Podcast: Cameron McNeish and the Emotional Value of Wilderness Hiking

The sound quality of the podcast was flawless, very enjoyable for listening. Plus, Cameron's discussion adds an element of tradition to backcountry expeditions that is really refreshing. The challenge to preserve remote landscapes makes me appreciate the physical challenge of hiking even more. Thanks for your insight Cameron.

Great addition to the BPL podcast library!

I'm so happy to finally see ads.

It will be good for BPL and good for the members!

The sound quality of this one was really good, yes, but …

There will be another noticeable jump in sound quality sometime this spring as we migrate to a new media server.

Thanks for the feedback!

Many thanks to BPL for the interview with Cameron McNeish. I had heard of Mr. McNeish but didn't realize he has the soul of a Celtic poet. Though I'm as much of a gear freak as the next guy, it's good to be reminded of why we get out there in the first place. By the way, I'm also a big fan of the writers mentioned in the interview. Emerson, Thoreau, John Muir, Cactus Ed, and Colin Fletcher have all tapped into something timeless and universal. Here's something from another kindred spirit from a different time and place:

"The birds have vanished into the sky,
and now the last cloud drains away.

We sit together, the mountain and me,
until only the mountain remains."

Li Po (701-762)

translated by Sam Hamill

I think this is the best podcast BPL has done to date, both in terms of content and in terms of sound quality. The podcast with Andy Skurka on finishing the Great Western Loop was of particularly bad quality, and a few others. I've often wondered what the cause of this was (as I am a bit of an audiophile). This podcast was a great surprise. I really enjoyed it. BPL has remedied the poor audio quality, and interviewed a very interesting figure within the international hiking community. I hope there are more to come that are on par with this one!

Thanks for improving the sound quality. I have heard Cameron on other podcasts, and have enjoyed him there also. It's great that BPL has reached across the ocean to bring us more variety.

If you can find a patch of wild land, of old growth forest perhaps, you will likely experience what it is to be alive.

The North Fork of the Flathead River above Polebridge, MT has sections that can make you feel you are the first person on the earth. This is what I am speaking about.

The first time I stood in a remnant old growth Redwood grove, I felt I was standing in a cathedral.

Yeah. yep.

Hey, great discussion with Cameron! The "Ramblers" Association sounds like they have been very effective in Scotland. It's encouraging to know the political activism can fight the good fight and win occasionally. Yet, I think Cameron touched on a more valuable means of generating support for wilderness when he mentioned sacrificing a bit of our personal pleasure in order to "give back" to the wilderness. We should actively pursue bringing a "newbie" into a wild place at least once a year. You'd have to give up some personal solitude, but the long term payback (one more passionate lover of wilderness) would be the greatest return on investment I could imagine.

Each show in a podcast series should follow a prescribed format. All shows in a series should be similar in length. Try not to stray too far from the preplanned format, as listeners will come to expect it.