Great post. Journey Through Britain inspired me to start long-distance walking. A key book for me along with Hamish Brown's Hamish's Mountain Walk and Colin Fletcher's The Thousand-Mile Summer.
Seems I'll need to add some of these to my "to be read" list, thanks for sharing! And I can very much relate to wandering for a long distance in silence. Since being back in a city (and stepping away from living on the road for a brief time) I *crave* the silence of the wilderness and being out in large, natural areas. Remarkably, nature is anything but silent, but my brain seems to feel much more settled with those sounds than those of a city.
I hear you. I wandered for several years, and during one winter, I live in an old and drafty tower on the top of a cliff. The crashing waves and howling wind make for noisy neighbours! But there's something magical about being enveloped in the sounds of the earth, and it always brings me to a place of inner quiet. I'm settled in a regular house now, but still love the feeling of the wind blowing through my soul on a stormy beach.
Aargh, thanks for the reminder that I don't have any Marmite in the cupboard. Or bread for that matter. Breakfast today may be need to be more creative, but I'll start with coffee! Happy reading.
Dru, I wanted to thank you for this piece—it arrived on a powerful anniversary for me: one year since a traumatic event that quietly redirected the course of my life.
Your reflections helped center me as I sat down to write about healing, clarity, and walking—not just as movement, but as devotion. Thoreau has long been a companion on my path, and seeing his name here brought comfort and motivation.
In less than two months, I’ll begin walking the southern route of the Way of Saint Francis from Rome to Assisi. I’ll complete the northern section in 2026, and I’ve begun dreaming into the Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome.
I’m based in San Francisco but spend much of my time in Italy where I write, walk, and build reflective travel experiences for others. I’m relatively new to Substack, but your work reminds me why I’m here.
If you’re curious, I wrote this reflection the same day I read your post:
Great piece Dru, you spoke about these books with a passion that is really infectious and just makes you want to delve into that path of discovery.
Thanks, Will. That's kind of you to say.
Lovely post. And how apt for a newsletter called "Pilgrimagic"!
Great post. Journey Through Britain inspired me to start long-distance walking. A key book for me along with Hamish Brown's Hamish's Mountain Walk and Colin Fletcher's The Thousand-Mile Summer.
Seems I'll need to add some of these to my "to be read" list, thanks for sharing! And I can very much relate to wandering for a long distance in silence. Since being back in a city (and stepping away from living on the road for a brief time) I *crave* the silence of the wilderness and being out in large, natural areas. Remarkably, nature is anything but silent, but my brain seems to feel much more settled with those sounds than those of a city.
I hear you. I wandered for several years, and during one winter, I live in an old and drafty tower on the top of a cliff. The crashing waves and howling wind make for noisy neighbours! But there's something magical about being enveloped in the sounds of the earth, and it always brings me to a place of inner quiet. I'm settled in a regular house now, but still love the feeling of the wind blowing through my soul on a stormy beach.
oooh, few sounds can compete with crashing waves as a soundtrack!
Good to see Rebecca Solnit in your quartet. And now I have a few more books to get hold of and read because they sound so interesting.
This made perfect reading while eating a breakfast of marmite on toast with tea.
Aargh, thanks for the reminder that I don't have any Marmite in the cupboard. Or bread for that matter. Breakfast today may be need to be more creative, but I'll start with coffee! Happy reading.
Always happy to help, Dru!
Have a great day.
The 'philosophy of walking' piques my interest!
Enjoy it, Pete. It's a great read.
Dru, I wanted to thank you for this piece—it arrived on a powerful anniversary for me: one year since a traumatic event that quietly redirected the course of my life.
Your reflections helped center me as I sat down to write about healing, clarity, and walking—not just as movement, but as devotion. Thoreau has long been a companion on my path, and seeing his name here brought comfort and motivation.
In less than two months, I’ll begin walking the southern route of the Way of Saint Francis from Rome to Assisi. I’ll complete the northern section in 2026, and I’ve begun dreaming into the Via Francigena from Canterbury to Rome.
I’m based in San Francisco but spend much of my time in Italy where I write, walk, and build reflective travel experiences for others. I’m relatively new to Substack, but your work reminds me why I’m here.
If you’re curious, I wrote this reflection the same day I read your post:
[One Year Later: A Road, A Wound, A Home](https://charliedeweese.substack.com/p/one-year-later-a-road-a-wound-a-home)
With appreciation,
Charlie DeWeese