Inflatable Tent Camping in England!

I grew up in Scotland where you are officially free to roam. There is an abundance of adventure on your doorstep, and nature invites you to play each day. But yes, it rains—not all the time—but a lot. I like the rain; it keeps things fresh, the plants healthy and, best of all, it keeps the people away. Scotland offers stunning seclusion like no other, thanks to the rain.

But unfortunately right now, I don’t live where nature is at my doorstep. I have to fight to find it and sneak around at night for moments of seclusion. London is my base for work and life (and daily urban adventures), but you’ve got to head out of the smog to remember what real nature is again. Sometimes weeks go by and it suddenly dawns on me that I just need to get out of the city and find somewhere hidden away in the trees. I crave freedom on a fortnightly basis. I don’t want anyone to know where I am. I don’t even want to know. But England isn’t as free to roam as Scotland; you’re not allowed to pitch a tent anywhere you fancy. You have to put in a bit of effort to find secluded spots where you can camp without the fear of being moved. But maybe that’s what makes it so rewarding: only real adventurers will scale the fences, sneak through the trees and find the perfect pitch in England.

And so that weekend all I wanted to do was hideaway in the trees somewhere near a lake, and that’s what I did. With fellow adventurer Liz Seabrook and a Heimplanet tent we had been sent to test out, we hitched a bus, jumped on a train and hiked out of civilization. Eight hours later we dipped our toes in the freezing water of Lake Windermere, paddling our canoe to the other side to pitch our inflatable home on the pebbles—our form of cold stone therapy. It maybe wasn’t the comfiest of spots, but to wake up to the water tickling your feet was worth it. There wasn’t anyone else around because of the effort entailed to get there and the unknown outcome that put off an average adventurer. But we were equipped with an inflatable dome tent, referred to as “The Cave,” that could be set up and packed down in no time for a speedy getaway, leaving no trace behind. Despite not being the subtlest, we felt happily hidden among a million shades of green. No one knew where we were, not even our map. Somewhere in England, right by the lake, surrounded by trees, roaming. That was our location.

Hannah Bailey
neonstash.com
Instagram @neonstash

Traveling Signwriter

Bohie Palecek makes traditional handcrafted signs, murals, graphic design projects, and all-around inspiring art.

Where is home?
Wherever I hang my dream catcher, which is currently Adelaide, Australia, in a shared house with chickens out back and an art studio out front.

How did you get into sign painting?
My mum was a sign painter, so I grew up with it. She had a sign painting shed out back and worked from home. I studied printmaking at art school and then graphic design, always hand drawing as many design elements as I could within a project. I worked in a design office in Canberra, Australia, straight out of school but found out pretty quickly that commercial graphic design wasn’t for me, sitting on a computer all day and laying out websites and annual reports… I quit and spent 7 months traveling around America and Canada hanging out in screen-printing studios and assisting illustrators on mural jobs and stuff, just picking their brains and getting my eyes opened to an amazing collection of people who had made their careers out of their passions and skills.
I approached a sign painter (Joe Swec) in Austin, Texas, who took me under his wing and let me shadow him on his jobs and literally just hang around like a bad smell for a few months, ha! He opened my eyes to the future of sign painting and showed me how much it had changed since my mum’s generation—who were “tradesmen” as apposed to “artists.” Life changed.

What are some of your favorite letters?
I’m not biased, man. All letters are beautiful.

What are some good words to live by?
Get knowledge. Get skills. Get gnarly.
…then we’ll meet around the campfire and share stories.
What would be your dream adventure?
Adventure is a big word. It could describe a long solo trek across the Yukon, or a road trip down to the south beach of Adelaide with a car full of mates. It could be an inward adventure looking deep within the confines of your soul, or an outward one exploring the colors of a leaf you found while walking through the park. It could be on any number of engines or it could be pedal powered or on skateboards or surf or snow or a rocket ship or on the back of an eagle! It could even be used to describe conceptualizing an art series or exploring a new medium, like music.
So I reckon my dream adventure would be to find an “adventure,” whether solo or shared, every day for the rest of my life. 

newfrontiersignwriting.com

Win this awesome rucksack

Jbird Collective makes backpacks for people who are always ready for adventure, even if it's just the adventure of riding your bike to your office job. Hence the name of this "PDX Commuter Rucksack".

We don't normally geek out on gear here at Stay Wild, but this rucksack is worth making a list of reasons it's cooler than your typical backpack:

• Waxed Canvas that is somehow not oily.
• A secret padded laptop sleeve that's not inside the main pocket.
• Leather (Sorry vegans, but it's a renewable resource. Discus amongst your selves...)
• Tough ass war-grade snaps and buttons.
• MADE IN THE USA-USA-USA!!!

Oh, and one more cool thing about this rucksack:

YOU CAN GIFT IT TO YOUR ADVENTURE BUDDY FOR FREEEEEEEEE!!!

Just go to our instagram and tag an adventure buddy you want to gift it to and follow Jbird Collective then you'll be entered to win. Yup, it's that easy.

The Slurpee Waves of Nantucket

Dang! Have you ever seen waves get so cold they turn to slurpee? We haven't. So when surfer/photographer/Stay Wild contributor Jonathan Nimerfroh showed us these sweet shots he captured in Nantucket we had to share.

When we asked Jonathan what the fawk this was all about he said, "Just been super cold here. The harbor to the main land is frozen solid. No boats running.But yea, the day after I took these it actually froze up the shoreline for 200 yards out. Solid ice. I was totally tripping when I pulled up to the beach and saw this."

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The entire collection of “Slurpee Wave” photos can be purchased at www.jdnphotography.com

The Conscious Kind Project

One of our contributors, Lisa Dougherty, is out in the wild making up this thing she calls "The Conscious Kind Project" as she goes. Check it out...

You see the thing is, I had every reason to stay. To stay at my "grown up" job, stay at my home, stay with my friends, and continue exploring the wonderland that is the Northwest. It started out as a fleeting thought but over time became something bigger. You know what I'm talking about- a voice that gets so loud you can't ignore it. It's a calling that you can't really control or even explain. It's a feeling that everyone feels but only some act on. It's what makes us the "wild ones".

This particular calling came to me about 2 months ago- "I'm going to drop everything and travel around the country by train" I thought. The next thing I knew I put my notice in at the office, rented out my room and had to fill a backpack for 2-3 months. I chose to go by train simply because I'm fascinated with the the time you get with this type of travel as opposed to driving a car. What can I do with all of this free time? I came up with a haphazard route and have to rely on old friends, strangers and myself to get anywhere when I'm off the train. I'm not entirely sure where I'm going to end up or who I'll meet up with which is equally terrifying as it is intriguing. This is how adventures are born.

It's been one week since I left everything in Portland, OR and made my way to Los Angeles- the first leg of my trip. In between I've found myself sharing stories and drinks with strangers on the train, exploring hot springs in the eastern Sierras with old friends, and camping alone in Yosemite National Park. So far I've gotten lost, sunburned, splinters in my feet and my back is killing me from my over-packed backpack. I've made up songs on my harmonica, read stories and learned how to tie some knots (you know, for survival and stuff). I've got about 3 more months of this. Some people are calling this a "mid-life crisis". Others are referring to this as a "life-altering" experience, questioning "are you ready for something like this?". Fortunately, a lot of people are so wonderfully supportive. Me? I'm just going through the motions. This whole thing might seem outlandish but surely not impossible. Call it what you want, but to me this is the idea, the feeling, the calling- the ultimate adventure.

Keep up with Lisa HERE>>>