Peter Salwen About ten minutes up the southeast slope of Mt. Mansell, on Maine’s Mt. Desert Island, I dart off the trail and poke around among a scattering of fallen red pine saplings. When I find one with a fairly straight trunk, I carefully break off a six-foot section; a stray hunk of granite fromContinue reading “Essay: In praise of walking sticks”
Tag Archives: hiking
Journey and Holiday
This sort of wayfaring is addictive. The beautiful exhaustion at the end of a day’s walking is the perfect tonic for a solid sleep. To depart with only the essentials on your back is liberating.
Readings: Volume 1
The Order does not proselytise. We encourage people to navigate their own path to the divine art of walking. Throughout time, generations of enlightened souls have written about the joys of perambulation and journey. Anthologies have been compiled for charm and resonance. Part of the Order’s mission is to seek inspirational texts, historical and contemporary,Continue reading “Readings: Volume 1”
The Complete Walker
This essay by club member, Sam Larsen in 1961, is a lesson in aspiration. It’s a blueprint to the olde ways of bushwalking before our society was dumbed down by labour saving devices. He is gifting us the tried and tested techniques to thrive in the outdoors, gifting us some preparation dot points.
Hiking stick timber choices. An Australian (Victorian) perspective.
It’s easy to think that a hiking stick can be picked up from the forest floor and be an affable companion for you as you journey. It’s just a stick. Yet finding that straight branch with the right heft that gives that overwhelming feeling of connection is rare. Celebrate it if you find it. KeepContinue reading “Hiking stick timber choices. An Australian (Victorian) perspective.”
Personal Transformation through Long Distance walking
The Order is an enthusiastic proponent of distance walking. In the modern world it’s a hard sell to convince people to invest a day or days in a simple but long walking journey of which the fruits are mostly realised after the event and over time. This is a 2013 Australian study of long distanceContinue reading “Personal Transformation through Long Distance walking”
Why does a hiking stick make a great gift for a young person in your life?
Send a deliberate message to your loved ones with the gift of a hiking stick.
Essay: What can a really long walk in the Alps teach you about life, fear and laziness?
Jonathan Arian’s reflections on a long walk
The Journey Stick Project
The journey stick project is an initiative of the Order to promote journey and place. The first stick was dropped in June 2021 and is covering some territory under the custody of tumblr “rockyjhiker”. You can read more about the project at https://thejourneystick.tumblr.com/
Howto: Taking Care Of Your Feet
Your feet are your most basic means of transportation. But if you’re not someone who walks very far distances every day, you’ve probably given very little thought to the sensitive mechanisms of this “vehicle,” nor know much about how to keep them running smoothly when they’re really taxed.
