Unplugged

Unplugged #16: Revealing the elemental, the future is trust, a walk without a camera, and failures of imagination

‘Elbow grease is out. Handprints are in.’

Jun 12 •

Unplugged #15: A year on Substack, rehabilitating our relationship with adventure, and dances with editors

I've been thinking about rehabilitating our relationship with adventure lately, and I'm glad to see others writing about it.

May 27 •

Unplugged #14: Craft and integrity, a fullness of presence, the call of the goldfinch, and maker’s knowledge

I got into an online debate with a pro-AI evangelist, and I don’t think I completely disgraced myself…

May 6 •

Unplugged #13: Seminal moments outside, the invisible cost of staying dry, and romanticising Romanticism

A few analogue adventure treasures from this week, plus a tweaked Unplugged format

Apr 22 •

Unplugged #12: The Meta book heist, tall fences and old trees, growing is painful, and the pursuit of perfection

In which I try to join the dots between Meta's colossal data theft from creatives, the future of outdoor storytelling, and thinking with simple tools...

Apr 8 •

Unplugged #11: Uncertainty and adventure, a wildfire outside, the enshittification of komoot, and the rise of New Romanticism

What do Cicerone guidebooks, an adventure app acquisition, the Luddite uprising of 1811, the Outside crisis, and the music of Ludwig van Beethoven have…

Mar 26 •

Unplugged #10: Adventure plus purpose, in search of winter, a new mountain magazine, and the Great Chiasmus

One of the big questions I've been mulling over for the last six years or so is this: can adventure have a higher purpose beyond our own enjoyment?

Mar 17 •

Unplugged #9: Back from the Alps, rewilding's human cost, and a death knell for critical thinking

I'm back from the Alps with more than 2,000 digital photos to cull, process and file. This may take some time...

Mar 5 •

Unplugged #8: Off to the Alps, outdoor recreation vs. conservation, environmental pragmatism, and the one change that worked

I'm packing for a photo shoot in the Alps. Here's the gear I'm bringing.

Feb 20 •

Unplugged #7: The outdoors for 'normal people', waking up from a bad run, the Field Notes thing, and microspikes vs. crampons

People like me sometimes have a skewed view of what is commonly called 'the outdoors'.

Feb 12 •

Unplugged #6: Maybe we should all care a bit more

'Life cannot be delegated.'

Feb 5 •

Unplugged #5: Why I'm optimistic about 2025

It's not all doom and gloom! In fact, the vibe I've been getting in January is one of hope and renewal... at least in my little corner of the world.

Jan 27 •

#nojs-banner { position: fixed; bottom: 0; left: 0; padding: 16px 16px 16px 32px; width: 100%; box-sizing: border-box; background: red; color: white; font-family: -apple-system, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 13px; line-height: 13px; } #nojs-banner a { color: inherit; text-decoration: underline; } This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Please turn on JavaScript or unblock scripts