'The Biggest Book of Yes' and solo long-distance trekking with Zoe Langley-Wathen
In 2011, Zoe Langley-Wathen stepped out of her comfort zone and completed her first solo long-distance walk along the South West Coast Path. Zoe joined us to discuss resilience, outdoor medicine and facing fears in relation to her first challenge and subsequent outdoor adventures, as well as her contribution to the newly launched charitable project ‘The Biggest Book of Yes: 49 Adventure Stories’.
Zoe Langley-Wathen is an outdoor enthusiast, long-distance walker and writer who shares her experiences through her popular blog and website Head Right Out. She has hiked numerous national and international trails since the South West Coast Path in 2011 including the Camino Frances, the Pennine Way, the Wales Coast Path and Offa's Dyke Path.
In our latest live event, Zoe joined us from her narrowboat in Wales to share the newly published The Biggest Book of Yes: 49 Short Adventure Stories, a charitable project created by members of the YesTribe. The book is a collaboration between artists, writers and outdoor enthusiasts and launched on 1 August 2020. All profits go directly to the Teddington Trust to enable children with Xeroderma Pigmentosum (a rare skin disease that causes an allergic reaction to sunlight) to go on safe adventures.
In her chapter of the book, Zoe reflects on her experience solo-walking the South West Coast Path and the resilience she gained from the route. We explored this alongside the realities of trekking independently, the importance of community on the trail and whether the river crossings on the South West Coast Path were as fearful as Zoe expected. We also discussed how the outdoors boosts mental as well as physical health and how to take the next step out of our comfort zones.
