Set in Scotland’s beautiful Cairngorms National Park, Mar Sin Leat is one of about a dozen feature stories in the upcoming second issue of The Bikepacking Journal. Find an exclusive preview here, along with details on how to subscribe before the April 17th deadline, just one week away…

Written and photographed by returning contributor Huw Oliver (@topofests), Mar Sin Leat is a farewell letter addressed directly to the Cairngorms, a mountain range in the Scottish Highlands, penned on his final trip there before leaving the country indefinitely. Huw has cultivated a deep appreciation for the timeless beauty found in the Cairngorms during his many trips there throughout the years, as well as a sincere thankfulness for everything they’ve given him. Both shine through in his writing.

When I look at you and remember, I am remembering both you and me the way we were, albeit that one of us is more changed than the other. Sometimes I ride away on a journey to see new things, and sometimes it is enough to ride back to where I have been before, if only to see that for all the changes life might have made to me, the river still runs and the winter snow still lingers in the same high hollow. I take comfort from you.”

We all have our own Cairngorms – right in our own back yard, if we’re lucky – and this piece serves as an important reminder of the importance of those wild places. It also highlights how navigating a landscape by bicycle makes our interactions with it all the more memorable and meaningful. Read Mar Sin Leat and about a dozen other feature stories in the next issue of The Bikepacking Journal.

Bikepacking Journal Issue 02

The cutoff to join our Bikepacking Collective and have your membership start with Issue 02 is just one week away, at 11:59 pm EST on Wednesday, April 17th. If you join after that, you’ll still be eligible for all the other membership benefits (like Collective Reward gear giveaways, industry discounts, and having a voice in the future of the site), but the first issue of The Bikepacking Journal you receive will be Issue 03 in October.

  • Bikepacking Journal Issue 02
  • Bikepacking Journal Issue 02

Need a bit more convincing before you’re ready to back us? You can take a look inside Issue 01, or read some thoughts on why we need your support and where your money goes, or see an expanded preview of Issue 02. We print one copy of The Bikepacking Journal for each of our members, and it won’t be possible to get one after the April 17th cutoff. Join today, don’t miss out!

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