Win: Fancy a European adventure with a KEEN ambassador?

A seaside jolly, a city stroll or a hike up a German mountain range: you could win a European adventure with one of KEEN’s intrepid ambassadors, plus a swish new pair of KEEN’s European Made hiking boots

To celebrate their brand new European Made collection, our friends at KEEN have launched an awesome competition to win a trip for you and a friend to embark on a European adventure with one of the brand’s global ambassadors – plus a pair of KEEN’s European Made hiking boots.

So, how can you enter?

It’s simple. Just visit www.keenfootwear.com/en-gb/europeanmade and vote for the ambassador and European adventure you’d like to go on. 

What are the choices?:

• A jaunt to the charming seaside resort of Leigh-on-Sea on England’s east coast with adventurer Dave Cornthwaite
• An urban adventure in and around historic Greenwich, London with mountaineer Heather Geluk
• A hike up the Mathislehof in Germany – one of Europe’s most stunning mountain ranges – with environmentalist Andreas Schäfer. 

Sound tempting? Go ahead and vote – you could be in with a chance of winning!

To enter and for full terms and conditions, visit www.keenfootwear.com/en-gb/europeanmade.

Closing date: 23 October. The competition is open to UK, Germany, France and Holland residents.

This is a sponsored blog post, created in collaboration with KEEN. For more information on partnerships and joining our directory, please email advertise@ernestjournal.co.uk

British bird beaks

Whether used for impressing a mate, cracking open nuts or proclaiming territory, bird beaks are a prime example of how anatomy has evolved to be completely fit for purpose. Here we look at the beaks of British and migratory birds, and their unique specialisations for survival

Puffin, Fratercula arctica
Its bill has earned it the nickname 'clown of the sea', but once breeding season is over, the puffin sheds its characteristic bill, leaving a duller, smaller one behind.

Avocet, Recurvirostra avosetta
Emblem of the RSPB, this black and white wader employs a sweeping action with its long, thin upturned bill to stir up small invertebrates to the water’s surface, then it uses its beak like tweezers to pluck out its prey.

Crossbill, Loxia curvirostra 
To break into larch or pine cones, crossbills have evolved powerful bills with crossed tips, which prise off the woody scales of each cone to extract a seed.

Hawfinch, Coccothraustes coccothraustes  
Its bill exerts 68kg of force per square inch – enough to sever a human finger and crack open a cherry stone with one swipe.

Great spotted woodpecker, Dendrocopos major 
To sound its territory, a woodpecker uses its beak to strike wood 15 times a second with force equal to a human hitting a wall face-first at 20 miles an hour.

Spoonbill, Platalea leucorodia
These elegant water waders use their long, spatulate, partly-open bills to swing from side to side in the water, stirring up mud and debris. When insects and small fish touch the side of its bill, it snaps shut, trapping the prey inside.

Illustrations by Ruth Allen. As well as an illustrator, Ruth is a writer and mountaineer. Her work is available to buy through her website where she also blogs about her outdoor adventures. She is currently writing a book about mountains.

blueeggsandtea.com

Caught by the River Teifi, 10-17 August

A week of music, workshops, adventures, talks, campfires, good food, good people and good times

fforest is teaming up with their friends Caught by the River to bring you a whole week of music, workshops and adventure at fforest farm and River's Edge in Cardigan.

Revellers can choose to come and relax for the whole week or just come for the weekend festival by the river. Basically, it's a Welsh adventure in two parts:

fforest midweek: 300 people in 200 acres of bliss at fforest farm, 10-14 August
A truly unique gathering, offering the chance to explore one of the most idyllic, unspoilt outdoor locations in Britain. Four days of painting, whittling, baking, field recording, swimming, canoeing and woodsmoke. There will also be live music, dancing in the barn and, of course, sleep.

River's edge weekend: 500 people on the riverside in Cardigan, 15-17 August
A proper mini-festival with a brilliant line-up of bands and DJs from Wales and beyond curated by Caught By The River, talks and and readings hosted by the Wales Arts Review and local food and beer from the good people of fforest and friends.

Guests include: Jeb Loy Nichols, Nick Hand, Rob St John, Matt Sewell, Cynan Jones, Castle, Colorama and many, many more.

To find out more and to book tickets visit teififestival.co.uk

Back to the elements

It all started when Peter Charnaud was nine years old and his father brought home a tonne of wooden scraps for his son to build things with. A few collapsed tables later and he had very much caught the bug. Now as an adult, Peter works for the family business selling wood working machinery to customers all over the world. However, in his spare time he still build things out of his beloved material and there’s one thing he loves to build above all others…

“I was in Italy and I saw a very crude bike made out of wood. I’d never even thought about making something like that, but I said to myself: "I’m going to have a go at that when I get home." That was four years ago and I’ve been making them ever since. You’re never going to see two wooden bikes that are the same. 

“The thing I really love about it is that you’re making something out of a material that was once growing. A bike is different to a piece of furniture. If I’m making a table or chair, it’s static; it just sits there on the floor, but a bicycle moves. They’re mobile and have a life of their own. It brings the wood back to life. My bikes were growing, they had their branches out in the wind and rain and I’ve now taken them back out into the elements.

“Certain woods are heavy and others are brittle, so by combining the two you get something that is tough but also lightweight. You have to consider the mechanical properties of each wood. You can take a piece of London plane and bend it into a u-shape over your knee and it won’t break. If you did that with a piece of cedar it would just snap, but cedar is incredibly light. So you can use cedar for the core of the bike and the London plane on the outside. You’ve then got something incredibly strong but also light. I’d like to get people making them themselves – it’s not that difficult.”

Words by contributing editor Duncan Haskell

To find out more about Peter’s bikes, or if you'd like guidance on how to get started building one of your own, visit woodenbike.org 

A roll-down pack for climbers, cyclists and hikers

There's something about a roll-down pack that Ernest finds irresistible. Maybe it's the way you can change the litre capacity, just by expanding or rolling down the top like a coffee bag? Maybe it's the way they they fit snugly around your shoulders and back, ensuring a comfortable climb, cycle or hike? Or maybe it's because they look so ruddy awesome?

Organic Climbing roll-down pack from Kinoko, £90

Kinoko have a keen eye for products that are comfortable and functional, yet have a uniquely beautiful aesthetic. This can definitely be said of their new roll-down pack from Organic Climbing, handmade in the USA. It was designed to meet the demands of climbers, cyclists and hikers who wanted a bag they could take out in all seasons and adjust the size to their needs. The bag features:

- Durable ballistic nylon shell, hand-stitched with the same heavy-duty stitching used for making bouldering mats
- External daisy chains for clipping on extra gear, or bike lights if you're cycling
- Ergonomic shoulder straps, ideal for cyclists and climbers
- Adjustable sternum belt and hip belt for stability while adventuring
- Large internal stash pocket for your phone and other precious bits
- Bright yellow lining for better visibility when rummaging around inside the bag

This is a sponsored blog post, created in collaboration with Kinoko. For more information on partnerships and joining our directory, please email advertise@ernestjournal.co.uk.