Words by Tom Laws. Images by Pete Scullion
At the start of December, Trash Free Trails brought together friends, partners and strangers from across its ecosystem for the Our Trails Gathering. After an inventive and inspiring two days discussing collaboration and nature connection, attendees headed home and in came the A-TEAM for a very special celebration of their contribution to our mission in 2024. Here Tom shares some reflections from a whirlwind 24 hours in London.
In the past these A-TEAM Celebrations have been pretty close at hand for me, making use of spaces in fantastic rural settings such as Plas y Brenin in Eryri National Park and The Lodge in Staylittle. These venues are in the heart of the wild places that drew me and many others to Trash Free Trails in the first place. That love of a wild place and the feeling that I should be part of its protection.
This time it was different. The invite was to Red Bull HQ in central London. The bunkhouse was swapped for a maze of hotel corridors, and the buzzards for pigeons. The flow of the river was to become the drone of traffic and the night sky a blur of festive illuminations.
It's no secret that I am a country mouse. At my happiest on a remote hillside or on a swiftly flowing river. Towns were for other people. I “don't like” cities. Or maybe I just don't get them.
I don't know how to move smoothly through a city, jarring against the swiftly flowing traffic and never ending people. The towering buildings and never ending roads present an impossible jungle for me. I don't know how to dress for the city, what to take with me, or how to get the best from a day there. I don't understand why people choose to live and work there - they seem crammed together.
This little bit of a time in an environment where I am totally unfamiliar and uncomfortable got me thinking about people coming to our trails and wild places. Those same feelings of unfamiliarity and uncertainty are perhaps how someone new to a wild place feels.
A wooded trail, a remote moorland or a river in spate must be an intimidating place to be unfamiliar with. Towering trees, never ending views and the roar of rapids could present themselves as inhospitable, unwelcoming.
Many of us on the A-Team live and work in the wilder parts of the country. We are often also lucky enough to be involved in helping new people experience the wild places we find our own solace in. It's all too easy to dismiss the actions of those new to wild places as stupidity, ignorance, and neglect, but how can we expect them to just “know” how to behave if they've never had the opportunity, never been taught? We all were, at one point or another. Surely everyone should have the chance to learn how to protect somewhere that they love?
A late night stroll round the streets of Soho was spent primarily dodging piles of trash. It's so prevalent it's normalised. I think this is why we always come back to the simple yet meaningful act of removing single-use pollution - it's not only about learning how to have a good time in the outdoors; it's planting the seed that no matter where you live and adventure, you can give something back to the place. The mountains of Eryri or the streets of Soho - every piece removed, every person connected. It all counts.
I had a fantastic trip to London, despite not having any idea where I was going or what to do at any point. I made it through the flying visit, but probably not in a slick way. It left me with an important reminder of how humbling it is to be in a totally different environment, and how challenging it must be to go the other way and pay a visit to the more rural wild.
My biggest takeaway though was from getting to spend time with people I'm proud to call fellow A-TEAMers and friends. No matter where you go, whether it's somewhere familiar or somewhere totally unknown - it's far less scary with fantastic people by your side.
Special thank you to our A-TEAM partners Endura, Forestry England, Squire Locks, WTB, Fenwicks, Pedal MTB, Ortleib, and La Sportiva
Comments