The Outdoor World and the Coronavirus Crisis

The Cromdale Hills at dusk, April 10

My last piece on the coronavirus lockdown crisis described my personal thoughts and feelings in the face of this abrupt change to the world. Here I want to look at the practical side of how it is affecting the outdoor community, what can be done, and what is happening. I'm using outdoor community in its widest sense - writers, photographers, magazines, book publishers, guides, instructors, rangers, and more - as everyone is affected, some only slightly, some drastically. Many people are self-employed and do what they do for the love of it not for the money. They have little to fall back on. There are things we can do to support each other through this and to help the outdoor world recover as quickly as possible once the crisis is over.

The first thing to do of course is to follow social distancing and travel guidelines. The sooner this is over the better for us all. Stay away from other people. Walk from home. The hills will be there when this is all over. For their own sake and everyone elses Mountain Rescue teams need this to be the quietest time they've ever had. See Mountain Rescue England and Wales and  Scottish Mountain Rescue.

Social Media

Using social media to follow people, offer support, and stay in touch is well worthwhile. It is very reassuring to know there are people interested. We may be distant physically, we don't have to be mentally. Talking to friends, planning future trips, reminiscing about previous ones, sharing photos are all valuable.

Writers, photographers, magazines and books

This is the area that affects me directly as a writer and photographer. So far I have only lost a little work, which I'm aware makes me luckier than many others in the field. 

With book stores and many shops that sell magazines closed and people staying home anyway over the counter sales are falling, affecting the livelihoods of writers, photographers and publishers. There are ways though for readers who want to support us to do so by still buying our work.

Some publishers like Sandstone Press, Cicerone, Vertebrate and Birlinn sell direct. Many independent bookshops can deliver. Buy from them and they are more likely to still be there on the high street when the crisis ends. (I've just ordered two books from The Bookmark, my wonderful local bookstore in Grantown-on-Spey, - @BookmarkMarjory).

With magazines subscriptions are the best option, a commitment of support that allows publishers to keep producing them. You can do so for The Great Outdoors here.

Writers and photographers who maintain free to read websites often have a 'donate' or 'buy me a cup of coffee' button on their pages - there's one on this site. Contributions, however small, can make a difference and are always gratefully received.

Telling people on social media about books you like is very valuable. Word of mouth recommendations are powerful. Reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, your website or social media are also important.

Alex Roddie has written a much more thorough piece on how you can help outdoors writers. 


Guides, Instructors, Tour Leaders

Trekkers in the Himalaya

Anyone who works with people in the outdoors will have lost all their bookings for the foreseeable future. Suddenly the world is empty. Unlike writers most guides and instructors now have nothing to sell. No-one can book courses or treks or days out for the present. You can though offer support and let them know if you plan on booking in the future - again social media is a valuable tool and many have websites and are on Facebook and Twitter. BBC Scotland for the Highlands and Islands did a piece on this to which I made a small contribution. In this piece kayaking coach Zoe Newsom says "This crisis certainly brings home the fragility of our industry, and the lack of security inherent in it. We spend many thousands of hours and pounds on training, but rarely make much money from it."

Gear Companies & Outdoor Shops

Outdoor shops have also lost their income during the lockdown, except for those who sell online. They are having a hard time. With outdoor shops closed many gear companies have also closed. Some are still working and sell direct or through online shops. Those who are able have turned their expertise to making medical equipment.  The BMC has an article on this.

Hillwalkers, mountaineers, wild campers

Garden camping - I've been testing solo tents so a different one every night!

Deprived of access to the hills outdoors people have been coming up with many innovative ideas to help everyone keep going, feel involved and get through this. Climbing the equivalent of Everest on stairs, camping in the garden, making videos and more are all being turned into group activities with photos and stories shared on social media. Lightweight gear maker and online shop Valley and Peak organised garden campouts with site 'fees' going to mountain rescue. The Ordnance Survey and Ramblers both have stepping challenges, the latter as part of its Roam Sweet Home initiative. There are many other online events organised by organisations and individuals. New ones seem to pop up every day, showing imagination and ingenuity.
UKHillwalking has posted a longer article on this here.

Organisations

Keep up to date with the situation in the outdoor world.

Mountaineering Scotland
British Mountaineering Council
Ramblers

What am I doing in this garish clothing? Pre-Paramo Paramo testing.

Continuing my lockdown wander through old photographs I came across this one of me in garish clothing.  It dates from around 1990 and was taken in the Cairngorms. It's not a good photograph and I hate those colours but there is a story as to why I was wearing that jacket and trousers.

The clothing is early Nikwax Analogy, which was launched in 1992 as Paramo. I was asked by Nick Brown of Nikwax if I'd like to try and report back on some new waterproof clothing he'd developed that didn't use membranes or coatings. I jumped at the chance and was sent this very basic suit. The jacket had a simple hood with front drawcords and two lower pockets. The trousers were simple pull-on ones with a drawcord waist. I wore them on several days in the Cairngorms, in rain, sleet and snow, and was very impressed.The garments kept me dry and the breathability and comfort was astounding.

Paramo has come a long way from those prototype garments. It works just as well but the designs and fabrics have vastly improved and the colours are much, much better.

Book Review: The Munro Society Journal No.5

Formed in 2002 The Munro Society (TMS) is open to anyone who has completed the Munros. I belatedly joined last year - I should have done it sooner. One of the perks of membership is a copy of the Journal. It's not exclusive to members though and can be bought from TMS for £10 plus p&p, which I think is very good value for a 260 page book with colour photographs.

TMS describes the contents of Journal No. 5 2020 as an eclectic mix and it really is. There are stories of hill rounds (not just Munros), exciting adventures at home and abroad including Everest and the John Muir Trail, and several historical articles plus photos of all the artwork for the Munro Legacy Exhibition (which I wrote about here).

I haven't read all the Journal yet - this is a book you can dip in and out of - but the stuff I have read is excellent. Standouts so far for me:

Robin Campbell's 'Munro the Man', about the life of Sir Hugh Munro

Current Clerk of the List Dave Broadhead telling the story of the List of Munroists kept by the SMC

Hamish Johnston on Mathew Forster Heddle who compiled a list of 3000' Scottish mountains before Munro, a list now lost

A reflective piece by Hamish Brown entitled 'Some Thoughts on early Munro-ing'

Confessions of a Bagging Granny by Margaret Squires

Alan Rowan on his year of ascents at every full moon

Humour from Peter Willimott - 'Mountaineering in East Anglia'

Di Gilbert's moving acount of life and death on Everest

Stewart Logan's account of hiking the John Muir Trail.

Munro-ing by Paddy Hirst. Fascinating republication of an article by the first woman and tenth person to complete the Munros (in 1947).

And I've still plenty left to read!

If you're an aspiring Munroist this book is full of information and inspiration. I think it will also appeal to any walker who likes to read stories and history about the hills.

The Great Outdoors began 42 years ago

A thread on Twitter started by Mark Waring - @mjdwaring - had me searching out my copies of the first issues of the magazine, which I found in an old plastic box buried under a pile of sleeping bags. Other than the cover the first issue was all black and white and printed on fairly rough matt paper. There were 70 pages, of which only 30 were editorial, the rest being advertisements, a surprising number from companies that are still around - Vango, Mountain Equipment, Karrimor, Nevisport, Optimus, Gore-Tex, Cotswold, Silva, and Berghaus - though many are long gone - Ultimate Equipment, Insulatawear, Javlin, Pointfive, Robert Saunders, MOAC, and Bukta amongst them.

Of the features Robin Adshead's first Solo Pitch column is about lightweight camping and shows that attitudes haven't changed. He writes "the dedicated lightweighter ... is constantly seeking new ways of making his kit smaller, lighter and more versatile ..... the reduction of kit is always a worthy aim". Showell Styles, author of the excellent books Backpacking in Alps and Pyrenees and Backpacking in Wales, starts a good six-part series with a look at preparation for long trips, starting and finishing his piece "so you wake up in the tent on the first morning of your backpacking journey". The Great Outdoors has always had history pieces. In the first issue this begins with an interesting piece on William Crossing, Man of Dartmoor, by H.D. Westacott.

This first issue came out just before I set off on my first really long walk, from Land's End to John O'Groats. At the time I hadn't had anything published. On my return I approached The Great Outdoors editor Roger Smith with some ideas and eventually had a short gear review published in the April 1979 issue. I had no idea then where this would lead.

Two years ago I wrote this piece on the fortieth anniversary.

Thoughts in a Strange Time

View across the woods and fields to the Cairngorms, April 6

I went shopping today. I never thought I would start a piece of writing with those words. But the act of shopping now seems significant, fraught with danger, verging on reckless. It was the first time I’d been into town for a week, the first time I’d spoken face to face with anyone, shared space with them. Keeping away from others feels unnatural, difficult. Cross the road to avoid passing someone on the pavement. Reverse down aisles in the supermarket. Other people are dangerous. I am dangerous. None of us know if we carry the invisible threat. 

Into the third week of lockdown now, with no end in sight. The reality of this open-ended state has become familiar. I feel detached, disorientated. The world has changed so fast, so drastically. Yet here at home it is much the same. Living out in the countryside I don’t see empty streets, closed shops, speeding ambulances. I see woods and fields, birds and animals, as usual. But it’s not usual. The Cairngorms glow white in the late sun. Out of reach now. I forget the strangeness as I walk in the trees looking for the first spring flowers, listen to the spirit soaring song of a thrush, catch a glimpse of a deer, then out into the fields and the beautiful wild calls of curlew and lapwing. A buzzard circles overhead. This world has not changed.

At home I sit at my desk, working. That hasn’t changed either. But I feel slightly unreal, not sure if the world will suddenly change again. The house feels solid, reassuring. Built of blocks of stone. They’re not going anywhere. House, trees, fields, wildlife. Not much else feels substantial.

Here, alone, cut-off, I am detached. Yet I’m also connected, to my local community, to the wider country, to the whole world. This affects everyone, everywhere. Whilst I exist in this strange limbo others are suffering, working hard, desperately trying to adjust. My mind expands from this solitude across countries and continents. We are one people.

The people who keep society running are being acknowledged now. This needs to last. The world has changed and when the world comes out of this it needs to stay changed. Whenever that is.

Stay safe.

The Great Outdoors Spring issue

The Spring issue of The Great Outdoors is out now. It's the first issue of the lockdown but was written and produced before this began. I guess it's best now to regard it as inspirational.

I wrote a piece on planning for the TGO Challenge in May. That's not taking place now of course but the advice will be useful next year! Or of course for other long walks that become possible once the lockdown is eased.

The lockdown has changed much, including the fortunes of magazines like The Great Outdoors. With many shops that sell it closed the best way for regular readers to help keep it going is to subscribe - which you can do here.

Back to this issue. In the Gear Pages I review ten pairs of three-season walking boots plus Mountain Hardwear's all-white Lamina Eco AF 15F/-9C sleeping bag. Coffee afficiando Daniel Neilson reviews three coffee makers for the outdoors. I'll be getting one of these! After years of deliberation I've finally decided I want decent coffee on the hills so I found this review very useful.

The theme of this issue is the Munros and the cover picture by Dougie Cunningham is of Buachaille Etive More, undoubtedly one of the finest of them. The lead article is a moving piece by Sarah Jane Douglas, author of Just Another Mountain, about climbing all the Munros and the solace the hills bring. In another major feature David Lintern links together a host of Glen Affric Munros in a high-level backpacking trip. There's a Q&A with Kevin Woods about his winter round, which he has finished since this interview. James Forrest, who recently completed his first round, talks to four Munroists about their bagging adventures. There are also lists of the five most difficult and five easiest Munros, which are sure to start some debate!

Away from the Munros the open picture spread is a dramatic shot of two scramblers on Crib Goch in Snowdonia. Ten TGO contributors pick their favourite walks for beginners. There's a look at Capel Curig in Snowdonia. Roger Smith reviews The Last Blue Mountain by Ralph Barker and Alan Rowan reviews Feet And Wheels To Chimborazo by Mark Horrell. Roger Smith calls for proper funding for footpaths. Jim Perrin's Mountain Portrait is Mweelrea in Co.Mayo in Ireland. I've never been there. It sounds wonderful! In the Lake District Andrew Galloway attempts the notorious Broad Stand on Scafell. Far away from our hills Phoebe Smith goes hiking with humpback whales on Dirk Hartog Island in Australia. Thinking about overseas trips Hanna Lindon looks at minimising the environmental cost.

More desert reminiscences - on this day on the Arizona Trail

Twenty years ago on this day I woke after a night under the stars to bird song then spent the day walking through the Superstition Mountains on the Arizona Trail. In my journal I wrote: "a great day, but long and hard ..... mainly due to the very rough, rugged terrain, but also the scenery - I spent some time looking and photographing".

 
Mostly I was in red rock desert but in Cottonwood Canyon "suddenly and delightfully it became a deciduous woodland in spring with fresh grass, clover and even dangling wild grape vines under a canopy of freshly green sycamores, oaks and cottonwoods. Through this narrow strip of verdant luxury runs Cottonwood Creek, a spring-fed stream. Through the trees saguaros and other cactii can be seen on desert hillsides, a strange juxtaposition. In places saguaros and cottonwoods are only feet apart." Water in the desert is always a wonder. Soon the stream faded into the stones, the greenery went with it, and I was back in the desert under the harsh sun.