Landlines is the powerful story of a 1000 mile healing walk, from the lochs of Scotland to England’s southwest coast. Raynor Winn and her husband once walked the South West Coast Path, when her husband Moth was diagnosed with a serious illness, and they lost their home and jobs. With nothing but their rucksacks, the…
The Natural World
A Walking Journey to Lindisfarne
To The Island of Tides is a walking memoir by an historian who travels to (and through the history of) the fated island of Lindisfarne (known today as Holy Island, a tourist attraction in Northumberland where scatty motorists have to be careful not to get washed away, if not following the tide tables). Walking from…
An Appreciation of Winter Days
Jo Grundy Winter is the time when we get the least daylight. But at least we get some. In Scandinavia, some people have developed ‘reindeer vision’ to see in the dark, because at certain times, they get no daylight at all. Did you know that ‘winter snow globes’ contain antifreeze? Never leave them near pets…
A Beginner’s Guide to Astronomy
Astronomy (not the same as astrology) is a good hobby, to learn about the solar system. What’s also important is to protect the night sky for wildlife (too much light pollution affects everything from traffic hazards to migration – sea turtles are going into car parks to lay eggs, and birds often wake up too…
A Beginner’s Guide to Stormy Weather
Heather Stillufsen If you’re old enough to remember the big storm of 1987, you know the devastation it caused (and to be fair, weather presenter Michael Fish was unfairly blamed for not predicting it). The truth was that computers were not as good back then, and he correctly said it was an extratropical cyclone. However…