Malham Cove
This post has been written by one of the members of the Environment Blog team. We wish to share some of our own experiences with nature to encourage you to get outside and explore your local environment. Please feel free to share your stories of connecting with nature in the comments section.
I spent much of my childhood in a typical English village between York and Harrogate.
Beyond it stretched the Vale of York, flat as a pancake beneath an enormous sky and not far from Marston Moor, site of one of the defining battles of the English Civil War.
The Vale’s fertile soils support cereals and other crops, leading it to be described as Yorkshire’s breadbasket. It is a reminder that the countryside is not simply somewhere to admire or visit. It is a working landscape, supporting food production, businesses and livelihoods. Farmers and land managers are central both to our food security and to the stewardship of much of England’s natural environment.
The landscape around our village was not dramatic in the conventional sense. But long walks with our border collie, Sam, along lanes, footpaths and field edges instilled a great appreciation of the countryside and nature of this country that has never left me.
We followed the meandering River Nidd, and sometimes swam in it during the summer, as it made its way towards the Ouse at Nun Monkton, with its large village green, grazed by free roaming cattle, and duck pond. We spoke to anglers along the banks and asked what they had caught: roach, dace, chub, barbel and perch. There was even a local legend about a canoeist losing part of a finger to a particularly formidable pike.
We explored local woodlands and natural ponds, where we saw the various stages of a frog’s life, from tadpole to hopping out of the pond.
Walking, cycling, exploring and being outdoors gave me exercise, freedom, curiosity and a sense of perspective. Although I wasn't consciously aware of connecting with nature, looking back the physical and mental benefits were clear.
Living and working landscapes
We were lucky to be close to two of our amazing National Parks – the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors – as well as other designated Protected Landscapes, including Nidderdale National Landscape, which includes the incredible geological formations of Brimham Rock.
Together, National Parks and National Landscapes cover around a quarter of England. In North Yorkshire, Protected Landscapes cover more than 47% of the county.
Heather in bloom on the North York Moors, near GoathlandMy first overnight stay with a friend away from home was at Grinton Lodge Youth Hostel, near Reeth in Swaledale, for a weekend of mountain biking.
Although nature spotting wasn’t the primary purpose of the stay – I was focused on pedalling up hills in the rain – just being there strengthened an appreciation of nature and the habitats around us.
Swaledale takes its name from the River Swale, which supports brown trout and Atlantic salmon that migrate upstream to spawn in gravel-bedded tributaries. The Dale is also home to otters and birds including dippers, grey wagtails, kingfishers, curlews and lapwings, as well as species-rich wildflower meadows.
The bones of the Dales would have been recognisable a thousand years ago – the sweeping valleys, limestone scars and tumbling rivers – but their appearance would have been different. There would have been more woodland and fewer of the stone walls, barns and enclosed fields that now seem almost as ancient as the hills.
The Dales are not an untouched wilderness. Much of what we think of as their timeless character is the product of centuries of farming and land management.
Appropriate grazing can help maintain some open habitats; hay meadows support pollinators; healthy soils sustain food production; and peatlands store carbon, hold water and provide habitats for specialist plants and wildlife.
These landscapes are also economically important. Farms, shops, accommodation, hospitality and outdoor businesses all depend, directly or indirectly, on the character and health of the countryside. Protecting nature and supporting prosperous rural communities are not opposing ambitions: each depends on the other.
A treasure for everyone
The government’s 30by30 Delivery Plan sets out how farmers, land managers, businesses, communities and government can work together to effectively conserve and manage 30% of England’s land for nature by 2030.
Protected Landscapes will be central to that work, but designation alone is not enough. Habitats must be healthy, connected and resilient – and people must be able to experience and value them.
Brimham Rocks, North YorkshireOur countryside is a national treasure. But it is also much more: a source of food and livelihoods, a home for wildlife, a store of carbon, a defence against floods and fires, and a place where people can breathe, move and find perspective.
I feel fortunate that these landscapes were part of my childhood. Those seemingly ordinary walks, bike rides and days beside the river helped shape who I am, and the connection they created has stayed with me throughout my life. Not everyone has the same opportunities to experience nature, which is why caring for the countryside must also mean helping more people feel that it belongs to them.
If we can do that, perhaps a child setting out today beside a river, across a field or through a local park will discover the same sense of freedom, wonder and belonging – and carry it with them for the rest of their life.
seen at 18:30, 4 September in Environment.