The Eye of the Storm
Inspirational Walks Near You
Making my solitary way through spectacular wildernesses, I am often tempted to move my life out onto the trail, without lock, stock or barrel, alone with the elements and completely free of the stresses and strains of community life.
Contemplating the idea gives rise to an interesting variation on the theme of “If a tree falls in the forest and there's no-one there to hear it, does it make a sound?” If I live alone without any kind of human contact, am I alive?
Philosophy aside, currently it is not a possibility. There are people in my life, I need a base, I need a home, if it's only a part-time one. And with a home come bills. And with bills comes the need to earn money. I'm looking for someone to pay me just to explore Britain's wildernesses (roll up, roll up!); but meanwhile I have one or two editors paying me for writing up the scaled-down-but-still-inspirational wildernesses just around the corner from where you live. To date it has been just in south west England; but my most recent contract opens up a lot of new areas to me. Watch this space!
Click on an area for a few ideas of where to walk and what to see.