Kilian Jornet, 37, has spent his life roaming mountains. He has won multiple world championships in the sport of skyrunning, ski mountaineering, and is a four-time winner of the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc, a 175km ultramarathon.

Now, Jornet will attempt to summit 60-plus of the 14ers – the mountains over 14,000ft (4267m) – in the contiguous United States while connecting them by foot and by bike.

Jornet is calling the project “States of Elevation,” and a rough sketch of it would require him to run, hike and climb over 1000km while bicycling an additional 3900km. Jornet, who will begin his adventure in Colorado in early September, expects it to take about a month if all goes according to plan.

It is a journey that will have him reaching as many as a dozen summits in a single day, only to turn around and ride 80km on a bike. And he will do it with little rest, going for over 15 hours a day. Read more from the New York Times.

DOC hut-inspired home takes out architectural design award

A family bach inspired by DOC huts and designed to maximise a stunning view of Mt Ruapehu has taken out a design award for the architecture studio behind it.

The 60m² hut, designed for an outdoors-loving family, takes inspiration from the country’s iconic DOC huts, especially Mueller Hut, Brewster and French Ridge huts in the South Island. It’s a simple shape with a gable roof and a breezeway separating the living areas from the bunk sleeping room.

ADNZ judges said the alpine refuge, with its uninterrupted view of Mt Ruapehu, reimagines the traditional DOC hut through crisp lines and contemporary detailing. “Its compact footprint and modest materiality foreground comfort and clarity over nostalgia.”

The regional winners go on to the national awards in late October. Read more and see photos of the hut from The Post.

Remembering Eugene Espy, second person to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail

On August 22, Eugene “Gene” Espy, well-known as the second person to hike the entire Appalachian Trail from end to end, passed away at the age of 97. Espy first learned about the trail from his 7th-grade teacher, and he was hooked. In 1951, at the age of 24, he began his own thru-hike.

Instead of packing a stove, Espy survived his hike by living off of no-cook meals and mailing himself packages – a common strategy for today’s ultralight backpackers. Along the way, he lost 12.7kg and wore out three pairs of boots.

At the time of Espy’s hike, the Appalachian Trail corridor was largely unoccupied, rugged wilderness with sparse trail markers and thick undergrowth. Espy often travelled for a week at a time without witnessing another human, scrambling over rocks and roots as he moved north. 

After 123 challenging days (a time that’s still considered fast amongst contemporary thru-hikers), Espy finished his thru-hike at the northern terminus of the trail. When he came home, Espy married his wife, Eugenia, and went on to have a fulfilling 71-year marriage. Read the full story from Backpacker.

Artist raises money for Backcountry Trust

Each year Artist Ginney Deavoll chooses a cause that reflects her values, and creates artworks to sell to support their activity.

This year she is rasing money for the Backcountry Trust. Since its inception in 2014, BCT has restored and renovated over 280 huts and 1500km of walking and cycle trails across the motu.

“As a lover of a night in a backcountry hut,  I think the work the trust does to ensure there will always be shelters dotted among our hills is amazing and something worth supporting and celebrating,” Deavoll said.

She loves how each hut has its own story and unique character. Every Sunday on BCT’s Facebook page she releases a small ‘hut-scape’, which is then available for purchase from her website. Read the full story from Wilderness.

56g micro stove fires up hot meals in minutes

The all-new Micron III backpacking stove from Swedish gear innovator Primus weighs a flat 56g (2oz) and folds so small it can nest inside your open palm. It screws atop a gas canister, and the burner puts out a wind-resistant 2,600-W flame. Primus estimates a boil time of 2.5 minutes for a half-litre of water or under four minutes for a full litre.

Primus calls the Micron III its most packable stove ever, at just 6.2 cm long by 4.6 cm in diameter. The trio of folding pot supports and the foldaway output dial pack around the central burner cylinder to store away comfortably in virtually any pocket, backpack compartment or bicycle bag.

Primus introduced the Micron III last month in Europe for a price of $137 NZD. Read the full review from New Atlas.