Autumn – Page 8 – My Outdoor Living Room

There aren’t many annual dates that I mark other than birthdays and hypocritical religious events. There are even fewer that I get out of bed for while it’s still dark. It might not surprise you to learn that the so-called Black Friday is not one if them. I can’t think of a domestic event other than a supermarket car park on a Sunday afternoon that demonstrates the worst kind of human behaviour than Black Friday. Black Friday – another imported Americanism where the good people of the world put their differences aside to queue together all night only to beat the life out of each other to get a TV that is being sold for the same price as it was six months previously.

No, I’m talking about observing the equinoxes. We have four of them and they are a way of marking the seasons (actually we have two equinoxes and two solstices, in summer and winter). There are all sorts of ways you can mark the passing (or coming) of a season, but I usually prefer to get up as early as I can for the time of year and go somewhere to experience the sunrise. It’s a cliché but it would be great to go to Stonehenge though that is becoming more and more festival-like each year. I’m lucky enough to live near a hill dotted with iron age forts, Roman earthworks and significant standing stones so I kind of have my own local mecca for ancient man-made wonders.

In the past I have camped out on hills, ran 24-hour endurance races, and sat out and got drunk. All sorts really. I have even tried some Paganesque rituals and things that I have just made up because I fancy doing something that feels symbolic. It’s not always a case of doing something that will impress five Instagram followers, or just the experience of being among nature, I do actually appreciate the earth and what nature does for us and to us as well. Nature is very important to me and I want it to bloody well know that I’m grateful, so if walking about on a hillside at 5am barefoot with a teatowel over my head conveys that message, then so be it. I don’t believe in a God or deity of any sort but I do envy those that do in some respects because when they need something, they have someone to ask, something to say or somewhere to go. Nature isn’t like that really although it is most definitely omnipresent. I hope that by doing these things, nature – whatever or whoever it is, is paying attention.

This morning, I headed up there to usher in autumn. It was a tad misty but magical all the same. I had a flask of coffee while the rising sun did its work and then I set off for an 8 mile trail run. Nature was out in full swing and I saw two hares which pleased me no end. I originally mistook one for a small stray dog, it was so large on the path ahead of me. I did all this and managed to get home in time to start work. It’s my quarterly thing to do and I love it. It’s another simple yet affirming way of staying happy and positive doing what I enjoy the most.

It’s a tough life being the pillar of society that I am and role model for the next generation (not), so to unwind, aside from my physical activities, I like to do other less demanding outdoor activities. Photography is one, as well as strolling (this is very different to walking. Walking usually means you have somewhere to go or be. Strolling is just sauntering about at a lazy pace, noticing things). Occasionally I do other things. For example, I had a day off work last Friday so I went alpaca trekking!

If I had to make one criticism of the whole thing, it would be the title. Trekking, to me, consists of something involving either a long distance or arduous terrain. This was neither. Trekking, by the way is a notch up from walking. A couple of notches up from strolling, just to clarify. The ‘trek’ involved leading a rather keen alpaca from its stable, where it looked pretty warm, cosy, well stocked and quite pleased with itself, out into the cold on a lead. It’s not as cruel as I’m making it sound. These animals are from South America and have fleece coats so thick that they can endure Antarctic conditions, so a chilly British October morning is nothing to them. The trek lasted for all of fifteen minutes and went up the farm driveway and back. Not exactly a trek, but fun all the same. My alpaca, Gareth, was fairly chilled out and friendly so he was no trouble. My experience with large animals up to this point only really consisted of horses. The skills weren’t that transferable. These cute little fleeceballs were a bit more like dogs. Still, it was nice to do something outdoors that didn’t involve exertion, mountains, maps or getting lost.

It was a great way to start the weekend, and I followed it up with a stroll (see, a stroll) around a nature reserve nearby in the glorious autumn sunshine.

It was a momentous weekend really, for on Saturday morning at long last, after three-and-a-half years of trying, I got my Park Run personal best, knocking four seconds off the last one. It proves that age isn’t really anything, and nothing is impossible if you work for it and stay focussed.

As my mindset lately has been about keeping fit, mentally and physically, and pushing comfort zones, I realise that this achievement is not the end of something, in fact it’s the start. The real hard work begins now because I can’t help but wonder, what else is possible? How much harder can I push myself? Let’s see.