THE WILDS OF SONORA: NOT QUITE THE FINAL FRONTIER – The El Pinacate and Gran Desierto de Altar Biosphere Reserve is vast – “visible from space” vast. But its amplitude had no say in UNESCO making it a World Heritage Site – no, it owes that distinction to having an inscrutable quality: “outstanding universal value”. A fitting accolade for a place whose pleasures are otherworldly

FEAR AND LOATHING ON THE KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL – I was in a diner, somewhere close to the childhood home of Hunter S Thompson, when my hangover began to take hold.

HORSE-TREKKING WITH THE SVANS IN THE UPPER SVANETI – “Stop trying to lead him. I don’t care if you’ve ridden before. He knows the way – you don’t. If you think you know better, why don’t you carry him?”