paul
Tutor: bewerley park
If I had to go to a deserted island, I’d take…
…a Hilleberg tent, a water filter, and a Therma Rest sleeping mat.
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Dentist – but a work experience placement in a dental surgery showed me the full horror of tooth extraction… I decided working outdoors would be a better option!
What were your favourite subjects in school?
The sciences – biology, chemistry, and geology.
What is your favourite outdoor activity?
Rock climbing and mountaineering initially led me into a career teaching in the outdoor classroom, but now I spend a lot of my spare time sea kayaking off the west coast of Scotland. There have been magical encounters with otter, basking shark, dolphin, and whale…and wonderful sunsets whilst camping on remote islands.
Are there any outdoor activities that scare you?
As a child, I was terrified of heights. As a young adult, I wanted to discover if that fear could be overcome and so tried climbing. It is no exaggeration to say that my life was utterly changed by that first rock climb.
What is the next skill you would like to learn or challenge to set your sights on?
Maintaining my current skill set is a challenge, but I am always looking forward to the next big adventure. I have the guidebooks to both climbing and sea kayaking in the Lofoten Islands off the coast of Norway…
Which historical figure would you most like to meet?
Alexander the Great – to have conquered the “known world” when so young is impressive enough, but to have inspired his army to follow him from Greece to India – what a leader he must have been.
Where do you dream of visiting one day?
Dream big I say. Outer space.