Distance 6.75 miles. Home (Carr Vale) - up the hill to Bolsover town centre - north along the lane to Oxcroft - back by the road through Shuttlewood.
Yesterday's walk was very ordinary. It was a cold, grey day. The location was local to home in northeast Derbyshire. The Peak District is not far away, but the local landscape, while pleasant, is less dramatic and more impacted by industry. Having been without a car for some time, my options for walks have been more limited, but I have come to appreciate the local area in a deeper way. I should add I have only lived in the area for a little under 18 months.
On an ordinary walk, there is still plenty to notice. These days I walk with a camera, and it is great to see the way records are building up of walks through the seasons. I often walk round a local nature reserve, but yesterday I wanted a bit of a change. So to start with I headed up the hill to town. Bolsover is on the crest of a plateau with westward facing down slopes to the Doe Lea and Rother valley with Peak District hills rising beyond.
1. The path and the choice of route.
The first picture is looking along a path between buildings in Bolsover to the open country beyond. For a first time visitor to the town centre, this view might come as a surprise. The little path is also rather secretive, so it is worth seeking out. The pathway through life can be very similar. It is not always good to simply follow the crowded ways, but seek out something more individual. Sometimes, we need to mark out a route ahead and stick with it. Occasionally is is good to go for a walk with no planned route, but to wander around a bit and enjoy the locality for what it is on the occasion we are in the area. To do this, a map is necessary to be aware of the options open to us at each junction of pathways. Looking back, I may feel that I have wandered through life a bit aimlessly so far, and yet I am thankful for many precious experiences along the way. It can be worth exploring little backwaters rather than sticking to the popular highways that people seek for financial security and a sense of belonging to the popular culture of the time.
2. Chance to notice details.
Over the past couple of years I have taken account far more of the detail we can see all around. For example, although I could not identify them, I have seen more types of fungi since last summer than probably in my whole life of 40+ years previously. The contrast between these two types of lichen in a hedge called for a photo. Colours, shapes and textures in the details of what we see all around become more and more precious as we realise we have the senses to see and appreciate them. These details can only be appreciated when travelling at walking pace. So with the details of life, it is good not to be so hectic that interesting and important details are overlooked.
3. Enjoy the wider views.
Walking pace makes one feel so much more part of the landscape. This view could be enjoyed from a car travelling along the little lane - even a car cannot travel too fast along many of our country lanes. However, sealed within the metal and glass box, the experience is not really the same. The driver in particular can only get quick impressions of the passing scene while concentrating on the road. The walk allowed me to look over the village of Shuttlewood and across the valley to the hills beyond. Yes, it was a bit grey, and the wind was chill, but it was good to be breathing the fresh air and savouring the view as it opened out. In our lives it is always good to survey the wider scene and the context of our lives, especially with all the modern rush and fragmentation of our experiences. How many lives are represented by the houses in view? How many have been affected by the closure of the local heavy industry - there are many advantages in the quality of life to be enjoyed now the grime has gone, but the loss of the jobs still leaves its mark. Each one of us is part of a wider story.
4. A reminder that life can be challenging.
The walk took me past an old tumble down house with outbuildings (just the outbuildings featured in the above picture). I am sure it could be a lovely place, but it looked very forlorn in its present state. It would be a big project for anyone except the most capable of builders. I am not practical and could only admire anyone with the ability and commitment to take on such a project. We all have aspects of our lives that are challenging, and challenge is good for us. Often a good walk itself can be a challenge if we set ourselves a long distance, or lots of hills, or face adverse weather. To an extent these challenges are personal, but through relationships we help one another and work with each other to overcome the challenges. The very best companion for life's challenges is an unseen one, but one who knows all about each one of us and who has Himself experienced the challenges of life in a very real and extreme way.
5. A view from a different perspective.
I have driven the long straight stretches of road between Bolsover and Clowne numerous times, but only walked them a couple of times. To be honest, they do not immediately appeal as walking routes, but you get a whole fresh sense of the atmosphere of the places you pass through when using the pavement, which is definitely underused these days. We can get blinkered into routines of daily life and feel we have to keep on a full steam ahead, but doing so loses out on important perspective. We need quieter times for thought and reflection on the direction and meaning of life.
6. Appreciate highlights and landmarks.
Bolsover Castle is a major local landmark. Such places can become little more than a familiar background for local people, who get into the way of hardly noticing them any more, whilst they are likely to really attract the attention of passing visitors. Britain is a so-called Christian country, but the reality of that defining spiritual landmark has been lost, and it is just a vague background cultural concept to so many of our lives. It is good to take note of our spiritual needs and have landmarks in our lives that are foundations for us. The true Christian faith is the most important landmark of all to so many who really experience it first hand. For those who do experience it in such a way, it is a landmark and highlight for life that never fades or loses its central presence in our lives. The Christian walk is, and should be, fresh each day. I am also learning that simply walking around the local area is fresh each day too, as the seasons unfold and the weather changes day by day.
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