Wild Road Home

Outdoor enthusiast, cyclist and acclaimed travel writer Simon Parker was restless for a new adventure, but with a small baby his explorations needed to begin at home. He decided to cycle through all 15 of the UK’s national parks in the anniversary year of their founding, and this became a life-changing journey through a landscape, and nation, in flux.While each of the national parks offered beauty and surprises, all of them revealed the challenges of making space for nature on an overpopulated island. His days among the parks, from Exmoor to Northumberland, Highlands to Broads, could be idyllic or enraging. He explored wild and remote moors and mountain tops but also got stuck in over-populated lanes of holiday drivers. He developed an injury, walked where the bike wouldn’t go, accepted pints and campsite pitches, and talked to everyone he met. From campers, walkers, landowners, farmers, small business owners, commoners, pony lovers, deer hunters, newcomers, tourists, bird lovers and zip-wire fans – everyone is seeking something different from the hills, dales and waters of the UK. Yet all share the urge for space, fresh air, beauty and the humbled humanity it brings.This is a page-turning, revealing perspective on the British and the wild-ish landscapes they love.