Day 5. Parkend to Longhope.
A day in the Forest. Tree rubbing talks of trees for timber. Tom carries a developing photographic negative on his back, using sunshine and a solution made from flowers picked during the walk to develop it into a print – photosynthesis.
Towards the end of the day we take the wrong route and add a couple of steep miles to our journey, ending up on the wrong side of a hill. Shadow drawing of the hill feels like a similar response to rubbing trees. Throughout the walk we talk a lot about the signage being inadequate in many instances, not really executed with the user in mind, more as a legal minimum. We talk about being lost and finding our way and the similarities with the creative process – just when do we retrace our footsteps as opposed to remaining outside of our comfort zone? We have developed a good process with regard to our walking, especially where maps and signage have been lacking. But we are not adverse to be lost as another word for it is exploring.
