Touching the Gin

A blog inspired by Joe Simpson's book, but with less blood and more gin.

As pretty much all of you will be aware, I am currently off the fells and nursing a broken foot.  I don't even have a god story to go with it - I was spring cleaning and fell downstairs when I was looking for the feather duster.  The best part is, it turns out the feather duster was upstairs all along.  Anyhoo...

Being incapacitated for a couple of weeks and now being mobile but slow and wobbly has given me time to reflect on all the teeny tiny things about hiking that I have been taking for granted but can now no longer do.  I like to think of myself as someone who has always pondered the smaller details, but there's a lot I have missed.

Also, although this is a light and cheery blog, these events have totally driven home to me issues around access to the outdoors that I had not previously considered.  That's a topic I am not even remotely qualified to tackle, but if you're interested in learning more about that then follow Debbie North, she's the accessibility champion for Julia Bradbury's The Outdoor Guide.

Right, back to the list of things I have missed...

1. Carrying things - for the first two weeks I was totally reliant on my crutches and couldn't even carry a cup of tea.  I repurposed my rucksack for a lot of the carrying and using flasks for hot drinks, but a G&T simply does not taste the same out of a flask.

2.  Pulling on a fresh pair of walking socks - who knew socks were so complicated?  I can just about do them on my own now - on the plus side I had to invest in some very snazzy long socks to go under my aircast.  Whaddya think?

3. The comforting feeling of a good pair of walking boots - I *love* my boots but it's going to be a good 6 weeks or so before I can wear them again.  Or at least wear both of them.  I love the safe and secure feeling of lacing them up and knowing I'm good to go!

4.  Walking without pain - a small thing but worth mentioning.  Walking has always been my 'thing' - not just on the fells but everywhere.  I have walked through towns and cities whenever I can - you always learn so much more about a place that way.  Now that every single step is at best uncomfortable (when I walk in the house) and at worst really painful (after 100 yards or so) I truly miss the ease with which I walked everywhere without giving it a second thought.

5. The sound of grass on my boots.  I *love* this sound.  I posted this short video on my FB page a month or so ago but hardly anyone paid it any attention so I assume it's just me.  There's a very specific sound long grass makes when it bounces off my boots and I love it!

(I *always* get my boots from the fab folks at Keswick Boot Company)

6.  Stiles.  Oh how I have bitched and moaned about stiles at the end of a long hike when all I want is a gate, but no more!  I realise a) how lucky I am to be able to hop over a stile and b) how utterly prohibitive they are if you are less mobile.

7.  Going out alone.  This whole 'new normal' has taken a bit of getting used to for me.  In the past my job saw me travelling the length and breadth of the country and now I never need to leave the house for work.  To restore some sanity I had created a 'fake commute' where each morning and evening I would go for a walk to top and tail my working day - it truly was a sanity saver.  Thing is, for now, I am not allowed out on my own.  I voluntarily handed in my crutches at the earliest opportunity so as not to get overly reliant on them and to get my foot moving again as soon as possible (Doc said he was OK with it if I was), but it's still early days and I need a walking pole on one arm and a bloke on the other.  Don't get me wrong, Steve is indeed a wonderful man, but I do miss going out on my own.

8.  The people I meet - during my fake commute I've chatted to plenty of people and really enjoyed getting to know a few 'regulars' that I'd bump into most mornings. Obviously I've no way of letting them know I'm out of action, and I wonder if they have even noticed I've vanished, but I do miss the quick chats and making friends with assorted dogs.

9.  Being invisible - this one was a big shock to me.  I've often heard people say that they feel invisible in wheelchairs but, for me, it has been the exact opposite.  In order to cover a reasonable distance at a reasonable speed, we gratefully accepted the loan of a wheelchair from a lovely friend.  This enabled us to get all the way from Hest Bank to Morecambe Jetty and back over the weekend.  Never have I been so stared at!  We made the journey with a combo of me walking a little then Steve pushing me in the chair.  When I was in the chair I was constantly stared at and was quite taken aback that no-one thought it a particularly rude thing to do.  Mind you, Steve wasn't to be entirely trusted with wheelchair duty...

10.  Chocolate biscuits!  Honestly - you thought lockdown was bad! I'm barely burning any calories at the moment so am on a strict 'no snacks' diet.  Oh how I miss a long day yomping over the fells with a rucksack full of sarnies and chocolate, and coming home to a huge pizza or plate of pasta, knowing that I have burned it all off during the day.  I've replaced my favourite chocolate digestive with raw carrots, which I quite enjoy, but it's not the same.  Thanks to the lovely folks at Shed 1, who sent me this as a get well pressie, I can still enjoy my gin ration in the evenings!  Cheers!

And if gin is your thing - check out our Gin, Cake and Rucksacks book where I explore the gin distilleries of Cumbria with a complete stranger.  I'm amazed we didn't break anything then, to be honest!

Click here to order

It couldn't be done...

I learned something important this week - just how easy it is to look at other people and think that they're doing just fine and that it's only you who has dark moments of feeling overwhelmed by everything.  To be fair, I did know this already, but this week was an excellent reminder! 

As you'll know if you follow us on social media, this week we had THE book launch party for Gin, Cakes and Rucksacks, and I have to say it was far easier, and a lot less stressful to organise our wedding than it was to organise this! Firstly, there were no press releases for our wedding, secondly people were a LOT better behaved about RSVPs for our wedding and, thirdly, call us mean, but there were no goody bags at our wedding.

With co-author Karen

When it comes to the RSVPs I was a bit surprised by the number of folks who just never bothered getting back to me one way or another - I didn't send out blanket invites, each one was specially addressed and personalised - a simple "no" would have been a huge help with the catering!  There were also a number of folks who despite saying "yes" said "no" within the final 24 hours or simply didn't show up - a few of them had excellent reasons which I completely understand, but others were less convincing...  Again, I'm not being precious here, but we were paying for catering on a tight budget so numbers were very important.

Anyway, despite our party poopers the event was a HUGE success with everyone there having a fab time - so much so that they're planning to organise another get together in the spring!

As I looked around at the fantastic bunch of people in the room I got to wondering what made these folks different?  Why did they come along and not let me down at the last minute?  Why were they all so lovely, friendly and supportive, chatting to each other and forging new friendships?  Then it came to me, pretty much everyone in that room had taken the huge risk of self employment - small gin producers, communications specialists, chefs, restaurateurs, cake makers, holiday home empire builders - they all absolutely knew how scary this life is and how much the support of your friends truly matters.

I was so moved that I dug out a favourite poem of mine to read at the end of my short speech as I thought it would strike a chord with everyone - and I was right, it did.  It got a huge roar of a cheer when I finished and several people asked me for it afterwards.

With our local MP Tim Farron

It's not my poem but it is absolutely perfect for anyone thinking of "going for it" in any field - motivational posters and short quotes make it sound so easy but there are many, many, long dark moments when you find yourself sobbing over a laptop or into a bottle of wine, convinced that you can't do this.  I was gob smacked at how many people came up to me after I read the poem out to share their dark moment stories and it was truly comforting to know I wasn't alone.

So, here's the poem - by American poet Edgar Alan Guest - and I hope it helps you as much as it helps me.

It Couldn't Be Done

Somebody said that it couldn’t be done

      But he with a chuckle replied

That “maybe it couldn’t,” but he would be one

      Who wouldn’t say so till he’d tried.

So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin

      On his face. If he worried he hid it.

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it!

Somebody scoffed: “Oh, you’ll never do that;

      At least no one ever has done it;”

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat

      And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,

      Without any doubting or quiddit,

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

      That couldn’t be done, and he did it.

There are thousands to tell you it cannot be done,

      There are thousands to prophesy failure,

There are thousands to point out to you one by one,

      The dangers that wait to assail you.

But just buckle in with a bit of a grin,

      Just take off your coat and go to it;

Just start in to sing as you tackle the thing

      That “cannot be done,” and you’ll do it.

With eternal thanks to everyone who came along and supported us!

Gin, Cakes and Rucksacks is available NOW!  You can buy it directly from us by clicking HERE and I'll even sign if for you if you want!  OR, you can buy it directly from the publisher here.  It's also on the database for folks like Waterstones, Hatchards, Daunt Books, WH Smith etc. so if it's not on the shelves of your local one do pester them and ask for it.  If you have a small independent bookshop then ask them too - it should be available via their local wholesaler.  Thank you!  😀

PS If you want a peek behind the scenes, check out my blog for Julia Bradbury's The Outdoor Guide website HERE.

Gin with ice

One of the best things about doing the Spirit Trail walk with Karen last September is that I now get a lot of gin themed gifts and invites.  I acquired two spectacular bottles of small batch gin for Christmas (thank you Ruth and Phil) and earlier in the month an invite popped into my inbox to go and visit The Lakes Distillery to enjoy one of their "Ginuary" afternoon teas.  How could I refuse?  (Well, technically I did refuse the first time on account of the fact that I had a migraine and had to cancel our original booking - Steve knew I was really ill when I cancelled my date with gin!)

The Lake District looked magnificent as we wound our way through and obviously we had to stop to take a few photos.

Actually, we didn't even stop for this next photo, I just hung out of the window and managed to get a lucky shot.

Once at the distillery we were ushered into the Boardroom ready for the fun to begin.  First up we got to learn a bit about how they make their gin and sample the regular Lakes Gin, as well as the stronger Explorer Edition which was gloriously smooth and a lot more earthy.  ("I'm getting heather and herbs" said a voice at the back "I'm getting gin and I'm getting tipsy" I muttered to Steve.  Thankfully he was driving home.)

Apparently, in the good old days, gin and lime was served on ships to ward off scurvy and gin and tonic helps with ailments such as malaria and restless legs thanks to the quinine in the tonic. Technically I think the gin could be omitted from both those things with no detrimental effect to the health benefits, but why take that chance?

The food arrived next, accompanied by a Gin Sparkle cocktail - the food was fabulous although we did have a minor debate about which order to eat it in.  Whenever I'm presented with afternoon tea, or a buffet, I can still hear my mum telling me "no sweets until you've had your sandwiches!"

They made it all look so pretty and then we went and did this to it...

By now we were stuffed to the gills so took off on a short walk to admire the alpacas in the field between the Distillery and the Derwent.

This, of course, lead to an increasingly silly conversation in the car on the way home "if the farmer had decided on llamas instead of alpacas, would that have made him a llama farmer?"  Things rapidly deteriorated when I asked the question on Twitter - you can follow the silliness here

On the drive home and we both noticed how the nights are beginning to draw out again.- it's tempting to say "not long till summer" but I don't want to wish the year away.  Plus in the summer there'll be a lot less chance of snow.  Not zero chance, of course, this is still Cumbria.

The Ginary afternoon teas are only available in January but The Lakes Distillery Bistro is open all year - find out more and make your booking here.

NEVER MIND GIN AND TONIC - what about Gin and a Good Book?  Click the pic to find out more about our books & order yours.  😀

Click here to find out more

FINALLY - here's the earworm I've had running around my head ever since we booked this trip - I'm not saying it's responsible for my earlier migraine but it certainly didn't help! 😁