JOHN DALE

an adventurer from his youth, john dale has the insuppressible urge to see what lies in wait around the bend or over the next pass. john creates unique images for brands and athletes nationwide. when he's not traveling, john resides in boulder, co. 

WE'RE DONE! We reached Cape Wrath Monday and after a few days of stressful travel (i.e. busses in the Highlands that sometimes just choose not to run, real neat, hitchhiking, food poisoning, booking places to stay at 10pm when you're still an hour out, and catching lifts on random off duty school busses) we finally made it back to Glasgow and are now in Iceland. I know it sounds corny beyond corny, but there are no words to describe this trip. To all the wonderful people we met on and off the trail, to the Mountain Bothy Association, to the midges that chose not to show up 🙌, to those that gave us lifts, and most especially my father, thank you. More photos from the last leg of the trip coming soon but some rest first. And beer, yummy Icelandic beer. [Cape Wrath, Scotland - May 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #soulofthewild #vsco #iPhone]
Today we head out for our final two days of hiking. We'll reach Sandwood Bay tonight and reach Cape Wrath Monday afternoon. Surreal that this trip is nearly done. 15mi of the 230mi to go! See y'all on the other side! [Dubh-Loch Mor -Cape Wrath Trail, Scotland - April 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #soulofthewild #vsco #iPhone]
We are past the half way mark! 143mi of the 230mi are now completed and this previous section, which was supposed to be our easiest, turned out to almost put us on our asses. Whether it be weather (hitting the worst snowstorm Scotland has seen this year), the mileage, or entire days of trails submerged in a few inches of water, these past four days have tested us. But the people we've met, the scenery we saw, and the memories I've gained with my dad are well, well worth the effort. 1. Our baller bothy at Coire Fionnaraich during our 5min respite from the storm, allowing us the opportunity to get some water. 2. Meall Dearg 3. Descending from Bealach Ban towards the Lind Hut and Beinn Eighe. 4. Views along our hike from the Ling Hut to Kinlochewe. 5. Walking through Strath na Sealga towards our bothy at Shenevall. One of the better places bothies we've been to. 6. Our Hilleberg outside the bothy at Shenevall. Sometimes it's more comfortable to sleep on the ground! 7. What you feel like after two passes in the rain and 11mi of flooded trails. Believe me, I had the same look haha. 8. The hills are in white. This is how they describe the streams and rivers when they are in spate (flood stage). 9. The beginning of our descent into Dundonnell. 10. Dad on our descent with Inverlael in the background. [Cape Wrath Trail, Scotland - April 2017 - @goalzero @zealoptics #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #soulofthewild #vsco #iPhone]
We hit some epic weather heading up towards bealach Ban a few days ago and had to wait it out in the amazing bothy (coal stove and all 🙌) at Coire Fionnaraich. The next day we made our way over the pass minus the whiteout but with the same winds. Check out my story for a quick glimpse of our day. Be sure to turn the 🔊 up! [Scotland - April 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #spiritofthewest]
Oh man, where to start. We are 91mi of the 230mi in and there are already too many stories to share. So, as to not blow up your feed, I'll keep everything to one post. We've made our way from Fort William up to Strathcarron and our days have been full of bogs, @kindsnacks, flooded trails, incredibly diverse scenery, total lack of trails, the blessed 4x4 track, rad bothies (old estate buildings left for hikers to use), and rain then sunshine then rain again all within 10mins. Still better than all of that combined have been the ever kind, hospitable, and mesmerizing to listen to Scots we've come across. • 1. Descending into Glenfinnan 2. Walking under the viaduct featured in the Harry Potter movies. Ya I freaked out a bit. 3. Our first sight of snow on the bealach (pass) Sgùrr Thuilm. 4. My dad studying the next day's route at A'Chùil bothy. 5. The Morning view of A'Chùil bothy with our friend Daniel hanging outside as we left. 6. The Finiskaig River descending to Loch Nevis. 7. Dad walking the shores of Loch Nevis. 8. The beyond cool Sourlies bothy on the shores of Loch Nevis complete with newspapers to dry your boots with, candles made from old whiskey bottles, and a desk where Tolkien wrote Lord of The Rings. Just kidding but this land is Tolkienesk to say the least. 9. Our camp just before bealach Mam Unndalain. By far our best camp yet. 10. Our descent from Bealach na Sròine to the falls of Glomach. • [Scotland - April 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #spiritofthewest]
Well, here goes. Tomorrow my father and I head out on a 230mi backpacking trip in the Scottish Highlands. A small trip for most through hikers, but the first for us at this distance. I'm psyched for the next 25 days of freeze dried meals, conversations about who knows what, bothies, and rain. Oh, and plenty of scotch. When in Rome 🥃 // I can't edit any dslr photos till I'm back in the states so I'll be posting some iPhone shots along the way. [Scotland - April 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #scotland #backpacking #WeAreAllZeal #spiritofthewest]
Chill level = 💯 [Sugarloaf - Boulder, CO - March 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #spiritofthewest #soulofthewild]
See ya in a couple months 🇺🇸! Headed to 🇫🇷 for some work and then 🇬🇧 for a 230mi backpacking trip with my dad and won’t have much access to wifi for a lot of the trip so I’ll probably be posting less than I normally do 😅. // Shot on Ektar 100 processed and scanned by the amazing @filmboxlab [Seljavallalaug, Iceland - April 2015 - #kodak #ektar100 #pentax #filmisnotdead #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #mystopover #iceland]
The laughing is basically consistent with this crew. // From recent work with @senderopc [Sugarloaf - Boulder, CO - March 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #spiritofthewest #soulofthewild]
Evening walks with the pup. // From recent work with @senderopc [Sugarloaf - Boulder, CO - March 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #spiritofthewest #soulofthewild]
Not many things beat a good hammock sesh on a warm day. // From recent work with @senderopc [Sugarloaf - Boulder, CO - March 2017 - #optoutside #getoutstayout #solarlife #explore #wanderlust #hammock #spiritofthewest #soulofthewild]
Stoked to have partnered up with a rad company that I truly believe in and that is focused on helping those in need. @Kintigo gives 10% of every purchase to organizations like @living_water, @twloha, @weareproject88, and @hopeforjusticeintl. Head over to kintigo.com to check them out and use the discount code ‘DALE’ to get 10% off your whole order. [Boulder, Colorado - December 2016 - #kintigo #withyouforyou #choosewhimsy #explore #wanderlust #endslavery #twloha]