A VOICE ON THE ROAD

By Cheryl Murfin There's a whole world in there. People as me how I "story find" while I'm walking? How do I write and walk at the same time? Or, even when I'm not walking to write, how do I start any piece of writing when I feel stuck or worried I won't get it right? First, let me tell you, while I am not a complete luddite, I am not a huge fan of technology (she says as she blogs from her self-built website, on her expensive computer). But some technologies are better than

By Cheryl Murfin Eildon Hills Photo by Tom Chisholm St. Cuthbert's rambles up, over, and through the Eildons, a cluster of three distinctive dome-shaped hills formed by volcanic activity around 350 million years ago, rising over the Scottish borderlands like sentinels. Of course, like any good, large natural landmark, they feature in the region's folklore. My favorite story is that of Thomas the Rhymer. After hearing the story for the first time about five years ago, I crane

By Cheryl Murfin Eccles Cairn (Photo by Andrew Curtis) On the fifth day of the walk, we climb over the wall that separates the Scottish side of the dirt path from the English side. Just beyond this point, a rounded knoll rises to the left, at the top a pile of rocks that you'd miss if you weren't looking. I am always looking for this pile, and I never skip pulling off to climb the steep hill and pause at the pile. Even if the skies are crying and my fellow walkers would rathe

By Cheryl Murfin Why do I start these long, long walks with the same two to three invitations, dispersed over the first two to three days of walking: Day one: See. Day two: Hear. Sometimes on day three: Smell. In the right circumstance: Taste And, always, there is the invitation to touch the world that exposes itself on a long walk—the peeling tree bark, the heart rock underfoot, the tall grasses, ferns, gate fences, and any socially amenable cattle. The reason is simple: to

By Fiona Ball Scotland, home of my ancestors, is where my wild heart lives. I had planned a trip into bloodlines, exploration, community and writing over a four month time frame, traveling from one end of Scotland to the other. When I came across a link to a walk and write retreat along St Cuthbert's Way(after googling Scotland and Writing), I felt goosebumps rise on my spine. Reading about the walk was like opening presents at Christmas. Setting my sights on the Holy Isle…..

By Cheryl Murfin These forests are a fairyland. If you've been following my walking writing adventures on this blog, you've been with me along St. Cuthbert's Way before, perhaps several times. I've taken five groups on this 70ish-mile pilgrimage between Melrose, Scotland, and Holy Island, England. By this fall's walk, even I was wondering if there was anything new for me to write about it. It was, of course, a silly question. There is always more to write on a road, no matte

Three ascents These walks are all about stories—the ones we bring in the backpacks of our hearts and the ones we discover on the trail....

The final day of hiking took us the nine-ish miles from Koguchi to Kumano Nachi Taisha , the last of the three grand shrines on this...

Misty mountains make for sweet haiku haiku noun hai·​ku ˈhī-(ˌ)kü  plural haiku or haikus Synonyms of haiku : an unrhymed verse form of...

The view the mile before the snake We ran into several critters on the Kumano Kodo, from bees to toads to birds to lizards to Japanese...

Jizo Bosatsu where mothers place their care of their children, alive or passed From Hongu, we moved on to Koguchi,   a small mountain...

Collage prompt: What does this art from Kumano walk say to you? Go, write. We took a day off from walking when we got to Hongu. In the...

Joe offers a prayer at Hongu Taisha On the fourth day of walking, we arrived at the back door of the grand shrine Kumano Hongu Taisha ,...

Behold the vending machine variety. Hot, cold, milky, straight, or other libations. Who wouldn't jump at a bottle called Pocari Sweat?...

The view from the dining room at Kiri-no-Sato Takahara Lodge I am not going in any order as I write about our Kumano Kodo journey. No,...

Shrine paintings It was a sixish mile trek from Takahara to Chikatsuyu , a village of about 450 people just east of the Gyubadoji...

A hidden cairn easily missed without slowing down, paying attention, making the walk itself the destination The walking on the first day...

A poet walks along the Kumano Kodo For those who make this walk, it soon becomes apparent that along the Kumano Kodo, the sacred road and...

The starting path Earlier this year, I headed to Japan with a group of writers to walk and write on the Kumano Kodo , a pilgrimage that...

The last day of any walk is marked by something akin to awe and anticipation of the joy of arriving, of resting, of having done the hard...