Just An Idea.

“Travelling, hiking, climbing, alpinism, trekking....wandering. I’ve been obsessed with the idea and the notion of exploration and adventure since I was old enough to read. I’ve not changed much in the past 12 years and still obsess over watching documentaries, reading books and pretty much anything to do with the outdoors. I’m hoping, planning and pushing myself to take more steps towards pursuing a career in the outdoors. This means pushing myself to learn, train and travel more. Through this I want to meet more people and use photography to document this lifestyle. It’s not going to happen immediately. I know that this idea is a long term project and in fact I know that the first major steps will be taken nearer the end of this year. So for now it’s baby steps.”

Is This Where We Belong?

I so often miss these views, the walks, the cafes and pubs. Warm fires and cold toes from sodden socks. Misty hilltops shrouded in a winter squall tempt me out to be battered by wind and rain. But here it is that my heart is drawn back too. Perhaps not forever but for now I think about the birds singing in the trees and the rolling hills disappearing off into the distance.

In Hindsight

It’s often the case that we spend a lot of time thinking about all the things we could’ve done. Recently I’ve been focusing on taking my first steps in having a career in outdoor education. On applying for jobs and enrolling on outdoor courses I’ve realised in hindsight there are so many things I could’ve done to help me prepare for this but due to my own lack of confidence, self belief and ignorance I’ve been left with no formal experience. I’ve been rock climbing since I was 8 years old and spending as much time outside as possible. I’d daydream about mountains and far off wilderness whilst I was at school or imagine I was on some epic road trip. During collage I’d go skateboarding and snowboarding as often as I could or go for walks on my own through the hills back home, always with my camera in hand. In school I could’ve started my Duke of Edinburgh training or made more of an effort to say yes rather than be nervous about a bad outcome. In collage I could’ve gone on trips and met new people. I could’ve gone to America to work in a summer camp as a photographer but left it too late. I’ve stopped myself from experiencing so many things because I think I will fail. Now I’m here writing up a new CV, the first one I’ve written properly since school 7 years ago. There’s nothing formal I can use to help me gain a footing in the outdoor industry. There’s a passion, a real internal passion to learn more, experience more and be able to teach people. I just hope that this year I can keep the promise to myself that I will start saying yes to opportunities and taking risks.

A Day on the Beach at Berwick - 18/01/2020

A day out at Berwick to visit steampunk coffee and walk by the sea. We spent most of the day by the fire in the cafe, drinking coffee and eating food talking about the Now and about the future. Then to the beach for a chilly walk by the sea and exploring rock pools.

Oak Tree

November 19th 2019

I recently read a poem about growing up and how we can relate it to that of an oak tree. We grow, slowly and beautifully. All of a sudden your leaves start to fall and you’re left shivering in the cold. The days just get darker and colder. There are days shrouded in fog, drenched in rain and covered in frost. Some days there are brief moments of colour at dawn and dusk. The night comes too quickly. But soon enough you’ll start growing again, brighter and older. Maybe we’ll have learnt something and maybe we’ll be wiser. Autumn will come again all the same and we endure. Over and over again the cold and the snow come to batter us. Weather worn we will grow but growing doesn’t have to be all about age. It’s living, getting older slowly with grace and virtue. It’s about dealing with the dark days and coming back stronger because of it.