Introduction
Like many other people I’ve reduced my engagements at X, formerly Twitter, after recent changes. Not for politics reasons as such, but because the platform is even more political, which I dislike.
That’s partly the reason. The other development is the insertion of Grok into X, which means a machinic rather than personal environment. Whether it will improve the politics or not I don’t know but that’s irrelevant for walking, wild flowers, photographs, hills, woods, and books.
I know great people at X and engage occasionally but the entirety of the platform is a degraded experience which changes the mood. The previous Twitter was also an awful place if you clicked inadvertently into politics, and it’s important to say that, but it was easy to avoid.
My interests are elsewhere, which is where this becomes a more useful set of notes.
There’s a also cultural shift where outdoor magazines are less relevant. Comparable with other media, Netflix for example not the BBC, you can click on demand and find free content as you wish. Curate it carefully and there’s not much difference compared to a product costing five or six pounds, and with the advantage of personalisation.
Magazines exist because of advertising revenue. Buying them means you endorse a commercial industry, encouraged with gear reviews. If you want those they are also easily found, but which in a commercial context have become entertainment content. Sleeping in a tent in the rain, in the back garden, does exactly the same thing for a hydrostatic review but few would read that compared to a walking test in the hills.
Outdoor content is also international, if so inclined. If you love an overseas area like the Pyrenees, this for example is the best I ever found.
It’s walking which interests me more than reading about it, although trip reports are good for ideas. I was talking to someone a few days ago about UK weather and they said “it’s been bad the last two years” which surprised me. I hadn’t thought about it like that, but it’s true. Winter 23/24 didn’t stop – I forget exactly when – until perhaps May. Not much spring, a poor summer with little sunshine, an average autumn, then a long winter again, not notably cold but months of cloud, rain, and gloom. More serious flooding, which happens every year. It’s been dismal.
Featured Walks
We’ve now had a few days of sunshine with light jacket and shirt only temperatures and the feeling is, certainly mine, the bad stuff is over and the year begins.
As regards what people are doing and talking about, for inspiration and ideas, here are three featured walks.
Silverdale is a lovely area north of Lancaster and below the Lake District. Cedric Robinson used to live nearby, the Morecambe Bay guide. I met with him some years ago and he told me how he saved the lives of people on the sands. The tide was rushing in fast, they hadn’t seen it, so he alerted the coast guard.
What I like about walking blogs is how quiet they are. There’s no commercial context. It’s just someone enjoying a walk, representing other people who do the same. Silverdale is worth knowing about, not if it means a several hour drive, but if it’s convenient or nearby for another trip.
The next featured walk is in mid Wales, an area rarely talked about. A few years ago I had a drive down to south Wales, meeting a friend for some walks, and was astonished at the vivid green in between. People talk about Snowdonia, including me, maybe Pembrokeshire, but not Ceredigion although it looks wonderful. The area has a character of its own. It’s not like Scotland, the Lake District, or anywhere else. The Peak District perhaps, if the hills were covered with trees. Here’s an idea for a wild camping walk. It’s an area I want to explore.
One of the best walks in the Lake District is above and around Buttermere. It was almost the last discovery walk I enjoyed, saved for a good weather day. There was a trip when I’d planned to do it, but it was dull, so I returned home and waited for sunshine. It was cold and dull a few weeks ago but you still see how good it is. For camping I recommend Syke Farm, and it seems the Youth Hostel now offer this which includes convenient access to their meals, probably cheaper and just as good as the nearby Fish Hotel where I had a red bean chilli with rice a few years ago.
Gear
I’m not a gear sort of person and have little of it. I use walking kit until it must be replaced. That meant for a year or two I continued with crotch ripped walking trousers because, I reasoned, no one was going to see it. No one did that I’m aware of.
I resisted technical walking gear thinking it was commercialised nonsense until one moment, and I remember it well maybe 20 years ago, I acknowledged why a wool jumper is inadvisable. Back from a Lake District wander (Great Gable) it was soaked with sweat and I was correspondingly cold. Not a good idea, less so if you’re in windy hills, so I started to think about “breathability.” I say this to contextualise what follows. I’m not a gear geek and avoid being so, but there are tips to share for interesting activities.
Pen, Paper, and Journal
I started writing a journal about five years ago and recommend it. About anything you like. A significant conversation, interesting line in a book, walk, nature, or reflections about life. I often link mine to I Ching study. There’s something about writing on paper which is creative and satisfying when we normally use keyboards and screens.
Some people are fascinated with pen and paper, as a hobby in itself, which is excessive but basically correct because it alters the experience. I’ve tried a few pens for journal writing, but let’s start with the note book. There are some in Asda and Lidl which are inexpensive but similar to moleskines. The paper is not so good, but the price of the latter is absurd for casual notes, so I use supermarket equivalents. These pens are beautifully smooth, which for me is essential, and the rubber grip is good. The barrel is not, because I have to grip it firmly, which is uncomfortable after twenty minutes. I’m trying these after finding very cheap pens in a pound shop. They were smoothly triangular, which works surprisingly well; although the ink wasn’t great. Kaweco are octagonal, which again is surprisingly comfortable.
North
I had an exchange with Rob Macfarlane about “north.” He said he had a strong feeling for it, Scotland specifically, I agree and wondered if this is more than geographic. It’s about high and low, Rob said, when the dramatic UK hills are at the top of the country. I remembered an article he wrote, I thought about 10 years ago, when in fact it was more like 20. He remembered his Seamus Heaney reference. I remembered some of Rob’s great words. I’d not seen that kind of hill writing before, the same with Mountains of the Mind. It wasn’t only about climbing Ben Hope, but also the long drive north.
I’m still not sure what to think about this as an idea with cultural and psychological connections. Some years ago I applied for a funded PhD with the title The Idea of the North. What does it mean? There is for example the difference between Norse and Greek gods, as an expression of geography and feeling. I’m not sure I like this, and where it leads, because there’s a severity and coldness in Thor, Odin, and Freyja compared to the human-like antics of Zeus, Mars, Aphrodite and Athena. I might produce a Conceptual Art picture for this theme, possibly including the gods.
Walk
I walked today along a path I know well and the photo you see is full of meaning. The poplars are where I saw a spring song thrush, after we were free from the pandemic lockdown. The first day I went for a long walk in the Peak District. Then I walked locally. Other people noticed and enjoyed the bird song and a man said, with unforgettable relish, “this is the best time,” meaning spring and the joy of it.