On this long weekend, the curtain-raiser on summer 2017, are you pining for the great outdoors? Are you stranded in the city, or stuck in interstate traffic, or, worse yet, trapped at work? Maybe what you need is a 10-mile walk in the British countryside, from Capel-y-Ffin to Hay-on-Wye.
That’s what BBC Radio is offering today for four hours, starting at 2:00 p.m. U.K. time (9:00 a.m. on the East Coast of the States). In “Sound Walk to Hay-on-Wye,” an “immersive, ‘slow radio’ experience of the British countryside,” host Horatio Clare hikes along the Welsh-English border, meditating on all that he sees. The BBC promotional copy notes:
His route takes him over a babbling stream near the chapel of Capel-y-Ffin, then through fields of bleating sheep and woodland rich in birdsong, (including a cuckoo) before climbing the steep hillside to the ridge. … He sees spectacular views of the craggy Brecon Beacons to the West, and the lush fields of Herefordshire to the East. On the high ridge there is much lark song, and an occasional whinny from wild ponies.
Wild ponies?! Man, could I use some wild ponies right now. Clare’s walk will be interspersed with the voices of local artists and writers musing on the landscape. You can listen to the program live on the BBC’s website through its four-hour runtime or catch up with an archived recording anytime after the show ends. Like all long walks in the wilderness, it should offer a mix of great beauty and inspirational boredom. Fill your water bottle and pack some gorp.
