ArmaSkin News June 2024

Photo from Ben Lamond Saddle by Flo

STOP THE PRESSES!

Today's update on the Yukon 2020 last 100 miles!  (Main article below)

Karts Huseonica: "There's a cyclonic low that is getting worse and heading towards my put-in area.
My U.S. Coast Guard liaison says that instead of starting Wednesday, June 26th, that it might not be safe to put-in until Friday, at the earliest. Put-in is at Pitkas Point where my canoe is stored. Ugh.
I have 2.5 days buffer built into my schedule to finish the Yukon and start my travels up to the Northwest Passage. I'm busy trying to figure out lodging at St. Mary's."

Following is a weather snapshot of the area.

Croation Long Distance Trail

As regular readers know, ArmaSkin Ambassador Mikey is attempting to thru hike the 2100 km Croatian Long Distance Trail.

For context of this latest update, last weekend Mikey ran into a bit of a health issue. And to top things off there's been a lot of rain.  In Mikey's usual style on a recent video he quipped, "Its either been pissing down or pissing brown"

Here's a report from Saturday 22nd June 2024
Day 44: Starigrad to Gračac - 47.8km

You know you're in for an exciting read, when the first thing I'm gonna write about today is my pee!

I purposely didn't set my alarm this morning to give me body a rest, and as soon as I woke up, I wanted to pee. Not because I was brimming, but so I could see if there was any improvement! So it started off all good and clear (well, normal colour). I drank heaps of water before I left this morning. And felt good and ready to carry on.

About a couple of hours into my walk, I needed a pee, and of course there was a bit of a tinge in the colour, but nothing compared to yesterday. As the day went on, I made sure to drink a lot of water, especially as it was so hot today. Most of my pees were normal colour, the odd one had a wee bit of tinge. But, I think I'm past the worst..... hopefully.

My plan to walk through towns today rather than go into the mountains as I figured it'd be easier to pick up liquids if I required, kinda backfired really. As today was a public holiday, all supermarkets I passed were closed. BUT it didn't completely backfire. I passed many houses and asked for water as required. At one house, I knocked on the door, and with my limited Croatian I think I asked "can I water please?". The guy took my bottle in, and moments later came back with my bottle full, and gave me a newer bigger colder bottle of water too.

I suppose I should talk about the day's walk as well. Not too much to tell there, road walking days are never the most exciting. The first third was the sea on my left and the mountains on my right. The second third was surrounded by mountains. And the final third, I started making my way back up the mountains. Although not the most exciting of walking days, Croatia was still treating me to some beautiful views!

I think I'll do a similar style of walking tomorrow, just in case I do run into any issues, I can easily get myself out.

Clearly the rain and health issues have dampened Mikey's verve, but with  only roughly 300-400 km of the 2,109 km Trail to go we can understand his sentiment, "I've reached a point now where my main objective is to finish."

Mikey is certainly not one to leave the job undone!  Jump onto his Instagram to give him a boost as he covers the remaining km.  https://www.instagram.com/walk_for_wiggly_eyes/

Mikey is using the hike to raise awareness of nystagmus, a condition that he suffers from. Nystagmus has an incidence rate of at least 1 in 1,000 people in the general population and is the most common form of visual impairment among school aged children.  

Glaskogen: The most beautiful place in the world  (Sweden)

ArmaSkin Ambassador Martin has headed to ".....the most beautiful place in the world, Glaskogen. I love it here."

"New lake, met some great people we shared food with. Tomorrow heading out and exploring and fishing in this beautiful lake in the MRS Packrafts."

Glaskogen is a nature reserve located in the province of Värmland, between the municipalities of Årjäng and Arvika, in the west mid-Sweden. It was established as a nature reserve in 1970 and has a land area of about 28,000 hectares.

While we first met Martin on the trails of the UK, he has become a go to person for all things Packrafting.  You can keep track of Martin on his Instagram or Youtube channel where he is looking towards his 5,000th subscriber! 

If you have a better pic of your most beautiful place in the world let us know, ian@armaskin.com.

Kimberley: Havasu Canyon in Arizona

ArmaSkin Ambassador Kimberley shared her experience of Havasu Canyon in Arizona.

"Words cannot describe the magic of this extraordinary gem. 4 Days of absolute bliss to say the least. Nestled at the bottom of Havasu Canyon in Arizona lies one of the most magical places I’ve ever laid eyes on. The powerful energy of this remote tribal land blew my mind in every way. My heart is overflowing with gratitude. Thank you @dirtbaggypsies for this unforgettable experience. It still feels unreal. 

Nothing is more powerful than allowing yourself to be truly affected by something. It could be a place, a sunrise, connection with people, a memory. Allow yourself to FEEL and absorb it all with appreciation and love. Let inspiration pour in and fill you up. It’s a gift that is meant for YOU."

 

Camino with Susanne

ArmaSkin fan Susanne shared her pilgrimage along the Camino.  Interestingly she like KC last month met and enjoyed the company of some Australians on their pilgrimage.  If you are an Aussie walking the Camino please let us know.

There are plenty of great pics from Susanne on her Instagram page

 

Aussie hiker motivation!!

ArmaSkin Ambassador and young entrepreneur Hayley who operates Set To Hike has just launched her first product on her path to being a self sustaining hiker!

Launched just a couple of days ago, her new product is a must for any Aussie wishing to set themselves a motivational target for completing Australia's iconic trails.

And what is this product?  It is a first of its kind Australian Hiking Scratch Poster  !

The poster features 56 of Australia's best hikes.  Each hike has an individual image created by Hayley, but here's the cracker,  To keep to the spirit of the Poster, you can only expose each image after completing the hike.  On Hayley's Set To Hike youtube channel there is a video of all the creative effort that went into this poject...WOW.

Don't be slow to act in case this becomes a limited edition!

I've already got mine and while reticent to open it because it comes in a terrific tobleronesque pack I know when I do I'll be figuring out just what lays ahead for me in my hiking journey.

Well done Hayley!!   And well done to anyone who clicks this link:  Australian Hiking Scratch Poster

 

Hello Colorado!!    Continental Divide Trail (USA)

ArmaSkin Ambassador Erick has become a fan of Colorado since crossing the border on his attempt to thru hike the Continental Divide Trail.

The dry plains of New Mexico have been replaced by the green hills and mountain scapes of Colorado. As Erick reported, "777 miles, and the longest state on the CDT trail. New Mexico has been fun, challenging, just missed a fire.  The vibe and tempo is different in Colorado."

While making good progress, just last week Erick was laid up for a few days with a pulled back muscle, but we believe has since bounced back onto the trail.

You can follow his entertaining videos on you tube DogFoot Trailing

 

Ben Lamond Saddle (New Zealand)

ArmaSkin Ambassador Andrea and best buddy Flo tackled the Ben Lomond track in New Zealand.

It is a challenging track with a 1438m elevation gain of the walk. For the first segment, the track begins at the Douglas fir stands via the Skyline Access Road and takes you through the alpine tussocks and shrubs.

There are magnificent lake and mountain views as you climb up the saddle. The track gets more challenging from here and the walk requires an advanced level of fitness as the last push towards the top of Ben Lomond is very steep as it approaches the summit at 1748m. At the top, you'll be rewarded with exceptional views and on clear days, you can spot Mount Earnslaw/Pikirakatahi and Aspiring/Tititea. 

We believe Flo captured the great New Zealand landscape for our lead pic.

 

Recent ArmaSkin blog posts:

Toe Drama: When toe nails turn noir.  As short dissertation on the causes and prevention steps to take to prevent black toe nails.  

Jeremy goes NUTS
An entertaining race report from ArmaSkin Ambassador Jeremy who recently came third in the 166km Karhunkierros Trail Run.​

Yukon 2020 and North West Passage update (Arctic)

As of today (June 25) ArmaSkin Ambassador Art (Karts) is somewhere between Arizona where temperatures are hitting the 40 C's (104 F) and the Yukon River in west Alaska where max temps are 5-10 C (40-50 F).  

Art will be arriving at Pitkas Point in Alaska, only 100 miles/160km from the Bering Sea to complete his Yukon 2020 canoe trek of 2020 miles of the Yukon River which he started way back in 2020!  

After that little warm up row, (not forgetting that 100 miles was treacherously unpaddleable last time due to wild westerly winds hammering the Yukon River where it enters the Kuskokwim Delta) Art will be joining in the final leg of a rowing attempt through the North West Passage.  Like Art's canoe that we featured last month, here's the row boat that has been on ice awaiting this years final attempt.  The team has approximately 1,000miles/1,600km remaining to row in a westerly direction.  

To follow Art, not only down the Yukon but through the North West passage, here's a GPS tracking link:  https://maps.findmespot.com/s/5K73  (If you use the calendar function, you can see his track from last year. )

ArmaSkin is hoping for blue skies and light winds over the coming months to see Art safely through these major adventures.

 

AND, if you have big plans for 2024, how about dropping us a line telling us what you are doing (email ian@armaskin.com).

We'd love to be able to share your journey with the ArmaSkin community.

 

DO YOU WANT TO BE A WINNER?

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please share your picture stories with us.

Attention ArmaSkin fans! Your stories and adventures are what make our products shine, and we want to hear from you! Share your experiences wearing ArmaSkin and you could win your very own pair of ArmaSkin liner socks!

Please email ian@armaskin.com with a picture of you on the move with an ArmaSkin product and a short comment about the picture. If your picture is featured in an upcoming edition of ArmaSkin News, you'll win the monthly prize!

This month's winners were Flo who provided the terrific opening pic from Ben Lamond and Susanne who treated us to her Camino adventure.

Don't miss your chance to show off your ArmaSkin gear and score this wonderful prize. So what are you waiting for? Get snapping and share your ArmaSkin story now! 

 

 

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