The Great Outdoors July issue: two-person tents, camping kit, Inov8 boots

The July issue of The Great Outdoors has just been published. I review ten two-person tents (see pictures below), look at wild camping kit, and test the Inov8 Roclite 325 boots. Also in the gear section Judy Armstrong reviews six sleeping mats and Will Renwick looks at three sleeping bags at different price points. In the Hill Skills section Huw Oliver of Glenmore Lodge looks at bikepacking and packrafting and there are interviews with packrafters. In Hill Walk & Shop Talk David Lintern visits the excellent Braemar Mountain Sports and goes for a walk up Creag Choinnich with shop manager Peter Laurence. Finally in gear Outdoor Gear Coach looks at the history and development of waterproof fabrics.

Roger Smith has several items in this issue: on the early nineteenth century hillwalker Ellen Weeton; an obituary of the late Walt Unsworth, founder of Cicerone Press, mountaineer, and writer; a look at his favourite hill names; and a comment piece on a threat to Welsh National Parks.

Elsewhere there's a round-up of information on this year's TGO Challenge (youngest person 19, oldest 77!); and an interview with Hugh Thomson whose new book describes his walk on Wainright's Coast-to-Coast with a pack mule.

Following David Lintern's piece in the previous issue on testing the camping byelaws in Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park there's a response from the park's Chief Executive Gordon Watson. I'll be interested to see the comments on this!

Hill stories in this issue are spread across the British Isles. In Mountain Portraits Jim Perrin describes Snowdon, a hill he has climbed more than any other. Far north of Wales Alan Rowan enjoys the magnificent Coigach Round in the North-West Highlands while down in England Jon Sparks walks the limestone ridges of the South-East Lake District. Across the Irish Sea Brian McCready shows the beauty of the Mountains of Mourne in a photo-essay. On the Isle of Skye Fiona Russell tackles the formidable Inaccessible Pinnacle on the Cuillin Ridge. Ed Byrne is down in Yorkshire, counting bees on the Blacka Moor nature reserve outside Sheffield.

The pictures below show some the tents reviewed in this issue on test in the Cairngorms and on Creag Meagaidh.