The Salt Path - Raynor Winn

 

This book had been on my list for ages and I’m so glad I finally got round to it in September. The Salt Path tells the true story of Raynor and her husband of 32 years, Moth, who was diagnosed with a degenerative disease called CBD around the same time that the couple unfortunately lost their house after going bankrupt. Desperate to make the most of the time Moth had left, they decided to walk the 630-mile South West Coast Path from Somerset to Dorset -wild camping along the way.

With just a small tent, basic sleeping bags and minimal equipment in their backpacks, the couple set out on a journey they could not have predicted. Sleeping in fields, on beaches and in forests, they got by with only a couple of pounds in their pockets but lots of love in their hearts. This is such a beautiful, funny and heartwarming story which really makes you think about the value of life and how we spend our precious time.

Raynor’s narrative is witty and at times laugh-out-loud (particularly when she needs to go to the loo in the great outdoors - there’s always a bloody dog-walker!), and every test and tribulation along the way teaches the couple that their survival instincts and adaptability are better than they had ever thought. If nothing else, this book certainly makes you feel grateful for your warm bed and functioning radiator - when the couple are squeezed together in the windswept tent with numb fingers and toes, it makes you feel chilly just reading it!

Raynor's story also makes you realise the stark contrasts within society - on the one hand, the capacity for human kindness at times shines through, such as when the cafe-worker gives Raynor and Moth the warm pasties they crave so much but cannot afford. But it also makes you think about the negative and prejudiced attitudes towards homelessness which are sadly often ingrained within people. They are at times called 'tramps', shunned by people they meet when they tell their story, and certainly looked down upon by people in shops and establishments in case they are thieves. The - often unconscious - discrimination which people inflict on those who are different or less fortunate is really stark and poignantly portrayed by Raynor, and makes you think about your own behaviour towards people who are living on the streets and whether your small change or random act of kindness would really be that difficult to give.

 This is such a life-affirming story and at times so moving, and Raynor’s descriptions of the landscapes they traverse are just stunningly beautiful. I’ve spent time over the years in many of the places they visit, including Bude and Hartland Point, so it was lovely to read about recognisable places and now I really want to go back!