Have you ever walked along a path and wondered who has walked it before you, or how and why it was made? Roads, paths, and trackways are a very ancient feature of the landscape. Sometimes they are made deliberately, and sometimes they were created by thousands of feet following the shortest and driest route from one place to another.
This book explores ancient trackways from the Neolithic trackways to Roman roads, drove roads, crossroads, holloways, pilgrimage routes, green pathways, ley-lines, and the use of paths and roads for protest and performance. It gives examples of each type of road or path, folklore and stories relating to them, and how to connect with them and explore them.
I have always loved paths, from the green footpaths of rural England to long-distance hiking routes.
Yvonne Aburrow (they/them) has been a Pagan since 1985 and a Wiccan since 1991. They have an MA in Contemporary Religions and Spiritualities from Bath Spa University (UK), and moved to Cambridge, Ontario, Canada in May 2018. Their most recent books are Pagan Roots: Reclaiming concepts of the sacred; Changing Paths, All acts of love and pleasure: inclusive Wicca, Dark Mirror: the inner work of witchcraft, and The Night Journey: witchcraft as transformation. They blog at Dowsing for Divinity.
Praise for Ancient Trackways
“This book is a rucksack full of facts and observations on the ways less travelled. These liminal ways are treated as places in their own right, and not the mere distance between places. It also contains many suggested activities to take you beyond the page, and out to discover the old ways for yourself.”
~ Nick Hanks, author of Thresholds
Contents
The Ancient Trackways Playlist
Introduction
Chapter 1. The archaeology of roads
Chapter 2. Ancient trade routes
Chapter 3. Holloways
Chapter 4. Corpse roads
Chapter 5. Pilgrim routes
Chapter 6. A history of ley lines
Chapter 7. Indigenous tracks
Chapter 8. Walking as protest and performance
Chapter 9. Literary journeys
Chapter 10. People of the roads
Appendices
Coming soon!