I remember standing on a peat bog in the Lake District three years ago, waist-deep in freezing sludge, trying to secure a dead hedge while …
The Complete Guide to Conservation Volunteering
Washing Technical Kit Without Wrecking It
I’ve spent more hours than I can count watching people spend five hundred pounds on a top-tier hardshell, only to ruin it three months later …
Species Arriving Earlier and Moving North
I was standing on a scree slope in the Cairngorms last Tuesday, nursing a thermos and checking my raptor log, when I realized the silence …
Campsite or Wild: Choosing for the Trip You Want
I remember a Tuesday in late October, somewhere in the Cairngorms, when the wind was coming off the plateau with enough force to strip the …
The Complete Guide to Gardening for Wildlife
I spent a decade as a ranger watching people spend hundreds of pounds on “biodiversity kits” and designer bird feeders, only to wonder why the …
Camping Well Without Spending Hundreds
I spent most of my twenties watching well-meaning hikers walk into a mountain gear shop and walk out three thousand pounds lighter in the wallet, …
Where You Can Actually Walk and Why
I remember standing in a sodden sheep pasture three years ago, staring at a hand-painted sign that effectively told me my presence was a crime, …
Cleaning Your Boots Between Catchments
I remember standing on a peat bog in the Lake District three years ago, waist-deep in a soak that felt like it would never end, …
Repairing a Jacket Instead of Replacing It
I was halfway up a scramble in the Cairngorms, soaked to the bone and shivering, when I heard that unmistakable, sickening rip of my hardshell …
Leave No Trace, Interpreted Honestly
I remember standing on a ridge in the Cairngorms three years ago, watching a group of perfectly geared-up hikers stare blankly at a darkening sky, …