Walking the Deeside Way (again)

as well as an upcoming talk, the joy of learning filmmaking and an inspiring event I attended...

I’m often asked how many times I have walked the Deeside Way. The answer is that I’m not really sure. I’ve walked some of the sections hundreds of times, but following last weekend, I have now walked it in its entirety twice - once east to west, and now west to east too. It was a mixture of reacquainting myself with it all over again and also seeing it anew, not only from a different direction, but literally from a different perspective. Each time I walk it, I am a new version of me, with new knowledge, experiences, and ideas.

What was also different this time was that I was not alone, as I had often recently walked it for the purpose of writing the companion guide to it, but with friends and some of their family members. The group, most of who had never been on the route before, varied in age from 13 - 80, and all found their own joys in exploring the path over the 4 days and the 4 varying sections we encountered. I learned new things from my companions, particularly about plant species and foraging as we sampled the natural delights ripening around us thanks to the summer sun we were blessed with each day. Some of the group wild camped each night, fully immersing in the outdoors and the totality of the route, making the most of the sights, sounds and scents of summer. I took some clips of our moments from the adventure, and I am currently piecing them together into a film. I’m chatting more about experimenting with filmmaking further down this post.

I also made a reel for Instagram which captures some great memories from the trip. You can find it via my profile, with a thumbnail of two of my friends swimming in the Dee just beside the Cambus O’May bridge - a popular swim spot.

Swimming in the River Dee at Cambus O’May

We’re all planning when our next group walk will be, which I take as a good sign… Maybe Spring in Speyside?!

Life in motion - experimenting with filmmaking

I love creating all types of content, curating together images, words and voice, and films are something that have always captivated me. I’ve wanted to try out filmmaking for a long time but the right course never seemed to come up, until I read about Sarah Mason’s course. I love her work. It is very cinematic, with a lovely focus on people, feelings, creating atmosphere and telling stories of the everyday through film.

The course was 7 weeks long (online) and I found myself visiting my local castles week after week to take footage for trying out the coursework. Most of the participants produced a final short film clip to put into practise some of the techniques we had been learning, so mine is a bit of a love letter in film form to these castles (which both feature as additional walks in the book). I thought I’d share it here as it feels like a ‘safe space’ and we were encouraged to share our work. I’m continuing to shoot and play, and think ahead to future projects where I’d like to incorporate film as part of the content mix. Being a beginner is never easy, but we all have to start somewhere.

Thank you to Sarah and all of those on the course for making it such an enjoyable learning experience. You can find out more about Sarah’s work at sarahmasonphotography.co.uk.

Events - going to see Maggie O’Farrell and being asked to give a talk

Maggie O'Farrell in Conversation at The Lemon Tree in Aberdeen

I love it when there is something really exciting on in the Granite City. It’s nice not always having to travel to the central belt to see events or performances of those you admire. When I saw Waterstones in Aberdeen was promoting an event ‘In Conversation with Maggie O’Farrell’, and hosting it at The Lemon Tree venue due to the capacity for larger numbers, I booked my tickets there and then. I really respect and admire Maggie’s writing, and having also heard her on several podcasts (including her interview on How to Fail) - I knew I wanted to hear her in person. Writing is something I want to decide more of my time to, and found it really inspiring hearing about her writing habits, philosophy and superstitions! I also got her latest book, The Marriage Portrait as part of the event ticket, which was kindly signed.

That brings me to a little bit of news that I wanted to share. I was absolutely delighted (and a little shocked) to be asked to give an author talk in one of the libraries in Aberdeenshire. I will be talking at Portlethen Library on Thursday 26th August at 5.30pm. You can register for the talk here - Portlethen Library The Deeside Way Talk with Kelly Morrison | Live Life Aberdeenshire (spydus.co.uk)

I’ve been doing quite a few book deliveries to my regular stockists if you want to find out where you can buy it in person, or it is available from my website - kellymorrison.co.uk. I send a Hidden Scotland postcard out with each order.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a summer of adventure :)

Kelly