iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Done. Now I just want to eat and read - after a dog walk 🤣

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Ran into an old friend this evening

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Squeezed in today’s hour easy run, followed by a trundle with the hound by the river. Chilly in the valley, warm up top!

Moustachioed runner in a threadbare old favourite inov8 t shirt, posing inelegantly against a backdrop of green valleys and recently harvested tree crop

Husku-ish doggo, pootling along a riverside path

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Found a patch of what I suspect is Crocus speciosus (?) growing wild, much more strikingly marked than those in my garden. I feel some sampling is needed 🫣

Bright mauve crocus flowers amongst a swatye of assorted greenery

Striking dark purple veining inside a mauve crocus flower viewed from above, golden orange stigmas at the centre

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Resting heart rate creeping back down - though 40 feels a bit too low 👀

A bar chart showing resting heart rate. The trend over the last two weeks going steadily downwards with the most recent reading at 40 beats per minute

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Herbaceous Potentilla showing off its anthocyanins

Brilliant red leaf margins of an autumnal herbaceuous Potentilla

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

Season of Dali-esque shadows is upon us

Long legged shadows of human and mutt, the latter with a beautifully poised paw

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

I bought this almost a year ago and struggled to get into it. For some reason it’s working this time - recommended.

The cover of a book with the word SNÖ written vertically

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Mists on cue this morning, hoping for mellow fruitfulness later.

A foggy scene by a flat calm river, huskyish hound looking wistfully into the pearlescent dawn as it seeps quietly into the valley

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Zone 1 training, *amazed* I can cover 16km with 400m of ascent in 90 minutes - with a heart rate maxing at 133!! Moody skies to enjoy too

Wonky tree looming over a grassy track between snaking stone walls, all under a glowering sky

Home in the valley, a cluster of houses hunkering down for the evening amid green hills

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Nemesia seeded into a kerbside in the Tweed Valley - will we see more of this sort of garden escape in future?

A ground level view of a kerbside with assorted plants growing along the toad-kerb interface

Claret and pale yellow flowers of a Nemesia brightening up the kerbside flora

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Pickled red onion and peanut butter…a revelation 😉

A thick slice of wholemeal bread, slathered with a good swipe of crunchy peanut butter, and topped with fine rings of pickled red onion…

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

It’s that time of year…

A tray of scarlet chillies drying quietly to themselves in the light of a fan assist oven

Preserving pan full of chopped plums, apples, pears, onions, and prunes - complete with an oversized wooden paddle

Tarry, mysterious gloop bubbling and steaming into dark savoury goodness

wafer thin slivers of red onion, bathed in a salty vinegar. Not a trace of creosote

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 04/09/2026

Always a relief to know the starter survived whilst I was off gadding about

A crusty sourdough boule, crackling fresh from the oven

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

Refuelling thanks to top notch dog sitter. Happy days.

A plate brimming with a vegan brekkie: Hash browns, baked beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, sausages and a squeeze of ketchup

Husky-ish dog, sprawled on a rug on a wooden floor

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Couldn’t leave Sweden without some salty liquorice 🤤

A pack of violet flavoured salty liqourice, or floral hand soap flavour for some

A pack of salty juniper liqourice, tastefully packaged as the sweets of Midgard….

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

And that’s a wrap. After 5.5 days and 267 km of Arctic autumnal bliss I shuffled into Abisko at lunchtime today. All a bit emotional after bailing last year. What next 🤔

Lakeside trail with a sky foretelling rain and high winds

Mountainsides covered with shrubby grey leaved willows, autumnal yellow dwarf bitch, and scarlet Arctic bearberry and Bilberry

A frothing river streaming over grey rocks, banks lined with yellow and red tints of autumn amid the green

Slightly haggard looking runner in a bright red smelly Helly Hansen trying not to look like hes been through the mill

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 29/08/2026

Day five became a 61k epic, fuelled by ramen. You don’t have to be mad to do this stuff - but it sure helps

Glowering skies, boardwalk into the distance, mountains and golden heathland

Ramen noodles in a posh titanium mug, with mountains

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

First half of day four in the bag, chill for four hours til the next boat then another 16km or so - and potentiall a row if I’m not fleet of foot (which is quite likely)

Emergency shelter nestled in a green landscape

I have no words for the vastness of this view

Happy trail runner, complete with panoramic views dweeping majestically into the distance

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Day 4, up at 5 to make boat crossing number 1. Breakfast needed!!

Bathed in golden light, a determined trail runner up before the lark to make a boat at 0800, via a 500m ascent and descent

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Day three, a dawn start to grab an early boat to Kvikkjokk

Rowan blazing scarlet among still green birches beside a gravelly trail

Boardwalk through wet spruce forest in morning light

Bracket fungus, with concentric growth rings

Morning light filtering down into a mossy birch forest, a small waterfall in the muddle distance

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Bit of an exposed night - but ooof, what a trail 😊

A Durston X-Mid1 tent plonked in a hugely exposed pitch atop an Arctic plateau

Beanie on happy hill runner snugged amid pack vomit

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

Still a few flowers about 😊

Eyebright flowers, lilac petals striped with find purple nectar guides and an eggy yellow-white centre

Sunshine yellow buttons of Tansy, with obliging bumblebee

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Two days resting up and eating - tough job, but I’ll give it my best shot!

A small grey green tent pitched on green grass, sunshine and blueskies

A wooden pontoon, a gently rippling lake and a fine blue sky with a some gentle vloudage

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

Good job I bought the orange jacket, I’d hate to clash. Bit of metalwork for @lakesstiles.bsky.social

Grinning Loon (well, my grandad was from Aberdeen after all). trying to blend in with a big orange sign for Luleå

Swedish cousins of the Clydeside cranes, silhouetted by a Scandi noir sky

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

No rest for the wicked, or for me. Pre trip ‘sharpener’ hill reps 😂

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Ooof, days 1-2.5 pack contents, plus 1kg water and a small gas cylinder. Just about fits in my 30l running pack but I daren’t weigh it 🫣😂

Assorted colourful clothing for a 6.5 day run

A packed tent, sleeping pad, tent poles, purpke silk liner all nestled on an uber cosy dark blue quilt

A selection of dubious tasting dehydrated meals, a grey titanium cooking pot, tiny gas stove, and a funky long handled spoon to reach every last scrap of calories

Assorted electronic tat to while away long wet nights in the tent

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

I’ve been looking for one if these for years, and finally one turns up on an ash tree! May I present the Alder moth caterpillar complete with fascinator appendages

A black caterpillar on a green leaf, yellow bars across its length. Black appendages with spoon shaped tips project fascinator-like from its body.

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Fading leaves of Rosebay willowherb - worth a zoom in

A fading leaf of rosebay willowherb, Flushed with reds, yellows and oranges along the veins, fading finally to brown in between

Mottled greens and yellows rippling into red and brown on this fading rosebay willowherb leaf

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Running through some final gear checks. Next up, whats the smallest pan I can cook ramen noodles in… 🤔

A grey tent pitched in a parched and weedy bit of grass, canoe propped up in the background

Happy camper trying to look cool under a -6°C quilt when its 21°C, and failing

Tent packed into an unfeasibly small package, some poles, and an even smaller package containing a matress

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Apparently Im a salty sweater 🤷🏻‍♂️

Some impressive salty tidemarks on a black smelly Helly (Hansen) after a bit of exertion

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

🥵 Final long run, fully laden with tent, quilt, mattress, etc. Glas Tulaichean, and an ‘interesting’ descent to Glen Tilt. 43.5k in five hours, 1250m of ascent. Home to de-salt, rehydrate, and eat

Rolling green hills bathed in August sunshine under a blue sky with Simpsons clouds

Moustached runner, spoiling a decent view from atop Glas Tulaichean, a Cairngorms Munro

A sketchy patch weaving away into the distance through heather and grass

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Bread making back to normal after struggling to control fermentation with the recent heat ☺️

a crusty freshly baked spurdough boule, crackling as it cools

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Brothers from different mothers - Bracken making a new pal at lunchtime

A white, sandy and black coated husky type dog and a donkey with similar colouring going nose to nose, both with ears peeked

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

Another end of summer holidays feeling morning; cool air, warm sun on my back.

Muted browns of hogweed seeds backlit by morning sunshine

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

The sound of dry old knuckle bones of summer

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 26/07/2026

Another long run in the bag; 32.9km, 3h12m, 950m uppage, all carrying 5kg. Four hours and another .5kg in tue backpack next week 🥵

A band of weather closing in fast, veiling the purple heather clad hills and narrow track heading off into the distance

Some watery-eyed runner with a bunch of moss or perhaps a stray caterpillar on his upper lip

Muddy calves and the off vein or two, with some surprisingly clean trail shoes…

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

A fine saturday run, complete with some big boy toys (or technosaurs, depending on your imagination)

A large piece of caterpillar-tracked forestry machinery, mechanical neck extending out to a vicious set of cutting mandibles. Theres also a nice view of a valley and hills in the background

A dry stony track dropping downhill between grassy banks pink with fireweed. Shapely hill off to the right

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

I’m loathe to say I enjoyed that set of hill reps, but it wasn’t quite as grim as recently. Still a bit warm though 🥵

A view down into a green(ish) valley under a patchy layer of cloud.

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Road verge botany turns up some gems, Darmera peltata looking very at home here in the southern uplands (plenty of what is almost certainly Crocosmia Lucifer in the vicinity too)

Large shiny leaves nestling amongst grasses on a road verge.

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Matt P @bertolicus.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

🥵🥵 Feeling decidedly salt crusted after that. I thought the heat was meant to be dialling back?!

A steep hill with a stone wall running up to the summit, which is more than I was doing

Blue and white Saltire atop Lee Pen (a hill) with extensive views down into the Tweed Valley and the hills beyond

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