Biographical note

Since 2019 Martin has lived in the Eden Valley, Cumbria with his wife and four labradors. His lifelong love of the hills and mountains stems from childhood family holidays in South Wales, and developed further while at music college in Cardiff, when he spent much time in the Brecon Beacons in all seasons. He qualified as a Mountain Leader in 2001 in order to lead school groups in the high mountains of England and Wales, and also to run outdoor pursuits courses, usually in the Lake District, for his local ambulance service.   Sedbergh has featured in Martin’s life since 1988 as the base for school and adult residential trips, and a multinational youth summer camp he jointly led in 1999, which added a personal enthusiasm to his work on the Friends Way. Martin combines various musical interests – as an orchestral player, conductor, and organist – with being an active member of Kirkby Stephen Mountain Rescue Team.   After a long career in education, information technology and academic publishing, Jacquetta became interested in long-distance walking and trekking. After completing the West Highland Way, her first long walk, in 1998 she progressed to Mount Kilimanjaro, and set up Rucksack Readers to publish guidebooks that remain usable in wind and rain. She has written or coauthored some 26 books in the series. She is a member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild and has a special interest in pilgrimage walks.