I wonder how many of us can remember the first really big hill we climbed? That experience of wonder and passion as you look down from the summit to see an expanse of greens and blues below and above. There is no doubt in my mind that whatever our personal beliefs, feeling the beauty and power of landscape unencumbered by machines and human noise is one of life’s great spiritual connections. It’s about love.

The first big hill I climbed, at about 12 years old, was Snowdon. Subsequently, I have had the privilege to visit the Andes and walk up to a point near Machu Picchu. I could look down 3,000 metres to a river bed and lush tropical forest, and up 2,500 metres to massive snowy peaks, all the while knowing that it had taken me four days on foot just to get there. What a sensation! The fact that you sweated your way up the hill and burst your lungs to arrive at that point becomes an integral part of the experience. It was all worthwhile.

It’s entirely natural that we would want our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to be able to feel that same wonder. And therein lies the core of sustainability: we want to keep the world for future generations. But do we stop to think at any point on our hikes about the fuel we burned to arrive at the start of our walk, or the energy and materials consumed in the clothing we wore to protect us from squalls and downpours? Or the wear on the pathway that we used to bring us to that point, that may be destroying the very hills that we care for so much?

Walkers are as concerned with the bigger picture of global warming and environmental manufacturing as they are with footpaths and countryside protection. We all want to be green, but we need to tread a path between being an environmental Taliban or eco-puritan and being an irresponsible outdoor hedonist. We must not ban the music of trekking in wild places, but equally we should keep 4×4 drivers out of irreplaceable avian habitats in wetland national parks.

So here are my top five steps for going greener:

• Get yourself more informed, and therefore motivated. Become more aware and you will become more motivated to act. I was spurred to act when I attended an international conference in Perth in 2005 about change in the mountains. That was when I first appreciated the scale of the problem through listening to informed scientists from the Mountain Research Institute. If you want to read more about environmental change, the BBC News, Met Office, and New Scientist websites are excellent.

•Start small and improve. Continuous, small improvements are infinitely better than no improvement. Just getting a few more waste bins for your kitchen is a small investment which makes recycling easier. At Nikwax, we have reduced our energy consumption and are now putting in solar panels and using rainwater for some of our production.

•Support companies that take the environment seriously. A retailer once told me: “We want to be seen to be green, so you need to make your label greener.” I nearly boiled over! Look deeper than the eco-label – progress is about empirical, measurable, verifiable action. Starting questions might be: Does the company have a corporate and social responsibility document? Are they audited? Do they declare how they measure their environmental impact? If any of the answers are no, then you may as well ignore their environmental claims.

•Support people who communicate the importance of the environment and work on protecting it. Get involved in spreading the word: sustainability is not about pain and self-flagellation, it’s about intelligent living and looking after the global family. Working with a green organisation is a good idea. Nikwax and Páramo support the World Land Trust and use them to offset carbon emissions. I am on the governing body of EOCA, the European Outdoor Conservation Association, which collects money from outdoor companies to support conservation projects.

•Don’t get stuck in the past. We’ve already changed our environment and massive change is now inevitable. But a sustainable approach is about adaptation and conservation in a changing world, and approaching life in this way will ensure a brighter future for our global family.

Finally, remember that none of us can be perfect. But if we aim for continuous improvement and positive compromise, there is a chance of a better future for the generations to come.

£85
✆ 01702 541 741 www.hi-tec.com

+ We absolutely love the number of eco-friendly innovations built into these boots – you can read about them in our first look review. What’s most impressive is how this hasn’t driven up the price, as often happens with premium eco-friendly products. Unlike some other reviewers, we’ve found Hi-Tec’s ion-mask™ waterproofing flawless so far, although admittedly our longest walk to date in them was in the bone-dry moutains of La Palma, on the Canary Islands.

– As mentioned on first glance, some of the cosmetic touches aren’t perfect – but considering this is due to their improved environmental credentials we feed bad even mentioning them. Unlike some other reviewers, we found them a bit painful to break in, with stiff areas around the ankles slow to soften.

VERDICT: An excellent value boot with very impressive eco-improvements – great if you are concerned about the footprint of your footprints! Let’s hope some of these ideas roll out to other Hi-Tec products and beyond, making walking even greener in the future.

]]> http://www.walkmag.co.uk/gear/hi-tec-altitude-enviro/feed/ 0 http://www.walkmag.co.uk/news/editors-wish-list-winter-2010/ http://www.walkmag.co.uk/news/editors-wish-list-winter-2010/#comments Tue, 23 Nov 2010 14:50:14 +0000 Chris Hatherill http://www.walkmag.co.uk/news/editors-wish-list-winter-2010/ WALK… the Pembrokeshire Coast Path
Not only is the superlative Welsh national trail celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, it’s also just been voted the second best coastal destination in the world by the National Geographic Society – beaten only by the Avalon Peninsula in Newfoundland. Of course, walkers have long-known how special the area is. So who better to recommend a tour than Pembrokeshire Ramblers, whose stunning circular walk around Bosherston Lily Ponds and the Stackpole Estate is one of 75 favourites in Ramblers Best Walks Britain. It’s the perfect Christmas gift and a donation is made from each book sold. Buy your copy at ramblers.eclector.com and save 10% on the RRP.

VISIT… The Outdoors Show
Europe’s biggest indoor event for outdoors hobbyists has made the move to London for its 10th birthday. It’s moved to an earlier date, too, and will run alongside the London Bike and International Boat shows at the ExCel Centre, so visitors can see all three events on one ticket. All the usual favourites will be there but the walk Reader Awards will be taking a break and return to the show next year. We’ve still got a special offer for walk readers, though, and I hope to see you in London for the awards in 2012!

Book adult tickets for just £12 (£18 on the door), or two for £22, by quoting ‘WALK1‘ on ✆ 0870 405 0447 or at www.theoutdoorsshow.co.uk

KEEP…  Britain’s forests open
While the fallout from the Government’s spending review has yet to be fully realised, one outcome that has been confirmed is the Forestry Commission’s plans to sell off some of its 809,000ha of woodland. I’ve loved kicking my way through the colourful fallen leaves in my local woods this autumn, and I really hope any new buyers will preserve the public’s right of access to the vast majority of Forestry Commission woodland, which was dedicated as open access land following the Ramblers’ campaigning a decade ago. The Ramblers is now urging the Government to give local communities first refusal on forestry sales and ensure that any purchase is subject to guaranteed public access.

Read more about the Ramblers’ position at www.ramblers.org.uk/Campaigns+Policy

Top image of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path by Dara Jasumani / Geograph.

Designed with the environment and your feet in mind, the boots were ‘inspired by’ and launched in association with the National Trust. Both the boots and their packaging are made from natural and recycled materials, with green touches throughout. It starts with the box…

Made from 80% recycled cardboard and, of course, 100% recyclable it’s printed with soy-based inks and comes from an FSC-certified supplier. There’s also a clever fold-out handle than means you don’t need a plastic bag to carry them home, and the wrapping is eco-friendly too. In fact, the only thing we had to put in the rubbish bin was a small, thin plastic sheet, but even this can be recycled if your local recycling collection accepts such items. Opening the box reveals another nice little surprise…

… a small tag on the boots is made from recycled, natural paper – and seeded with wildflowers to help start your own little meadow!

But on to the serious stuff – the actual boots themselves. On initial inspection the Altitude IV WPi NT Enviro looks much like the other boots in Hi-Tec’s range, most notably, of course, the V-Lite Altitude Ultra WPi on which it’s based. Look a bit closer, though, and the eco-friendly features stand out. The most obvious is the recycled rubber outsole, which is made from 15% post consumer waste and thus flecked with little white and grey bits. That, and the slightly foamy-looking tongue and scree collar is our only cosmetic complaint – but well worth the minor trade-off when you considering you’re helping to save the entire planet!

The uppers are constructed using water-based cements, and finished with naturally-dyed, reduced-chrome leather; avoiding the heavy chemical mix required in conventional tanning. Another nice – and equally unnoticable – touch are the recycled metal steel shanks, which are manufactured from 90% post consumer waste. Inside, your feet will find Nature Tex 50/50 lining, a 100% regenerated mesh which uses 50% recycled post consumer waste and 50 % recycled pre-consumer waste from plastics sourced from recycled water bottles. Environmentally that’s great, and we’re sure they’ve made it breathable, but we’ll report back on this point after we’ve given them a good field test.

Even the way the components are made is greener – with something called “Injection Molded EVA” reducing the ammount of waster produced in the making of the cushioning bits. And beyond the product itself, the custom-made retail point-of-sale materials (like boards, stands etc) are manufactured from recycled materials. Heck, even the bag they were shipped to Walk in was biodegradable! So overall, the Altitude IV WPi NT Enviro is a worthy demonstration of how we should consider every stage of the consumer process – from sourcing greener materials to recycling them when we’re done. As Hi-Tec admirably acknowledges, the Altitude IV WPi NT Enviro isn’t the ultimate green solution, but rather “the beginning of an important and significant journey” for the company which will involve “small but greener steps in the right direction.”

The Altitude IV WPi NT Enviro WPi (SRP £90) is fully waterproof and available in men’s sizes 7-12’s (inc ∏’s), women’s 4-9’s (inc ∏’s) and juniors J13-6’s (SRP £50). For stockist information – and your chance to win a walking holiday worth £1000 – visit www.hi-tec.com

In the coming months, walk will be reviewing the Altitude IV WPi NT Enviro to see how it fares out in the field, so stay tuned.

WALK a revamped Dartmoor Way

FOLLOW a virtual guidebook
I’m not convinced by the hype about e-books. The idea of peering at the screen of a Kindle or my mobile phone, scrolling through 500 pages of Dickens, just doesn’t appeal. I like to feel the weight of a novel in my hand and physically turn a printed page – it’s part of the story-reading experience. But referring to a guidebook is different. And one that you can download wherever you are, search electronically, and print off individual pages from to lighten the load in your backpack, makes eminent sense. Now Cicerone has digitised most of its back-catalogue and is offering 50% off the e-book version when purchasing a printed title, so you can decide which one works best for you. Visit www.cicerone.co.uk

GO greener with my gear
For a lover of both gear and the environment, it’s a sorry state of affairs. A recent report by Ethical Consumer surveying over 60 outdoor gear manufacturers found that: ‘virtually all… pay little regard to environmental issues, with most having woefully inadequate environmental and ethical reporting policies’. The author concluded that the best way for walkers to minimise their ‘kit footprint’ is to buy less and invest in better-quality, longer-lasting products. Thankfully, the walk Reader Awards favourite, Páramo, scored highly in the report’s ethical tests and was the only company that was eligible for the ‘Best Buy’ awards in both the fleece and waterproof categories. Let’s hope other manufacturers follow Páramo’s example.
See the report at www.ethiscore.org

For more on the scheme, including how to apply, visit www.lakedistrict.gov.uk

Where did your passion for walking come from?
The light bulb moment happened 40 years ago when I was a transport planner in London. I realized every time you travel, it’s an economic and environmental cost, and the least cost of getting about is on foot. After that, I saw mainstream transport planning as increasingly crazy and out of line with what was needed.

How well regarded are walkers by today’s urban and transport planners?
It’s only been in the last five years that planning for walking has been acceptable and not caused people to fall about laughing. I was an adviser to the House of Commons Transport Committee inquiry into walking in 2001, and the minister thought it was a complete waste of time. Politicians were worried that if they produced a plan for walking they would be labelled the Ministry of Silly Walks by the media – and they probably would’ve been! That’s been overcome now as a result of concern over carbon emissions and global warming, which walking can help to tackle.

Are Britain’s towns and cities still planned around the car?
You still get new shops with more parking and fewer footways, but the prevailing culture is changing, and policies to regenerate town centres and make them more walkable have worked to some extent. Even the supermarkets are now opting for smaller stores to slot into traditional urban centres. The problem is there hasn’t been a sufficient clampdown on car-centric developments. So you’re getting an increasingly divided community: those looking to walk and those wanting to park – and the two are completely opposed. You have to decide which way you want to go; there’s no middle ground really. A compromise ends up being a bit of no-man’s-land, like Croydon.

What’s ‘largification’ about?
It’s the process by which the facilities people want are becoming larger in size but fewer in number. So three swimming pools close and one large multi-purpose leisure centre is created in their place. It’s a similar story with hospitals, schools and shops, and it doesn’t take a genius to work out that the fewer and larger facilities there are, the longer the distance to travel to them will be, and the harder to make the journey on foot. That’s the process that’s leading to the decline in walking. It’s not driven by planning policy but by the silo style of accounting in the public sector, with each department looking to cut costs by economies of scale and capitalizing on surplus land. They’re not thinking about how they can best serve or create a sustainable community.

Do you think cyclists have gained at the expense of walkers in sustainable transport plans?
There’s no doubt that when you’re walking, cyclists are a nuisance, and vice versa. There’ll always be a conflict between the two, so we need a strong walking lobby to ensure an effective debate. I’m a member of the advisory group for Walk England, and we’re trying to figure out how to raise the profile and attract funds to walking on the same scale that cycling has. Hopefully the Ramblers can be a key part of that.

Do you think changing the environment is really enough to change people’s habits and encourage more walking?
No, we need to win hearts and minds too. People have to see that walking is innately better than other modes of transport. For example, if a parent takes their child to school by car, they may get there more quickly, but they’ve lost that opportunity to talk while they walk, to smell the flowers in the gardens they pass, or to engage with other people. There’s an array of experiences that you’re shut off from if you’re in a car.

Has this government shown a lack of political will to get people living and travelling more sustainably?
It’s shown the will but is too willing to be distracted by other considerations. ‘Planning by Tesco’ is still very much part of the British scene, and until government and local planning authorities start standing up to powerful vested interests, we’re going to struggle. It’s the naturalness of walking which has led it to be ignored as a mode of travel and the government still underestimates the public’s willingness to walk more.

Should we really have needed to wait for environmental pressures to force urban planners to change their habits?
I’ve learnt that good things are often done for the wrong reasons! You need to garner all the reasons available to you to get the outcome you think is right. Travel experience is the main reason I promote walking and the avoidance of mechanized transport. Walking is primeval and our enjoyment of the natural world – even just a tree in the street – plays a very large part in our well-being.

As a member of the Ramblers, how can it help promote your vision?
We tend to separate the idea of walking for recreation from commuting, but why not do both? I want to see the Ramblers championing everyday walking more and integrating it with the more rural, recreational walking it’s traditionally represented. The rural-urban division needs to be taken away: the lines don’t stop at the town boundary!

What’s your favourite…

…city walk?
The Thames Path, particularly the Kingston to Hampton stretch. It’s full of interest and is very well maintained.
…countryside walk?
Leith Hill in Surrey. The views are staggeringly beautiful and there’s
lots of circular walk options.
…piece of walking kit?
My boots. I always get them fitted abroad; you get a lot more choice and attention on the Continent.
…view?
Greenwich Observatory. I love the combination of both open space with the hint of capitalist mayhem from Canary Wharf.
…post-walk tipple?
A real ale, the more local the better.

Besides storing carbon and providing a great habitat for wildlife – not to mention walkers! – healthy peat moors provide good quality drinking water (in fact, 70% of our drinking water comes from these landscapes) and helps reduce the likelihood of flooding. In good condition our moorlands slow the flow of rainwater, which may reduce the likelihood of flash flooding in downstream urban areas.

So what can we do to help preserve our peat? Well, as you can see from these pictures of Black Hill before restoration (May 2004) and after (July 2008), restoration of these crucial environments is possible. The Moors for the Future Partnership is working within the Peak District National Park and beyond to restore large areas of peat moorland to a healthy, living and sustainable state so that it can once again fulfil its key role in mitigating climate change.

“Peatlands are very important,” re-iterates Lord Chris Smith, Chair of the Environment Agency and Vice President of the Ramblers. “They store millions of tons of carbon, helping to mitigate climate change and can hold back rain water to prevent flooding downstream. If these moors are damaged these important services to society are lost. This is why the Agency is committed to this Partnership Project, it is a win-win protecting biodiversity and helping us manage two of the most serious challenges we face on coping with flood risk and climate change.”

For more on the project, visit the Moors for the Future Partnership website.

The finer points of peat

•Peat moorlands cover less than 3% of the land surface of the Earth yet they contain twice as much carbon as the world’s forests

•Peat is the single biggest store of carbon in the UK, storing the equivalent of 20 years of all UK CO2 emissions and keeping it out of the atmosphere

•Three billion tonnes of carbon are stored in UK peat – more than in the forests of Britain and France combined – of which 20 million tonnes is locked up in the Peak District

Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t advocate turning every walk into a job. Far from it, but chances are just about all readers of walk will have a heightened appreciation of the wildlife that surrounds us on every walk we take. With this in mind you might be interested to know that this appreciation could be put to very good use.

From a rambler’s point of view a garden or park birdwatch may prove a bit stationery – but if birds are your main interest then the British Trust for Ornithology will be more than happy to receive your recent sightings as you wander. A visit to the BTO’s website will show you just how many surveys and other reporting methods allow you contribute to their work.

Although you may like birds you may feel your interest lies more with the flora and fauna of the countryside. If this is the case then you won’t be at a loss to find a home for your observations. With climate change having an impact on wildlife you might find it interesting to submit your findings (relating to the first ‘this’ or the last ‘that’ of the year) into a system that compares these to other observations to graphically chart the trends. The Royal Meteorological Society began recording such information many years ago and in 2000 the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology and the Woodland Trust joined forces with them to promote the observing of such events. With that the UK Phenology Network took off. It now boasts something like 50,000 people recording these seasonal changes in our climate via its very useful and informative website.

I could go on and on as there are organisations and websites set up to record the observations on a wide range of subjects – from the weather to fish, butterflies to red squirrels. These observations also encompass the coastal areas as well, with the likes of the Marine Conservation Society holding Beachwatch every year for the last 16 years. So no matter where you are or what your interest is, you can add a new element to your walks.

But don’t go away thinking it’s only you giving something – helping with such surveys gives something directly back to you by helping hone your identification skills. You may also learn more about the wildlife and the environment you are visiting, and if you are not interested in becoming involved in submitting to large organisations you can always keep records for your own interest. You will soon see trends and by adding a few pictures, taken on a mobile phone or small camera, you can always use these as something of a log of your walks.

As I said at the outset, nobody wants to turn walking into a chore – but if you want to add an extra element to your time in the countryside, and want to contribute something to the work of conservation groups, then you might want to visit a few of the websites shown below.

RSPB
British Trust for Ornithology
UK Phenology Network
Royal Meteorological Society
Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Woodland Trust
Red Squirrel
Marine Conservation Society

HOTSPOT Mam Tor, Peak District, England
Erosion has led to deep scars on the mountainside and paths being closed with temporary routes opened up. The National Trust had to pave the summit area to bind it against further erosion, making it hard to decipher a Bronze Age tumulus by the trig point.

ALTERNATIVE Win Hill
You would have to set out at 3am to have anywhere in the Peak District truly to yourself, but Win Hill — a hop, skip and a jump along from Mam Tor — sees fewer visitors than its neighbour. At 462m/1,516ft, it is only 50m/104ft lower, so the views are just as clear, and unarguably better, looking east towards Derwent Edge. One of the best routes up is from the Yorkshire Bridge close to the Ladybower Reservoir. Coming down, weave your way through the deciduous woodland or just keep heading west, bouncing along the hilltops of the ridge to the crowds on Mam Tor.

FURTHER INFO www.peakdistrict.org

HOTSPOT Ben Nevis, Highlands, Scotland
Erosion on both tracks up the mountain requires constant maintenance, currently funded by a £300,000 grant from the European Regional Development Fund. Cabins have been airlifted halfway up to enable footpath teams to work five-day shifts. The Nevis Partnership, which oversees environmental management, has proposed extending one path to reduce damage.

ALTERNATIVE Aonach Mor and Aonach Beag
Aonach Mor and Aonach Beag form the two summits of an extensive north-south ridge. Aonach Beag (the more southerly), stands 1,234m/4,048ft high, and is 3km/ 2 miles east of Ben Nevis, on the north side of Glen Nevis. Usually accessed from the car park at the end of the road in Glen Nevis, you can climb the mountain from the north side, but you’ll encounter the Nevis Range Mountain Gondola (built for the ski industry), which cuts the hike in half. Aonach Mor is 1,221m/4,006ft high and usually climbed together with its neighbour. The walk offers superb views towards Ben Nevis and Carn Mor Dearg.

FURTHER INFO www.visit-fortwilliam.co.uk

HOTSPOT Scafell Pike, Lake District, England
All the main paths suffer from erosion, although this is less of a problem close to the summit, which comprises bare rock and rubble. Even so, in places, mechanical diggers have been used to secure rubble tracks that are more resilient to heavy use. The Fix the Fells project aims to repair 14 paths in the Lakes each year.

ALTERNATIVE Ennerdale Water
Perhaps the best way to enjoy the scenery of the peaks here without the crowds is to make for lonely Ennerdale Water. Remote and time-consuming to reach, there is really only one walk here: a circular trail around its shores that requires the occasional bit of clambering. For an elevated view, make the short detour from the lakeside path up Bowness Knott for sneaking views of Pillar, Great Gable and the Scafell range.

FURTHER INFO www.lakedistrict.gov.uk

HOTSPOT Snowdon, Snowdonia, Wales
There are seven main routes up Snowdon and the national park funds two dedicated footpath teams. Last year, more than 90,000 people walked each of the Llanberis, Pyg and Miners’ Track routes. General erosion maintenance has cost £6.5 million in the past eight years.

ALTERNATIVE Carneddau Mountains
Located just to the north-east of Snowdon, this is Snowdonia scenery without the crowds. There are spectacular mountain tops, with seven peaks above 900m/2,953ft and views across the Menai Strait to Anglesey. Routes are accessible through the Ogwen valley from both the A5 and Bethesda.

FURTHER INFO www.snowdonia-npa.gov.uk