I'm a newcomer to walking as a passion, it might be said (I hesitate to say 'hobby' because I don't want to bizarrely exclude it from everything else in my life, but I digress). I used to go for substantial walks when a teenager, usually creeping to around six miles, but without a sincere plan in mind -- I would often just explore my local urban area, making a circuitous route back to my house.
I'm currently at university, and dealing with a very great deal of stress, anxiety, a bout of depression, and a chronic physical illness; it could be said I'm going through the wars a little bit. On Sunday, after no sleep, my girlfriend and I set out on the Bingley College Centenary Walk, which, for me, was a revelation. Even without sleep, the day was utterly enchanting. The walk is spectacular, and thoroughly recommended, as it snakes its way through spaces which often seem to collide and clash, and paths which take you from one tapestry to the next with a suddenness which occasionally shocks. One truly feels an intimate attachment to the area on this walk, and yet a total displacement of a sense of place for, even with a map, it is often hard to know exactly 'where' you are, in spite of the fact the distant mountains conveyed a sense of home.
After that amazing day, I now fully intend to take up walking as regularly as I can. I plan to join the Ramblers and have 'bookmarked' a great many walks around Leeds, Bradford, Wakefield, and Huddersfield. I hope to undertake my next walk on Friday.