It’s been a busy few weeks with a lightening trip to the Lake District, a trip to Edinburgh and a spate of writing to finish. Somehow I’ve managed to get this newsletter out early too, to be before the Easter break takes us all away.
The Lake District was too brief – isn’t it always – and Edinburgh was snowy, which was fine. It was the place where I first came across snow many years ago and found it was wet, much to my surprise as an African.
I put a first draft of the story of Jack Catchpool’s life, his adventures and travels, to its finish on time, on schedule and as expected. Isn’t it lovely when a plan comes together? It was a cause of celebration, chastened a little by knowing a lot more work lies ahead.
Readers shouldn’t expect to be reading it soon. It will have a complete new draft, a rewrite, an edit, proof reading, layouts, images, and more. At least another year before it’s done.
As a taster, you can read a short instalment about Jack Catchpool’s efforts to overcome fears about youth hostels when they started in 1930. Radical roots and all that.
I wrote a short history history of independent hostels for Sam and her team at the Independent Hostels Guide, over the hill from where I live. Amazing to think indie hostels were once so radical we called them pirates! You can read the full piece here on the Independent Hostels UK site.
I also wrote about the Trevelyan and Dower family and their links with national parks. They were a family to be reckoned with. You can read the piece here.
I loved this video of a visit to a bothy. If you love wild places, mountains or bikes, I can’t encourage you enough to watch it! Watch the video, dream and enjoy here.
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