Walks of life

Measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic affect every area of life at home, at work and at leisure. But there is one simple pleasure we can all still enjoy… walking

- Paul Taylor and Valerica Codila

On the day the world changed, I was on top of a Cheshire hill, consulting a map, when a spry lady of a certain age jogged up and asked if I needed directions.

Before I could even answer, she jumped back like a scalded cat, suddenly remembering the new etiquette of social distancing, which meant we should be at least two metres apart. So here we were, the only two people in a vast landscape, standing gingerly apart lest a germ pass between us.

At that very moment, Boris Johnson was announcing a new world in which we should avoid pubs and theatres, work from home and stop all non-essential travel. Over-70s were advised to limit contact even with friends and family.

Perhaps that jogging lady and I already knew one good strategy to endure this new world: embrace the great outdoors.

Take the path less travelled, if and when it is advisable to do so, and you will not see another soul. Even Cheshire’s honeypot walking destinations are not so busy that you need to come within sneezing distance of a stranger. And, while the risk of infection is, I’ll wager, zero, the chances of getting fitter and feeling better are 100 per cent.