Dan

WHITE LINES

2012-01-02T20:43:00.000Z

Skiing in Val is always epic, especially when you've brought a load of like minded psycho's with you. Day one on the piste was, how can I say it, AWESOME!!! We are staying in a plush pad in La Daile about 1k from the Val d'Isere village. It's great, we have a kitchen and a balcony, so a BBQ in the snow is on the cards.

The runs have been sensational. The powder is thick here, champagne snow, the piste look like off piste, every run is a blast. It's been snowing since early Mid December so the conditions here are the best I have experienced. New Years was really fun, we had the tuxes and partied hard well into new years day. We been bashing the slops on La Daile today, and I took a few hits on the Face, gotta get a black run under the belt on the first day right!!!!

We're here putting together some films too, it's not all fun, games and apres! We have a new GoPro HD hero 2, so this stuff is going to look good. We plan to have 3 episodes for you lucky sods towards then end of Jan, so look forward to that!

Anyway enough chat, it Man Monday at Saloon, so we're off for a triangle.

Peace,

Dan

HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM VAL d'ISERE

2012-01-01T19:40:00.000Z

Happy 2012!

Peace,

Dan, Spark, Mike, Jimbo.

Off Piste

2011-12-28T21:56:00.000Z

The Hawaiian Shirts have arrived, the Jager's on ice and the wax is on the board. We're off to Val for some skiing. We've got new GoPro's, new mounts, gear, cigars, shit, angles and body parts! It's all going off. Expect a crazy new 2-3 part video in the new year! Enjoy new years and drink a lot!!

Peace,

Dan

Walking the Mutt

2011-12-27T12:34:00.000Z

Up on the Ridgeway with Pan today working off Xmas dinner!

Peace,

Dan

Merry Xmas and a Happy New Year

2011-12-26T21:48:00.004Z

Merry Christmas everyone and here's to another great year of adventures!Peace,Dan

"Win-ter-time-is-here-again"

2011-12-14T23:08:00.007Z

The snow is here again! One look out of the door and off we went. Up onto the Lakeland hills, my very own Alps on the doorstep. Beautiful snow, blue skies and icicles! Nothing but the fire now and a mug of hot chocolate to enjoy will the dog sleeps at my feet! Merry wintertime! Why live anywhere else! Skiing tomorrow!

Peace,

Dan

Winter Morning Walks

2011-11-22T18:29:00.004Z

What a great feeling today. The fog and the fresh air and the rain spitting through the trees. Did anyone else feel really happy in the damp dark weather today? It really feels like winter now and the nights are drawing in, apparently snow is a comin'. Having a fire tonight, burning off all the branches I've been sawing off the trees! Hot chocolate and banana boats!

Peace,

Dan

Kendal Mountain Festival 2011

2011-11-21T10:14:00.005Z

Still recovering after this weekend's Kendal Mountain Festival. Sore body and head today! But a great weekend. The film (Kayak Europa) went down well and we got positive comments on the dance floor Saturday night. 'Hey you're the guy with the beard and he's the one with the banana and he's the Justin Beiber look-a-like', by far my best comment!

The film was played on the Wild Water programme, which wasn't exactly wild, the best film, apart from ours, obviously, was 'Crossing the Ditch' about two lads gripping account paddling across the Tasman sea. Snow sports night was a bit of a bore, the best film 'One for the Road' skiing and boarding in Alaska among other knarley places. Glen Plate, please come back next year with a stack of your VHS!!We all fell asleep during Bike night but that may have been something to do with the whiskey tent! But no, 15 mins talking around a camp fire, with no action, come on, people were walking out, well the people awake anyway!

Moonflower was good, the new Alister Lee film, nowhere near as good as the Asgard Project and I don't know whether I'm watching too much outdoor film porn of late, but a lot of the climbing films are very slow and boring. Cory Richard's 'COLD' was excellent, poetic and mad. Minus 51 degrees, Pakistan, winter, 8000m metre peek, surviving an avalanche, enough said. Nice music too.

But the best two films for me where Dean Porter's 'Race for the Nose' breaking the speed record for El Cap's Nose route - hilarious but also completely suicidal. I had to laugh when he shouts down to his partner Sean Leary 'I didn't put any gear in so don't fall'.

The second film was Richard Parks: Conquering the World 737. The brilliant story of Richards record attempt at the 7 summit and 3 poles in 7 months. Absolutely brilliant and the fact that he raised over a million quid for Marie Curie cancer care means, for me, his was the best film.

Great weekend and it was great to see the film on the big screen, the sound was amazing. Now we need to make a few more! Nice tash Frith and sorry about wrestling you Kat!!!

Peace,

Dan

Surfing on the Usk

2011-11-14T13:17:00.003Z

Nice day on the Usk today with a little surfing.

Peace,

Dan

Dust Off The Skis - Time to Hit The Dome

2011-11-07T12:43:00.003Z

Skiing time is just around the corner so it was off to Escape for a bit of practise. We all bowled down to the dome yesterday to have a blast down the slope and make sure the old knees were going to stand up to the test. Mission accomplished and always a good laugh - I like going fast! We just got a good deal for this winter and thank god it isn't in Scotland this year!

Jimbo had a lesson, looks ropey, needs more work. Spark looks like a natural on the board, should be ready in time. Mike, who knows, he'll be in his cabin in the jungle staring at images of 80's extreme skiers. And me, enough said.

Looking forward to New Year's Eve, roll on the Alps!

Peace,

Dan

The Mad Welshman

2011-11-07T12:41:00.002Z

Exhausted! I have just spent 8 hours in the company of Chris Rogers and survived! I should get a t-shirt or a certificated or something. A mad, never stops talking, gag a minute, car breaking, crazy Welshman. I need to lye down!

Today we were up a 6am for an early start, heavy rain in the Brecons Friday night got us excited but when we got to the Neddfecken, the river barely had any water in it. The waterfalls were running but the pools at the top are pretty shallow, plus it was riddled with trees. We had to scrap it and decided to hit Cardiff.

Chaos as usual with people swimming, rafts all over the place and a standard release of 8 cumecs. We may have been better off with 4 foot surf of Swansea, but that is getting a bit desperate.

I was kept entertained by Rogers getting a pounding in the holes. 'Get the camera out,' he said 'you bloody brought it didn't you!'. As soon as I hit the recorded button, 3 swims off the bat, brilliant. 'It was the bloody camera's fault'. Whatever man - the kit doesn't make the paddler. We stopped in Morrison for fruit pastels on the way home.

Peace,

Dan

The New S**t for 2012!

2011-11-01T13:57:00.010Z

Top to bottom: Pyranha Burn Bubblegum. RAB Microlight Alpine Jacket. Teva Mens Gnarkosi Shoe. Palm Equipment Atom Cag. Quiksilver Travis Rice The Ferris Sunglasses. Burton Mr. Nice Guy Snowboard.

KMF 2011 FRIDAY 18TH NOV- KAYAK EUROPA - WILD WATER LINE UP

2011-10-31T16:53:00.005Z

Here's some info on the WILD WATER night at Kendal. This is for the Friday showing but there's also a Saturday and Sunday showing, more info soon!

Film: Wild Water
Date: Friday 18th November Time: 13:00 - 16:00
Further information

Film pass required for this event. The final list of films in this session will be confirmed soon.

Films Showing

Mazungu: Canoeing the Congo 15'
Directed and Produced by Phil Harwood

Ex Marine Phil Harwood’s graphic account of his hair raising adventures, during his 5 month solo, first 'source to the sea' descent of the 2922 mile long Congo River through the war torn D.R. Congo. Starting from the true source in north eastern Zambia, he faced swamps, waterfalls, rapids and endemic corruption. Arrested, chased, collapsing from malaria with numerous death threats, he also encountered tremendous hospitality. 'I only had to get m machete out twice to prevent myself from being robbed'

Mammalian 47'
Directed and Produced by Frank Wolf

A 2,000 km arctic canoe journey from Yellowknife to Rankin Inlet provides the setting for this intimate, sideways look at the largest wilderness area in North America. Home to some of the greatest populations of large mammals on earth, pressures from industry and climate change make the future of this sanctuary uncertain. From the deepest heart of the barren lands, the filmmakers have emerged with a compelling portrait of the landscape and a new discovery that will shock the natural world.

Kayak Extreme 9'
Directed and Produced by Kajo Fritz

Together with a group of bold adventurers, the luminary Olaf Obsommer and Thilo Schmitt undertake a kayak expedition to the Altai mountains. This proves to be an extraordinary challenge for the humans and for the material. They want to fulfil their great desire, to become registered in the “book of legends”, after having achieved 110 km of river water with 96 rapids. This honour has rarely been given to any kayakers in the world so far.

Kayak Europa 10'
Directed and Produced by Daniel Fylan-Smith

Into the Outside paddling crew's adventures in Europe. Filmed on location in Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and France. Directed by Daniel J Fylan- Smith, the film follows the crew's first trip kayaking in Europe.

Crossing The Ditch 55'
Directed by Greg Quail

The Tasman Sea runs for more than 2000km between Australia and New Zealand: it is one of the world’s most dangerous stretches of water. Two young Australians, James Castrissian and Justin Jones, decide to cross it in a kayak, a feat that has never been attempted before. Ten metre plus waves, terrifying storms, strong currents and ravenous sharks put the minds and bodies of those two young men to the test. After 62 days, they reach the sandy coast of NZ to earn a place in history.

Peace,

Dan

Happy Birthday

2011-10-29T18:19:00.003+01:00

Shall I tell you about my life
They say I'm a man of the world
I've flown across every tide
And I've seen lots of pretty girls

I guess I've got everything I need
I would't ask for more
And there's no one I'd rather be
But I just wish that I'd never been born

And I need a good woman
to make me feel like a good man should
I don't say I'm a good man
Oh, but I would be if I could

I could tell you about my life
And keep you amused I'm sure
About all the times I've cried
And how I don't want to be sad anymore
And how I wish I was in love

Man of the World by Peter Green.

Remembering you while listening to Fleetwood Mac, happy birthday, miss you!

Peace.

KAYAK EUROPA / KENDAL MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL 2011 17TH-20TH NOV / FILM TIMES

2011-10-29T18:01:00.003+01:00

Kayak Europa is the first film in the Wild Water programme which is shown at the following times:

Friday 1pm Parish Hall Presenter Shelley Barlow
Friday 8.30pm Studio Presenter Scott Rose (Dan J. Fylan-Smith Introduction and Q&A)
Saturday 5pm Studio Presenter Jerry Gore (Dan J. Fylan-Smith Introduction and Q&A)
Sunday 9 am Parish Hall Presenter Alison Bloxham
Sunday 4.30pm Screen 2 Presenter Graham Desroy

Peace,

Dan

Eye for Adventure - The Black Cullin

2011-10-29T16:49:00.000+01:00

'I saw this picture the other day of the Cullin Ridge.'
'Oh Yeah'
'What do you reckon?'
'Have you got a map?'
'No.'
'Let's do it!'

And the adventure was born, like so many before, in a pub, after a fourth or fifth beer. The bell for last orders came and went. And two young gentlemen hatch another plan. Two adventurers with a thirst for excitement. Most of the time, in these midnight drunken hours, the best ideas come to the fore, like an underground spring, jetting to the surface. The Cullin ridge. Calling to me in a picture, a picture I can't remember seeing. The Isle of Skye looming, beckoning me, wanting me to spend this last week in October, basking on it's violent spine. Scotland and it's Highlands and moors and harsh weather, cold and rain and cloud. My heart beats again. The adventure, like the last before it, is born.

------- BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP ---------

Tuesday morning. The alarm went off and I woke up with this new chronic back pain, too many nights, sleeping in sheds, barns, boathouses, floors and cars. This morning I woke up in Mike's van, the birds chirping outside, the cool air coming through the cab window, was it morning already? If we wanted to get to Skye we needed to be on the road - it was 8am, we were hungover and had 9 hours of driving ahead of us.

I'd seen the Cullin in a picture not so long ago but I couldn't quite put my finger on when or where it was. But for some reason we were heading up the M6, the van loaded with gear, fixed now after the epic in the Alps. Tea bags, powdered milk, eggs, bacon, tinned sausages, beans, the whole lot. We were off, Mike at the wheel, coughing, cracking his neck, 88mph, Zepllin blasting. I wind the window down, stick my head out of the window and scream at the top of my lungs - 'freedom, you'll never take me!!'

The air is fresh and the sun is shinning. We blast through Carlise, Glasgow, Glenn Coe, Fort William, Loch Lochy and Kyle Lochalsh. The mountains are huge, the roads are empty, and the wild all around as far as the eye can see. By the time we get to Skye's Glenn Brittle beach it is 6pm and the night is drawing in. A look at the Cullin and all looks clear, with the stars about and little cloud we bed down with a we dram of whiskey.

There was a little rain and wind in the night but nothing that kept me awake. The whiskey was enough to knock me out. The sky was grey but clear and the sausage and eggs were cooking. Mike hints that I may be the Don Williams element in our dynamic duo, but I think I do my bit in the kitchen - some times! By 8.30am we were on the trail. Walking down to the beach and through the Glen Brittle camp site making our way to the Cullin. The plan was to summit Sgurr nan Eag via Loch Coir a' Ghrunnda at the west end, and walk along the ridge to bag Sgurr Dubh Mor and Sgurr Alasdair, before bumbling back to the van before dark. The delights of whiskey and rice!

It was a long walk in before we got close to our summit face, the Soay Sound to our left, the Isle of Rum and Mull out on the horizon shrouded in cloud. I could see a few golden beaches, which made me want to replace drizzle and lochs for sun and sea. We marched on and finally reached the corner of Coir a' Ghrunnda. The massive rock face on our left reached up and into the cloud. The Cullin suddenly seemed a lot bigger, slightly more intimidating than I'd imagined. Continuing up hill we got our first sight of the awe inspiring space of the lower basin of Sgurr Dubh an Da Bheinn. The river flowed thinly but fast down the black rock, huge bulbous slabs, what must have been big bubbles of lava, millions of years ago. And when you're in a space as huge as this you feel like you are steeping back in time. A needle in a haystack.

After stopping for a quick snack and a drink we weaved our way through the boulder garden and scrambled up and down the crags and cliffs to the Loch. Some of the routes took a bit more time as we weaseled or way through cracks, waterfalls and holes in the rock. Some of the scrambles got a bit tricky and sometimes I was wondering what the hell I was doing on them without a rope but somehow we got to the Loch unscathed.

The cloud at first seemed to be lifting. The wind picked up for a brief spell and blew some of the thick mist away. I was stunned at the sight all around me. Spires and spikes, steep scree, boulders thrown and placed around, the size of houses. Peaks above like sharks teeth, standing alone, thirty to forty feet high, threatening danger above -BEWARE. I wondered what the Inaccessible Pinnacle would look like. A huge gulp in my throat and we took a bearing on the old compass to the summit. As we made our way up the scree and across more huge boulders the cloud got thicker and we could barely see where we were going. 'Just keep going up' said Mike. Good idea! I heard a bird, at least something is alive among the rock.

Crags appeared near the summit, more scrambles, squeezing and stretching. I felt like I'd done six rounds of a boxing match and a half marathon once we reached the ridge. The mist by now was so thick I couldn't see 20 feet in front of me. To one side jagged rocks and drops, the other a slab sliding down into oblivion, don't slip now I thought or it could be nighty night without a glass of whiskey in sight. Finally we'd reached the peak of Sgurr nan Eag; 924 metres straight up without a twist. The view was white as day, the mist was getting thicker, what a shame.

We marched on back along the ride and suddenly like a ghost ship cutting slowly though the fog; a huge peak of rock, jet out high above the ridge and stopped us in our tracks. There was something incredibly ghostly about it and the foggy indelible mist made us feel very small and alone. We stopped and watched this piece of mystical rock like something magical was going to happen. We were the only ones up here on the ridge.

I just sat back for a while and took in the spooky atmosphere. But we needed to move and circled around the huge mass of free standing rock. But light was not improving, it was getting darker and harder to figure out where we were. By now it was almost 2pm and considering the time of the walk in; our plans needed modifying. We decided to slack off Sgurr Alasdair and get back down to the Loch but that was easier to say than do. There were huge drops on all sides, it took us almost thirty minutes or so to figure out a route but once we did we scrambled and climbed down the huge 200 metre cliff pretty quickly. And we found the Loch again. The cloud was definitely lower and it took us another hour to get back down to the lower basin and over the boulder field.

An eye opener indeed in the potential of Skye and the Cullin. I now know why this mountain range is considered to be on a par with the ridges and mountains you get out in the Alps. I can imagine being up there on a winters day with an axe and crampons - I just hope when I come again it's bright blue sky!! On the walk back we were accompanied by 3 sets of deer, which looked stunning and healthy.

Mike did his bit as a former president of the Falmouth Sea Swimming club, stripped down to his pants and went into the Sound for a swim. He didn't realise that there was a 200 metre walk until the depth of the water dropped below his ankles - thank god he had pants on! A fire on the beach rounded the day off nicely and warmed us up, the Glenfiddich did the rest. What a day on the Black Cullin. Breakfast at the Taliska Distillery to look forward to!

Peace,

Dan

Cheddar Gorge Wash Out

2011-10-29T15:22:00.000+01:00

Bit of a wash out at Cheddar Gorge today. Getting on the road with high hopes of climbing but as soon as we got there it started to rain! Why does it rain when you climb and not when you want to kayak!!

Managed a few climbs on Arch Rock before the heavens opened. Plus, bonus, I got hit by bird poo while belaying! I had to wait at the bottom while Jimbo finished his climb with a massive brown splodge on my shoulder - nice!

Climbs included Galena Coloda and Get Kimitri before it got too slippery and we had to bail to the boozer! I suppose we got to sit in the pub and watch the Arsenal match, witness a bloody nose* and eat free spicy crisps!

Please rain more so we don't have to climb!!

Peace,

Dan

* rude boys messing around.

Kayak Europa - Wild Water Night @ Kendal Mountain Festival, Saturday 19th November - 5-8pm

2011-10-28T14:48:00.001+01:00

Hello all! As you may or may not know 'kayak Europa' is being screened at this years Kendal Mountain Festival. I have been told that it will feature as part of the 'Wild Water Night'. This is excellent news as last years 'Wild Water Night' had some cracking films by Anson Fogel and Shaun Baker as well as film like Means of Productions 1 and 2. It's an amazing honor to feature on the bill, who cares if we win the comp or not!

So the Wild Water Night is on the Saturday and it runs from 5pm-8pm. This is great as we'll get to watch a load of kayaking films and then have a few beers at the RAB party at the Brewery. So just to confirm the 'Wild Water Night' will be on Saturday 19th November at the Brewery Arts Centre - Studio 5-9pm! Be there.

You will need a film pass to be at the screening, some of my guest and I get VIP tics, oh yeah! They are doing a Saturday pass and a 2 day pass, get the two dayer! Links below:

KMF 2 Day Film Pass

Hope to see you there!

Peace,

Dan

BOMB FLOW TV Episode #4 BC

2011-10-20T20:22:00.000+01:00

Bomb Flow TV Episode #4 British Columbia from BombFlowTV on Vimeo.

Enjoy this from the BOMB FLOW boys!

Peace,

Dan

KAYAK EUROPA - To be Screened at this years Kendal Mountain Festival 17th-20th November!

2011-10-12T18:24:00.004+01:00

Kayak Europa is to be screened at this years Kendal Mountain Festival!! So stoked, brilliant news! I expect all the guys to come out tonight for beer and Karaoke!! Get the tuxedos out boys, we're gonna do it bond style and pimp some sponsor money for the Chilian stout come Feb!!!

I will update when I hear from Alison at KMF HQ about what night it will be screened! Joy!!

Much love - so happy!!

Peace,

Dan

Clear the 'ead - A Big Walk.

2011-10-11T17:22:00.000+01:00

There's nothing better to sort your head out than a long walk. The best therapy is rambling! Getting away from everything, job, people, the past, the future. Sling a load of junk in your bag, sausages, whiskey, coffee, a good book, your tent and go. I jumped in the car after the last day of work and drove over Hard Knott pass to Wast Water. I wanted to spend some time away from it all.

I left the car by the lake and went walking for 2 days, over great screes, Scarfel, Great Gable, Kirk Fell and Bow fell. Camping by tarns, rivers and streams with nothing but the clear night sky to stare up at with wonder. Home at the moment, is a tent and a stove, for comfort; a fleece liner. My half punctured therma rest, condensation and spiders, luxuries of my life aligned.

When was the last time I ate in a restaurant, slept on a bed, a bed in a house and not a leaky hut? I stare at the sky and watch the stars move above, over Pike Of Blisko and over the Langdales. It is something of a heatwave we are having, an Indian summer of sorts. These times are great spent up in the mountains.

Peace,

Dan

Kendal Mountain Festival 2011 - 17th-20th November.

2011-10-11T15:42:00.001+01:00

Really excited about this year's Kendal Mountain Festival for many reasons, mainly our film being shown; KAYAK EUROPA, yippee! But there are some great things on this year, speakers, films, parties etc..

The film I'm looking forward to this year is Alister Lee's 'Moonflower'. Jon Bracey and Matt Helliker set out to try and climb a new route on the north buttress of Alaska's Mount Hunter. If it's anything as good as Asgard then I can't wait! Check out the trailer below:

There's Corey Richards and Anson Fogel's 'Cold', which documents Richards' (first American) winter ascent of an 8000m peak. I'm really excited to see this one, trailer below:

There's Bike Night, Wild Water Night, Snow sports Night to keep your mouths watering and the RAB party and free whiskey stand. This is where you get drunk and buy outrageously large down jackets that don't fit you just because their a bit cheap. Don't be fooled. Still a lot to be confirmed, check out the website - http://www.mountainfest.co.uk/index.cfm

Hope to see you there!

Peace,

Dan

BOMB FLOW TV Episode #3 Cali

2011-10-05T16:07:00.001+01:00

More Brown Stout from California! Enjoy!

Peace,

Dan

northern huk (film HD)

2011-09-13T17:20:00.002+01:00

2 days paddling in the lakes, august 2011, a right northern huk. Runs on the clough, troutbeck, stock ghyll and the sprint. Filmed on the GoPro, directed by Daniel J. Fylan-Smith, photography and production by Fylan-Smith brothers. intotheOUTSIDE presents a film by Daniel J. Fylan-Smith Robin Simpson Daniel J. Fylan-Smith Marucs Fylan-Smith Frith Wood northern huk. a intotheOUTSIDE production. intotheoutside.blogspot.com

Enjoy the film, music 'raise your weapons' by Deadmau5.

Peace,

Dan

into the OUTSIDE debut on Vimeo.com - tombstoning (film)

2011-09-11T22:27:00.001+01:00

tombstoning from intotheOUTSIDE on Vimeo.

tombstoning (film HD)

2011-09-11T12:51:00.005+01:00

Tombstoning on the Greek Island of Rhodes. Music Meowingtons Enables Hax by Deadmau5. intotheOUSTIDE 2011. http://intotheoutside.blogspot.com. Dir. by D J. Fylan-Smith, Produced by Fylan-Smith brothers.

Enjoy!

Peace,

Dan

Sailing, Driving, Gorge Walking...

2011-08-26T18:58:00.005+01:00

Driving, sailing, ghyll walking, oh yeah and working - if you can call it that. I've spent some time driving around this week, over to Whitehaven, Ravenglass, Hard Knott Pass, Kirk Stone, Thrilmere and beyond. I went over to Ambleside to check out the waterfalls on Stock Ghyll, the ones we ran the week before in spate! Much lower but still impressive and peacful. Oh yes and I have been sailing, ha, on bugs and picos with kids! Most of the time spent on the power boat - ha. What a mixture of weather we're having!

Peace,

Dan

A Busy Night In a Store Finalising Shit Dreaming of Stout!

2011-08-22T18:00:00.002+01:00

Thank the lord. A monkey off my back. Finally I got rid of the film and mailed it to the Kendal Mountain Fest. Last night I put together a pack to accompany the film, pictures, promotion, DVD, lar lar lar. Finger's crossed now, hope it gets played!

Peace,

Dan

BOMB FLOW TV Episode #2 Pacific Northwest

2011-08-21T12:21:00.001+01:00

Bomb Flow TV Episode #2 Pacific Northwest from BombFlowTV on Vimeo.

Stout - nothing else to say about that! Watch!

Peace,

Dan

Starting to Slackline

2011-08-21T11:12:00.003+01:00

Passing the time, hanging around waiting for groups to arrive. There's a wire, lets try and walk across it. I was watching Dave Potter a bit the other day - now I'm off to Kendal to try and find a slackline! Can't wait!

Peace,

Dan

KAYAK EUROPA

2011-08-16T18:41:00.002+01:00

Kayaking Chruchbeck, Walking Up The Old Man, Cooking On The Beach and General Living

2011-08-16T17:39:00.006+01:00

The last week has been manic. I've have a week off, but if you were thought I was going to get some time off to relax - no way! I am not allowed! Headed back up north on Wednesday. The mini, two kayaks a brother and a dog. It was raining - hard! Just like the forecast said - surprise! So we headed to Kendal and stopped at my pal Frith's house. He made tea and we studied the Environmental Agency website for river levels, while big 'Robin S' came around. High! The water was up.

Robin appeared, hungover, and it was good to see him. He rolled a fag, told us about his week in Wales, windsurfing, surfing and smoking pot, and the 52 year old women he ended up in the bed with the night before! Ha! We loaded up the vans and headed to Troutbeck, it was up. What a run. Then we did the 'epic' Stock Ghyll.

Running off of the Kirkstone area, it flows into Ambleside. I had never seen this one. We put in below the 'big banana falls' and hit grade 5 straight out of the cage - wooooooo! Everything was great, then, bamb, 2 swims, bent boat, pins on trees and spilt blood! What a river! Spark hit a great line through the gorge and Robin pumped his fist in the air 'he f**king creamed it!'. I puffed out my checked and followed on down...

The next day we started early, Troutbeck again, the Sprint, The Kent and then over to the Clough at Sedbergh. Frith took a bit of a beating, I prefered to film than throw a line, and by 8pm and getting dark we decided to pack up and head home for curry and beer!

Day 3 we headed out and did the Leven, just a chill day, nice. And on Saturday we went to coniston and found the diamond in the rough - Churchbeck. I never thought I'd see these falls in full flow let alone run them. What a rush and no swims - epic!

What a rainy patch of weather we're having, more please!!

Peace,

Dan

6 Runs, 5 Rivers, 4 Swims, 2 Day, Grade 5, Big Bannana Falls, Broken boat - Kent, Clough, Stock Ghyll, Troutbeck, Sprint - Rain Rain Rain!!

2011-08-12T08:29:00.003+01:00

Fall story of epic week to come...

Peace,

Dan

KAYAK EUROPA Feature Film (Watch in 720p HD)

2011-08-08T11:29:00.005+01:00

into the OUTSIDE paddling crew's adventures in Europe. Film in Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Austria and France and Directed by Daniel J. Fylan-Smith. Starring Mike Burns, Daniel J. Fylan-Smith, Marcus Fylan-Smith, Chris Homewood, Theo Petre and James Wood. Rivers include the Soca, Avisio, Upper and Lower Noce, Mezzana, the Ubaye Racecourse, the Imst and Landeck gorge, the Inn, Briancon gorge and the Rabiox wave.

Film during the summer of 2011, produced by Marcus Fylan-Smith, James Wood and Daniel J. Fylan-Smith. Music by the dead weather, dj fresh, edit, the bongolian, and more. into the OUTSIDE presents Kayak Europa, a Siphon Creek production 2011.

avisio river, kayaking italy, trento, val de sole, upper and lower noce, mezzana, soca river, siphon canyon, soca thrid and fourth canyon, ubaye river, ubaye racecourse, imst gorge on the inn, landeck gorge on the inn, the inn shoot, kayaking austria, kayaking europe, kayaking in france, the durnace, the briancon gorge, the rabiox wave, ubaye valley

Dir. Daniel J. Fylan-Smith
pro. Daniel J. Fylan-Smith
Marcus Fylan-Smith
James Wood
Pho. Daniel J. Fylan-Smith
Sta. Mike Burns
Daniel J. Fylan-Smith
Marcus Fylan-Smith
Chris Homewood
Theo Petre
James Wood

© 2011 into the OUTSIDE/Siphon Creek

Peace,

Dan

Cardiff White Water 06-08-11

2011-08-07T00:30:00.001+01:00

Fun and Games Kayaking with the 4th Epping Scout Troop

2011-08-02T19:07:00.009+01:00

Today was a real blast. I was back up to the Lakes again. A 4am start, driving at 100mph, coffee, bacon and egg panini, heavy rain, bumper to bumper, red lights shining bright. Stress! How early do you have to leave on these roads, honestly I know it's the holidays, but are the population on too many stimulants to be all up at this early hour and driving - come on seriously!!

I arrived at Newby Bridge at 8.15am and flew up the narrow road to Great Tower Scout Camp. My first day at the centre this week and a nice reunion with some old faces - Damo, Ben and Gawain! Funny seeing all these instructors all over the place now - can it be that I'm slowly become one!? Compliments on the beard, too many, I really need to shave now, it's just getting crazy. I mean the kids are calling me Jesus!

The rain slowly eased as I got into my dry suit and jumped in Damo's car. We drove down to the lake and kitted up. This morning I was with an awesomely funny group from Essex way - shut up, don't! The 4th Epping Scout Troop kept me laughing for the full 3 hours of our kayaking session - big shout out to Sam and Jamie Essex and Tatiana - if that is your name!

Next it was fun and games, kayaking again, with the Southampton West 22nd Explorer Scouts. Attention! Awesome guys, but liked sinking a lot. I really loved working with these cheeky chaps - so funny and seemed to love kayaking, and brought out the real comedian in me, big laughs, crazy polo and a kid called Malfoy!

I'm looking forward to more kayaking this week with more mad scout groups! Sam Essex, make sure you say 'ello to Sam Faiers for me!

Peace,

Dan

Waking In The Wild Places

2011-08-02T16:26:00.000+01:00

Is it better to be without things? Is it real to be alone? Is life a hard existence? Are we losing the moral fight? Is society a cage? What does the future hold? What is your plan? Is ambition a negative?

I have spent the last month working in the north west of England. I teach outdoor skills to people of all ages, abilities, social standing, background etc. I am not the best at what I do, in fact, my level of qualification in my field could be called mediocre, low, but I'm out there doing something I love and I carry out that 'doing' with total enthusiasm, dedication and passion.

I was born in 1980. Is it such a different world than what we live in now? I don't know, in some way, mainly where technology is concerned, yes, but I was too young to tell. My parents were both working people, my father a purchasing manager and my mother a nurse. I was an only child until I was eleven and the first of a few children to come on my mother's side of my family. I guess you could say I was lavished with attention, bought toys, taken on holiday's, and encouraged to play sports and do well at school, pretty normal right?

But I wasn't that bright, I found school hard, I struggled with sports, and I found life as a young kid hard and at home - my parents would fight quite often. This was embarrassing when I had friends around, none of my other friends parents fought. My mother and father were ambitious people, building houses, raising a family, traveling abroad. My father wanted me to excel at sports, particularly football, which I did not. I found interacting with children my own age difficult and I was very shy and laking confidence. I was never bullied though and had a great many friends but I always felt alone.

Secondary school was hard, I came out of that with average grades, didn't know what I wanted to do with my life and practically rolled out of bed one day and into college. I got a job in a sports store and cleaned my local leisure club for pocket money. I didn't have an idea when it came to girls and I was pretty short for a 15 year old. I came out of college with a few A-levels, but still didn't know what I wanted to do with my life, generally things sucked. But then I tried out for a football team, grew a few inches and passed my driving test. I traveled, lost my virginity and moved out of home. I started a band, I toured, drank heavily, fell through a window and by my mid twenties had fallen in love with a beautiful girl.

In 2008 my father was diagnosed with a brain tumor, I picked up kayaking, mountaineering, traveled America and my perspective on life changed again. My father died 2 years later. I will never see him again. But his death has taught me that life is short, it is precious, and you must live it to the full. It also reminded me how I grew up with a morally decent upbringing. Something I can be proud of. Something of real value.

I don't know why I am telling you this. The last month I have been living in the Lakes, doing what I love, teaching. I am homeless, living here and there, in forests, in my car, in a friends shed, sofa, boat house. I wake up with a bad back some times - minis are short cars. Sometimes I'm wet or covered in tics, dirty and covered in eczema. I question weather I have lost touch with reality sometimes, yesterday for example I woke up in a hedge, on the edge of a car park of a 4-star hotel. I woke up at 6am and it was raining. Then I taught scouts how to kayak all day. My standard day.

Today I watched the news, I try to avoid watching the news or reading the papers, I try to stay away from the negative. We live and always have lived in a corrupt world, with corrupt politicians, corrupt police, corrupt justice systems, corrupted press, corrupt shops, corrupted food, corrupt publicans, corrupt schools, corrupt everything. Anyone who believes otherwise is a fool. Society is flawed, society is prison, society is a word that needs to be binned. I feel safe in the mountains, I feel safe on the river, in the woods, in my tent. I feel safe when I am away from humans most of the time. We are a destructive and menacing race. We are selfish and greedy and sacrifice nothing. The system is failing and if we don't do anything now, then this country will be a trough in the next 10 years.

I work with kids, many of them from poor backgrounds, but I also work with kids with very stable backgrounds and support systems around them. I see kids like me all the time and it makes me chuckle, I see badly behaved kids, and I see really good kids. I can sense what each one is going through at a young age, but only sense, I really have no idea. I have lived in a few places, and in the towns and cities you can feel the tension, you can feel the aggression. You can feel the contempt for the police, the lack of police on the street. We live now where 'kids are king', you can't touch them, talk to them, you can't punish them. We live in an age where crimes have no consequence, where jail sentences are halved even before the criminal is put away, where my grandmother's handbag can be stolen in broad daylight and the perpetrator can get away with it. How can a grown man steal an 85 years old's hand bag - scum.

I am focusing on the kids here, on the trust groups I work with and the new initiatives set up by David Cameron. What is in place to follow these courses up, these 4-6-8 week residential - does it really make a difference? I am focused in particular with the 'National Citizen Service'. An area I have worked on this summer. The kids look disinterested, lackluster, board, unfit and uncooperative.

Last week my National Citizen Service group were beasted (worked like mad dogs and you can read all about it here http://intotheoutside.blogspot.com/2011/07/national-citizen-service-mountain.html), get up, walk, don't stop, get up that feekin' hill, stop drinking your water, ration it, get off your arse, get that tent up, go to bed, wake up, collect water, boil it, where are we?, walk, get up, walk, climb, keep going!! My group were the only group that made the 20km round trip that week, of course we lost their adult leader, the one who will be with them for the entire residential (she quit half way, too tired, needed fags, complained about the distance, what a role model), great example of what to become! When my group returned and herd other groups had packed in and given up before they started, they were proud, motivated and happy - wanting to go into the rest of the residential with chocs full of enthusiasm - good on 'em. They felt pushed, they excelled, they achieved an impossible feat in just the second day of their course. They exceded their own expectations, and went beyond - it felt great. Their words, not mine.

We live in a time where there are no winners or losers, an 'A' isn't good enough, technology is constantly 'on' and present, the pedophile is everywhere, kids can't go out, global warming, terror attacks, kidnapping, knife crime, im lovin' it, mass debts, government cuts, no fields, concrete jungles, pre-teen sex, 11-year old mothers, benefits, cancer, mdma, apple macs, google! This has to change, we have become a nation of 'piss your pants bedwetters', we look like babies, grumpy, cranky and aggressive, shit, half of these kids walk around in pj's. Bring back mandatory national service, 2 years! Training, exercise, education, and independence. Teach moral values, responsibility and a sense of worth.

People need to get away. I strongly believe that parents, teachers, and positive role models in the community have to put their hands up and except a lot of the blame. When they sit down and reflect on what happened to this generation - what will be the answer? I believe that if you are a person without any moral sensibility, whatever age you are, you will not know right from wrong. Kids need education, exercise and discipline and so do parents, politicians and police. Sort it out.

Peace,

Dan

One Last Trip to Wales (End of an Era)

2011-08-01T09:29:00.004+01:00

Time like these will be few and far between from now on. The group of lads I've been hanging with and paddling with are going their separate ways. Theo is off to London, James potentially to Bristol, Spark, maybe the army and I'm sticking up North for the time being. This means that trips like this weekend are not going to happen all that often anymore. Brings a tear to my eye - get the piano out! I'm sure we will get out paddling together again, when though who knows? What a funny few years it's been, 2 paddling trips to Europe, kayaking in Wales, Scotland and all over, drunken nights, beer bongs, wedgies and nipple twists, snuff and faded child sized t-shirts. We all chipped in a bought Theo some underwear for London, lets hope he uses them.

This weekend we piled in the car, half cut after Friday night in the Vic watching a rip roaring AC/DC trib band. Hangovers and black coffee, Relentless for Jimbo! We drove to North Wales to get some river action. The only thing running being the Tryweryn. Lots of fun, lots of missed eddies and lots of beer bong punishments. The river was busier than ever, paddling clubs, friends fro all over, rafters and smelly waves.

On Saturday night we called Global Taxis and went into Bala for beers - scary. We ran the 3 1/2 miles back to camp, in the pitch black armed with pizza and kebabs. Spark and I won the race, Theo and James, getting a bit old now - bless em!

On Sunday we took a drive over to Lake Vymwy, the reservoir that flooded the ancient town. Apparently you can dive down and see the houses. The drive over the valley was beautiful, the large pines spectacular. The river at the bottom was flat. The lake levels too low to release so we headed back to Bala and did a complete run of the upper and lower Tryweryn.

After that it was just the long drive back to Swindon. A great weekend with the lads, but when will the next one be - all eyes on Chile and South America 2012!

Peace,

Dan

National Citizen Service - Mountain Expedition

2011-07-27T18:06:00.006+01:00

This week I've been working with a National Citizen Service group from cumbria. A bunch of youngsters from Cumbria have come into the centre as part of the new scheme to develop some personal skills as part of a new five week voluntary course. Four weeks of the summer and then 30 hours of community service.

Yesterday, having spent Monday with them, we set out on an overnight expedition. 20km from Windermere to Coniston and back, followed by a 4km canoe back to Lakeside. I was excited about the trip, but were they?

After planning and packing the night before, as well as me giving them the low down on things like nutrition, camping, clothing and all the other faff, we set out at around 10.30am Tuesday morning. They had a route plan, I was just there as a tourist, and occasional guide/helpy-outer!

Once we left the Lakeside centre we worked our way slowly up to High Dam via a quick stop atop Scott Park Heights, some of them struggled with it, but I could see the early reward on there faces as the smiles came out when they saw the view at the summit. A tuna spread wrap and apple for lunch at High Dam and we were off again. We headed away from the Dam, through the forest of Great Green Hows and down towards Crosslands, skirting along Little Mire Beck past the sheep and cows.

The group then led me up to High Ickenthwaite and towards Low Bethecar. It was reaching 2pm and some of the guys were feeling the pinch. It was hot, sun blazing, blue sky and everybody's water, was quickly running out. Water we needed to ration and cook with! Obviously my classroom technique needed tweaking!!

The lack of water made me panic, every beck we crossed was either a muddy puddle, bone dry or had a dead sheep's head in it! The group looked tired, we had roughly 5km in the bag, with around 6km more to go and plenty of daylight left, I insisted we marched on, heads down and march on, if only because we might find water farther along!

A short cut was devised by a rather clever member of the clan and we hot footed it through Arkid Intake, a recently felled path, soft underfoot and high up to give us plenty of view to the West. We spotted Low Bethecar barn and scrambled down a 15 foot bank covered in bracken -TICS. The group fared well and enjoyed the rough and ready approach - Adventure!!

Next we were hurdled a fence, throwing our rucks sacks through a bog, and sprinting to the the barn. After that we followed a grass track to High Bethecar and took a bearing to the North. Within the hour we were pitching up at Pearlings on top of the moor. The view to Coniston and the lake below were amazing. The group's spirits were high and we cooked food and found water. After eating we sat and watched the most amazing sun set. What a day!

Next Day.

We were on the trail again by 8.30am. Our target; Rawlinson Nab, 2pm - collect canoes and paddle 5km back to Lakeside. No probs, right? The group had a plan and off they went. We flew along the the old track to High Parkamoor and entered Grizedale Forest. We motored east through the forest via Seven Wells and cut down through the small village of Satterthwaite. Taking a right after the church we entered the east side of Grizedale and stopped for a brew and a bab at Breasty Haw.

We dropped down to High Dale House via Raven Crag and headed up and over the High Dale Park Plantation. For a moment we got lost amid the muddy tractor tracks and steep hills, members of the group were, rightly so, getting hot and tired. One of the guys suffered a bloody nose after being hit in the face with a branch, I didn't see it, but it was a whole lot of blood to clean up! I took the roll of sherpa/mountain goat and carried bags to the top.

After all that fun we were down on the other side at Eel house, running through the recently cropped field. There we spotted another group at which point it turned into a game of war. We were belly down crawling along the field in proper military gorilla style. But it was too late - we were spotted. Now it was a mad dash to the finish line. 1.5km to Rawlinson Nab point, get to the beach, get in the canoes and paddle like f**k!!!! My inspirational words, but it seemed to get an extra mile per hour out of their tired legs.

We were off, a full on race, screaming, shouting, sweating. My group was in the lead, a slight advantage having a few less members, and we were at the beach. The canoes were waiting. GO GO GO! Paddles in hand we launched onto Windermere. With the other group on the beach, in the distance, looking mystified at the big long spoony things in their hands (we call them paddles), - The race was won.

What a few days - we all had a fun!

Find out more about the National Citizen Service

Peace,

Dan

kayAK EuroPa Trailer 2

2011-07-18T19:39:00.003+01:00

Not much longer to wait now folks, so here's another sample! Kayak Europa trailer 2. Have a watch and let me know what you think!

p.s. please watch in 720p HD, how it was meant to be watched!!!!!

Peace,

Dan

Out of Control Crazy KidZ!

2011-07-18T13:27:00.000+01:00

Manic week with kids from all over. Colombian, French, Portuguese, Italian and Chinese. I think my brain is scrambled. Kasai!! That means fire in Japanese! This week I've been running around entertaining foreign kids from all over - Tennis, swimming, football, basketball, volleyball, hockey, days out here, there and everywhere, I'm knackered! I can't wait to get back to the Lakes for a break - 3 hours kayaking seems like a breeze now! Thanks kids!

Peace,

Dan

Been Watching a Little 2 Much Kayak Porn Lately - America and Chile Next Year!! (Fav Vids From Cali Product, Ben Brown & Pilot Collective)

2011-07-15T15:59:00.008+01:00

Here are some awesome kayaking videos from Ben Brown, Cali Product Demshitz and Pilot Collective. Rivers inclued here are Upper Cherry Creek, the Pucon River, Dinkey Creek, Tenaya in Yosemite and the mouth watering Rio Claro in Chile!! How fun does this stuff look!!?

To watch more video like these go to:

http://www.youtube.com/user/pilotcollective
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheDemshitz
http://www.youtube.com/user/BenBrownNZ
http://www.youtube.com/user/caliproduct101

Peace,

Dan

More Open Canoeing on Lake Windermere!

2011-07-09T19:24:00.008+01:00

After loads of rain last night it was great to see the sun out again today! Yesterday I went to the cinema... and I don't know why, but I put myself through the agonising pain of yet another Transformers movie. What the hell!! Why do they keep making these moronic things - an offense to the carton!

It wasn't until I got onto the lake this afternoon that I finally let go of my anger and forgot about Michael Bay! We paddled up Windermere towards Hawkshead and crossed the lake, doing a complete circle back towards Lakeside. The weather was perfect, although the wind picked up a bit and caused a bit of a problem. The kids seemed to enjoy themselves.

I was enjoying watching the water skiers falling off of the skies. One guy had an incredible sound system on his speed boat. I really want to have a go! I can't imagine they stick to the speed limits. Canoeing is far more passive and peaceful. All hail nature and the force of human power, down with the machine!

More tomorrow then off to Cambridge for more fun!

Peace,

Dan

SPREAD THE WORD!! KAYAK EUROPA Teaser Trailer!!!

2011-07-08T12:08:00.001+01:00

Wild Camping Again

2011-07-08T11:30:00.002+01:00

Another day, another night under the stars. Last night there was a bit of thunder, a heavy looking sky but the rain didn't seem to appear. After a day full of kayaking on the lake I felt bushwhacked! I was so tired last night that I wouldn't have remembered the rain falling if it had.

I was happy to find a few tics on me today, get the tweezers out! The bracken is so thick at the moment, make sure you've got long pants on if you're out walking, plenty of tics out there in the grass! They are always in the most awkward places aren't they, I feel a bit bad asking for some one's help. It's a bit of an icebreaker to say the least. I will have to manage myself today!!

I woke up early this morning at about 7.45am. The sun was out and it was already heating up. I was sweating by the time I'd taken down my tent and brewed coffee and breakfast. A day on the hill today me thinks, I will probably walk over to Grizedale forest and see what's happening.

Enjoy the weather!

Peace,

Dan

A Night On Red Screes, "This Month I Will Mostly be Eating 28p Asda Tomato and Basil Pasta"

2011-07-02T09:22:00.006+01:00

It seems my life is becoming more basic. I teach 8 years old children how to climb walls from time to time, I work on the water and in the forest. And at the moment I live rent free out of my car and in a tent. I use public facilities whenever I can and sleep in the best places.

Yesterday I spent the day teaching at Rock and River in Lancashire. Small tots wanting to learn how to rock climb. It was a smashing day and a great little center down near Leyland.

Last night I camped up on Red Screes. The night was perfect. After I pitched the tent, on the only metre of flat ground I could find, I cooked up a bag of cheap Asda pasta and tomatoes, yum. The flame of my meths stove gave me light to read and I sat and enjoyed the sweet silence of the mountains. The sky above was clear and the sheep my only company.

I had a great nights sleep, even if I had slumped to the bottom corner of the tent, due to the 45 degree angle of my tent floor! I woke this morning and brewed some coffee and sat on one of the many huge boulders surrounding me and looked out towards Windermere. It is going to be another great day here.

Peace,

Dan

Back In The Lakes and Sleeping In Indiscriminate Places!

2011-06-30T12:49:00.003+01:00

It's great to be back in the Lakes! Catching up with old friends and meeting new faces! The Lake District never changes, the forests, lakes and rivers are as stunning in the summer as they are all year round. I had a great day at Lakeside yesterday instructing with a group, it was great to be back on Windermere! And the weather was so nice.

This morning I woke up early and took a easy walk up Gummers How. The highland cattle weren't impressed with my bedraggled appearance. I thought I was going to be charged and butted over a fence at one point. But they were nice enough. The view was beautiful. You can see the whole of Windermere from the top.

I am camping wild at spot all around to keep the big bad wolf from the door. Last night I almost cried having discovered I had forgotten my head torch! I will need to buy another. This means I will probably be the only one in the world to have a Tika in every colour!!

Peace,

Dan

A Mad Week, But Here It Is Folks! Kayak Europa Teaser Trailer

2011-06-28T22:41:00.004+01:00

The filming, even with the problems of broken cameras, condensation, empty batteries, full memory cards, hangovers, beer bongs, broken van, getting the shot from the bank, starting and stopping, annoying everybody, has been the easy bit. The cutting, editing, re cutting, trimming, audio, music, timing has been a real nightmare. And this is only a 10 minute short film.

At one point in the week, we'd thought we deleted it by mistake, 50+ hours down the Swanee. Luckily we didn't but a little mistake added another day and a half of work! In some sick twisted way I think making a longer film would have been much easier!

Massive thanks to Spark, Chris, Theo, James and Mike. The trip was brilliant, even if cut short. But most of all my bro, Spark, who has had to put up with my tantrums over the last week, and basically stealing his Mac. Cheers pal! Yours and James' help with the editing has been truly immense!

I hope you all enjoy this little teaser!

Peace,

Dan

Heading Back up to The Lakes Again

2011-06-22T18:30:00.003+01:00

Heading back up to the Lakes soon. Got some work on. And looking forward to it. Can't wait to see the mountains again! Yeah.

Peace,

Dan

Hergé Adventures of Quick Quo Pro! Hour 16 of Movie Maker/Need More Coffee and Need to be Outside!#>:(!!

2011-06-21T00:29:00.004+01:00

What to keep in what to take out? Such a small box to work in! So far I have cut 3 minutes of film, and I need to shave that by 30 seconds or so. Half way through Slovenia footage and still have a few more hours to get through. Then it's on to Italy and France. And the gags! More coffee!

Peace,

Dan

Cut Chop Pro Final Bish Bosh - The Pitfalls of Movie Making!

2011-06-19T19:44:00.008+01:00

I have been at it for 6 hours and counting so far. I have maybe close to 20 hours of film to go through this week. I need to cut a 10 minute film about our adventure in Europa and so far I have got the 1:20 intro. I need to cut that down by at least 10 seconds. So far I have got driving footage and gags in the van done and dusted. Well, not so much dusted so say, maybe sort of brushed with a dirty rag.

Now I'm going to have a bash at Slovenia, huge forest walk ins, epic rivers, and spectacular scenery. Let's hope I can do it justice. Any body want to send me music, feel free! Now back to the chopping board and another Coke!

Peace,

Dan

Grazie Torino Universitaria in Medicina per Averci al tuo Partito Pazzo

2011-06-18T18:18:00.003+01:00

Wow what a 24 hours. Leaving the kit and van in Briancon, missing two buses, then calling 'the guy' and having another one appear, epic double decker train to Turin, best westerns, kebabs, mad medical uni fashion/dj party, Vincenzo, Clara's directions, only one toilet (come on!), triple jager, rum, dancing, losing a brother, finding a brother, one hours sleep, taxi, plane, nuked cheeseburger, M25 wrong way - HOME!

What next! No, seriously, cheers to everybody we met and helped us along the way, beer, pizza, coal, hitch hike, Mr biker, crazy Austrian lady, Thiabut - soz i din't call bro, pictures next time. Best wishes to whoever was in the Bath Uni car accident - we saw your car a Garage Silvestri - hope you're ok! Europa 'we'll be back'....

Grazie everybody!

Dan

adiós kayak Europa

2011-06-17T09:14:00.003+01:00

Last day here in France. Got a van from Budget in Briancon last night and paddled down the Briancon gorge. Got in a few last runs on the slalom course in L'Agentiere.

We pack up now and make the long way back to the UK. Firstly we need to load all our kit on Mike's van to be towed in 15 days or so, then catch a bus to Turin. Then fly to Stansted. Maybe some beers in Turin tonight will make it less painful...

Unitl next year.

Peace,

Dan

Light at The End of The Tunel

2011-06-16T15:05:00.003+01:00

It looks like we have found a way out of France. After days of being stranded in L'Agentiere without a van and numerous problems with Brown Tag*, we have a last found a way back.

Brown Tag have relented and agreed to repatriate Mike, Spark and I and tow the Van back to the UK. We have also got our hands on a rental van from Budget in Briancon and plan to pack in another couple of rivers before we fly home from Turin on Saturday. A sad finish to the trip but I think we are all glad to be coming home with the kit and the van.

Peace,

Dan

*Alternative name for shite breakdown recovery company.

Alas, The Trip Could Be Over!

2011-06-13T13:42:00.003+01:00

After 17 days on the road, 3000 miles, 5 counties paddled, 15 river runs, 9 swimmers, 3 epic boat chases, 40 cans of red bull, 6 litres of coffee, 165 bottles of beer, 86 packets of super noddles and one broken turbo on the van, our trip looks like it is at a premature end.

Yesterday after our epic run on the Ubaye Racecourse our trusty steed, our Vauxhall Vivaro decided enough was enough. On the way down from Vars the turbo went and we limped back to came in L'Agentiere. It has done amazingly, transporting the team, the gear and the boats around over 5 countries. Maybe we asked too much of it, who knows.

At the moment we wait on camp hoping a miracle will happen. Between reading, making noodles and coffee, and running the slalom course we watch the sun rise and fall on another day...

Peace,

Dan

Kayking Europe Day 13 - Ubaye Race Course - "The Best River in The World"

2011-06-13T13:06:00.006+01:00

Last night was a nervous one, especially for James. Heading back to the river, where he had not one, but two epic swims and almost lost his boat, is always a daunting thought. We all sleep well, Ricard saw to that...

This morning we woke up, got breakfast on and loaded the van. A quick stop at Shopi in L'Agentiere for pain au chocolate and OJ and we were off. On the road towards the Ubaye Valley, home of the Ubaye River and the famous racecourse. Our day on the river in 2009 was carnage, we hoped this would be a better showing.

We drove up and over Vars and dipped down the switchback roads towards the river. Big volume, fast and technical. We couldn't resist stopping on each road side and looking down into it's violent mess of white water. The drive was stunning as usual, I fear I'm getting too familiar with these mountains and rivers, sometimes without noticing I miss their beauty. I'll try harder.

We parked at Martinet and geared up. It was so hot, the flies were intense, inside and outside of my boat. We walked down to the old road bridge to put in. The ants on the bank were everywhere. I would have passengers on the trip, crawling and buzzing under my sprey deck.

The start was fast, sending us at a tremendous speed below the highway bridge. The next rapid looked intense, full of boulders, and stoppes, huge grey water, a swirling, bubbly mess. We eddie and inspected. It looked good, a line down the middle, following the green tongue and out. Spark and James went for it, a bit of a twist below the mega boulder in the middle but the rest was easy, point forward and punch. I crawled back up and did the same.

The distance of the run is only 8k but after a quick bend and then another we were confronted by another drop in the horizon and white water in the distant, spitting high up into the air. Getting out again we could see a line, and one after another we flew down it. A spin and kick here and there but all good!

The group was faring very well. Last time was totally different, running the river blind, fast and chasing a boat. This time we were more controlled and it was more enjoyable. The river was a treat.

We got to another big section, got out and took a peak again. Spark choose a line, it looked good. I selected another line, which also looked pretty good. Spark ran his got through most of the meat and took a beating in a hole near the bottom, surfing, high bracing, the wave played with him for a bit, showed him whose boss and spat him out. On the second attempted he rolled and eddied, paddle up, for OK, and a breath of relief for me. Having seem some of that James ploughed down it, unscathed. I crawled to the top, seeming pretty sure of my line, but when I got to the top I couldn't remember where the hell to go!

I got in, pulled my deck over the cockpit and thrust my paddle in. Paddling hard I smashed through some big strong waves. I passed on my right the biggest hole I've seen so far. Probably where James swam last. It could of garaged two club mini buses. It was blind luck I missed it. Smashing through another couple of stoppers I screamed with relief. wooooooooooo What a rapid.

On a high we ran the rest, bend after bend and hit the Roman Bridge they spectacular gorge section. High wall and stone bridges above, cliffs so high and close, amazing. The waves through the gorge were bigger than I could remember. 500 meters downstream was the get out and safety. Ubaye done!

200 meters up the track I hitched my thumb out and got a lift. Three French boaters picked me up and hit the accelerator. Everybody was laughing. Shouting and screaming at the raft guides on the road sides and villages we sped through. The front seat passenger, handed me back a joint. I could hardly refuse and took a long hard drag.

"Where are you from?" The driver asked me.
"England, and you?
"We're from here, the best river in the world!"

I laughed and watched the river below flash by as fast as we rode it, I couldn't agree more.

Peace,

Dan

Some Pictures From Into The Outside - Kayak Europe!

2011-06-10T17:43:00.006+01:00

Kayaking Europe - Filming So Far...

2011-06-09T19:18:00.004+01:00

As you may or may not know one of our aims out here is to get a film shot in time for the Kendal Mountain Film Fest in November. It is hard work and here's an update!

Filming is going well despite some setbacks. One GoPro refused to work after the first day of recording on the Simme. Mikes shitty Aldi car charger may have been the source... but who knows. We have also experienced through laziness, full memory cards, empty batteries, when not charging and problems with water droplets on lenses, but these things have to be accepted when filming the river environment. Also condensation has been a problem and one that frustrates as there’s nothing you can do when everything is wet and you can’t touch the camera when it’s in its waterproof case.

So we are down to one HD camera to record, with a few digital cameras, for river filming and back shots. It is not ideal as we have to spend more time mounting and dismounting head cams, front and rear cams. I at all times have a screwdriver on me and plenty of cord to tie these fixtures and fitting to peoples boats and helmets. So far we’ve captured about 10 hours or so from our trips on the Soca, the Simme, the Upper and Lower Noce, the Avisiso. We have recorded shots from the front and rear of the boat using a mounted suction cup and from the tops of our helmets. Also from the bank, whenever we can stop, but it proves frustrating among the group as it takes us longer to paddle the river. A little more time and patients would be perfect but it’s not a perfect world... you’ve just got to go for it. A helicopter would also be nice for some bird’s eye shots.

Even with the down we have captured some amazing images, me dropping a gorge section on the Soca, Mike bursting through waves on the Upper Noce and the Landeck Gorge, James’s swim and rescue, Homewood’s many swims, forest walk ins, huge tombstone jumps, excellent road footage etc. We will have something to cut when the trip comes to an end that’s for sure. To be continued. As I am writing this we are stuck in a huge traffic jam stand still on the A12 heading south to Milan on route to Briancon, France.

To be continued...

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe Day 9 - How many Gorges in One Day? The Imst and Landeck Gorge (The River Inn)

2011-06-09T19:11:00.001+01:00

Yesterday was a rest day; we only did one river – The Sanna. And because of it the troops were revitalised after some chill time a lots of rice. We stopped in Landeck again. Leaving so early to get South would have been an insult to the area. The valley has such a wide variety of rivers; it was only respectful that we stuck around to get more of a test.

Yesterday we paddled the Sanna, a confluence of the Inn. We are camped on its banks on expensive campsite, run in fine dictatorship pedigree by an elderly Austria woman with the strength of ten bears and balls to fit. We were joined by a biker from Nottingham, being a boater himself, he seemed to get a kick out of our filming, entertaining him over dinner, in the small shelter offered by our host.

This morning we got on the road and travel 20km east to Haiming. It is the get out point for the Imst Gorge section on The Inn. 12km or so of big and bouncy rapids. Grade 3 (4) as per the guide book, 250 cumecs, big volume with a further 100 cumecs pounding in from the Oetz confluence. Interesting. The get out look good so we drove up the 171 to Imst and put in below the large highway bridge. A small beach used by rafting companies look like a perfect place to put in. Hitching has been an issue so far this trip. In Switzerland we struggled and thus far in Austria. Even with so many rafters here, Mike could not get a lift after he ran the shuttle. After an hour and a half and only being offered a ride one, going in the opposite direction, he gave up and drove the van back to the top to meet us. So disappointing, and with so many rivers around here and so few boaters you wonder what’s going on. Are the boaters all going for the honey pot spots, South of France, Solovenia etc. Are people exploring anymore. The water here is massive, it’s early June and no a sign of anyone. The only group we came into contact with were a crew of 10 Brits, training from the MOD. How can this abundance of water be up here and untouched? Maybe we’re lucky, maybe we’ve come pre season, who knows? But I can guarantee the Durance Slalom course will be packed and Briancon will be heaving with British canoe club and university clubs.

Mike opted out running the Imst, instead proving shuttle for Me, Spark and James. We decided to go fast, the run in the guide book calling it 2 hours. Let’s blitz it we thought. Putting in and dropping the bridge we encountered the first of the big and bouncy waves – massive, real run. It flattened out after that and the river rushed through the wide gorge, high cliffs on either side, the train rushed by on the right as we floated down. After a few kilometres we encountered the ‘Rohrbbruckenschwall’ wave train and the waves were huge, six, seven feet high, one minute you staring down the next you’re looking at the sky! James got munched in the ‘Memminger Hole’, flying past its right it looked big but it didn’t hold him too long. The river continued much like that, flat followed by huge waves – a real treat, I just felt sorry for Mike having missed it – top bloke!

The Landeck Gorge was different all together, narrow, tighter, harder and more technical, faster too. We put in at Nesselgarten, below the stoneworks, the Inn Shoot, running at grade 5+ (High water) looked a bit too risky. The beginning of this little monster (7km) was straight into warfare, grade 4 and tonking! A quick seal launch off of the stones and we were away. You can’t run the Landeck Gorge early as the water release doesn’t start till lunch time but when it goes it goes. We burst through wave after wave and eddied when we could. The river was a good class 4, some big holes and stopper but all seemed to be friendly. The hard work continued as the gorge got tighter towards the middle and a short left hand kink in the river pushed up some great rooster tail waves. The last 3km into town were bumpy but so much fun and going through Landeck under the bridges was like a parade after returning from war, the locals waving us by. 2 gorges in one day – bring it on!

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe Day 8 - Sanna River, Landeck, Austria.

2011-06-06T20:41:00.003+01:00

Lazy start today, the driving, river running and the long days have finally taken their toll. We made a massive cock up last night travelling up, we got totally lost coming out of Male, circling around a 3000m peek and driving maybe 50k in 5 hours. No one was happy when we finally found camp here in Austria around 1.30am. We did get a bit of luck smuggling Sparks body across the Austria border. It was a tight call that we might not risk again on our way back through Italy and on to Braincon.

We are pitched up beside the Sanna River in the small Austrian town of Landeck. Small in size but there is plenty going on around here. Sorry to say the guide book is a bit out of date. No campsite at Sport Camp Tirol anymore, there are about 3 five story apartment building going up instead! Money never sleeps... Today we strolled into town with muggy heads, Mike was still asleep in his van when we got back by lunch time, a very rare sight, usually he is up slamming cupboard doors and whistling at 6am in the morning.

I am feeling all right, 10 river runs in 8 days has left me a little fatigued but I'm doing all right, but then again I'm the only one drinking koffee and red bull around here. How can you come to Europe and not drink koffee! Sorry I'm spelling coffee with a 'K', it's from a book I've just read, Make Room! Make Room! by Harry Harrison, it's about a murder in a overpopulated new York and... shit, back to the subject. I shall stop spelling it with a 'K' from now on!

After lunch we headed up the Sanna Valley and checked out the river. The level looked great, although no gauge at the Sport Camp Tirol bridge, sorry folks! The guide book says 15 cubic meters per second and it looked it, maybe one or two over. It was flowing fast. We figured we'd do the Sanna because, to tell the truth, we're all blowing out of our arses at the moment. Any long trail to the river, steep climb, or long lug of our boats has us breathing heavily, and it's nothing to do with the drink!

We drove up to Pians, and checked out the Pianser Cataract, a grade 4 rapid, it looked meaty but friendly and the we drove up to the get in, 1km above 'the Roofed Corridor', another grade 4 piece of meat. We put in and ran the rapids and despite our sluggishness the crew did well. We are now down to 4 as Theo and Homewood have now gone back home. The Pianser Cataract we a long passage of stoppers and pourovers, none of which gave us a problem but was fun to ride. To be honest the rapid leading up to the Cataract was pretty awesome, probably grade 3, pushing through a narrow pinch and drop in the river. Mike swam once, another beer bong to get down the hatch. We will head into town tonight and drink some red wine.

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe Day 6 & 7 - Val di Sole - Biblicle - The Upper and Lower Noce, Italy.

2011-06-04T20:24:00.001+01:00

Waking up to the sound of Italians singing out of tune, my head hurts! And strumming beaten up guitars. Get me out of here - the rain patters down on the roof of the tent. Does it ever stop? It had been raining all night. Theo worried about the pitter patter on the thin canvas. "We may have bitten a bit more off than we can chew fellas". It's the last thing I remember him saying before I felt asleep.

The rain was still beating down in the morning as we cleared up after the night before. Snapps and beer cans fill the tent porch. I got up and treated myself to a shower, I rare spectacle these days. Too cheap or lazy to buy tokens from the camp guy in Slovenia.

We packed the kit and got on the road. Travelling 10km east along the Val di Sole and towards cusiano, the put in for the Upper Noce, 10km of grade 4 bombs. We put in and the speed was fast, grade 3, bouncy, everybody looking comfortable, easy. The guidebook said 20 cubic meters of water per second, but this thing was going at probably 40! The pines on the banks flying buy like looking out of a speeding car window. All the rain last night had almost doubled the monster.

The grade 3, nice and bouncy river, all of a sudden turned into a fierce and furious beast. Only people with tiger blood could handle this thing. We sped along the rapid, the waves and pour overs, bigger, badder, more brutally with every 100 meters we burst through. Like a hitting a brick wall, our bodies where taking a pounding. I feared for Homewood, another swim and he might lose his remaining shoe, and if he swam would his loyal boat come back to him yet again, longing for more.

After a few bends we entered Mezzana, the slalom course, and without an eddie to rest in we were committed to the brut. Ploughing through wave after wave, each one bigger than the last. Wave exploding all around, white water coming down on us like bombs, we cracked on and entered the belly of the beast. Before the bridge the waves got bigger, the stoppers held, the holes bottomless and chaos erupted. Theo, James and I eddied and waited for the rest of the crew. No sign. A minute passed, but it felt like 30. And then, Homewood's shoe sailed by.

"Swimmer Swimmer Swimmer!" James screams at the top of his lungs.

A moment of panic, I can't see Spark and no sign of Homewood's body. We sit in the eddie and wait. Then a second later I could see Spark with his thumb up, smiling on the bridge at Mazzana. Phew! Spark gets in his boat and leaves Homewood on the bank, now he must make the wave. We wait with nerves. And then I see his yellow boat plough through the stoppers and break in. Thank god. But we're not halfway yet.

Theo leads the way, we follow but not too close. The waves get bigger, the banks narrow, boulders are in the center of the river. To the left and to the right, in fact everywhere we paddle we hit pour overs and stoppers, munching holes and fallen trees. It's a war zone. "If I make week two, I'll feel like I've fought in the Somme." I remember mikes words on day 2 of the Soca. How must he be feeling now?

I look around and there he is above the water holding on to his boat with dear life, riding the boulders by the thickness of his wetsuit and being pounded in the pour overs. We scream "let go of your boat man, and swim to the bank!" he does an reluctantly releases his boat to charity. I see him pull himself to the bank like a piss head about to puke and the chase is on!

I paddle hard and grab the boat but the torrent takes me and I have to let go, Spark has a pop with no success and then Theo gets in but the waves are too big, too much risk. We let the boat go and paddle on. Finally we push it into the bank and Mike jumps into the eddie to get it. He ran as fast as he could in rubber and saved his boat from the banker. After that we paddled on to Dimaro, without incident and rested our sorry souls!

The Lower Noce didn't sound half as bad as the upper in the guidebook, but did it rain as hard at it did while the scribe was writing the thing. I doubt it. It was a tonking 50 cubic meters per second. Homewood and Mike sat this one out broken and bruised from the Lower, I didn't blame them. It was up to Theo, James, Spark and I to keep it respectable.

We put in below the weir in Male and headed down the first kilometer or so without a problem then all hell broke lose. The waves were bigger and harder then the upper and the water was descending down the narrow valley river bed with an unstoppable speed. It only took us what seemed like a heart beat before we were below the giant road bridge that towers above the river.

James tipped and tried to roll but too exhausted couldn't execute even after the second attempt. Luckily it was a shallow bed of shale and he could stand. The boat was pinned on an island and we performed a quick rescue. But it was enough for Jimbo and he refused to go any further. Our crew of 6 this morning was now down to 3!

A huge rapid awaited full of 6ft wave trains, river wide pour overs and more stoppers the kind of which make your balls shrivel up and hide for the next drought. Theo wanted none of it - we were now down to two. Spark took the lead, I watched him drop, bashing through the 300 meter section and holding his paddle in the air in celebration at the end. I beat my chest with my blade and shot it, bursting through wave after wave, and dodging hole after hole and out the other end. Theo, Spark and I continued as a team to the bottom. I have never hurt so much in my life but we were alive!

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe Day 5 - Up and Over the Dolomites with an Epic on Avisio.

2011-06-03T20:16:00.003+01:00

Today we skipped another day on the Soca and left Bovec, saying a 'so long for now' to Slovenia. What a place. I will be back for sure. We got on the road at 10 after packing up camp and made our way west up and over the Julian Alps and through the high peaks and massive walls of the Dolomites.

I wanted to plough along the A4 from Udine, but thankfully Theo took charge and demanded that we take the mountain roads to Male, home of the Noce River and the madly steep River Rabbies.

After several hours of solid driving through small Italian villages, steep and windy mountain passes and through Alpine forests we stopped off two hours east of Male and inspected a section of the Avisio River (think that is what it is called). After a quick peak and a bit of twisting arms we put in above a wooden roof topped bridge with a double set of grade 4 rapids below.

The first section was quite good, boulders and little pools to eddie into. The crew moved comfortable down the river towards the wooden bridge. The rapid looked ok, two routes to go on, one left of the center boulder and one to the right. Below was a swirly pool with another option to go on either side of another impending boulder. Everyone was set after a long inspection and Theo led the way, running left of the center boulder.

It didn't look easy, after the first drop he hit a line left of a little flake rock which sent him speeding into a boulder below, but regaining his composure he sorted his line on the lower pool and eddied river left. Job done! No sweat - yeah right!

All of a sudden Homewood decides to take charge and marches along the back gets into his boat and ferry glides across the river to run the rapid. Big balls - fair played I thought! The man is going for it, hell for leather, what the hell, here goes - I see it on his face, no messing! He lines up, so good so far, he put a few good strokes in, looks confident and over he goes, same line as Theo, hitting the left of the little flaky brute of a rock below. But here's where it goes wrong.

He doesn't recover. Instead he flips over, avoids a pin and bumps and smacks his way down the next few pools, struggling to roll. Ouch! Third swim. And what's more horrible - the though of a third beer bong! James licks his lips, Theo chuckles and Mike come up with a slamming throw line rescue that brings the boy back from the dead. Result. But wait... he's got his paddle, but where's his boat? Oh yeah - down the river again. Quickly disappearing in the low evening sun, speeding its way down a few more class 4 bumps. Theo screams "Spark and I will chase, you lead the others down".

"Yes sir", I take my orders with relish! "Homewood to the Van, give me the damn keys!! Mike, James, Lets go!" I drop into the next eddie, waves big and bad, Mike flys by me and gets a little spanking on a big boulder. Eddie hoping out the window, lets go! We all rush as hard as we can, bashing through waves and chasing Homewwods boat, the whole crew! 2km later there she is sunbathing on a island upside down. Gottcha! Beer bong! What a river. Italia we salute you - onwards to Male and the Vale di Sole's River Noce!

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe Day 3 - Swim, Homewood, Swim! Soca River is Great!

2011-06-01T20:08:00.001+01:00

Day 3 started with a heavy head. Met the rest of the crew in Bovec in a bar at 9 and didn't stop drinking until the early hours. I remember, the Pink Panter Lounge, apricot snapps and a 3km race on foot back to the camp without a head torch. Then James topless poking his chest out and getting pretty aggressive with everyone, Metz is a great barman!

The morning was fragile, getting coffee and waking the crew was difficult. I dragged James out of his sleeping bag, for some reason he was in the car all night. Theo was asleep in the car park on a bed of gravel and Mike was nowhere to be seen. He stayed at the bar, trying his luck with two local ladies.

When finally everyone was back we geared up and headed for a section of the Soca which would lead us back to Kamp Toni. The scenery was simply stunning, high limestone cliffs and either side of the river, crystal clear water and forest all around. The mountains of the Julian Alps dominating the skyline. Truly beautiful. The paddle was a nice little warm up, 6km or so, down narrow gorges, widening every now and then with the volume of the water increasing in sections.

Everybody got on well and seems to be riding the water with comfort. A few rolls to cure the hangover, the water is glacial, ice cold, umm yeah! After getting back to the camp we ran the shuttle and paddled a tributary of the Soca, the Kontrica, this time there was a little more of that grade 3 action, wave trains, boulders to dodge and a first swim of the trip, Chris Homewood losing his virginity on this one! A Fun little river that also led us back to camp. Then it was a trip to the market to buy meat, chops, beer and snapps! One bear bong for the crew, its punishment for a swim but we didn't want to bully Homewood, so as an icebreaker we all swigged one! Ouch! More tomorrow!

Peace,

Dan

Kayaking Europe DAY 2 - Morning Run and a Mamouth Drive Across Northern Italy.

2011-05-31T19:59:00.006+01:00

It rained a lot last night. I woke up at midnight with no water in the tent so I went outside and sucked what I could off of the roof. Officially woke up at seven and stumbled out of the tent and did my business before I woke up Mike, who was sleeping in his van. The sky was grey and the was just a sprinkling of rain while we poached some eggs and brewed up some koffee. We couldn't resist running the first few kilometers of the Simme River again, just to see what it was like after a lot of rain. Once we had breakfast we packed the van and headed down the hill to the put in at Oberwil. It was remarkably bigger.

We crossed a small road bridge and asked a farmer, who was rounding his cows, if we could launch our boats off of his land. He seemed really nice and said it was ok. After stumbling down a steep slope of manure we put in and run the first rapid which was a lot more bouncy. The middle upper section of the Simme is full of turns and steeply wooded banks. It had a great bunch of waves, which after the rain, made things a little more interesting. Mike chalked up his first roll of the trip and I had another 2k run back to the van!

Now to meet the lads in Bovec, just a little 700 mile trip to add to the 900 miles we have already covered! We will travel south to Milan and then past Venice, up to Udine and East to Bovec, home of the Julian Alps and the Soca River.

Peace,

Dan

He's So In Love With Kayaking, But Don't Tell Anyone! Bye For Now!

2011-05-29T12:31:00.005+01:00

I love kayaking, goodbye for now!

Peace,

Dan

Image lifted from http://www.jeffreybrowncomics.com/

Red Bull and Koffee! Countdown to Kayaking in The Alps - 18 Hours To Go! First Stop - Soca River, Slovenia

2011-05-28T15:39:00.008+01:00

The planning has been done, the expensive kit has been purchased, stolen, borrowed and broken already, whatever! We've been waiting so long, but now IT'S HERE!! 18 Hours until we depart for the greatest kayaking expedition of our young lives, well, some not so young, thus far far.

Epic!

The training has been done, some have improved, some have gotten much worse (Bizarrely), but that doesn't matter, what matters is not being totally ready (yeah slight confusion as I wrote that), but being 'up for it', 'pumped', 'stoked', 'motivated', these are some of the things I will be telling the crew as we launch into the crystal clear waters of our first river!

Mike is back from the Congo, after safely getting through another 7 weeks of geology in the jungle! He has once again proved his resilience by avoiding the grasp of the local cannibal tribe. Not being chopped into little bits and set to soak in the Congo river immersed in a small Hessian sack this time! No! Come tomorrow, Spark, Mike and I will begin our long journey south in the van 1200 miles into northern Italy. And we will keep the peddle to the metal, with a little help from our friends Red Bull and Koffee, until we reach Milan on Tuesday morning. Here we will meet up with Theo, James and Homewood and begin our journey towards Slovenia and what has to be one of the most beautiful rivers in Europe, if not the world, the mighty Soca River.

It is a valley full of mind boggling colours, waterfalls, pools, ravines and canyons. The impossibly blue-green Soca River flows over white gravel and through the fairy-tale Soca Valley deeply cut into the white limestone of the magnificent Julian Alps. We will be camping in Bovec on Tuesday night and picking up our paddling permits in the local tourist booth on Wednesday ready to test ourselves over the next 3 days on such classic runs as the Third Canyon, the Graveyard, Siphon Canyon and the class 4 Fourth Canyon. Can't wait!

I will write and put pictures up whenever I get a chance so keep posted on intothouside.blospot.com and enjoy your summers!

Peace,

Dan

L'Argentiere Webcam, Durance River

2011-05-27T18:43:00.001+01:00

http://www.hautes-alpes.net/kayak-rafting/webcam-argentiere.html

Into The Outside's World Class Kick Ass Paddling Crew, IKSENTRIX, Go To Town at Cardiff CIWW

2011-05-26T18:57:00.010+01:00

Peace,

Dan

Grimsvotn Volcano Could Delay Kayaking Plans as Ash Cloud Comes Our Way!

2011-05-23T11:27:00.000+01:00

Looking at the news and reading the paper today makes me very nervous about our kayaking trip getting away on time! The Grimsvotn Volcano in South East Iceland has erupted spewing ash 30,000 ft into the air. Potential delays at UK airports have got to be on the cards, which is going to be a disaster if we can't get away on time! Fingers and every other limb crossed as the wind blows in!

Peace,

Dan

GoPro Helmet Hero! Alps Kayaking Boot Camp Week# 4

2011-05-22T13:29:00.005+01:00

Yes, here it is, finally! The GoPro head cameras. Truly amazing images. Yesterday we hit Cardiff to get a bit more training done for the Alps. Theo, Homewood, James, Spark and I all went. We had the first opportunity to test the cameras since getting back from the USA. We have 2 GoPro Helmet Heros that capture video and images in HD. Spark and I are editing a short film, hopefully just a few minutes long so you can see what it looks like, hopefully with the stunning scenery in the Alps we should get some great shots!

Stay tunned, we'll have the film up soon, next day or two, just need to find a good tune!

Peace,

Dan

Two Rules In Life

2011-05-19T22:06:00.002+01:00

"I thought that there were two rules in life - never count the cost, and never do anything unless you can do it wholeheartedly. Now is the time to live."

Everett Ruess, June 1934.

CIWW, Kayaking Alps Boot Camp Week #3

2011-05-01T12:03:00.003+01:00

Training Week #3, Cardiff International White Water Centre. Busy down here today, rafts everywhere - perhaps it's time to check out the Olympic site at Lee Valley soon. Training is going well, confidence is growing in preparation for the alps, no Major injuries this week, although one guy did get a battering and lost a few teeth but he wasn't part of our crew. 8 cumecs today which made it quite easy but the features were a little different which made things interesting. One months to go before the Alps - excited!!

Peace,

Dan

Aim For The Hot Thermals - Learning The Art Of The Bird/Avoiding The Way Of The Dodo.

2011-04-21T15:56:00.009+01:00

Ok, so here I am helping out my pal Ed sorting out his wings. After we got him up it was time for my go, and I crapped my pants. Being scared of heights is one thing, but running off a mountain with a 600 metre drop below you!? Yeah, exactly. Stupid, plain and simple... But what a thrill, better than skydiving. And another thing ticked of the list of 'Thing's To Do Before The Game's Up'.

Peace,

Dan

Scrambles In The Lake District Dan's Way - Old Dungeon Ghyll Upper Ravine/Harrison Stickle & Jake's Rake

2011-04-20T16:08:00.003+01:00

What a 'Monster' of a day! Great weather again here in the Lakes and today it was over to Langdale, one of the most impressive valleys in the Lake District. I dragged my buddy, Double D, out of his bed for an early morning scramble, firstly up 'The Upper Ravine' of Old Dungeon Ghyll. Don't you just love the word 'Ravine', it's so much better than beck or gorge and it reminds me of Clayton Ravine from Back To The Future Part III. Anyway, where was I?

Oh Yeah, today we went out towards Langdale and we couldn't of wished for a better day on the hill. Starting out at Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel we marched up the first part of Stickle (Mill) Gill then headed west to a slightly more interesting spot with absolutely no people - Old Dungeon Ghyll. What a Ravine. Boulders the size of houses, waterfalls galore, plunge pools, tight squeezes through greasy rock caves, scrambles, climbs, slips, spills, cuts and bruises.

We headed slowly but surely into the Upper section and climbed most of the waterfalls and steep walls, but there was one big waterfall, perhaps, 40 feet that got the better of us. We topped out and marched to the summit of Harrison Stickle via South Face, which was also a great little scramble.

After stopping for coffee and apples we descended to Stcikle Tarn and began our ascent of the mighty Pavey Ark. I have never done Jake's Rake before, but what a thrill, steep drops, narrow traversing, and what a top out to the summit of that great big dinosaur of an Ark. I love this spot as it was one of my first few climbs up here. Jake's Rake has to be done again before I leave!

Amazing day and a quick interview with BBC Breakfast at the bottom! They collared me about Mobile GPS, so I gave them my two cents on map and compass! Keep an eye out for the news Monday morning, my ugly mug might be on!

Peace,

Dan

HAIRY AND HOT - Ghyll Scrambling The Hard Way!

2011-04-19T17:02:00.000+01:00

The weather is heating up and the days are running out, it's a sorry state of affairs. But everyday I have spare I'm getting out and about as much as I can. Today, Danny and I, or Manuel as I call him, headed off to Coniston for a bit of scrambling. And I can safely say I put him through his paces. Every rock, waterfall, plunge pool and steep slippery hill was tackled in the most dangerous way possible!

At the famous Pudding Stone above the quarry there is a 3 star scramble that is just spectacular, I think it is called Low Water Beck, but I maybe wrong, but who cares what it is called, it's just the most beautifully dramatic looking piece of rock and falling water I've seen up here - and you can climb it!!

You can tackle it in 3 stages, but the middle needs gear, rope, slings, nuts etc (don't attempt it solo, you will lose the fight and probably smash your head like a Mellon!). We started on the lower cliff and got a soaking, clinging to the rock for dear life as our feet struggled to grip the slippery green surfaces. We climbed around the middle section and routed our way up the final third, with a few dramas and cuts, but life in tact!

The only thing left to do was a summit jump and pull my groin - ouch....

Peace,

Dan

Washing Machine Blues! Kayaking Alps Boot Camp Week #2

2011-04-11T12:53:00.005+01:00

Week two of training and people are shaping up. I think that the work we are putting in in preparation for the Alps is going to pay off. We leave for the Alps at the end of May for 8 weeks of boating some of Europe's best rivers. The water hasn't been too plentiful in the UK but what we've had we've certainly made use of. Last weekend we had 3 days on the Trywern and this weekend we've used every bit of daylight paddling the Leven, the Lune and the Kent in the Lakes.

We experience a bit of trauma this week. I got a bit smashed up slipping on the bank of gunpowder gorge filming. Another phone in the bin! Spark got a serious beating in the double drop falls below Back Barrow weir - horrible to watch, but it's amazing how long you can hold your breath while being recirculated in a hole - Washing machine blues!

Everyone is gaining confidence and fitness so I hope the first week in Slovenia won't be too much of a shock. European rivers are bigger, faster and more powerful. We need to be ready - No losing boats or paddles in the first week!

Are trip will take us firstly to Slovenia for a 3 days expedition on the Soca River. Then on to Northern Italy, Switzerland, Southern France and Austria. We are all looking forward to it and counting down the days!

Peace,

Dan

The Last of My Lakes Lazy Days

2011-04-10T12:44:00.002+01:00

Things are drawing to an end for me up in the Lake District. One month to go until I'm off to the Alps and I'm feeling pretty sad about leaving this place. I have been up here a year now and I have really enjoyed my time here. I experience all of the seasons, from the soaking wet Autumn, ice cold snow winter, frosty spring and the beautiful summer. I am have met some interesting people along the way who have made me both laugh and cry in pain. I have kayaked, climbed, hiked and camped in some of the most spectacular places and I have truly fallen in love with the wildness of the place. I would love to come back some day.

I will not tell you where my favourite place are as you can probably guess for yourself from reading my posts but I never felt more at home than I have here. The simple beauty in the mountains, rivers and forests are all I need. Enjoy the last of your days and stay out way after the sun goes down...

Peace,

Dan

Chillin' In The Early Summer Sun

2011-04-03T11:04:00.004+01:00

It's great to have days like this. The warmth of the sun, a little fresh breeze and beautiful simple scenery. What else is there in life. Ask yourself. Keep life simple, enjoy the moment, and cheerish the time.

Today Mike and I spent the afternoon sun climbing and bouldering on the Hoad up in Ulverston. We messed around on the Hoad Hill slab, climbing a few routes and then tramped around the hill bouldering on the little outcrops that are spred around. It was great to just chill out and do some climbing.

Peace,

Dan

Some Springtime Boatin', Short Film, Dir. By Daniel J. Fylan-Smith & Marcus 'Sparky' Fylan-Smith

2011-03-30T16:20:00.006+01:00

Fell & Rock

2011-03-28T20:53:00.003+01:00

Today feels great. The first proper day of summer. Climbing and running and daylight and warmth well on into the evening sky. 7.45pm and it was still humid and bright up on the fell. I went for a climb and a run this evening. My body is still bruised and battered after a long couple of days boating in Wales but I couldn't possibly let the light go to waste.

As soon as I got home it was on with the shorts and trainers, sling, chalk bag, carabina, climbing shoes and away. I bolted it as fast as I could to Hoad Hill and perched down at the foot of Hoad Slab and slipped on my climbing shoes. I soloed to the top (bit of a dicey climb without a rope), thankfully I made it in one go!

The view was stunning, my favourite place to think! After that it was back on with the running trainers and over the fells for a few miles. What an evening!

Peace,

Dan

Resolute Little Brute - My Friend; The Honey Badger

2011-03-28T18:47:00.001+01:00

Remind you of anyone!?

Peace,

Dan

Getting Munched! Kayaking Alps Boot Camp Week #1

2011-03-27T20:31:00.001+01:00

Getting ready for the Alp means prepping for a pounding. The more beat downs you can get under your belt the better. Training on removing fear without losing good decision making. [Message to self] ~ Always engage brain!

My buddy Mike has returned from the Congo so it seemed a good opportunity to spend 3 days boating and getting him ready for the rivers of Europe. Equipped with a new boat, van and helmet he seemed eager to get on the river. The warm weather and lack of rain meant the only place to boat was the Trywern in Bala, Wales, but that wasn't a problem. It's a great river to have a play.

Spark and James hooked up with us on the Saturday and Sunday and we got an extra day under our belt on Friday. The dam was releasing 9 cumces all weekend so the level was really good. Everybody was awesome, Mike had a few swims but mastered rolling on white water. It gives me confidence for Europe. Spark is performing brilliantly and James gets better and better - not even a roll this weekend! Theo and Chris better join us on one of these trips fast (members travelling to Europe).

I got a munching in a wave and almost knocked my eye out with my paddle blade. But I got glued back together and got back on the water. Fire, beer, whiskey, water, sun! What a weekend of boating!

Peace,

Dan

Breakfast of Champions

2011-03-22T20:49:00.003Z

Mornings have been great this week. Getting up early with Pan and running to the top of Hoad hill. Great stress releaver before work and the best place for a morning cup of tea!

Peace,

Dan

Film Trailer: FRONTIER, a River Roots Production

2011-03-20T16:29:00.009Z

Frontier follows up where Dream Result left off, following a group of kayakers on another adventure around the globe. Featuring footage from Mexico, China, Iceland, Norway, Northwest U.S.A., B.C., Quebec.

What a film. And isn't this what life is about!! Roll on May - 8 weeks kayaking Europe baby!

Check out Dream Result. And if you like that there's Steve Fisher's Ultimate Ride. There you go, nice bit of Kayaking Porn for you to wet your lips on!!

More info on River-Roots.

Peace!

Dan

5 Days of Adventure - Keswick Mountain Festival 18-22 May 2011

2011-03-20T15:14:00.002Z

The Keswick Mountain Festival 2011 is taking place on 18th-22nd May. It’s a festival of outdoor adventure, enjoy five days of activities, speakers, sporting events and challenges. From walking to ghyll scrambling, mountain biking to kayaking, trail running to climbing, this is your chance to indulge yourself in the outdoors.

Adventure Base Open Friday, Saturday & Sunday

The adventure hub of the festival based at Crow Park on the shores of Derwentwater. Come on down for great brands, cool gear, advice from experts, family treasure hunt, skills workshops, have-a-go activities, competitions, challenges, the fell theatre, tasty local food and loads more that will help you create your very own adventure.

Inspirational Speakers

The speaker line up this year has something for everyone with authority on bushcraft & survival Ray Mears, Britain’s most loved climber Sir Chris Bonington and the record breaking cyclist Mark Beaumont. Not to mention award winning film maker Alastair Lee, boundary pushing climbers Neil Gresham & Tim Emmett and local explorer Geoff Somers. Check the website for full details.

Challenge Yourself

If you crave a challenge then why not enter one of the festivals sporting competitions including the new Borrowdale Trail Run, planerFear Lakes Epic 2 day mountain bike challenge, Derwent Island open water swim, Latrigg Fell Race or the Keswick Sportive. Both the long and short Triathlons are already fully sold out so book your place soon.

Activities

With over 30 different hikes over the festival, plenty of guided mountain bike trails, climbing adventures, kayaking & canoe trips, family adventures, navigation & photography courses there is tons to get you out and enjoying the area’s stunning landscape.

Visit www.keswickmountainfestival.co.uk to check out everything that is going on!

See you there!

Peace,

Dan

More Walks On The Beach...

2011-03-19T17:36:00.003Z

Trying to get ol' Pan fit again after his op. Lots of walks. He likes the beach and so do I... He especially likes the part where he get an orange calipso from the Dutch Ice Cream lady!! What a awesome evening. We couldn't even see the ocean the tide was out so far!

Peace,

Dan

Tramping 'round The Hills

2011-03-18T17:11:00.000Z

A day off! I wanted to lay in so bad but purposely set my alarm clock for 8.45am. The beeper went off and I pulled my aching body out of bed. I hit the snooze button and opened my curtains. The sky was beautifully clear. I got back under the covers for another 10 minutes of sleep. As soon as I shut my eyes Pan jumped on top of me. 7 Stones of hairy, jaw smacking ball licking chaos. The snooze alarm went off and I got out of bed. 78 hours in 7 days, that's not work, that's a jail sentence! I was so glad to have a day off.

I put the kettle on, filled my flask, made a bacon sandwich and stuffed away some fruit and chocolate into my rucksack. By 10am I was at the Walna Scar road watching Pan swim circles in a gigantic sandy coloured puddle. You couldn't buy it! The sky over Coniston was bright blue and the temperature was heating up. I could see out over Torver common, and Coniston Water, I could see for miles and miles. The sea towards Ulverston and Millom as clear as day.

Pan and I headed up the Walna Scar track and then climbed up towards Goats Head Tarn. It was a perfect day for a swim, well, for Pan anyway! The wind was a bit too much for me to get my kit off so I hunkered down behind some rocks and drunk coffee in the sun. It was so hot, I got a bit sunburned. When you look at the Tarn with the mighty Dow Crag on your right it looks like a huge pool on the edge of the world. Absolutely stunning. I sat there for what must have been an hour, just taking in the sights - well I had nowhere else to be!

After our spot of lunch we walked up to Goats Hawse and then up to the 796m Cairn marker. It is a simply inspiring place. The flat plateau between the Old Man and Leavers Hawse is such a delight. The stunning 360 degree views, Scarfel, Coniston Water, Grizedale Forest, Langdale, the ocean, the turquoise splendor of Low Water below to our right. It doesn't get better than up here! I never get board of the place.

We marched over to Swirl How and Great Carrs, down Wet Side Edge to Three Shire Stones. We scrambled over what ever boulders got in our way and made the trek to the summit of Pike of Blisco as exciting as we could. What a view! Pan was getting a bit tired so we headed back down and over Wrynose Pass and returned to Swirl How.

A little refreshment, ginger nuts for Pan and bananas for me! Then it was back down Swirl Hawse Beck where we discovered a few nice pools for some summer swimming. We stopped at Leavers water so Pan could have a cool down swim and the made our way down Leavers Waterfalls.

Such a great day tramping around with a quick stop in the Drunken Duck Inn for a pint! Next weeken the clocks go back, roll on summer!

Peace,

Dan