The UK's most popular outdoor travel blog
We rank Bill Bryson’s best books to help new readers discover America’s funniest travel writer
There’s a part in Notes from a Small Island where Bill Bryson describes a painful train journey to Milton Keynes in the UK. He is sat facing a woman and her 10-year-old son, who keeps picking his nose, kicking Bryson’s shins and staring at him with his “piggy eyes”.
From dust storm to drought, we share the climate photographs that could not be ignored
There are certain photographs that have changed the course of history. Usually, they are political: Tank Man in Tiananmen Square, Iraqi soldier on the Highway of Death, Napalm Girl in Vietnam. These photos are chilling but powerful.
The most beautiful mountains in the world have captivated climbers for centuries. Here, we examine their lethal appeal
“You are not in the mountains. The mountains are in you,” said John Muir, the renowned naturalist, author and environmental philosopher.
If our resident seven-summit hopeful is anything to go by, Muir makes a valid point. Those who spend time in the mountains seem to be driven by a deeper force.
As the world wakes up to the realities of industrial farming, one animal cruelty index calls out the worst offenders
The journalist and podcaster Ezra Klein once described going vegan as like waking up from the Matrix. Once you are attuned to animal cruelty, you see it everywhere and cannot fathom how humans not just tolerate but endorse a system that subjugates so many.
After visiting 100 countries and seven continents, we share the best beaches we’ve seen on our travels
When I first went on holiday, I was 18 years old and on the lookout for the perfect beach. You know the sort: powdery white sand and clear turquoise water set against a blazing blue sky. In those early years of travel, I saw beautiful beaches in Barbados, Tunisia, Thailand, Mexico and Dubai, but none were quite the same as the brochures and the billboards.
From America’s classic Route 66 to Namibia’s mysterious Skeleton Coast, we explore the best road trips in the world
When it comes to road trips, we’ve had our fair share of mishaps. We’ve battled a whiteout in Iceland, got stuck in a ditch in Turkey, broken down in Chile and changed a tyre in lion territory in Namibia.
The Sydney Bridge Climb is one of Australia’s most iconic activities – but is it worth the cost and effort? We braved some boiler suits to go and find out
The Sydney Bridge Climb, if nothing else, is a lesson in sheer forcefulness. When its creator, Paul Cave, first put forward proposals for the climb, regulators replied with a list of 60-something reasons why it simply wasn’t possible.
We explore seven of the best day hikes in the Blue Mountains, or the “Blueys” as they’re affectionately known to “Sydneysiders”
We were ready to head to the hills. We’d had a great time exploring Sydney and climbing the Harbour Bridge, but were keen to get back into the outdoors. And so we ventured from our comfy dwellings in Sydney for a day trip to the Blue Mountains.
Can’t decide between the Arctic or Antarctic for your polar adventure? Our guide will help you choose between 66° north or south
The North and South Poles were only “conquered” in relatively recent history. The South Pole was first attained in 1911 by the Norwegian Roald Amundsen after his epic race with the ill-fated Robert Falcon Scott.
Seven years after we quit our jobs to travel the world, we revisit some of the riskiest things we’ve done on the road
Peter and I have a long-running joke that I have fallen off my bike in the most beautiful places in the world – among them Bora Bora in French Polynesia and Isabela in the Galápagos. I only learnt to ride at the age of 28 and my lack of experience has led to numerous falls.
A 1,500km detour and two nights’ camping with spiders, snakes and dingoes – would the Uluru Rock Tour prove worth the pain?
Uluru, that iconic behemoth, that clay-red monolith, that sun-scorched sentry… that epic pain in the backside.
Yes, it’s big and, yes, it’s special, but bloody hell it’s far away. Almost right in the middle of Australia, Uluru is a major endeavour. Nearly every other sight in the country is scattered along the coast, which means planning a trip to Uluru involves a hefty detour from the rest of your route.
We profile the world’s megadiverse countries, from obvious contenders like Ecuador and Brazil to one or two surprise entries
It should be comforting to know that a mere 17 countries hold more than 70% of the world’s species. It should be easy to rally this small group of ‘megadiverse countries’ to protect the planet’s extraordinary biodiversity. Alas, some of these countries are also the world’s biggest consumers and polluters.
From Canada’s wild backcountry to the jungles of Brunei, we share some fantastic hikes through the cleanest air in the world
A few months after we moved to the country, some friends from London came up to visit. Stepping from the car, one commented that ‘it feels like mountain air up here’. I laughed and said, ‘it’s not that cold.’ He shook his head and said, ‘I don’t mean the temperature. I mean the quality.’
International Dark Sky Reserves are protected areas that offer exceptionally starry nights. We review the 16 places that hold this hallowed status
They sound like something out of Star Trek, these ‘Dark Sky Reserves’ – like they may have been conjured one evening in a lively LA writers room. Unlike the ‘Delta Quadrant’ or ‘Delphic Expanse’, however, International Dark Sky Reserves actually exist.
The largest rainforests in the world are some of the most vital ecosystems on our planet. We look at where they’re located and why they need protecting
Home to over half the world’s plant and animal species, the largest rainforests in the world absorb vast amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping maintain the balance of the air we breathe while simultaneously playing a critical role in curbing global warming.
A handpicked selection of some of the most dramatic, absorbing long reads on outdoor survival from the last five years.
You may have guessed that we at Atlas & Boots are just a little bit obsessed with tales of endurance. From the best books about survival to epic journeys of discovery, we have written about some of the most dramatic pursuits in the history of exploration.
In recent years, we have been intrigued by a number of brilliant long reads on outdoor survival (and surrender).
From a giant dingo fence to the planet’s largest living structure, we take a look at the most interesting facts about Australia
In a country the size of a continent there are innumerable fascinating facts to be unearthed. Australia’s mix of ancient cultures, wild terrain and cosmopolitan cities means the country has so much to offer the millions of visitors it receives every year.
After a month in Australia, skydiving in Cairns seemed an apt way to finish an epic trip
I slumped into the pillow with the desultory air of someone faced with 200 channels and not a decent TV show between them. I sighed, then yawned, then slouched.
After seven days of diving in the Great Barrier Reef and all the wonder and adrenaline that comes with it, spending two days cooped up in a Cairns hotels seemed like a damp squib of a way to end our month-long trip across Australia.
We share the most interesting facts about the Great Barrier Reef gathered on our week-long visit
We’ve all seen pictures of the Great Barrier Reef: a pearl-string of reefs and lagoons boasting every imaginable shade of blue. This natural wonder in Australia teems with life.
Marine animals here vary from microscopic plankton to whales weighing 100 tonnes. It is a riot of colour, a carnival of life. Clownfish of bursting orange curl next to fish of luminous blue. It is a true spectacle – but what exactly is the Great Barrier Reef? Is it really bigger than Italy and can it really be seen from space?
We visit Cooktown in the far north of Queensland where Captain James Cook beached his crippled ship and helped found a giant country
If you’ve seen a map of Australia, you’ve seen the huge, remote Cape York Peninsula, an area bigger than the UK, but with a population of just 18,000. Home to Australia’s northernmost point, Cape York Peninsula points upwards towards the Torres Strait and New Guinea in the northeastern corner of the continent-sized island of Australia.
