Hill walks with time to talk

Pulenaz walks with friends at different paces

Pulenaz walks hills with friends who have different levels of fitness twice a month. On one outing, they choose a 4 km out-and-back with 150 m of ascent and allow two hours, including stops. They agree to regroup at a gate and at a viewpoint rather than letting the fastest walker set the pace for everyone.

The group talks on the gentler approach. On the steeper section conversation gives way to shorter exchanges, and the walkers wait together at the gate before continuing. At the viewpoint they spend time looking across the fields, then return the way they came. Pulenaz includes the pauses in the account, making the group’s decisions as visible as the view.

A 6 km loop with more climbing was another option, but the friends choose the out-and-back because they can turn around together earlier. Their choice accommodates the group on that day without requiring everyone to walk at identical speed.

On another walk two weeks later, the same group chooses a shorter 3 km route with 90 m of ascent. They stop together at a field edge and return after a picnic, keeping the same shared-pause approach on a different hill.

WildBeare lets the hillside set the pace

Claire, who posts as WildBeare, takes a separate 5 km hill walk with 220 m of ascent, allowing two and a half hours including three stops. She pauses at a wall to look back across the valley, stops again where the path opens onto the ridge, and takes a longer break at the high point before returning.

Her walk gives the landscape more of the running commentary than the group conversation in Pulenaz’s film.

Claire’s own site collects photos, videos and trip diaries searchable by season and weather, making it useful for finding more outdoor accounts in different conditions.

References: Claire / WildBeare

Two reasons to slow down

Pulenaz’s stops keep friends of different fitness together; Claire’s pauses let her look at the changing valley. The complete-route distance and ascent show what each outing involves, while the elapsed time includes the rests that give these accounts their unhurried character. Neither time is a speed ranking.

Sources and attribution

1. Claire / WildBeare

   WildBeare: Wild Camping, Adventures, Wild Swimming & BushcraftPublication date not listed · Recorded Oct 29, 2026