Sitting around a noisy table in a Kendal pub recently, one of our writers floated an idea past me. “I’m thinking of planning a Lake District hillwalk using AI, then hopefully writing an article afterwards pointing out why it wasn’t such a great idea. What do you think?”
I was immediately sold, and James Forrest’s article in our new issue (on sale now) is one of my favourites in Trail for a long time.
I’ll happily confess I use Artificial Intelligence (AI), and ChatGPT in particular, quite a bit these days for a variety of personal and professional reasons; but I draw the line at relying on it to find my way in the hills. As far as I’m concerned, that’s just downright dangerous.
James (below) is a bit more open-minded than me, though, picking out both the positives and negatives in a great piece of writing about the rise of the robots and what it means for all of us that love exploring remote places.
There’s no question technology has its place in outdoor adventure, but it’s no substitute for boots-on-the-ground experience and expert human insight (and fabulous magazines like this one, of course). Scroll down to find out what our intrepid team have got in store for you this month.
Scroll down for my highlights from this month, an update on our team’s recent adventures, and hopefully some ideas for routes that will inspire you to get out there this month.
Oli Reed, Trail editor
The 3 Peaks – in 3 days
If you want our opinion, the 24-hour 3 Peaks Challenge should never have been invented. Why the heck would anyone want to cram ascents of the highest mountains in Scotland, England Wales into a single day? So in this issue Jenna shows you how to forget that daft challenge and enjoy those three glorious chunks of rock over three glorious hillwalking days.
Lost in the algorithm
As mentioned above, James fires up his laptop, asks ChatGPT to plot him a great day of Lakeland fellwalking, then heads for Rannerdale Knotts to see what AI has in store for him. You might be pleasantly surprised by the results.
Plan C
Our roving writer Sarah loves climbing a good Munro, but sadly her recent Highland plans were torpedoed by low cloud and low visibility recently. So instead, she shifted focus to some small but perfectly formed Corbetts instead, and had a cracking day out.
Rock idols
Dartmoor’s tors are legendary, but if you’re not careful you can keep going back to explore the same old usual suspects again and again. So we asked local guidebook author Sophie Pierce to pick out 5 of the best that you may never have heard of.
Changing the game
Inspired by their athletes Mick Fowler and Ed Jackson, Berghaus have developed a new range of adaptative outdoor gear designed to help people with disabilities find kit that works for them on outdoor adventures. In this issue, Mick and Ed share their stories and explain how this amazing new initiative has developed.
Fach v Fawr
The Arenigs may not be the most celebrated or climbed peaks in north Wales, but they’re both mighty in their own way. Which one deserves pride of place on our Trail 100 bucket list? Tom climbs and camps on both of them to settle the argument.
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Every issue of Trail is packed with award-winning writing and photography, mapped mountain routes, expert reviews of all the latest outdoor gear, interviews with the biggest names in outdoor adventure, and expert advice from mountain pros on how to improve your hill skills.