Ronald Blythe describes his writing as the work of “a solitary man who is serene and not bitter and who love’s nature and poetry and has a circle of friends, but mostly is by himself.” He has never lived with anyone, but has he ever been lonely? … more»

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After 34 books, endless Hemingway comparisons, and too many battles with gout, legendary author Jim Harrison is unsurpassed at chronicling man’s relationship with wilderness. His secret? … more»

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The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd has been described as “The finest book ever written on nature and landscape in Britain.” What kind of a serious writer calls herself “Nan”? … more»

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Ten years ago Robert Macfarlane gave up alpinism. But the high peaks cast a spell that is not easily broken. This summer he returned … more»

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Latin names are fine for textbooks, but the beautiful common names we give to our flora and fauna are part of a shared poetic enterprise stretching back thousands of years — and you can still be a part of it … more»

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They sought the passion and emotion that nature brings through personal immersion in it. They spurred another round of legislation and regulation, not centered on the creation of reserves, but on everyday nature: the air, the water, the plants and animals around us. Eco-Lit: an introduction … more»

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More than 100 personal notebooks and unpublished poetry by the Roger Deakin are among a new archive collection at the University of East Anglia (UEA) … more»

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Will Self’s Psychogeography — a Romantic text whose associations of writing and walking have less to do with Guy Debord’s influence on London-based writers and more to do with Wordsworth and Coleridge … more»

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Why not dynamite every dam on the Columbia and the Snake? Take down the power lines? Resettle the cities? Free the sturgeon and the salmon? Reopen the plateau to the elks and wolves? … more»

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Most works of mountain literature are written by men, and most of them focus on the goal of the summit. Nan Shepherd’s aimless, sensual exploration of the Cairngorms is bracingly different … more»

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