The Reservoir Tapes. Jon McGregor

walking poles. Vijay had a lot to say about hip alignment and cartilage impact. Graham’s point of view tended towards the fact that they weren’t in the ruddy Himalayas.

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      The walk that day was a butterfly safari, which was always popular. A full seventeen people turned up, including a party of Girl Guides and their leader. The forecast was good, and the weather when they set off from the visitor center was still and fair.

      The first part of the walk was straightforward enough, although as always there were those who struggled. The climb up the track towards Black Bull Rocks could be thought steepish if you weren’t used to it, and the Girl Guides were carrying a full set of camping gear each, for some reason. They swayed as they walked, with the weight. The chatter and giggles soon died down, and they were left with the tapping of Vijay’s walking poles. The ground was hard—it had been dry for weeks, after a month of heavy rains, which turned out to be relevant, later—and the dust kicked up around their boots.

      Graham took the opportunity to tell the group a little more about where they’d be walking and which species they might see. The heather beds they would pass were good feeding grounds for common blues and small coppers, and the knapweeds around the old mine workings were regular haunts for painted ladies. He told them a little about the industrial heritage: mines, quarries, the modern cement works. It’s important not to see this as any kind of unspoiled, “natural” environment, he said. There’s plenty of nature here, but there’s nothing natural about the landscape.

      As always, people’s attention started to drift.

      They came over the top of the hill and set out along the ridge, and the noise level rose again. The Girl Guides lagged behind quite early on, stooping under their heavy loads.