Malaysia’s government is tightening hiking rules after “compressed hikes”, a social media trend promoting fastpacking style hiking, have led to an increased number of adventurers needing rescue in remote locations.

Over the first five months of 2026, Malaysia saw 52 cases of lost hikers, an increase of nearly 30% compared with the same period the previous year, the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department told local media.

Norimah Abd Karim, who is part of an association of certified forestry mountain guides, said earlier this year that many hikers carry minimal gear to appear like professional trail runners on social media. “There are hikers who focus more on getting interesting content that they are willing to take risks and neglect their own safety.”

The new measures include making guides mandatory in 189 high-risk locations, strengthening pre-climb screening measures and banning some compressed hikes.

Syed Ibrahim Syed Noy, the deputy minister of natural resources and environmental sustainability, said the government was also strengthening pre-climb screening measures by requiring health declarations, medical history checks and insurance coverage.

“The government’s priority is to reduce the risk of hikers getting lost and prevent accidents, thereby minimising the need for SAR [Search and Rescue] operations, which require substantial financial resources and manpower,” he said. Read more from The Guardian.

Underground counters lose track of who’s visiting nature

DOC says systems for counting visitors and activities at 700 sites on public conservation land are old and plagued by delays, and data loss and backlogs.

Its counters are also mostly installed underground and have to be checked manually by staff to download the data. A document out for tender showed officials were particularly interested in AI and cameras, among other things.

“The current Activity Counter System … faces end-to-end challenges across hardware, firmware, data flow, and verification, resulting in inconsistent data and operational inefficiencies,” said the document. “Manual processes dominate downloading and validation, causing delays, data loss, and backlog.”

Minister Tama Potaka said better information on visitor numbers and patterns would help with deciding where facilities, funding and staff were most needed.

“Nature is our most important economic asset and underpins our tourism industry, so it makes sense to use International Visitor Levy … funding to invest in technology that supports visitation while protecting the environment,” said Potaka in a statement to RNZ.

Hikers escape from erupting volcano as trip becomes unforgettable adventure

Fiona Leahy and James O’Connor were at a hikers’ camp just 2km away from the crater of the Fuego volcano when the late-night drama began.

“The sound was like the loudest thunder you’ve ever heard, times 10,” O’Connor said. The pair watched with a group of 30 other hikers as fountains of lava shot 300m into the air before cascading down the mountainside.

Their guide told them it was too dangerous to leave in the dark and they should wait for first light.“Of course nobody went to sleep,” O’Connor said. At 3am, it became clear they could wait and watch no longer and their guide issued the order to evacuate.

Halfway down, they got phone service and Leahy made an urgent call to her uncle, Stephen McNutt, a professor of volcano seismology.

“He was able to check his resources and came back and said it looked like mild explosions, which was pretty funny to us. He said: ‘Enjoy the show!’”

In 2018 a deadly eruption on Fuego killed more than 200 people, but it still remains a popular tourist destination. Read more from The Irish Times.

Kiwi canoes across Canada

New Zealander Tom Hudson paddled from Alberta to Quebec over 216 days, documenting Canada’s wilderness and the people he met along the way.

“I thought my journey was going to showcase nature and the landscape. But what it really showcased was how incredible the Canadian people are,” Hudson said.

Hudson launched his adventure at Saskatchewan River Crossing, Alberta, on May 23, 2024. He arrived in Montreal earlier this month after a pause over the winter months, despite having never paddled before.

Hudson chronicled his entire journey on his YouTube channel and on Instagram under the handle @whatintheworld_tom. In several video excerpts, he praises the kindness of Canadians.

Hudson’s journey to Canada’s waterways began 12 years ago in New Zealand. He said he had a regular life, worked in construction and had a house with a mortgage. But was unhappy. “One day, I woke up with my alarm to go to work, and at that moment, it just hit me very hard: you are not following your heart, you are not following your journey.”

He sold his house, gave away all his possessions and decided that he would make decisions based on joy. Read more from CTV News.

East Coast conservationist finds wild emu nest

Conservationist Graeme Atkins rescued two emu chicks after accidentally disturbing a nest in Ruatōria on the East Coast. They were the only ones that survived after three others were killed by a feral cat.

Atkins (Ngāti Porou and Rongomaiwahine) grew up in Ruatōria and said emus had been breeding there for about 30 years after a failed attempt to farm them.

“The farmer thought it could be another income source but didn’t realise how much grass they could eat. Basically, they cleaned his paddocks out, so he realised there wasn’t much money in it – hence the reason he’d got them cheap – so he left the gate open and let them out.”

Atkins’ emu discovery unfolded last weekend when he went to the beach to get more wood while celebrating his 60th birthday with a few quiet ones around the fire.

Atkins said he would release the emus once they were big enough to survive alone. DOC said it was not aware of emu on public conservation land it administers. Sightings of wild emus have also been reported historically in Southland, Waikato and the Waitomo district. Read more from The Gisborne Herald.