18th June 2022
Hi everyone, It has been [checks digital admin] more than 3 months since my last email. To give you an idea of how busy it's been for me away from On The Outside, have a glance at my personal Instagram account. One thing that has lightened my load is I completed my 50K Race To The King last weekend! Black Trail Runners were also at Race To The King as ambassadors - and a special congratulations to the WINNER of day two, Inein Garrick aka @vikto_garik_runs. 🎉 He finished in under 5 1/2 hours (half the time I did my day!) We have some bonus podcast content coming later this month, and we're recording another main episode on 24th June to go out at the start of July. Keep an eye on socials, as we'll be sharing the topics nearer the recording to get your ideas. For now, enjoy this news round-up to keep you connected to what's happening outdoors! - Fran
🎧 In case you missed it:
Episode 12 is out now! We'll be aiming to get our main episodes out once a month on the 5th of the month. Episode 12 took a deep dive into climbing whilst pregnant after GB climber Shauna Coxsey was featured across mainstream media talking about her experience.
We were featured in an article for The Sunday Times Culture! On The Outside was a recommended podcast alongside BBC shows Clipped Wings and Himalaya: The Human Story.
Are you enjoying these emails? Forward it to a friend who might like it! They can sign up for themselves here >>
Government cuts promised funding to support rewilding on farmland
Plans to rewild the countryside are being reduced as the government’s switches focus to food production. Ministers announced £800m per year funding through the Landscape Recovery scheme to change agricultural land into woodlands, wetlands or forests. However the fund has been cut to £50m over three years. They are choosing to focus on food production, with the reason given being shortages caused by the conflict in Ukraine, and the cost of living crisis. Farmers’ unions had previously said the focus on rewilding could lead to more reliance on food imports and a lack of self-sufficiency. Separately, the Government's food strategy has been described as 'bordering on preposterous' and does not do enough to address climate concerns.
Read more >>
Wealthy landowners have filed a high court case about public access on Dartmoor
Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) has promised to defend wild camping on the Dartmoor, after a wealthy landowner has filed a case questioning their authority over the land. Alexander Darwall, a City fund manager, and his wife, Diana, own 2,784 acres in south Dartmoor, and have filed a case with the high court "to clarify the law governing wild camping in the park". The DNPA currently allows for responsible wild camping, but the Darwalls’ lawyers in the high court claim there is no legal right to camp on Dartmoor without a landowner’s consent. As well as individual recreation, Dartmoor is used for popular events including Ten Tors and the Duke of Edinburgh’s award. We spoke a bit about landownership in the Kinder Trespass episode, and it's something I'm sure we will be coming back to in more detail.
Books for your reading list!
Flock Together Co-Founders Ollie Olanipekun and Nadeem Perera have put pen to paper. Outsiders is both a powerful memoir and a manifesto for change. Black Sheep: A Story of Rural Racism, Identity and Hope is the new memoir by Sabrina Pace-Humphries (Co-founder of Black Trail Runners). Sabrina is a 44-year-old mother of four and grandmother of three, an award-winning businesswoman, an ultrarunner, a social justice activist and a recovering alcoholic. I'm looking forward to reading this one! Birder, environmentalist, diversity activist, Mya-Rose Craig, has a book Birdgirl coming out on 30th June. In the meantime, you can listen to Mya-Rose on the first season of the Get Birding podcast. And lastly, Jo Moseley has written a guide to Stand-up Paddleboarding in Great Britain. The book Includes information on route difficulty, public transport, parking, refreshments and equipment hire, as well as stunning photography and overview maps.
East Devon Trail launches
The East Devon Trail is a new 185 kilometre (115 mile) bikepacking route through East Devon, between the county’s capital of Exeter and neighbouring counties of Dorset and Somerset. The Trail showcases this magnificent region of Devon, with a variety of habitats, from freshwater marshes to lowland heath, green agricultural field networks to steep cliffs, pebbled beaches and sleepy woodland.
And in other news:
The 2nd July is the Wild Night Out. Wild Night Out is "an annual invitation to push yourself to do something adventurous, maybe try something new and bring someone else along with you, giving those who might not normally take the plunge a chance to spend more time adventuring." Read more >>
It's not just anecdotal - NatureScot has confirmed that the pandemic has lead to more walking and connecting with nature. Read more >>
The AA’s President, Edmund King, has been encouraging drivers to use active travel for short journeys. With fuel prices rising to a new record, he's said it could save save up to 15% on fuel costs. Read more >>
The National Cycling Show is in Birmingham this weekend. Read more >>
Check out this bad review of Derwent Water (spoiler: too many ducks.) Read now >>
It's Drowning Prevention Week. Omie Dale has once again been sharing some great tips and information. If you haven't already listened, be sure to check out our first ever episode where Eden gives us some great tips, or you can hear us on THIIIRD Waves as well.
Panellists Frit Tam and Eden Elgeti will be at Timber Festival on a panel talking about They/Them. If you haven't listened yet, we talk about They/Them in episode 5 >>
We are on Patreon! We are still seeking sponsorship from brands to make this show ongoing and strong. But if you find value in the work we have done and want to support us at the start, head over to patreon.com/ontheoutsidepodcast to learn more. Where does the money go? Current Patreon funds are offered to the panellists for their time, or donated to their charity of choice. Fran is currently self-funding production costs, including editing, and transcript costs. (Fran also does production, socials and these email, and refers to herself in third person...)
Thank you x
International news:
The climbing season on Everest/ has been busy: the Full Circle Everest team made history as first all-black ream to scale Mount Everest; the record for the oldest Brit to climb the mountain has been broken; There are also plans to move the Everest Base Camp, which is becoming unsafe.
In a public ceremony, the Albanian government committed to work together with a team of experts, including EcoAlbania, Riverwatch, Euronatur and others from the Save the Blue Heart campaign, to protect the Vjosa river and create Europe's first wild river national park. Read more >>
That's all for today folks! Do you have some outdoors news? You can reply to this email to let us know about it!