It was late afternoon and we’d been chilling by the river, taking advantage of the shade offered by a small group of trees - quite a rarity in the exposed open flatlands of the fens. We’d dipped our feet at the riverbank and used the cool water to soak our headscarves… watched the dragonflies dancing in and out of the reed beds… charged our phones from the solar panel and uploaded our photos from the day before.

It was peaceful and deserted… we had struggled to find the footpath from the nearest road so it seemed unlikely that it was well travelled and sure enough we hadn’t seen a soul in the past couple of hours.

I was doing some work on the ipad - I mean you can’t completely ‘unplug’ when the whole purpose of our walk was a fundraiser that needs promoting… When a figure in black came through a nearby gate.

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I’d been worried about people seeing us camped on the riverbank, but few came by and those who did just greeted us with an amicable ‘good morning.’

Tired and aching, we’d walked further than intended that first day but now the adrenaline was wearing off.

I studied the map as we already needed more water. The nearest village, Stretham, was about a mile and a half’s walk away from the river. We set off carrying 3.5 litres of water each (equivalent to 3.5kg on top of everything else!) but it was surprising how quickly that went… it was unusually hot for the time of year so staying hydrated was vital. We also needed water for cooking as our food supplies were mostly things like noodles, instant porridge or ‘boil in the bag’ pouch meals.

Gradually we sorted our gear and repacked our bags but it seemed to take forever and it was nearly noon before we set off… our first rookie error - walking during the hottest part of the day!

As we headed towards the village our route included the first encounter with a stile to climb. It was just one step but a high one… Dave went over first. He struggled but made it over… then it was my turn. I lifted my foot onto a step that was as high as my knee, took hold of the posts and tried to push (and simultaneously pull) myself upwards… nothing happened. It was a strange sensation… I simply didn’t have the strength in one leg to lift my body weight plus the 20kg on my back. Not from that angle at least.

“I’m gonna have to take off my rucksack”

After a couple of attempts there was no other way I could see myself getting over.

But even getting our bags off and on again was still a challenge… it was only our second day and there was a lot we hadn’t yet figured out.

So the bag came off and I lifted it to rest on the step of the stile… there was then much pulling from Dave’s side of the fence and pushing from mine before we managed to hoist the bag over to the other side.

Looking back, this first hurdle was nothing in comparison to some of the obstacles we would meet further along our travels… but I guess we were still learning and it was all good practice for the challenges that lay ahead. We found that most gates and stiles are not designed with backpackers in mind, our bags would be taken on and off frequently each day in order to continue along a given route… but more of that will come later.

For now, we muddled onwards towards Stretham… it might have only been a mile and a half but we were dripping with sweat by the time we reached the village stores and dropped our bags to the floor. We bought a sandwich and some bottled water… then couldn’t resist some shaded picnic benches outside a pub. It seemed rude not to buy a pint… perhaps our second rookie error!!

Rested and refreshed, we loaded our bags and headed back towards the river, taking a different route that would bring us out a bit further west. The sun was hot now, there seemed to be no shade anywhere and I was struggling more than Dave - stopping what seemed like every ten minutes or so to drink some water or rest a little. Taking our bags off was a double-edged sword… it gave a little respite but then you’ve got the struggle of getting it back on again.

A little way along the river we spotted a small patch of shade offered by a cluster of trees and collapsed in a heap.

The path we were following ‘The Ouse Valley Way’ is raised high above the flood level of the river. As we sat on the bank we admired what appeared to be a private woodland down to one side… there was lots of shade down there and it would have made an idyllic pitch up. However, it was only mid-afternoon and we were too close to civilisation to consider camping just yet.

To the other side there were steps down to some private moorings with canal boats that were clearly resident. They each had little decking areas and garden furniture. The one closest to us was occupied by an alternative looking couple who were enjoying a beer in the sunshine and had a gorgeous black German Shepherd. They’d been watching us and I was starting to feel we should maybe try to move along…

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This post is for everyone as it’s a little taster of what’s to come…

The bonus content you get when you subscribe includes the actual pages from my notebook. These are from the first few days… the notes got more detailed (and the language more fruitful) as the intensity of the challenge increased.

The notes were generally brief… just enough to jog my memory… but they give a personal insight on how we were feeling each day. We thought they might provide an extra layer of interest for some of you.

These notes will only be available to paying subscribers, so if you’d like to see more make sure you’re signed up!

Jac.x

We’d managed a couple of ‘practice walks’ beforehand, but not enough and with debatable success. You see, we’d planned this walk the year before, giving ourselves the summer to do some wild camps followed by a winter to continue building strength… ready to set off walking in the spring… it all made sense.

Then on the same day that we were meant to be heading out to Thetford Forest for our first practice camp, Dave had a stroke… we spent the day in A&E instead…seriously…you couldn’t make this up!

It was mild… he was lucky… they called it a TIA… but he still temporarily lost his speech and use of his right hand… it was still scary and it scuppered our plans for that summer.

So the year passed, he made a good recovery but we never did manage those practice camps. Regardless, the leaving date was set. We were going home and nothing was going to stop us.

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Hey there, I’m Jac from Positive Earth. On 22nd April this year I set off on foot from Ely in Cambridgeshire alongside Dave, my partner in both life and work, heading for Slaithwaite in West Yorkshire. We were walking ‘home’ as a fundraiser for our newly formed community interest company (or CIC).

We had spent three years living off-grid in Cambridgeshire, a move that hadn’t quite worked out how we hoped, and we were keen to return to family and friends.

We’d been working on an idea for over a year… a merging of passions; craft beer, creative arts, live music, but most of all we wanted to create a community. A space where everyone is made to feel welcome, somewhere they feel they belong and perhaps a little less alone. Many people today feel isolated for different reasons, I’ll explore this topic further in future posts, but from the outset loneliness was one of the key issues we wanted to address and so the concept for our ‘community pub and hub’ began to take shape. As a creative therapist I’ve witnessed how participation in arts can transform lives, build confidence or just offer respite from trauma, physical illness and life pressures. When you combine this with a safe space and like-minded people the benefits increase ten-fold.

The CIC model allows us to use our combined experience of the hospitality sector to generate commercial revenue that is then re-invested back into community services, allowing us to offer activities that are accessible or even free to attend.

And I’ve always wanted my own pub!

Once upon a time the village pub was the heart of the community, bringing people together and meeting our human need for connection. The industry has changed, as has society in general… we’ve become disconnected from one another, controlled by the tech giants who fuel division online… However, when you look away from your screens there are numerous examples of communities coming together for positive change. We’ve seen how the ‘pub’ can be re-invented to meet changing cultural needs and once again bring people together in a meaningful way.

There’s a need for places like this all across the UK right now, but we wanted to return to the Huddersfield area because it’s our home and where we feel we can make the most impact… We just had to figure out how to get back there.

Bimbling: To walk with no particular purpose or haste!

“We could just go walking” Dave was in a funk! I’d been out at work and left alone with his own thoughts he’d spiralled into a low mood. Business was slow and we’d found ourselves trapped in a situation that wasn’t working out. We knew moving to Ely was a risk but it was an adventure and worth a try. I had found part-time work and volunteered in the local community hub, but Dave was ‘stuck on the farm.’ The off-grid opportunity that gave us somewhere to live and a barn to work from had become his cage. He was isloated and struggling to see a way forward.

“We can just sell everything” he continued, “Sell the horsebox, the truck, my bike, tools… and just go walking. We’d need a backpacking tent and some new kit but let’s just walk and see what happens.”

I had questions…

What about when the money runs out? What will we do for work? We can’t walk forever, so what then? And what about when it gets to winter?? Living on the farm over winter had been hard enough… I’d reached my limit and a back-packing tent was most certainly beyond it.

I wasn’t sold!!

However, there was still a niggly voice somewhere inside that said “could we?”

The pull towards freedom, leaving everything behind including our worries, escaping the system and the need to conform… could we just wander aimlessly and figure it all out as we go?? It’s not unheard of - many others have done the same… but could we?

Nope! Dave possibly could but I still needed a plan and at least an illusion of security.

That was a couple of years ago now…

The following spring, April 2025, we had stopped off at Rutland Water on our way back to Ely. We’d spent three weeks in Yorkshire house-sitting for a friend and we were in no hurry to return south. It was a beautiful spring day, sunny but not too hot, as we wandered the edges of the reservoir. We saw the ospreys and chatted to the guides, it was so peaceful… one of those days when you wish time could just stand still. Dave said “if we’d done what I suggested last year we’d be walking now.”

A lightbulb went off in my head…

“Maybe we can now - let’s walk home as a fundraiser for the pub.”

So that’s how the ‘Bimbling Home’ adventure began… 275 miles later and we’re back in Huddersfield. We haven’t raised the money we needed to secure premises but we’re still £3K closer to that goal and we’re not giving up. The positive support and encouragement we’ve received along this journey has demonstrated that our idea and business model works and our skills and experience can still be used for social good.

I kept a notebook through each day of the walk and shared some of the highlights on social media as we went along… but that really only scratches the surface of everything we’ve experienced over the past two months.

We’ve visited other CIC’s along the way, organised a mid-walk fundraising gig that was thrown together in 24 hours, slept in some interesting places and received donations through the crowdfunder from people who have only spoken to us for a few moments. We picked up some publicity and started getting recognised, had car horns pipping and people waving as they drove past… it’s been absolutely mind blowing.

I’m starting this publication to share in more depth some of the stories from our travels; the people we’ve met and conversations we’ve had; the acts of kindness we’ve received; the challenges we’ve overcome; the emotional highs and lows, the tears and the laughter…

It’s been really tough adjusting over the past couple of weeks and in many ways the walk feels like a distant memory already… or a surreal dream… so for our own sake too I want to preserve these precious memories before it’s too late.

I’m going to be offering these stories on a subscription basis, primarily as another means of raising some funds for the CIC. At just £5 per month I’m hoping this is accessible for everyone who may be interested, whilst also keeping me accountable!

Each month I will share at least one feature length article from our journey, along with extra photos, maps and some of my original notes - warts and all so there may be swear words included!

Subscribers also benefit from:

• Access to all previous articles so you can start from the beginning regardless of when you sign up.

• A subscriber only ‘chat’ feature so you can ask us questions or engage with other members of our community.

• Bonus videos, updates and exclusive content as/when I feel inspired!!

So if this sounds like something you’d like to see / read more of then please hit subscribe below to be notified when the next instalment becomes available.

Thank you for reading and I hope you’ve enjoyed this introductory post.

Until next time…

Jac.x