Living Adventurously

Leigh and Neil Heseltine run a traditional hill farm in Malham in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. They breed pedigree Belted Galloway cattle and Swaledale sheep in 1100 acres of limestone scenery, grazing animals free to roam the wilds. They place an emphasis on leaving room for nature and Regenerative Agriculture. PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE LIVING ADVENTUROUSLY PODCAST (It’s completely free, zero...

Anna McNuff is an adventurer, author, Ambassador for Girl Guiding , and the co-founder of Adventure Queens ; the UK’s fastest growing women’s adventure community. In 2019, Anna ran 2,352 miles (the distance of 90 marathons) through Britain – completely barefoot.  Starting in the Shetland Islands and ending five months later in London, she weaved her way along rugged coastlines, through small villa...

Jo Moseley is @healthyhappy50. She is the first woman to SUP coast to coast across the UK. She describes herself as a Joy Encourager, Midlife Adventurer & Beach Cleaner. Somebody else called her 'a fruitbat on a glorified surfboard' much to Jo's delight! PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE LIVING ADVENTUROUSLY PODCAST (It’s completely free, zero hassle to do ( click here ), but really helpful for me tryin...

Matt Kettlewell was born and raised on a remote farm at the head of a long valley. There is no through road. Matt had travelled very little when he accidentally got a job that required him to move to Africa! Matt now leads groups on expeditions around the world.  We talked about growing up in a farming community, making a living from adventure, and motivational tattoos... PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE L...

Tom Orde-Powlett's family have lived in Bolton Castle for 800 years. The Bolton Estate plays an important role in managing and caring for the beautiful area of Wensleydale. Tom considers it his duty to hand things over to the next generation in a better condition than he inherited it. Tom served in the Army for 7 years and was awarded the Military Cross. These days he is a passionate conservationi...

Anna Ashfield describes herself as "a kind of can't-be-arsed girl (who is really a middle aged woman). If an opportunity to do something arises, I test it by thinking, "when I go to bed at night and the opportunity has passed, will I regret it?" Fear alone is not an excuse to say no. But, if I simply don't want to do it, that is the best reason of all to say no, not for me." Anna sent me an email...

Graham Wilson retired from the Police and is now on a mission to walk 120 marathons in 120 days (along with his dog, Tilly). The 120 marathons will cover 8 countries, 3 isles and cover a distance of 3180 miles - the equivalent of walking from Leeds to New York City. PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE LIVING ADVENTUROUSLY PODCAST (It’s completely free, zero hassle to do ( click here ), but really helpful for...

Diana Page was raised by her soldier Grandfather and hippy Father in an unconventional upbringing for a little girl in the seventies.  A childhood that necessitated teaching herself self-reliance skills led to a university post-graduate education in Criminal Psychology and teaching at college.  Three children later, Di gave up academia to raise her children alone and off-grid in a remote North Yor...

Mike Sowden is a curious writer and he is a fantastic person to share ideas and bounce thoughts around with. Mike  describes himself online as an archaeology student turned writer and story geek, as well as a travelling disaster... PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE LIVING ADVENTUROUSLY PODCAST (It’s completely free, zero hassle to do ( click here ), but really helpful for me trying to get a new podcast off...

Clare Nattress and Matty Waudby cycled round the world together. Clare is a PhD Candidate Arts Researcher & Lecturer and an artist. Matty is an adventurous creative with a love for bicycles, camping and the great outdoors. He aims to create inspirational imagery that documents human interaction with nature and to show that there is always more than we realise outside the front door. (Matty cre...

Charlotte Evans, at 20 years old, was the youngest person I interviewed on my ride around Yorkshire. She describes herself on Twitter as a Notts County supporter, singer/songwriter, geographer and occasional radio producer from up North currently studying at the University of Nottingham. I was interested to get a different perspective on things that I think I know well - the world of adventure, it...

'Yorkshire Rows' are four mums, friends, businesswomen who rowed 3000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean. The expedition resulted in an intriguing variety of outcomes: the same journey impacting on different personalities in very different ways. We talked about the perceived stigma of 'irresponsible mothers' swanning off on selfish adventures, about the struggle of life after huge adventures, and the...

David Oakes is an actor known for his role in "The Borgias" and Prince Ernest in the ITV show "Victoria". David also runs the Trees a Crowd podcast "for those curious about the world around us." Charm, good looks and talent are just some of the things that I do not share with David. But the point of this podcast is precisely this: to find people whose lives appear to be very different to my own, a...

Theresa Robertshaw helps the elderly get back on bicycles by taking them for rides on an adapted electric tricycle. The mission of Cycling Without Age is to create happiness among our fellow elderly citizens by providing them with an opportunity to remain an active part of society and the local community. They do that by giving them the right to wind in their hair, the right to experience the city...

Chris Goddard is the Yorkshire Map Maker. He has been exploring and mapping his local landscapes ever since he was a child, spurred on by curiosity and a love of being outdoors. Chris dedicates his passion for exploring the minutiae of the world to creating intricate, beautiful books about the woods and moors around his home.   He says, "My mother said I was born a good century too late and should...

Jamie Wardley is a professional sand artist who creates far more than the sand castles I joked about. In his own words, "I am a mixed bag with a dose of art, a sprinkle of theatre and an education in Environmental Sciences. I have always tried to do things that bring enjoyment, as I believe if you do, then there is a real chance you will be successful and fulfilled. All the details sort themselves...

Steve Bate has a condition that is slowly robbing him of his eyesight. He has now lost most of his vision, and because the condition is degenerative, Steve will go blind. He was devastated when he heard the optician tell him that he was going blind. Steve was working as an outdoor instructor at the time. It was 3 months before he began to find his way out of depression. By then, he worked out ther...

Brant Richards is the Co-Founder of HebTroCo which smashed Kickstarter funding targets and grew into a Made In Britain menswear brand from the ground up. With a career path started from rummaging in the garage, through writing in back bedrooms, editing and launching national magazines, to leading the design team for a leading global bike brand, Brant's CV is as intriguing and meandering as our con...

Rob Cowen is the award-winning author of Common Ground , selected as a ‘Book of the Year’ in the Times and featuring in the Guardian’s Top Ten Readers’ Choice.  After moving from London to a new home in Yorkshire, Rob found himself on unfamiliar territory, disoriented, hemmed in by winter and yearning for the nearest open space. So one night, he set out to find it – a pylon-slung edge-land, a tang...

Michaela Hanna has completed IronManUK, the Lakeland50 ultra mountain marathon, cycled from Edinburgh to London and across the Western Cape of South Africa. She therefore has personal experience of the significance of precise and relevant nutrition and places a high level of importance on the nutritional value of the food. Having spent time working in fine-dining restaurants, high-end event cateri...

Ben Dave ran a lap of Yorkshire because he needed a big challenge after running changed his life, helping him lose 30kg and stop smoking a couple of packets a day. Running also helped Ben with his mental health.  When he was feeling down and lonely, Ben could only think of going to the pub as an option. Therefore he set up the Early Bird Run Crew - a friendly, daily, early 5km run in his home town...

Boff Whalley, from the band Chumbawamba is a keen runner, never happier than when mud-splattered and gasping up on the windy hills of West Yorkshire. He is also a playwright, the founder of Commoners Choir, and the author of Run Wild - an account of his experiences as a fell runner. I arrived at Boff's house after a long day in the saddle. His family welcomed me and plied me with cups of tea and a...

Annie Berrington is the founder of Get Out More , a social enterprise working to help people engage with nature to feel better in mind and body. She is a qualified forest school practitioner, a busy mum, and a keen microadventurer. She works with urban groups who are "hard to reach", trying to help them get out into nature more. The biggest barriers aren't the actual dangers but people's fears abo...

Tim Frenneaux is a former martial arts instructor, nine to fiver and audio visual artist, turned ethical entrepreneur, microadventurer, climate activist and punk philosopher.  His redemption started when the brief and fragile nature of existence became painfully real as he hit the big 40 in the same month that his Dad died. Unhappy conjunctures like that are a great way of forcing you to focus on...

Imran Mughal was the first British-Pakistani to cycle round the world. Over a delicious curry cooked by his mum the proud Yorkshireman told me how going out to explore the world was not encouraged within the Pakistani community. But the decline in health of his dad was a wake-up call to Imran that good health is not a given, nor does it last for ever. That, combined with redundancy, spurred him in...