Wild Post #1: Notes and News from the Outer Frontiers

A new archaeology project is asking for volunteers. Plus, how often do we question our motivations for venturing outdoors?

It’s hard to stay chained to the desk when evenings look like this currently.

As mentioned in one of my notes earlier this month, I wanted to trial a new format. There is so much creativity and inspirational stories out there, but the endless content dumps for dopamine looping and zombie scrolling can make it impossible for these worthwhile tales to take their deserved spotlight.

This is where Wild Post comes in. Each month I’ll share a curated list of Substack posts, news, features, discussions, and other stories from the world wide web that align with AmorExplore’s core interests. It’s a new venture, so share ideas and feedback, and most of all, expect change as I fine-tune this over the upcoming months!

Bite-size bulletins

New project alert: People of the Peak

Image courtesy of the Peak District National Park Foundation.

The Peak District National Park Foundation announced a new project to help monitor and conserve monuments and buildings across the landscape.

People of the Peak has ambitious plans to broaden the conservation, data recording, and monitoring of the park’s heritage and biodiversity of these sites. The project could serve as a vital case study to illustrate the importance of the national park’s heritage sites towards supporting the wider ecology of the Peaks. Given that only 5% of the park’s heritage sites have any statutory protection (I explain more in my feature on caving archaeology in the Peaks) this project could have enormous potential.

People of the Peak will include a huge volunteer recruitment drive, especially among young people and diverse communities. You can submit your interest or learn more via the the Peak District NPF website.

Mountain Rescue callouts and tech

Speaking of young people and nature, this news report highlighting how mountain rescue were called out every day in 2024, with a significant increase in callouts among those aged 18-24, is making the rounds on social media again. Some argue social media is to blame; others find fault in the navigation apps.

Like most of these issues, the answer isn’t clear-cut as people would like. Of course, some level of accountability should be assumed. Yet I do empathise with young people. How many opportunities do they have to learn navigation skills or any outdoor education? They’re routinely criticised for not engaging enough with the outside world, and then chided if they explore the outdoors differently to previous generations.

Navigational apps have encouraged more people to appreciate nature, but it comes with added responsibility to ensure hikers explore safely and responsibly. From experience, accountability isn’t a value tech companies uphold. If the fallout from Komoot’s acquisition is anything to go by, this approach won’t change either.

I’m interested to hear other people’s thoughts on this topic. How can we encourage more people to explore the outdoors more safely?

Inspiration from AmorExplore readers

Each month I want to share posts from AmorExplore followers that offer new perspectives, unusual focuses, or plain ol’ entertainment. Junes seems to be the month where everyone slinks off to enjoy adventures while the weather is bringing its best self. I appreciate it all the more that people take time to share their adventures.

1. We're going on a bear hunt by

   Kate Harrison
   🐻 I came for the bears but stayed for the raccoon dogs. Living in an ecologically sparse country like the UK, the sheer mention of reintroducing animals like wolves, bears or lynx to the wild generates outcries of fearmongering. The piece illustrated the special encounters we’re missing with these giants of nature.

2. What in the Sam Hill? It's Stonehenge! by

   Christine Finlayson
   🏞 The PNW is the last place you’d expect to see Stonehenge, but to eccentric entrepreneur and Europhile Sam Hill he felt it was the ideal place to commemorate this prehistoric monument. Sam Hill’s undertaking shows the lasting influence heritage sites in nature can have on our creativity and drive.

3. Closer to the true heart of things by

   Alex Roddie
   💓 A chance encounter in a bothy leaves Alex questioning our motivations for adventure. Without deadlines, the pressure of “content” or perceived demands of audiences, would our explorations outside take a different path?

   The piece made me examine my motivations under a harsh light. I’m definitely guilty of pushing myself on grueling hikes or summits because I felt that was what others would expect of me over choosing my preference for a slow meander to gaze at a boulder field or lake. Going forward, I’m prioritising my wanton roaming through the countryside instead.

Creativity muses

I’m off to Kyrgyzstan next month, so I’ve been consuming books to better understand the country’s history:

Jamilia by Chingiz Aitmatov

When a book is touted as “the greatest love story ever told” it goes to the top of the TBR pile. Through the forbidden affair between Jamilya and Daniyar you get snippets of the rugged beauty of Kyrgyzstan’s jailoos. Jamila is set in 1943; the upheaval of WWII and the transition from a nomadic lifestyle to collective farming is keenly felt.

Turkestan Solo by Ella Maillart

This travelogue covers the journey of Ella Maillart as she travels from Kazakhstan to Kyrgyzstan in 1932. Maillart is sparing in details about herself, choosing instead to fixate on the people and landscapes she encounters on her travels, and give context on the historical background for situations.

The book is a nostalgic ode to a bygone form of travel. Transport and accommodation can provide hardships and travails or long stretches of nothingness. This always seems to be when the biggest sources of adventure spring forth.

While undoubtedly covered by many others already, The Ballad of Wallis Island is been one of the best films I’ve seen this year so far. The wordplay will catch you off-guard, and the character development felt earnest (in a good way) and loveably messy. I’ve only seen Tim Key in comedy roles previously but his subtle flexing between humour and sorrow did the impossible: made me frown and smile simultaneously.

Field notes from my desk

amorexplore

A post shared by @amorexplore

I won’t lie, I’ve spent a good chunk of June basking in its endless sunny evenings away from the desk. Consistency has never been my strength, unless you count consistently choosing adventures outside.

Regardless, I’ve been tinkering away with a few long-term projects and still delivering some small work:

• Submitted a piece to New Mountain Project’s latest venture, New Mountain Times. Experience is the best teacher, and I think it’s important to be honest about your fuckups for others to learn from. Submissions are still open, so get involved! Here’s the only spoiler I’ll share: 🐮🥾🏎🌳🏃‍♀️🤢have a guess!

• Published my Substack on the Dog Stone in Kinder. This had all the elements of a classic adventure: mysterious relic, a hiking route “dogged” with obstacles, and a four-legged companion for company. I couldn’t stop grinning for days afterwards.

• I’ll be joining

  Sarah Lister
  on her Wild About Kinder podcast this month! Hearing what Kinder means to other guest speakers has been a huge source of inspiration for my own ventures around the peak.