I can never decide which I love more – spring or autumn. The return of colour to the landscape in May is truly uplifting; but the kaleidoscopic hues of October can be breathtaking.

In April, while much of the world was in strict lockdown, artists and writers in Cumbria were being invited to contribute to a book that would help document this unique period in history.

Since lockdown eased, the number of people walking in the countryside seems to have sky-rocketed. Strangely though, everyone’s flocking to the same places – honeypots such as Buttermere, Snowdon, the Jurassic Coast … 

“Sissy sticks!” I’d never heard this expression used to describe walking poles until I got chatting to a couple of walkers in the Lake District a few years ago. We were just …