Why’s it different?

Having spent a number of years with a group of intrepid idiots doing silly things in the UK, heading out to Asia solo I naively thought it would be almost as simple to organise trips ‘off the beaten track’. Wrong.

Personally, the enjoyment I get out of hiking and trail running comes from being in nature with your mates (or solo!) and working out what the heck you are doing. On many mountains in Indonesia I have found there is very little information out there for planning your own trips and you are almost always told to get a guide. Understandably for some, however many of the most expensive trips I’ve been on while here have been among the easiest and least rewarding, while the cheapest and less ‘commercial’ trips have been the best.

So, here I am going to try to put together a guide to getting out on some mountain hikes or trail runs alone/ with your mates, with some advice on kit, precautions, keeping it cheap and perhaps some key lingo to help you navigate your way to adventure.

Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of advice out there about where to go and how to get someone to take you; that’s not what I’m trying to put together here (although there will be some of that too), but more a starter pack for DIY adventures, if you will.

Happy hiking!