Local

December is a quiet month. I looked out over a rolling landscape of empty fields divided into squares by long, straight hedges. The only sounds were of distant cars. When did it become normal to hear more traffic than wildlife? Everything felt subdued. But I was glad to be beginning this project at the tail end of a year so that I could experience everything perking up in the brighter days to come. 
With practice, a map becomes as clear as a picture, and almost as full of imagined detail. This week’s grid square seemed to be as hilly as almost anywhere on my map, a rare treat for me in this flat, sanitised region. I adore land with contour lines, curvy and sensuous, filled with possibility. 

What is Local ?

Do you yearn to connect with wildness and natural beauty more often?
Could your neighbourhood become a source of wonder and discovery and change the way you see the world?
Have you ever felt the call of adventure, only to realise that sometimes the most remarkable journeys unfold close to home?

After years of challenging expeditions all over the world, adventurer Alastair Humphreys spends a year exploring the small map around his own home.
Can this unassuming landscape, marked by the glow of city lights and the hum of busy roads, hold any surprises for the world traveller or satisfy his wanderlust? Could a single map provide a lifetime of exploration?
Buy the book! www.alastairhumphreys.com/local