Ramblings

Clare Balding is celebrating a listener’s birthday today. Not something we’ve done before, but when we heard that Lynda Pettit was marking her 60th birthday by walking 60 different routes with 60 different people, and that the idea was partly inspired by Ramblings, well we just had to join in, especially as it’s Clare’s 25th year on Ramblings (double celebrations!). Lynda and several friends took Clare for a hike on the Stoney Path walk in the Pentland Hills near West Linton, about 20 miles south of Edinburgh. They met outside The Gordon Arms Hotel on the A702 and went up into the southern Pentlands. It’s a route that takes in the Old Roman road that heads up to Edinburgh; Stoney Path, also known as Thieves Road, an ancient droving track used by cattle reivers herding stolen livestock through the hills; and Baddinsgill Reservoir. They also ascended Mount Maw, catching sight of a beautiful cloud inversion on the way. Views from the top stretched around 80 miles to a snow-capped Ben Lomond, Scotland's most southerly Munro. Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

This is Clare’s 25th year of making Ramblings and one thing she has always enjoyed is walking all year round, in any weather. No matter how windy, how cold or how wet she’ll be out recording in the company of an equally weatherproof interviewee. Winter is her favourite season for a stroll and today she’s found someone else who feels the same… Richard Shimell’s book, Trees in Winter, is about the healing properties of nature and walking especially during the coldest season. When the inclination for so many is to stay indoors, he’s out drawing inspiration for his detailed and beautiful lino-cut prints of winter trees. Although his book features many prints of Dartmoor trees, he now lives in Grosmont near Abergavenny in south Wales and this is where he leads Clare for a walk up the hill near his home. The Graig Syfyrddin, or just The Graig, is 423m/1388ft and is on the Three Castles walk. Clare and Richard had a wonderfully clear day with far-reaching views.Find out more about Richard and his book on his website: https://richardshimell.co.ukPresenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

This is Clare's 25th year of walking and talking on Ramblings! To mark this, ahem, milestone her first hike of 2025 is with a group of students from the University of Nottingham who are all members of the RamSoc (The Rambling and Hiking Society) which has just celebrated its 90th anniversary. All of today's walkers are under the age of 25, so weren't even around when Clare first stepped out with the Ramblings microphone. It's joyful to know that walking in the great outdoors continues as a rich part of our culture with young people like Theo, Amy, and others leading the way...They met in Bakewell, Derbyshire on a rainy, windy, wintery Sunday morning and set off on a circular hike taking in the grounds of Chatsworth House.Producer: Karen Gregor Presenter: Clare Balding

Clare rambles around Epping Forest with the new Chief Scout, Dwayne Fields. He was appointed in September 2024, taking over from Bear Grylls, and has a wealth of adventure experience under his belt. Dwayne was born in Jamaica and came to the UK at the age of six. He grew up in inner city London and says his formative years were wrapped up in social stigma, and he became a victim of both knife and gun crime. He managed to break away from this culture by spending time in outdoor spaces like Hackney Marshes, rediscovering a love of the outdoors he had felt deeply as a youngster in Jamaica. He remembers watching a TV interview with James Cracknell and Ben Fogle who were looking for a third team member to join a polar expedition. Although by the time he applied he was too late for selection, Dwayne did eventually join another trip and became the first black Briton to trek to the north pole.For Ramblings he leads Clare from the Scout Centre at Gilwell Park into and around Epping Forest. According to the Epping Forest Heritage Trust, it’s the largest open space in London at just over 6000 acres stretching from Manor Park in east London to just north of Epping in Essex. Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare joins a long established group as they embark on their 100th walk. Their route takes them from Leigh Woods, under the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and into the heart of Bristol.They call themselves The Old Lags, and every member was responsible during their careers for keeping our lights on and our kettles boiled as employees of the Central Electricity Generating Board. They’re all retired now and David Miller, who runs the Old Lags, is certain they’d have lost touch had it not been for their shared love of a good stomp.Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare explores the banks of the River Itchen in Hampshire with Andrew Simkins who has just completed walking around the coast and borders of England. It’s taken him eight years, and it’s been an extraordinary journey in more ways than one. His beloved daughter, Alice, died age 28 in 2016 and he discovered that devoting himself to the process of walking helped him deal with the grief; it gave him a feeling of solace and a sense of connection with her. When people asked him if he was walking alone, he would reply 'I’m often in the best of company’.This isn’t a sad episode of Ramblings, though, it’s very much about the positive impact of walking even in the most awful circumstances, and Andrew is a cheery companion. The route Andrew is sharing with Clare isn’t part of the coast OR borders, but he explains that he chose to divert away from the coast at this point as the Itchen Way appealed to him so much. Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare meets ‘Woman with Altitude’ Lise Wortley who recreates the adventures of overlooked and forgotten female explorers. As Lise takes Clare on a walk around her childhood village of Boxford in Suffolk, she tells Clare why she doesn’t just follow in the footsteps of these incredible women but even wears the same kind of clothing and footwear. Her latest expedition, in woollen skirts and specially made hob-nail boots, was an attempt to climb Mont Blanc on the same route as the French adventurer, Henriette D'Angeville. In 1838 Henriette was the first woman to summit Mont Blanc unaided, in other words without being lifted across the tricky parts as a previous female walker had done. Lise's adventure didn't work out quite as expected and led to her taking a long and unexpected diversion up a completely different and less well known mountain.Find out more about Lise on her website: www.womanwithaltitude.com/Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Alan Titchmarsh takes Clare Balding for his favourite stroll across Tennyson Down on the Isle of Wight. A keen and regular walker, Alan splits his time between the mainland and the Isle of Wight, and has a lot to share with Clare about this place that he loves. Best known as a TV gardener, interviewer and romantic novelist, Alan grew up in a family that took regular Sunday walks and as a young child developed an affinity for the natural world. Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare hikes along a section of the GM Ringway, Greater Manchester’s new walking trail. It’s a 200 mile route split into 20 stages, starting and ending in Manchester city centre. It goes around the edge of the county through all 10 boroughs of the region, and it’s linked with public transport so people can easily access the linear stages. Joining Clare as she walks part of Stage 6, which is Strines to Marple, is Andrew Read whose brilliant idea this was. He was awarded £250k of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to make it happen. The project also depends upon a legion of keen volunteers, several of whom join Clare for today’s walk. One of these is ‘Stage Guardian’ Roz Hughes who explains how important volunteer involvement is to keep the walk maintained in the long term. The starting point of the walk, Strines Station, was described in The Railway Children. Craig Wright joined the group to share his enthusiasm for this classic children’s book, and - while reading a short section - points out aspects of a view that can be recognised from Edith Nesbit's descriptions. Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare explores the Lower Tavy Valley in Devon with Sharon Gedye a physical geographer who's spent years discovering how the area's rich history has shaped its landscape and people.Sharon takes Clare on a circular walk starting on West Down, on the western edge of Dartmoor, heading down towards the River Tavy and eventually reaching Double Waters, the confluence of the Tavy and Walkham. On the way they see evidence of arsenic mines, copper workings and discuss long forgotten but fascinating fish weirs. One of these, Sharon discovered with the help of court records, was the focus of an unlikely battle in 1280. Sharon is also interested in how humans shape landscape and how landscape shapes us. Thinking of her grandfather, she says: He was a quarry-man on Dartmoor and by picturing him working and polishing the granite, I feel closer to how he experienced the world. Also on the walk are two of Sharon's friends who bring their own areas of expertise to their interpretation of the area: archeologist Chris Smart, and heritage consultant, Andrew ThompsonSharon writes a blog which you can find at www.awalkinenglishweather.com They met at WhatThreeWords: grin.tend.negotiators / Grid Ref: SX479708Presenter: Clare Balding Producer: Karen Gregor