-
Myths And Legends At Tintagel
There is more than just a sense of history as we approach the remains of the castle: Tintagel is the home of legends and mysteries, of royalty, magic and intrigue. Its setting is utterly dramatic on the colossal Atlantic coastline where rocky cliffs tower above the relentless ocean, the ruins split in half where erosion has broken through the rocks to turn a former headland into an island. Consequently half of the ruins of this complicated structure remain on the Cornish mainland, the other half on the island joined to the land by a bridge of recent construction. The voices of history echo in the walls and outcrops, the wind…
-
February Days In England
The stillness of a windless February day in England is a stillness unlike any other. Even the most stirring of places becomes a sensory underload, sound deadened by the absence of birdsong, colours diluted like too-thin water paints, no breeze to carry scents, no leaves to decorate the woodland. Gorse splashes its yellow blotches on to the clifftops but carries no fragrance, its delectable musk scent absent yet for another month or two. Gulls’ cries sound forlorn and lonely, the occasional rasp of a jackdaw only serves to accentuate the stillness. If a skylark takes flight, its song is truncated, a burst of panic more than a trill of joy.…
-
The Mighty Panama Canal
The narrow, eel-like shape of the isthmus which is Panama, plus the layout of its network of roads, means that we will be passing through the capital city several times over the next few weeks, and no visitor can come here even once without taking in one of the 20th century’s greatest engineering achievements. Of the several available ways to experience the mighty Panama Canal, the best is reputed to be to pass through the locks on what is known as a transit boat. Be prepared to commit a day to it though: the operation of the locks is a slow process made even slower by waiting for the larger…
-
Changing Times, Different Moods
It definitely didn’t used to be like this, not when we were kids. Growing up in the Midlands – Michaela in the West Midlands and me in Derbyshire – it was cold by now and it had been so for weeks. October got progressively colder, frosts a regular morning feature, whitened cobwebs draped like lace across rockery plants and garden shrubs, the walk to school taking place with the protection of coats, hats, scarves, gloves. Hallowe’en was a non-event, just another night in the build up to Guy Fawkes Night aka Bonfire Night, but by the time we were standing back and watching the pyrotechnics light up the night sky,…
-
California Dreamin’
All the leaves are brown, and the sky is grey I’ve been for a walk on a winter’s day I’d be safe and warm if I was in LA California dreamin’, on such a winter’s day. Four years ago, in October 2017, my sons and I waved a tearful farewell to my daughter Lindsay as she disappeared through the barrier at Heathrow and set off to begin a new life in Los Angeles. At that point, as she gave one last look over her shoulder and headed off to a brave new world, I never thought for one moment that it would be more than four years till I saw…
-
Cornwall Coastal Path
When you really fall in love with a walk, when you genuinely do have a favourite, your love of it doesn’t diminish with the number of times you walk it, in fact, if anything, you love it just a little bit more each time. And this is one of my favourite walks, probably anywhere, and Michaela has now fallen for it too. It’s still a little cold for the time of year here in the UK and England is struggling to shake off the winter; even on a beautiful day like today, the air has a crispness to it which is normally gone by mid April. But today, set relatively…
