thing and give people the best information
so as to mitigate those concerns. Some of
the Bob Graham Club Committee were
understandably skeptical.
Then there was a personal change of
lifestyle – I moved house (twice), went
freelance and had kids (twice). The project
lurched sideways and backwards but rarely
forward. I mopped up the rounds over the
next two years, mostly in single pushes
but visiting some sections several times
to resolve navigation niggles and develop
walkers’ options – places where I felt the
ground was too eroded for more footfall
or too technical for more heavily laden
backpackers.
The route research was the easy part, of
course. Being outside is not that difficult,
even in difficult weather. But I struggled
to stitch the bigger picture together, and
missed those early, easy synchronicities.
Then in 2016 the project started to change,
and quite quickly, the book became all
about the people that had made – and make- these Rounds such a vital piece of our
outdoor culture.
I lucked out and found myself in
Lochaber for Jasmin Paris’s record-breaking
Ramsay Round. I met with runner Nicky
Spinks, Welsh Round creator Paddy
Buckley and spent more time with Charlie
Ramsay. Nicky had forgotten I was coming
and was mucking out her cows. Paddy
told golden age tales of adventure with his
friend Chris Brasher during the Knoydart
days of the John Muir Trust. Charlie was
as dynamic, honest and funny as ever, but
more detail emerged on his own impromptu
Bob Graham Round, and his subsequent
friendship with both Chris and Paddy.
Finally, the historical context was made
personal and emerged from the hill fog.THE BIG ROUNDS