OUTDOOR / TRAVEL FEATURE
Mary-Ann Ochota The Wild Life
The Wild Life was this year ’ s winner of the Outdoor / Travel Feature . Here Mary-Ann describes what inspired her to write the article
Sometimes it feels like the stars align for a feature commission – namely , where the things that I think might interest a reader really are the things that interest me . That I can write something candid and personal , and it will have value to others , too . This walk , along the length of the Trotternish Ridge on Skye was one of these star-aligned trips and I ’ m proud of the piece I wrote about it .
Jenna Maryniak at Trail Magazine had been immediately enthusiastic for the feature . I asked – did she want more of a focus on the geological uniqueness of the ridge , the personal journey ( it would be my first big walk after having my second child ), the ecology of degraded upland habitats , or a route guide on escaping the crowds on Skye ? Her helpful steer was , ‘ I may be greedy , but all of them , please ’.
So I wrote about the ridge , the route , our kit and the landscape . And I also wrote about not apologizing for being slow , about trying to stay active despite pelvic floor injury ( not something I usually talk to strangers about !), about rejecting society ’ s narrative that your body is about how it looks , not what it can do . These moments of honesty felt cathartic for me , and empowering . When the feature came out , I had the most heartfelt responses from readers – I ’ m grateful it meant something to them , too .
I hope , in tiny part , this kind of writing helps change the wider narrative : the outdoors isn ’ t about faster , further , conquering summits and ‘ sending ’. It ’ s about everybody , and every body .
16 outdoor focus / winter 2023