Once there lived a storyteller. At the time of the Spring Equinox, she set off on foot to visit far away towns, using her storytelling skills to work with the inhabitants and create the story of their place. She would return home at the Autumn Equinox, bringing with her a harvest of Transition Tales.

Steph Bradley of the Transition Town Network has set out on a six month epic walk around England. Armed with a raincoat, a pair of flip flops, a laptop and a map, she will be telling and collecting stories of how different communities are creating a better future. During the long summer days she will travel through the South West, across to London, up to the Midlands, before heading to Yorkshire, on to the Scottish borders, returning south past the Welsh borders, down to Dartmoor, Cornwall and back home to Totnes in Devon.

Wherever possible, Steph is walking along the green lanes and byways that once used to connect our settlements. She will be guided by locals who know the most suitable route, or by using her map and compass. Making a statement that we are not as dependent on cars and other transport as we might think, she will be reconnecting the ancient network between the places she visits. People are invited to join her for a long or short stretch of the journey.

Walking every step of the way, Steph plans to stay with hosts from the Transition Town movement or other similar networks. They are asked to try and provide locally-sourced and seasonal food.

In return, Steph will be offering to work with community members to co-create their stories of transition towards a more sustainable, optimistic and resilient future than that which the present crisis of climate change and diminishing oil supplies appears to offer. She also hopes that her epic project will help to inspire others to become storytellers too, that more stories will be created, and Transition Tales will be told and retold across the country.

You can track Steph’s progress on her blog:
www​.transitionnetwork​.org/​b​l​o​g​s​/​s​t​e​p​h​-​b​r​a​d​ley

Storyteller Steph Bradley, walking the
Forest Way, just outside Forest Row, in
East Sussex. Photo: © Mike Grenville