The Gathering Place

Mary Colwell is an author, producer and campaigner for nature. She has written for The Guardian, BBC Wildlife, The Tablet, Country Life and many other publications. She has made TV and radio documentaries for the BBC Natural History Unit and has published four books: John Muir - The Scotsman Who Saved America's Wild Places, Curlew Moon, Beak, Tooth and Claw, and The Gathering Place, which was shortlisted for the 2024 Edward Stanford Travel Book of the Year.Mary has won a Sony Radio Academy Gold Award, the David Bellamy Award for her conservation work on curlews, the WWT Marsh Award for Conservation, the BTO Dilys Breese Medal for outstanding science communication and, in 2022, she was awarded the prestigious RSPB Medal. In 2020, she set up the charity Curlew Action. Mary also spearheaded the successful campaign to introduce a GCSE in England.

'Deeply poetic.' CAROLINE LUCAS MP'A masterpiece of storytelling.' NICK MAYHEW-SMITH'Mary Colwell is a candle of open-minded curiosity.' PATRICK LAURIE'An unforgettable story.' MICHAEL MCCARTHY'Inspiring.' JEREMY MYNOTT'Brave, tough and surprisingly funny.' ROGER MORGAN-GRENVILLE-Mary Colwell makes a 500-mile solo pilgrimage along the Camino Francés, winding through forests, mountains, farmland, industrial sprawls and places of worship, weaving her experiences of the Camino with natural history, spirituality and modern environmentalism.Pilgrims have always walked in times of upheaval, pitching themselves against weather, hunger, thirst and sometimes pain as they tread the paths their ancestors followed before them.In The Gathering Place, author, nature campaigner and veteran solo walker Mary Colwell undertakes a 500-mile pilgrimage along the Camino Francés in northern Spain at a unique moment in history - a time of pandemic, profound political change, and a climate and biodiversity emergency.In a typical year, more than 300,000 people walk this route or part of it, but in between lockdowns in 2020, Mary was virtually alone. The modern world weaves in and out of the Camino's worn trackway, providing a focus for contemplation and a place where memories and experiences can gather. There are times of intense spirituality, meetings with a demon slayer, strange goings-on and magical tales, and the constant backdrop of nature with all its complexity and wonder.In this delightful book, Mary's winter pilgrimage weaves a personal tale with a walk that millions have undertaken over the centuries. The Gathering Place is a beautiful, thoughtful and, at times, humorous journey of both body and soul.

Similar to the BBC 2 series Pilgrimage, Gathering Places considers pilgrimages from a multi-faith perspective, viewing them as a way of gathering people and sharing thoughts and ideas to promote and encourage tolerance for all faiths and cultures

PrologueChapter 1 - Wooden Staffs and MountainsChapter 2 - Moors and MythsChapter 3 - Witches and ForestsChapter 4 - To The StarsChapter 5 - The Kindness of StrangersChapter 6 - Wine and WonderChapter 7 - War and PeaceChapter 8 - The Unravelling RoadChapter 9 - Stones and SnowChapter 10 - UltreïaEpilogueAcknowledgementsReferences and Further ReadingIndex