Sidetracked
Sidetracked is a British adventure travel and extreme sports magazine published from London. Founded as an online journal in 2011 and moving into print in 2014, it has built its reputation on personal stories of expeditions, exploration and journeys in wild places, told in the words and photographs of the people who lived them. Published by Captive Minds Communications Group and led by founder and editor-in-chief John Summerton, Sidetracked is widely regarded as one of the standout titles of the independent adventure publishing scene, with The Guardian naming it one of the best independent travel magazines shortly after its first print issue appeared. Each volume is a large-format, perfect-bound journal filled with long-form writing and dramatic photography, designed to capture the emotion and experience of adventure and to inspire readers to seek out their own journeys.
Overview
Sidetracked is an online and print magazine whose stated aim is to capture the experience of adventure travel and extreme sports through personal stories. The concept is deliberately simple: rather than commissioning travel writers to report on expeditions from the outside, the magazine collects first-person accounts of remarkable long-distance journeys and inspirational expeditions, presented by the men and women who undertook them. The result is a publication that reads more like an anthology of expedition literature than a conventional travel magazine. Its home is London, its language is English, and its website is www.sidetracked.com. The print edition appears several times a year in a handsome bookazine format, and the title also operates the Sidetracked Adventure Fund, which awards an annual grant to explorers.
Founding and Origins
Sidetracked was founded and produced by John Summerton, a web designer based in the United Kingdom. Summerton had been working in web design for more than twelve years when he started the project, and he had long kept a personal to-do list item to tell inspiring stories of adventure and exploration. He launched Sidetracked as a website in June 2011, and the site quickly gained a reputation for its sleek layout and strong original photography. The online edition established a loyal following among the adventure community, but Summerton, who describes himself as having a penchant for print, decided to create a material version of the popular site. The first print edition was released in 2014 and sold out within a few weeks, confirming that an appetite existed for a slow, beautifully made adventure journal in an era dominated by fast digital content.
The Move into Print
The launch of the print journal in April 2014 marked the moment Sidetracked moved from a respected website to a recognised independent magazine brand. The debut volume ran to 132 pages, perfect bound and printed in full colour on FSC-approved uncoated 140gsm paper in the United Kingdom. Summerton has said that holding a physical copy in hand and flicking through the smooth, uncoated stock is an experience that cannot be replicated in the digital domain, and that the goal was to create something timeless, something that oozes quality and deserves to be kept on the bookshelf or the coffee table. The independent print scene was thriving at the time, and Sidetracked positioned itself at its quality-driven end, with an unwavering focus on content as the key to its success. Later volumes, from Volume 2 through Volume 23 and beyond, have kept the same production values: long-form stories, generous photography and a book-like physical presence.
Editorial Content, Storytelling and Themes
Each volume of Sidetracked is a collection of personal stories of adventure travel, exploration, journeys and expeditions. Typical features include bikepacking across the Hardangervidda plateau in Norway, skiing in Afghanistan, packraft descents of remote rivers, polar crossings, climbing in the high Himalaya and journeys through seldom-visited regions such as Siberia, the Surin Islands and Pripyat. The magazine covers expeditions on every continent and in every medium of human-powered travel: on foot, by bike, by ski, by boat and by climbing rope. Volume 10, for example, followed photographer Chris Burkard to Iceland during one of the worst storms in a very long time, revisited surviving cultures in the Surin Islands, followed a running expedition through the Amazon rainforest, climbed in China and reported on adventurers pioneering the return of tourism to war-torn countries. Volume 9 packed readers into a journey to Siberia, a dive among sharks in the kelp forests of South Africa, a packraft descent of the Coco River in Nicaragua, high alpine trails in Bolivia and a crossing of Baffin Island by fair means.
Across its volumes, Sidetracked returns to a set of recurring themes: survival, trust, reflection, community and belonging. Volume 21 explored the meaning of trust in adventure through groundbreaking journeys, pioneering ascents, endurance in the face of escalating challenges and moments of quiet beauty in nature. Volume 23 examined how adventure can transform the lives of individuals and communities and deepen understanding of the non-human life that shares the world with humanity. Volume 16 was framed around reflection, arguing that adventure has always been a means of seeing something deep inside ourselves, examining how we relate to the world around us and where we intend to go from here. This reflective, almost philosophical register distinguishes Sidetracked from gear reviews and destination guides: the journeys matter less for their logistics than for what they reveal about the people who make them and the places they pass through.
Contributors and the Expedition Community
A defining characteristic of Sidetracked is that its stories are told and presented by the incredible men and women who undertook the expeditions themselves. The magazine draws on a global group of adventurers, writers and photographers who are looking to challenge the truth and beauty of the world around them. Volume 16 carried Ian Finch's account of a gruelling odyssey along a 1,300-mile route in North America, reflecting on the agonising journey of the Cherokee nation forced from their homes along the same harrowing trail. Volume 21 assembled some of the best stories of adventure of its time, including 'Polar Shadows', in which Vincent Colliard and Caroline Cote faced the long, brutal night of the Arctic winter with little beyond their reliance on one another; a trek through a seldom-hiked region of Iceland by Monica Fuentes and Alberto Ojembarrena; and the attempt by Tamara Lunger and Simone Moro at the first winter crossing of two 8,000-metre Himalayan peaks, an expedition that changed Lunger's life. Explorer Ed Stafford wrote the foreword to Volume 2, which was themed around surviving moments when adversity threatens to overwhelm.
Editorial Team
The magazine is led by founder and editor-in-chief John Summerton, who also produces and designs the journal. The wider editorial team has included editor Alex Roddie, photo editor Martin Hartley, deputy editor Jenny Tough and sub-editor Emily Woodhouse, with contributing editors including Daniel Neilson, Tom Hill and Harriet Folkes. The small, dedicated team reflects the independent character of the title: decisions about content and design are made close to the source, and the emphasis on photography gives the photo desk a central role in shaping each volume. The team works with contributors around the world, commissioning and curating stories that fit the journal's themes of endeavour, endurance and reflection on humanity's relationship with wild places.
Publishing and Frequency
Sidetracked is published by Captive Minds Communications Group. The print journal is issued several times a year and is catalogued as a tri-annual publication, with volumes numbered sequentially: Volume 2, Volume 5, Volume 9, Volume 10, Volume 16, Volume 21 and Volume 23 are all documented editions. Each volume is sold through the magazine's own channels and through specialist independent magazine retailers, and back issues are traded among collectors. The online journal at www.sidetracked.com continues to publish stories and photography between print editions, and the brand maintains an active presence on social media, where it shares expedition imagery and promotes each new volume to its worldwide readership.
The Sidetracked Adventure Fund
In addition to publishing stories about expeditions, Sidetracked actively supports new exploration through the Sidetracked Adventure Fund. The fund gifts an annual grant to explorers, extending the magazine's mission from documenting adventure to enabling it. The initiative reflects the title's roots in the expedition community: rather than simply reporting on other people's journeys, the magazine invests in the next generation of journeys. The fund has become a recognised part of the Sidetracked identity and is promoted alongside each new volume, reinforcing the publication's standing as a participant in, rather than a mere observer of, the adventure world.
Critical Recognition
Sidetracked received critical acclaim almost immediately after its first print issue appeared. The Guardian listed it as one of the best independent travel magazines in April 2014, shortly after the release of the debut volume, an endorsement that carried significant weight with the independent publishing community. The culture publication Cool Hunting profiled the magazine as an ode to intrepid journeys that place inspiration over itinerary, praising its honest accounts and awe-inspiring imagery. Over the course of its first year, the title gathered praise from readers and commentators alike, and the developers of the second issue noted the overwhelming response from a readership reaching the far corners of the world. The foreword to Volume 2, written by explorer Ed Stafford, framed the journal as being about true passion, understanding the world around us and realising where our place is in it.
Audience, Readership and Official Website
Sidetracked's readership is international, with the magazine noting that its audience reaches the far corners of the world. Readers are typically outdoor enthusiasts, expedition followers, photographers and travellers who value depth over novelty and who keep the journals on their shelves long after reading them. The title's emphasis on timeless, high-quality content rather than disposable news means each volume has a long shelf life, and back issues remain in demand. By presenting endeavours from a global group of adventurers, writers and photographers, the magazine has built a community of readers who share its conviction that adventure is beautiful, that it can give lives meaning, and that stories of expeditions can inspire others to challenge the unknown in their own way.
Official Website and Further Information
The official website of Sidetracked is www.sidetracked.com, where readers can explore the online journal, learn about the latest print volume and find information about the Sidetracked Adventure Fund. The site carries the full archive of the magazine's digital storytelling alongside details of current and back issues. Based in London and published by Captive Minds Communications Group, Sidetracked remains an independent voice in adventure publishing, committed to capturing the emotion and experience of some of the most breathtaking expeditions and endeavours taking place throughout the world, and to inspiring its readers through them.
