Map Writing

My family have never been precious about maps. In fact I grew up in a house with a bookshelf full of maps all covered in drawings and notes from my Dad’s rallying days. Most local walks were (and still are) done using maps with pencil and highlighter markings showing us welsh rally routes. Our European road maps have our holiday destinations highlighted with comments such as ‘nice beach here’, ‘good windsurfing’, ‘great restaurant’ and ‘expensive coffee.’ Maybe that is why all my OS maps are now folded beyond recognition, hole ridden and falling apart. People have been known to flinch at the permanent ink used, comments on landmarks and marked routes.

But I wouldn’t change any of them. Each map is a collection of memories, personalised with my experiences. A mud smeared pencil marked map is a relic from a journey, capable of evoking more memories than photographs. I’d rather buy a new map and end up with shelves full of archived expeditions, than rub away the traces of my journeys.