The Lost Paths Av Jack Cornish

<p><b>Discover the rich history of Britain''s millennia-old network of pathways, and it will be impossible to take an unremarkable walk again . . .</b><br><br><b>''A rallying cry to reclaim lost routes and preserve this precious resource for future generations'' </b><i>Walk Magazine</i><br>___________<br><br>Hundreds of thousands of miles of paths reach into, and connect, communities across England and Wales. But by 2026, 10,000 miles of undiscovered footpaths around Britain stand to be lost.<br><br>Jack Cornish has dedicated the last five years of his life to walking these forgotten routes. Now, in <i>The Lost Paths</i>, he will show you just how special these forgotten rights of way are, and how embedded each path is in the history of Britain.<br><br>Footpaths, tracks, country lanes and urban streets illuminate how our ancestors interacted with and shaped their landscapes in the pursuit of commerce, salvation, escape, war, and leisure. Paths are an often-overlooked part of our everyd

Discover the rich history of Britain''s millennia-old network of pathways, and it will be impossible to take an unremarkable walk again . . . ‘Marvellous. Cornish is the ideal companion on the road: interested in everything, learned, acute, and a splendid story-teller’ Charles Foster, author of Being a Beast ''A rallying cry to reclaim lost routes and preserve this precious resource for future generations'' Walk Magazine--- Hundreds of thousands of miles of paths reach into – and connect – communities across England and Wales. More than just a practical way for us to walk, ride and cycle, they are an inheritance from our past, revealing how our ancestors interacted with and shaped their surroundings. From Iron Age footsteps to Anglo-Saxon mercenary trails, through Railway Age tracks and Home Army defences, our land reveals a hidden history of us. But thousands of miles are still missing from our maps, and they will be lost forever unless they are urgently reclaimed. Fighting for these paths’ survival through his work with the Ramblers Association, Jack Cornish has spent years walking and recording these forgotten routes – those that have been lost, those that have been saved and those which remain hidden in plain sight. The Lost Paths is a history of the people who have used, and in some cases created, these walkways:The drovers who herded their sheep and cattle to marketThe wanderers who travelled between workhouses, seeking shelter and subsistenceThe miners who ventured deep underground along the Cornish coastThe wartime heroes who built up Britain’s defensive infrastructure This incredible ‘ordinary’ history of the land beneath our feet reminds us just how precious these paths are, and have been, to the human story of this island. This is a celebration of an ancient network and a rallying cry to reclaim what has been lost and preserve it for future generations.