The Wilderness For The Rest Of Us: How To Experience The Pleasures Of Remoteness Without The Pain

This is ‘book’ 9 in the series The Impossible Books of Keith Kahn-Harris. The cover was created by Gus Condeixa. For more on this series, read the introduction here.

What sort of book is it?

A kind of travel guide, written from a personal perspective. Or it could be more of a travelogue.

How likely is it that I will write the book?

I’d like to — researching it would be a blast.

Am I happy for anyone else to write the book?

Yes and no: it’s an idea I’ve had for a long time but if someone else wrote it before me I’d certainly buy it. There are lots of travel guides for disabled travellers but this is a bit different.

Synopsis

- What do you do if your desire for untamed wildness isn’t matched by your physical ability to explore it?

- How can those of us who find it difficult or impossible to explore wild places still experience the pleasures of remoteness?

- Where can seekers of solitude go if they don’t have ability to strike out into the wild?

We live in a crowded world. The majority of human beings live in ever-expanding cities. Human civilization has steadily encroached on even the wildest, most untamable terrain.

Yet even as the true wilderness recedes, so we yearn for it more. The desire for space, solitude and remoteness goes deep for many of us.

To get to truly untamed wilderness you have to be an explorer. You have to be fit, experienced and determined. For most people, that’s not an option. Yet there are quieter places that are more accessible. Even in the most crowded countries there are walking trails leading to places of stillness and peace.

But what about those for whom even domesticated slivers of wildness aren’t easy to access? I’m one of those who fall into that category. For over 20 years I have had mild but persistent Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. Although I’m mobile and can even walk for reasonable distances on good days, lengthy treks are simply not possible for me. I would love to tramp miles over the Yorkshire moors or up into the Pyrenees, yet to do so would simply be impossible.

While there have been initiatives and guides designed to help disabled people explore the countryside, they rarely cater for people with low energy levels. And in any case, accessing the wide-open spaces isn’t just a problem for people with chronic conditions like mine. There are all sorts of people who, for lack of time, money or other resources are cut off from the wild.

The Wilderness For The Rest Of Us is for all of those who, like me, want to find their own piece of solitary remoteness but who do not have the capacity for extended feats of physical exertion. Focused on Europe, and with occasional forays beyond, the book identifies neglected slices of wildness that are nonetheless easily accessible. Every place listed in the book is within a short stroll of a road or public transport. Yet every location is one where, if you didn’t know better, you’d swear you were at least a day’s hike from the nearest settlement. Most of them are barely known, or an open secret amongst locals.

Examples (only UK so far) include:

- A lonely stream and bathing place just off a lonely road on Bodmin Moor.

- A hidden, thickly wooded valley on the island of Alderney that is only a stones throw from town.

- A seemingly isolated hilltop on Exmoor, from which no roads are visible or audible, (despite one road running directly below).

Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed this Impossible Book, why not browse through the rest of the series here?

Also, please recommend and share it on Medium or elsewhere. I would love to read your comments too.

Many thanks!

Finally, here’s an alternative cover: