Portland Exploration Society

CREATIVE EXPLORERS

Story by
Cheeraz Gorman // @aturah

Photos by
Evan Schell // @theslipperysaltwaterchronicals
Adam Vicarel // @adamvicarel
Brooke Weeber // @brooke_weeber

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

An invitation to return, 

to experience something different.

I flew into Portland, Oregon on a night where the full moon was in Scorpio. As I was out walking, stalking the sky to get a glimpse of the moon, following meeting my fellow explorers for dinner, I felt like a person who had no history here. This feeling came over me when my flight landed. But to be on a street I’d taken on my way home many an evening and to feel my eyes new and the lack of memory-strapped weight failing to resonate in my body, what I was feeling was now not only true for me — it was real. There was no pull to visit spaces that once held great meaning to me. As I walked a couple blocks down SW Stark Street toward 13th, not one ounce of nostalgia washed over me. While I was not attempting to conjure the feeling, I did find it surprising, like in a, “Wow … I am healed,” kind of way. Many moons ago, I use to call this city home. It all feels like another lifetime ago. And, in truth, it is. Now, it’s time for new adventures. A fast-forward to create new memories and to feel what new Earth will be underneath my feet as an explorer.

Remembering Light

It turns waterfalls and rushing creeks into a scene of cascading diamonds. It gently overcomes shadows, then welcomes them back when it has served its purpose, or when clouds shift. It reveals the spectrum of color waiting to be unveiled in the darkest of green things. It invites finger to rub against moss and tree bark to explore their textures. The imagination dances when we see it cut through mist: What’s being beamed down or taken up, or is there somewhere in between, dancing — putting a spell on us? 

There’s a certain magic the light of the sun turns on. Forest, already full of wonder in its own right, becomes even more alive.  

For the most part, the day was the kind of typical Portland day I’d remembered. Rainy. The sky — a fitted sheet of gray, not so securely tucked, so occasionally the sun would slip through the clouds. Its warmth landing on my face just long enough for me to think, “You will leave and return like all faithful lovers do when they know they are needed, wanted, and desired.”   

Atop Beacon Rock, a squirrel that seemed to know its way around humans met me. Raised up on its hind legs and motioned as if it were fresh out of some well-crafted children’s cartoon, one with a moral or parable to keep in the subconscious. I thought I was ready, but every bit of the city dweller in me jolted my body off the rock I popped a squat on. I laughed loudly and shook my head at the fact that I let something so small shake me. I turned my head to see the sun in the distance, turning the horizon line of the sky into various shades of rainbow sherbet. I inhaled deeply, laughed once more, and nodded my head in silent reverence for what illumination can do for the spirit.

View fullsize

View fullsize

Remembrances — and, 

is this the point

The air is different here than where I’m from

So, I’m taking as many deep breaths

For my lungs to remember

That concert is not a living thing

That mountain fresh

Is indeed that and not simply 

A manufactured fragrance for dryer sheets

My eyes drinking in the scene

Because wonder is being returned back to me tenfold

And, is this the point:

To reconnect

To feel mouth-gaped open

As feet step in an improvisational rhythm

With the terrain

And deep breaths are taken

To remind us that we are living things

And that there’s something clearly unnatural

About our automated lives and its many technologies

Distracting us from the beauty found in

Simply being with what is

In all its grandeur 

Lettering by Adam Vicarel // @adamvicarel

---

THIS ADVENTURE WAS MADE WITH HELP FROM OUR FRIENDS AT NAU CLOTHING AND ACE HOTEL

NAU.COM // ACEHOTEL.COM

SISSTR

A Revolution for Women’s Surf Goods

Story by Lola Rae

While recently thumbing through the debut line of SISSTREVOLUTION, a new surf-centric apparel and accessories line for active young women, I was transported – not to a geographic place, but to a different time altogether: to my younger self. This new range – which is the literal ‘sister’ brand to its well-established core surf brethren, Vissla – with its dreamy, muted colors, soft, natural fabrics and easygoing vibe, is the line that I wish had existed when I was a teen or twenty-something surf gromette. 

This blossoming brand was brought to fruition to fill a lull in the market, offering softgoods and gear for the “12-25 year-old girl who is active in or around the water and is either a surfer or will be the next time she is at the beach”, to quote a brand spokesperson. This includes surf trip essentials like 70’s-inspired  snap-closure corduroy short shorts, boxy cropped tees and super soft hoodies. Ease of structure, playful prints and ultimate packability are evident design choices throughout the range, with each style representing a modern throwback. 

Not only has Sisstr come into her own with a youthful, timeless line of packable, travel-able, throw-on-after-a-surf-or-before-a-flight everything, it has done so with an air of eco-consciousness. Sustainable materials including organic cottons and hemp blends share a common thread through many styles, including the entire boardshort line which – like Vissla’s well-known Coconut Stretch boardies – is entirely comprised of upcycled coconut fiber fabric. 

Add to that a complete range of performance pieces and fully shreddable (read: top-of-the-line) wetsuits and surfwear, and Sisstrevolution could very well be just that for young women’s surf apparel - a revolution. If only we’d had this kind of thing when I was a youngin’!

Learn More // sisstrevolution.com

Unimoto

One Spiked Tire and Russian Imagination

Photos and story by Alessandro D’Angelo // alessandrodangelo.it

Unimotorcycle is the unholy combination of a motorcycle and a sled. It has one wheel, a few runners, and an absurdly powerful engine that propels the entire contraption across a frozen lake at breakneck speeds. Brakes? Pfft. They’re an afterthought at best. All of which is to say, you have to be crazy to ride one.

Unimotorcyle racing started in the 1980s in Florida, a fact few will find surprising. The “sport” quickly spread to Europe and beyond. A Russian unimotocyclist named Dmitry Gorbunov attended the Elefantentreffen biker rally in Germany in 2002, and thought it wasn’t nutty enough. So two years later, he decided to go racing on ice.

Location: the snow-blanketed town of Togliatti, Russia, where the temperature never climbed above -10 degrees Fahrenheit. The event drew about 1,000 spectators and 35 unimoto riders, many of whom came from hundreds of miles away. 

Races began each day around 11AM and continued through the afternoon. Riders astride homemade machines seemingly inspired by Mad Max vied to post the fastest times. Many of them rode contraptions adapted from Honda and Yamaha motorcycles, with runners crafted from shovels and other stuff you’d find in the garage. The more eclectic machines ran on electricity and even steam, while at least one featured four propellers. One guy even cobbled together something that looked a lot like a pulse jet.

No matter what made them go, it was loud. “Like a lion that roars when you cut its balls.” A few unimotos scuttle out of control across the ice or catch fire after their motors overheated, but no one seemed too bothered. The fastest racer got a trophy and an enormous hunting knife, the words “Snow Dogs” engraved into a handle shaped like a dog’s head.

When the day’s racing was done, the real party began. People ate, drank, and sang karaoke until the wee hours. 

The Way of Shibui

Inspired by Snow Peak Way

Story & photos by Brooke Jackson

Cuisine is so ingrained in the culture of adventure that tastes and smells elicit emotions from journeys passed. Take, for example, the s’more. A simple combination of three delicious ingredients that when combined together immediately recalls memories of late night campfires, smoky smelling garments, and sticky fingers from happy, messy faces. With the increased interest in recents years of ultralight camping, food is not untouched from the pound shedding trend. Majority of backpackers and diehard overnight campers aim for dehydrated meals and protein bars, leaving an animalistic craving for “real food” by the end of most adventures. Seeing some easy solutions to this lacking nutritious trend, the authors of Dirty Gourmet: Food for Outdoor Adventures aim to change the way we eat when outside.

While attending the Snow Peak Way in Portland, OR, which is a special weekend camp out tradition brought over from the companies Japanese roots, author Emily Nielson demonstrated a few of her favorite recipes from the book. Organized into several categories, the cookbook covers options for everything from day hiking to car camping and even ultralight backpacking. During the Snow Peak Way workshop, Emily prepared a vegetarian rice dish consisting of red bell pepper, avocado, lemon and pumpkin seed, all topped with a fresh dressing made from scratch. Her meal was paired with a desert that was as easy as melting chocolate with jam to create a berry fondue and spread on the ever classic graham cracker.

The workshops at Snow Peak Way not only showcased the possibilities for nutritious meals like those found in the Dirty Gourmet cookbook, but also exhibited the aesthetic flair of Japanese Shibui and how it can be incorporated into the outdoors. Shibui is the Japanese word which refers to a particular simple, subtle and unobtrusive beauty. In many ways, Snow Peak highly values and exhibits Shibu in their production, gear, and company culture. While at Snow Peak Way, the embodiment was evident at first glance when a drink of whiskey was ordered.

Sunotry Whisky was invited to the event and was pouring their liquor served on the rocks all night, yet the beverage would take anywhere from 5-15 minutes before ready. The reason for this was the effort of crafting the ice for which the whisky would be served with. Bartender Johnny would start by taking a massive square chunk of solid ice that had been custom ordered from PDX Ice. With either an impressive knife or a small axe, Johnny would begin shaving the ice and polishing with a rag as he made headway. The end result was spherical perfection. With ice so pure it looked like glass, Johnny would carve a perfect circle which fit just barely within the size of each titanium mug. With a slow pour of cascading whiskey, the sphere altered from clear to hazy and cooled the liquor as it settled. Now why would a bartender go through all this effort for every shot of whisky ordered? His response; “that’s Shibui.”

From cooking to whisky, gear to destination - add a little Shibui to life and enjoy a new palette of adventure.